Plane carrying Hajj pilgrims from Saudi Arabia diverted in Indonesia following bomb threat
A plane carrying hundreds of hajj pilgrims back from Saudi Arabia was diverted in Indonesia on Tuesday after an email bomb threat was sent to authorities, Indonesia's aviation body said.
The Directorate General of Civil Aviation said it received a report from Indonesia's airport operator "regarding a bomb threat sent by an unidentified person via electronic mail".
The email at 07:30 am (0030 GMT) contained a threat to "blow up" Saudia Airlines flight SV 5276 which was flying from the Saudi city of Jeddah to the Indonesian capital Jakarta, it said in a statement.
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Business Standard
8 hours ago
- Business Standard
Air India cancels, delays global flights amid safety inspections, audits
Several of Air India's international flights faced cancellations or delays on Tuesday, primarily due to its B787 aircraft undergoing mandatory safety inspections ordered by India's aviation regulator in the wake of last week's deadly crash of flight AI171 in Ahmedabad. However, operational stress was compounded by weather-related disruptions, airspace restrictions and crew duty-time limitations, all of which added further strain to the airline's widebody network. The crash, which killed 241 passengers and crew and at least 24 people on the ground last Thursday, prompted the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) to mandate an immediate 'enhanced safety inspection' of Air India's entire Boeing 787 Dreamliner fleet, comprising 34 aircraft. Though the bulk of these inspections were completed by Tuesday, their impact continued to reverberate across the airline's operations. 'It's not that every cancellation is due to the safety inspections, but there's no denying that the fleet-wide checks have strained availability and turnaround times,' a senior Air India official said. On Tuesday, Air India cancelled flight AI143 from Delhi to Paris after its pre-flight checks identified an issue. 'The mandatory pre-flight checks identified an issue which is being presently addressed. However, in view of the flight coming under the restrictions on night operations at Paris Charles de Gaulle (CDG) airport, the said flight has been cancelled,' the airline said. The return flight from Paris to Delhi on 18 June was also cancelled as a result. Flight AI159 from Ahmedabad to London Gatwick was cancelled due to longer-than-usual turnaround times. In a separate statement, the airline clarified: 'Flight AI159 from Ahmedabad to Gatwick has been cancelled today due to the unavailability of the aircraft, resulting from airspace restrictions and additional precautionary checks, and not due to any technical snag as claimed.' Air India added that it had arranged alternative travel, hotel stays and full refunds or rescheduling for passengers. Other affected services on Tuesday included cancellations of AI153 (Delhi–Vienna), AI133 (Bengaluru–London) and AI915 (Delhi–Dubai). AI145 (Goa–London) faced a delay of over 90 minutes, while AI148 (Paris–Delhi) and AI2026 (Frankfurt–Delhi) were delayed by about two hours each. The Sydney–Delhi flight (AI301) departed more than two and a half hours behind schedule. Domestically, flight AI424 from Ahmedabad to Delhi was delayed by over five hours. The ripple effect has extended to scheduled services for Wednesday, with AI169 (Amritsar–London Gatwick), AI151 (Delhi–Zurich) and AI308 (Delhi–Melbourne) all cancelled. According to another Air India official, the inspection process itself was taking time. 'If the checks find anything even slightly off, rectification has to happen then and there, and that takes additional time,' the person said. Further complications arose when such delays caused flight crews to exceed Flight Duty Time Limitations (FDTL), which are a set of mandatory limits on how many hours pilots and cabin crew can be on duty or fly within a given period, designed to ensure they are adequately rested. If a crew runs out of FDTL hours, the flight must be delayed or cancelled unless a replacement crew is available. Unfavourable weather in several parts of the country, including Delhi, as well as ongoing airspace restrictions over Pakistan and parts of the Middle East amid the Israel–Iran conflict, further narrowed operational flexibility on Tuesday. Air India did not issue an official statement to Business Standard on this matter.
