Oman flight's engine fails, makes emergency landing

Mumbai: An Oman Air flight to Muscat, which took off from Mumbai Wednesday, was forced to return to Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport after one of its engines failed. A full emergency was declared at 4.42 pm, about 16 minutes after the flight’s departure.

The plane landed safely at Mumbai airport around 5 pm. The Oman Air WY204, an Airbus A330-343 aircraft, was scheduled to land in Muscat at 5.30pm Wednesday.

Around 205 passengers were on board and so far, there have been no reports of any injuries.

Heavy rain in Mumbai has strained flight operations in the city, with departures delayed and many arriving flights diverted. The main runway of the Mumbai airport has been shut since Monday night when a Spice Jet aircraft overshot while landing, shortly before midnight.

A secondary runway has been made operational but flights are delayed. The main runway is expected to be operational by Thursday as a 150-metre ramp is being prepared to help move the plane.

The Mumbai airport operator has obtained NOTAM (notice to airmen) till midnight for the main runway, where Air India engineers and technicians are working to remove the Boeing 737-800 aircraft that skidded Monday night. The NOTAM is given to pilots to include information on potential hazards on a flight route.