A Qatar Airways Airbus A350-900 airplane had to make an emergency landing on Monday after pilots received a smoke indication warning. The flight was operating on the Delhi-Doha sector but had to be diverted to Pakistan due to the nature of the warning. Thankfully, everyone onboard was safe, and a replacement aircraft was arranged to carry the stranded passengers to Doha.
About the flight
Qatar Airways flight QR-579 is a regular service between Delhi and Doha with a scheduled departure of 3:40 am local time. The airline uses an Airbus A350-900 aircraft for this flight. On Monday, the plane took off almost half an hour late at 4:13 am.
The aircraft in question is registered A7-ALZ and carries a oneworld livery. Flight tracking app Flightradar24 shows that the A350 reached its cruising altitude of 40,000 ft just shy of the India-Pakistan border and maintained that level for approximately one hour before starting its descent about 160NM northwest of the Pakistani port city of Karachi.
As reported, the crew received a cargo smoke indication and declared an emergency. The aircraft was then seen turning south towards Karachi, where it made a safe landing about half an hour later.
Smoke in the cargo section
The airplane stopped on the runway, and passengers were quickly evacuated and transported to the terminal. Qatar Airways issued a statement, saying,
“Qatar Airways flight QR579 from Delhi to Doha on March 21 diverted to Karachi having declared an emergency due to the indication of smoke detected in the cargo hold. The aircraft landed safely at Karachi where it was met by emergency services and passengers disembarked orderly via stairs.”
Images circulating on social media showed burnt items in a cargo container, with one video showing smoke coming out of the aircraft's partially opened cargo door. The Economic Times quotes Saifur Rehman, the spokesperson of Pakistan’s Civil Aviation Authority, as saying,
"The pilot requested to make an emergency landing and the control tower and CAA personnel responded immediately given the nature of the problem.”
The incident is currently under investigation by the CAA.
Runway affected
The runway had to be closed for almost 2.5 hours while emergency officers assessed the situation. Some flights, including SriLankan Airlines’ Colombo-Karachi flight UL-183, had to wait before getting clearance to land.
Meanwhile, some passengers at the terminal trying to contact family members complained about not being given complimentary WiFi services, according to a report by Moneycontrol. Later, India’s aviation minister Jyotiraditya Scindia tweeted an update about the situation, including passengers receiving refreshments.
Qatar Airways later informed that a relief flight (another A350-900, A7-ALK) was arranged, which carried the stranded passengers to Doha, landing a little after 4 pm local time.
Have you ever experienced a diverted flight due to an emergency? What do you make of this incident? Do share your comments below.