Air India Flight 127

Air India Flight 127

VT-EVJ, the aircraft involved, seen at Heathrow Airport on 18 October 2004
Incident
Date	30 June 2005 (2005-06-30)
Summary	Runway overrun due to hydroplaning
Site	Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport, Bombay now (Mumbai), India
Aircraft
Aircraft type	Boeing 747-4B5
Aircraft name	Fatehpur Sikri
Operator	Air India
Call sign	AIRINDIA 127
Registration	VT-EVJ
Flight origin	HAL Airport, Bangalore, India
1st stopover	Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport, Mumbai, India
2nd stopover	Frankfurt Airport, Frankfurt, Germany
Destination	O'Hare International Airport, Chicago, United States
Occupants	335
Passengers	315
Crew	20
Fatalities	0
Injuries	0
Survivors	335

Air India Flight 127 was a scheduled passenger flight from HAL Airport, Bangalore to O'Hare International Airport, Chicago, with stops at Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport, Mumbai and Frankfurt Airport, Frankfurt. On 30 July 2005, the flight, operated by a Boeing 747-400, skidded while landing at Mumbai early in the morning. There were no fatalities in the aftermath of the incident among the passengers and crew. The cause of the skidding was hydroplaning after landing on a wet runway, which happened due to heavy rains that also were responsible for heavy flooding four days before the incident. ^{[1] [2] [3]}

Background

Further information: Maharashtra floods of 2005

On 26 July 2005, heavy rains contributed to flood across Mumbai and the state of Maharashtra, bringing the entire city and state to a standstill. ^[4] Then Chief Minister Vilasrao Deshmukh declared public holiday for 2 days due to the situation. The heavy floods caused airport disruptions as the flood water entered the runways and taxiways, which caused shutting down and cancellation of several flights. The airport resumed operations on 28 July 2005, once water levels receded and once the runway equipment was operational. ^[5]

Aircraft

The aircraft involved was a Boeing 747-4B5, registered as VT-EVJ with serial number 24199. It was manufactured by Boeing Commercial Airplanes in 1989.^{[ citation needed ]}

Incident

Flight 127 was a regular scheduled flight between Bangalore (now Bengaluru) to Chicago with stopovers at Mumbai and Frankfurt. On 30 July 2005, the flight departed from Bangalore at 5:25 AM IST, with a delay of more than two hours due to weather conditions. The aircraft was carrying 315 passengers and 20 crew members. The takeoff and the flight to Mumbai were uneventful.

At 6:55 AM IST, the aircraft was cleared to land at Mumbai airport, and it landed at runway 14/32, as main runway 09/27 was not available due to unavailability of navigational aids for runway 09/27 and unusable ILS. However, as the plane touched down, the wet runway caused the aircraft to hydroplane, and it caused the aircraft to lose control. The nosewheel landing gear hit some of the runway lights at the end of the runway before getting stuck in the slushy ground at the end of runway 32. There were no fatalities among the passengers and crew but the plane was immobilized as it was stuck in the slushy area after the runway pavement and could not move despite the efforts of the flight crew. ^{[6] [7]}

Aftermath

Following the runway excursion, emergency crews rushed to the plane to evacuate and rescue the passengers and crew, who were taken to the Terminal 2. The damage to the runway lights meant that runway 14/32 was kept out of service. The main runway 09/27 was subsequently used. ^[8] As a result of the incident, several inbound flights were diverted to different airports. ^[9]

An alternative Boeing 747-400 was arranged for the next legs of the flight, with 408 passengers and crew, as some passengers boarded from Mumbai. The Mumbai-Frankfurt leg of the flight took off at 12:05 PM IST, after a delay of more than 4 hours. ^[10] The aircraft involved in the incident later returned to service after repairs and testing. It was returned to Korean Air in March 2006 at the end of it's lease.

The aircraft was taken to the maintenance hangar by Air India maintenance crew to assess the damage after the landing. Following the incident, Civil Aviation Minister Praful Patel commented that the pilots did not apply full brakes to avoid skidding on the wet runway. Although the flight crew estimated that the plane would come to a stop before the end of the runway, they did so, but the nosewheel went out of the runway by a few feet, which hit and damaged the runway lights. Patel however stated that the runway 14/32 was safe for operations despite being short in length for large aircraft when compared to runway 09/27 which was longer. ^[11]

As of September 2024, Air India continues to use flight number 127, but the route has been changed from Delhi to Chicago O'Hare using a Boeing 777-300ER. ^[12]

See also

• American Airlines Flight 1420
• Southwest Airlines Flight 1455
• Southwest Airlines Flight 1248
• Air France Flight 358
• Air India Express Flight 1344
• Caribbean Airlines Flight 523

References

1. "AI plane skids off runway". Hindustan Times. PTI. 30 July 2005. Retrieved 23 January 2024.
2. "VT-EVJ at BOM".
3. "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 24 July 2008. Retrieved 17 July 2009.
4. "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 24 July 2008. Retrieved 17 July 2009.
5. "Mumbai airport becomes operational after two days". Rediff.com. PTI. 28 July 2005. Retrieved 23 March 2012.
6. "Air India B747-400 skids off Mumbai runway". 30 July 2005.
7. "AI Boeing Skids On Mumbai Runway, Airport Closed".
8. "AI plane skids off runway". Hindustan Times. PTI. 30 July 2005. Retrieved 23 January 2024.
9. "AI Boeing Skids On Mumbai Runway, Airport Closed".
10. "Air India B747-400 skids off Mumbai runway". 30 July 2005.
11. "A-I pilot did not brake hard: Patel". Rediff.com. PTI. 30 July 2005. Retrieved 23 January 2024.
12. "AI 127 Flight Radar 24".