Will fly only snag-free planes, says Pilots’ Union

NEW DELHI: Technical trouble grounded an Air India plane and forced another to make a priority landing here on Wednesday, prompting a pilots’ union to warn that its members would henceforth operate only a completely snag-free aircraft.

Pilots of Pune-bound flight AI-849, which was ready for take-off with 122 people on board, found during routine checks that the flight management and guidance systems were faulty and the auto-pilot was non-functional, airport sources said.

The pilots, Commander Captain Jalaj Vats and co-pilot Captain Amit Tyagi, refused to fly the faulty Airbus A-320 plane and informed the airline officials, who asked them to change the aircraft. After a delay of about two-and-a-half hours, they got a similar aircraft that had just returned from a major check.