The heroes in SpiceJet fire case: Pilots Monika Khanna, Baljeet Bhatia

Both the pilot and co-pilot played crucial roles in the emergency landing with extreme patience and cool head

June 20, 2022

Director of the airline lauds pilot Khanna, Baljeet in SpiceJet fire mishap

SpiceJet pilot Monika Khanna and co-pilot Baljeet Singh Bhatia are hailed as heroes in the fire mishap that took place after the Delhi-bound SpiceJet flight carrying 185 passengers, 4 crew members, and 2 pilots suffered a bird hit soon after taking off from the Patna airport at 12.03 p.m. on Sunday.

Both the pilot and co-pilot played crucial roles in the emergency landing with extreme patience and a cool head.

The safe emergency landing of SpiceJet Flight (SG-723) at the Patna airport was possible due to the cool and calm efforts of both, Khanna and Bhatia. Both the pilots have emerged as heroes and the director of the airline lauded their efforts.

After the left engine was damaged, sensing trouble, the air hostess immediately used the code word ‘pan-pan‘ to inform pilots in the cockpit. In the meantime, the flight crossed Phulwari Sharif and was flying over the Khagaul locality in Danapur when five to six sparks in the left engine followed by smoke were noticed.

The plane reached a height of 2000 feet. The pilot immediately called ATC for the emergency landing. As the smoke was coming from the left side wing, the onlookers also informed the local police which further communicated to the ATC. Monika Khanna immediately switched off the left engine to control the plane and managed to land the plane safely at 12.23 pm.

Anchal Prakash, the director of Jay Prakash Narayan Patna airport said: “The left engine of the SpiceJet Flight SG-723 was damaged and caught fire due to bird hitting. The safe emergency landing was possible due to both pilots’ sensible and cool-headed approach. After the direction of DGCA, a probe is currently on and a technical team is inspecting the aircraft.”

Gurucharan Arora, flight director of SpiceJet said: “Both Monika Khanna and Baljeet Singh Bhatia are experienced pilots and they performed their duty very well and in the right manner. They did not panic and landed the plane safely.”

[With Inputs from IANS]

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