Hit by bird, GoAir plane’s engine catches fire during take-off at Ahmedabad airport

The right
engine of a Bengaluru-bound GoAir flight caught a “small” fire after
a bird hit it at the Ahmedabad airport during take-off on Tuesday morning,
which has been doused, the airline said.

All the
passengers and crew members on board GoAir flight G8 802 have been deplaned
safely, a GoAir Spokesperson said in a statement.

The number
of persons on board, however, could not be immediately known.

“The
right engine of GoAir flight G8 802 from Ahmedabad to Bengaluru is suspected to
have suffered from a foreign object damage (FOD) while on take-off roll. The
suspected FOD resulted in a small fire which has been doused,” the
statement said.

“The
damage has been confirmed due to a bird hit. The aircraft is now being inspected
by the GoAir engineering team” said sources.  All passengers and crew are safe and no
emergency evacuation was deemed necessary, it said.

An alternate
aircraft has been arranged to accommodate the passengers, the spokesperson
said, adding the revised departure from Ahmedabad is scheduled at 1:30 pm due
to the closure of the Bengaluru airport runway till 3:00 pm.

The airline
sincerely regrets any inconvenience caused to its passengers, GoAir said.