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Plane stuck in mud at Mumbai Airport finally removed
Authorities are probing why it took so long to remove a jet stuck in mud off Mumbai Airport’s main runway which caused a day of chaos for many air travellers.
A SpiceJet aircraft overshot the main runway and it took more than 24 hours to remove it after two failed attempts.
It only further impacted operations at Mumbai which has already seen dozens of cancelled and delayed flights due to the heaviest monsoon rains for decades.
During the rescue the airport opened a secondary runway, which kept flight operations going but at a much slower pace than usual.
Mumbai is one of the busiest single runway airports in the world.
Officials said at least 56 flights were diverted to other airports and more than 100 cancelled due to the combination of continuing heavy rain and the disabled runway.
The Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau will investigate the time it took to remove the Boeing 737 and the circumstances leading up to skidding off the tarmac.
Both pilots of the Varanasi to Mumbai flight have been temporarily grounded, however they were defended by their employer.
"Why did the airport allow planes to fly into Mumbai in such adverse weather?" an airline representative said.
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Editor for TravelMole North America and Asia pacific regions. Ray is a highly experienced (15+ years) skilled journalist and editor predominantly in travel, hospitality and lifestyle working with a huge number of major market-leading brands. He has also cover in-depth news, interviews and features in general business, finance, tech and geopolitical issues for a select few major news outlets and publishers.
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