Kanpur: A rodent on a flight created sufficient chaos and confusion to delay its departure from the Chakeri Airport in Kanpur by nearly three hours on Sunday.
The IndiGo flight landed at Kanpur from Delhi without any event and was preparing to return when the trouble started. Some passengers spotted a rat scurrying around inside the aircraft and raised the alarm. Cabin crew members also saw the animal and immediately de-boarded all 140 passengers from the 189-seater aircraft. The passengers were shifted to the airport lounge on grounds of safety.
What followed was a search for the rat that lasted nearly one-and-a-half hours. Chakeri Airport director Sanjay Kumar confirmed that the flight was not allowed to depart until the rat had been found and the aircraft declared safe.
“The airline’s technical and ground staff immediately launched a full-scale search. Even after the rat was sedated and captured, the wiring and other equipment had to be checked,” an official said.
The flight that was scheduled to depart at 2.55 pm finally took off at 6.03 pm. It reached Delhi at 7.16 pm, a full three hours and six minutes behind schedule.
Indigo confirmed that a rodent was sighted in the plane, and fumigation was conducted to clear the aircraft of any mosquitoes, flies, rodents, and other pests. The passengers had to be deboarded for this.
Kumar said that the aircraft finally departed with 111 passengers. The remaining 29 either cancelled their tickets or altered their travel plans.
Officials said that safety protocols required the aircraft to remain grounded until the issue was resolved. “Passenger safety comes first. A flight cannot take off with a rodent inside. It can cause sufficient damage to,” one of them said.
