• 777-300ER aircraft departing Zurich for
    Thai Airways
    IATA/ICAO Code:
    TG/THA
    Airline Type:
    Full Service Carrier
    Hub(s):
    Bangkok Suvarnabhumi Airport
    Year Founded:
    1960
    Alliance:
    Star Alliance
    CEO:
    Suvadhana Sibunruang
    Country:
    Thailand

Earlier this week, a Thai Airways Boeing 787 aircraft burst its tire while landing at Bengaluru International Airport in the Indian state of Karnataka. The incident occurred on Tuesday when the Dreamliner was completing its flight from Bangkok. Thankfully, none of the passengers and crew onboard or on the ground were injured.

Sequence of events

According to data from Flightradar24.com, Thai Airways flight TG325 took off from Bangkok’s Suvarnabhumi International Airport (BKK) at approximately 14:45 UTC. After an uneventful flight heading west towards the Indian subcontinent, the plane landed at Bengaluru’s Kempegowda International Airport’s (BLR) runway 09L at around 23:32 local time. 09L is BLR’s northernmost runway and spans just over 13,123 ft. (4,000 m) in length.

At some point during or after the landing, airport officials at BLR noticed one of the tires in the right main landing gear was rolling flat. Thanks to the vigilance of ground staff, the pilots of the Thai flight were immediately alerted of the incident. Shortly after, all passengers and crew were evacuated from the aircraft safely, and none were hurt.

Airplane silhouette
Photo: Getty Images

It is still unclear whether the tire had deflated upon landing or mid-air. Relevant Indian authorities are expected to investigate the matter thoroughly.

Simple Flying has reached out to Thai Airways and Bengaluru International Airport for comment. We will update the article with their response.

The aircraft in question

Thai Airways operates a daily service from Bangkok to Bengaluru using one of its Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner aircraft. The carrier owns six airframes of the type, outfitted in a two-class configuration with 256 seats, 234 of which are regular Economy seats, and the remaining 22 are business class. The aircraft involved in this incident is registered as HS-TQC, a seven-year-old Dreamliner that has been with Thai Airways since October 2014.

After completing its flight to Bengaluru late on Tuesday night, HS-TQC was scheduled to operate the return leg of the journey as flight TG326 just a few hours later at 00:30 local time. However, that flight was canceled as the aircraft couldn’t fly again before a thorough inspection for any potential damage. A Thai Airways team arrived at BLR on Wednesday with a spare tire to carry out the repair work.

According to the Times of India, approximately 140 passengers waiting at BLR to board flight TG326 were stranded due to the incident. Reportedly, accommodation wasn’t arranged until 05:00 by the airline, leaving many passengers angry at the airline’s service.

Thai Airways Taking off
Photo: Getty Images

Thai Airways sent an Airbus A350-900 to Bengaluru on Wednesday, and all affected passengers were rebooked on the returning flight, which left BLR at 00:30 on Thursday morning. Flight TG326 arrived safely at BKK at 22:26 UTC.

HS-TQC remained at Bengaluru International Airport until around 08:00 on Thursday morning before being ferried back to BKK. At the time of publishing, the aircraft is flying to Denpasar Airport (DPS) in Indonesia.

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What do you make of this incident on Thai Airways flight TG325? Have you ever experienced anything like it before? Please, let us know your thoughts in the comments.

Source: The Times of India