Alliance Air jet overshoots runway at Jabalpur airport

An Alliance Air flight from Delhi carrying 55 passengers overshot the runway by 10 meters while landing at the Jabalpur airport on Saturday afternoon, aviation regulator Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) officials said.

None of the 55 passengers or five crew members was injured, they said, adding the DGCA has started an investigation.

The incident also led to the suspension of operations at the Jabalpur (Dumna) airport till 1 pm on Sunday and cancellation of at least ten flights from there, the airport director said.

Alliance Air said it has de-rostered the pilots of the flight and initiated a probe into the matter.

DGCA officials said the Delhi-Jabalpur flight was operated using a 70-seater ATR-72 aircraft.

In a statement, Alliance Air said during the operation of Alliance Air flight 9I 617 from Delhi to Jabalpur on March 12, it shot off the runway by 10 meters.

'We are grateful that all passengers and crew onboard the flight are safe. Our first priority is to evacuate passengers without compromising their safety,' the airline's statement noted.

While we follow laid down policies and procedures as per the regulatory authorities and have strict checks in place -- both pre and post-flight operations -- to ensure complete safety of our passengers and crew, Alliance Air regrets the unfortunate incident, it mentioned.

'We have taken strict note of the incident and the cockpit crew has been de-rostered. A thorough investigation has been initiated,' it said.

'The findings of the same shall be shared with the regulatory authorities and we shall ensure that all required corrective actions are put in place,' it added.

The Alliance Air flight departed from Delhi at around 11.30 am and landed in Jabalpur in Madhya Pradesh around 1.15 PM.

The airport at Dumna, where the incident took place, is located around 21 km from Jabalpur city.

Airport Director Kusum Das told PTI that ten flights from Jabalpur, including one scheduled for Sunday morning, have been cancelled.

The cancelled flights were destined for Delhi, Mumbai and Indore, she said, adding that operation of the airport would remain suspended till 1 pm on Sunday.