Indian Express
9 hours ago
- Indian Express
Several Boeing 787-operated Air India flights cancelled on Tuesday amid DGCA-mandated enhanced technical checks
Various Boeing 787-operated flights of Air India were cancelled Tuesday as the enhanced safety inspections mandated by the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) led to delays and non-availability of aircraft in most cases, according to sources in the know. As per flight tracking data, at least nine Air India flights that were to be operated using the Boeing 787 aircraft have been cancelled so far on Tuesday. These include AI-143 (Delhi-Paris), AI-159 (Ahmedabad-London Gatwick), AI-915 (Delhi-Dubai), AI-153 (Delhi-Vienna), and AI-133 (Bengaluru-London). In most of these cases, as the flight from India was cancelled, it led to the cancellation of the return leg that was to be operated by the same aircraft. The number may rise further and in some cases, spill over to Wednesday. Following the tragic crash of an Air India Boeing 787-8 aircraft in Ahmedabad on Thursday, the DGCA had directed the airline to carry out additional maintenance inspections on all 33 of its 787s. The aircraft was operating a flight between Ahmedabad and London Gatwick and had 242 people on board. All but one of those on board perished in the crash. There were several casualties on the ground as well. The enhanced checks ordered by the DGCA include a one-time pre-departure check of aircraft systems and parameters including fuel parameters monitoring and associated system, cabin air compressor and associated systems, electronic engine control system, engine fuel-driven actuator and oil system, hydraulic system serviceability, and take-off parameters. Additionally, flight control inspection was to be introduced in transit inspection till further notice. Power assurance checks were also mandated. On Saturday, Air India had announced that the checks were being performed, and informed passengers that some of these could 'lead to higher turnaround time and potential delays on certain long-haul routes, especially those to airports with operating curfews'. On Tuesday, the carrier's Delhi-Paris flight (AI-143) was cancelled because the 'mandatory pre-flight checks identified an issue'. While the issue was 'being addressed', given that the Paris airport has a night curfew—restrictions on operations at night—the airline had to cancel the flight, Air India said. Consequently, the return flight AI-142 from Paris to Delhi was also cancelled. On the cancellation of flight AI-159 from Ahmedabad to Gatwick, an Air India spokesperson said that it was cancelled 'due to the unavailability of the aircraft, resulting from airspace restrictions (in West Asia) and additional precautionary checks, leading to longer than usual turnaround of aircraft'. There was speculation that the flight was cancelled due to a technical snag with the aircraft, but Air India denied that. Consequently, flight AI-170 from London Gatwick to Amritsar was also cancelled as the same aircraft was to operate this flight. Similarly, Delhi-Dubai flight (AI-915) and the return flight (AI-916) were cancelled, and so were the Bengaluru-London flight (AI-133) and its return leg (AI-132). In these cases, too, the aircraft that were to operate these flights were not available due to delays or being deployed on other sectors amid the fleet-wide enhanced checks, per sources. Air India's Delhi-Vienna flight (AI-153) was also cancelled. In addition to these 787-operated flights, the airline's Mumbai-San Francisco flight (AI-179) — operated by a Boeing 777 aircraft — was also cancelled as the plane that had to operate the flight was unavailable due to technical issues. It had developed a snag during a technical halt at the Kolkata airport during its previous flight from San Francisco to Mumbai. Sukalp Sharma is a Senior Assistant Editor with The Indian Express and writes on a host of subjects and sectors, notably energy and aviation. He has over 13 years of experience in journalism with a body of work spanning areas like politics, development, equity markets, corporates, trade, and economic policy. He considers himself an above-average photographer, which goes well with his love for travel. ... Read More
News18
10 hours ago
- News18
Indonesia's Volcano Spews Massive Ash Tower 10,000 Metres Above Summit, Alert Issued
Last Updated: Mount Lewotobi Laki-Laki, a 1,584-metre-high twin-peaked volcano on the tourist island of Flores, erupted on Tuesday, spewing a massive ash cloud. A volcano in eastern Indonesia spewed a massive ash tower – nearly 10,000 metres above the summit – into the sky on Tuesday, according to Indonesian authorities. An alert was issued as Mount Lewotobi Laki-Laki, a 1,584-metre-high twin-peaked volcano on the tourist island of Flores, erupted at 5:35 pm (local time), the volcanology agency said in a statement. 'The height of the eruption column was observed at approximately 10,000 metres above the summit," it said. There were no immediate reports of any casualties or damage as the alert level was raised to the highest of the four-tiered system. 'The ash column was observed to be grey with thick intensity," said the agency. — Volcaholic 🌋 (@volcaholic1) June 17, 2025 The eruption led to the emergency evacuation of hundreds of residents as the volcanology agency warned of possible lava flows, according to Newsweek. It was not clear if any flights had been affected yet. 'The public and tourists are urged not to carry out activities within a radius of 6 km from the eruption centre, and to remain calm and follow directions from the local government. The public is also asked not to trust information whose source is not clear," said the volcanology department. Geology agency head Muhammad Wafid said residents and tourists should avoid carrying out any activities within at least seven kilometres of the volcano's crater. He warned of the possibility of hazardous 'lahar' floods, a type of mud or debris flow of volcanic materials, if heavy rain occurs. In November, Mount Lewotobi Laki-Laki erupted multiple times, killing nine people and forcing thousands to evacuate, as well as the cancellation of scores of international flights to Bali. Laki-Laki, which means man in Indonesian, is twinned with the calmer but taller 1,703-metre (5,587-foot) volcano named Perempuan. (with agency inputs) First Published: June 17, 2025, 18:53 IST
