Owing to strong winds — travelling at 90 kmph — at the Indira Gandhi International Airport, an aircraft of an international airlines parked at Terminal 3 was displaced from its original position on Saturday.
While airport officials had claimed otherwise initially, sources later said the cockpit of the aircraft was damaged in the storm. The aircraft, however, was empty and no one was injured, officials said.
Airport sources told Newsline that an Ethiopian Airlines aircraft — ET APK — parked at remote bay no. 4 got displaced due to strong winds and hit a step ladder lying nearby. The incident was reported around 7 pm, a source said.
The official said, “There was no one inside or around the aircraft at the time of the incident. So no one was injured. The impact, however, left the cockpit damaged.” “This is the third time this month that the airport has faced problems due to adverse weather conditions. On May 8, winds at 95 kmph were recorded at the airport around 6.40 pm. Also, all thunderstorms so far have occurred between 5.30 pm and 11 pm,” Dr R K Jenamani, director in-charge at IGI Meteorological department, said.
Sources said Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) had been notified about the damage and an inquiry is being conducted.