Daijiworld Media Network - Lucknow

Lucknow, Oct 8: An IndiGo flight carrying 104 passengers from Patna to Lucknow was struck by lightning at an altitude of around 17,000 feet amid bad weather on Wednesday. The aircraft sustained damage to its nose, but all passengers and crew members were safely evacuated and no injuries were reported.

The incident involved IndiGo flight 6E925, which took off from Patna airport at around 3:10 pm and was scheduled to reach Lucknow at 4:20 pm. The aircraft landed safely at Lucknow airport at around 4:05 pm after being struck by lightning while approaching the airport.

The lightning damaged the front portion of the aircraft. The pilot managed the situation and safely landed the aircraft at Lucknow.

Following the landing, the aircraft was grounded for technical inspection. It was scheduled to operate IndiGo flight 6E6968 from Lucknow to Ahmedabad. The airline arranged a replacement aircraft, and the passengers departed for Ahmedabad at around 6:22 pm.

The incident comes months after another IndiGo aircraft was struck by lightning while parked at Kolkata airport during a thunderstorm on June 19. The flight, which was bound for Agartala, suffered damage to its power system. The airline deboarded 141 passengers and six crew members, who were later flown to Agartala on another aircraft. Two ground staff members were taken to hospital for medical check-ups and were later discharged.

Last month, another IndiGo flight from Guwahati to Bengaluru experienced abnormal runway contact during a second landing attempt at Kempegowda International Airport amid gusty weather. All passengers and crew members were reported safe. The aircraft was subsequently sent for maintenance checks and was to resume operations after obtaining the necessary clearances.