Mumbai: A Paris-bound Air France plane with 212 people on board was forced to return to the airport here in the wee hours today, barely 27 minutes after take-off, due to engine dysfunction.
The aircraft landed normally and all passengers were safe, the airline said even as a foreign object was found in the engine during the checks. However, AirFrance claimed that the object had nothing to do with the "engine dysfunction" which forced the plane to return.
"Air France confirms that flight AF 217 from Mumbai to Paris' Charles de Gaulle (CDG) returned to Mumbai after approximately 30 minutes flight time. After having detected an engine dysfunction, the crew took the decision to return to Mumbai airport to reduce the power of one of the engines," Air France said in statement from Paris.
While technical checks will be performed on the aircraft (Airbus 330-200), Air France has despatched a larger AF218 aircraft to operate the return flight tomorrow, the statement said.
11/03/13 PTI/Business Standard
