New Delhi, March 20 An Air India Boeing 777-200 LR aircraft, bound for Vancouver, returned to the national capital on Thursday evening after being airborne for over seven hours, according to sources. The aircraft had been cleared for the flight, but it was later found that the plane was not approved for operating the flight.
The situation resulted from an apparent lapse in updating the list of requirements for operating flights to Canada, where the wrong aircraft was deployed for the particular service, sources said.
In a statement on Friday, Air India said the aircraft had landed safely at the Delhi airport.
The flight, operated by a Boeing 777-200 LR aircraft (VT-AEI), was airborne for over seven hours. According to information available on the Flightradar24.com website, the plane turned back to Delhi when it was in Chinese airspace.
"Air India flight AI185, operating from Delhi to Vancouver on March 19, returned to Delhi due to an operational issue and in line with established standard operating procedures. The aircraft landed safely, and all passengers and crew had disembarked," the airline said in a statement.
Sources said that the flight should have been operated only with a Boeing 777-300 ER aircraft, and there was no approval for flying the Boeing 777-200 LR plane.
There are various approvals required for operating flights to foreign destinations, and these depend on each country.
Meanwhile, Air India also said that the flight departed for Vancouver with the passengers on Friday morning.