New Delhi: An IndiGo flight, piloted by former Union minister and BJP MP Rajiv Pratap Rudy, encountered severe weather and turbulence near Patna on Wednesday evening and had to be diverted to Lucknow.
Flight (6E-6497), carrying 181 passengers and six crew members, was on its way from Delhi to Patna. Rajiv Mishra was Rudy’s co-pilot.
The MP from Bihar’s Saran, reportedly made multiple attempts to land in Patna but aborted them due to unsafe weather conditions. The flight was initially considered for diversion to Varanasi, but after operational clearance could not be secured, the aircraft finally landed in Lucknow, Hindustan Times reported.
The aircraft landed safely at Lucknow airport around 11 pm on
Wednesday and three passengers were offloaded. The flight left for Patna at 12.30 am on Thursday.
“There was bad weather as we were approaching Patna and suddenly we experienced unexpected turbulence. However, we rely on advanced instruments, powerful radars and constant communication between pilots regarding weather conditions. It was a situation where a decision had to be taken in a fraction of a second,” Rudy told Hindustan Times.
“Our nearest airport was Varanasi, but since it was shut, we diverted to Lucknow where we had a safe and smooth landing,” he said.
“After landing in Lucknow, I said ‘now you all can clap as we have landed safely’. Everyone was happy. We started for Patna once the weather improved at 12.30 am and landed at Patna at 2 am. I was happy to see everyone smiling,” the MP said.
Rudy also urged the passengers to remain calm as they were in “safe hands”. He also praised the cabin crew for handling the situation professionally.
The MP is a commercial pilot. He flies for IndiGo from time to time to log the number of flying hours required to renew his licence.