Air India: Jet stranded in Russia returns to Mumbai after airline resolves engine issue

Air India will refund the fare and provide an additional voucher to everyone who was stranded in Magadan, Russia

An Air India jet that was stranded in the remote Russian town of Magadan since Tuesday has finally returned to Mumbai after the airline confirmed that the plane left the port town on Saturday morning after necessary engine repairs.

According to a statement issued by the airline, the aircraft landed in Mumbai at 8.16pm on 10 June, after flying for ten-and-a-half hours.

The aircraft which was flying from New Delhi to San Francisco on Tuesday, developed a technical glitch, which led to its diversion to Magadan.

The flight, which carried 216 passengers and 16 crew members, was stranded in the Russian town till Thursday morning, before a rescue flight sent by Air India took off to the intended destination, San Francisco, from Magadan.

According to local reports, Air India sent a specialised engineering crew to Magadan aboard the same relief flight on Thursday to solve the underlying issue.

“We can confirm that a defect in the oil system of one of the aircraft’s engines has been rectified by our engineering team that flew on a ferry flight to Magadan (GDX),” an Air India spokesperson said in a statement.

“The aircraft was checked on all safety parameters and certified serviceable before take-off from GDX today.”

In a previous statement, Air India revealed details of how the stranded passengers and crew members were being taken care of.

“As we do not have any Air India staff based in the remote town of Magadan or in Russia, all ground support was being provided to the passengers in the best possible in this unusual circumstance through our round-the-clock liaison with the Consulate General of India in Vladivostok, Ministry of External Affairs, local ground handlers, and the Russian authorities,” the airline said in a statement on Wednesday.

Air India has announced that it will refund the fare and provide an additional voucher to everyone who was stranded in Magadan for two days.

In an apology letter to the passengers, the airline wrote: “Please allow me to sincerely apologise, on behalf of Air India, for the extended delay in bringing you to San Francisco.

“As you are all too aware, the aircraft encountered a technical issue whereby the pilots received an indication of low oil pressure in one engine.

“Out of caution, they elected to land the aircraft at a nearby airport rather than continue the journey.”