Lightning hits IndiGo flight, damages jet's nose; plane lands safely in Lucknow

An IndiGo flight carrying 104 passengers was struck by lightning at around 17,000 feet while flying from Patna to Lucknow amid bad weather on Wednesday. The strike damaged the aircraft’s nose and prompted an emergency landing at Lucknow airport. All passengers were safely evacuated and no injuries were reported.The aircraft, operating as IndiGo flight 6E925, took off from Patna airport at 3:10 pm and was scheduled to arrive in Lucknow at 4:20 pm. It landed safely at Lucknow at around 4:05 pm following the lightning strike.The lightning damaged the front portion of the aircraft while it was approaching Lucknow. The pilot managed the situation and safely brought the aircraft to the airport.PASSENGERS MOVED TO ANOTHER FLIGHTFollowing the landing, the aircraft was grounded at Lucknow airport because of the technical issue caused by the lightning strike. The same aircraft was scheduled to operate IndiGo flight 6E6968 from Lucknow to Ahmedabad. The airline arranged another aircraft for the passengers. All 104 passengers subsequently departed for Ahmedabad at around 6:22 pm on the replacement flight.Meanwhile, a team of engineers is examining the aircraft to assess the damage caused by the lightning strike.ANOTHER INDIGO FLIGHT HIT BY LIGHTNING The incident comes months after another IndiGo aircraft was struck by lightning while parked at Kolkata airport during a thunderstorm on June 19.That aircraft was bound for Agartala when it was hit by lightning, affecting its power system. The airline deboarded 141 passengers and six crew members following the incident, and the passengers were later flown to Agartala on another aircraft.Two ground staff members were also taken to hospital for a medical check-up after the June incident. They were later discharged.The latest incident in Lucknow ended without casualties, with all 104 passengers safely evacuated after the aircraft landed.- Ends