Technical problem for flight from UAE to Kerala; emergency landing at Karipur airport

KOZHIKODE: Emergency landing for a flight from UAE to Kerala. An Air India Express flight which was coming from Dubai to Kozhikode made an emergency landing. The plane landed after a technical fault was found. The pilot then made an emergency landing as the landing gear became non-functional due to the aircraft's hydraulic problem. Airport authorities informed that all the passengers were released safely.

A special team is working at Karipur to avoid the disturbance from birds during the landing and take-off of planes. If the birds come close to the aircraft, the force of the working engine will pull the birds in and the engine will fail. This increases the possibility of accidents. A 25-member team is working at Karipur airport to address this concern. The team works 24 hours a day in three different shifts. The airport authority has fixed the salary of these employees on a contract basis.

These staff use reflective mirrors, firecrackers and noise to chase away the birds. Immediately before departure and landing of the aircraft, the runway and its surroundings will be monitored to ensure that there is no presence of birds. A plane that took off to Sharjah with 168 passengers on board in 2012 had made an emergency landing 15 minutes after a bird got stuck in the wing.