AirAsia flight makes an emergency landing in Chandigarh after pilot sends hijack alert by mistake

The AirAsia flight enroute Srinagar from Delhi was diverted to Chandigarh on Sunday when the pilot sent a hijack alert accidentally to the Air Traffic Control (ATC).

The flight I5-715 departed from the Indira Gandhi International Airport in New Delhi at 6.30 am. After around 30 minutes into flight time, the pilot noticed a technical glitch in the engine and ended up pressing the hijack code by mistake. However, security agencies were alerted by then and the standard operating procedure commenced. 

The Airbus A320 aircraft, which had 175 passengers and six crew members on board, made an emergency landing in Chandigarh at 7.35 am. However, the passengers were later boarded in another plane and were flown to Srinagar. 

In a statement issued after the incident, AirAsia said:

“The flight encountered a technical problem en route. The crew took all necessary actions and the flight had to be diverted to Chandigarh. We are working with regulatory bodies to assist with the investigation of this incident.”

The statement further added:

“The flight from Chandigarh to Srinagar departed at 4.40 pm the same day. We reiterate that we place safety and security foremost in all aspects of operations and apologise for the inconvenience caused,”

Earlier on 26th May, an AirAsia flight was cordoned off by Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) after Bengaluru Airport received a threat call. The flight I5 588 took off from Bagdogra with 179 passengers on board. The airline said it received the call from an unknown person at Bengaluru airport.