Air India sends Ferry flight to Magadan for taking stranded passengers to San Francisco

A ferry flight left Mumbai and is expected to arrive at Russia's Magadan around 6.30 am on Thursday, will air-lift stranded Indian passengers to San Francisco, Air India said in a statement.

This is in response to an Air India flight, headed to San Francisco from New Delhi, which was diverted to Magadan on Tuesday after a technical issue with one of its engines.

To facilitate quicker updates to those concerned about the well-being of the stranded passengers at Magadan, Air India also opened a dedicated, round-the-clock hotline number.

Further, in its statement, AI said, "Our ferry flight AI195 from Mumbai (BOM) to Magadan, Russia (GDX) is now airborne, and is expected to arrive at GDX at 0630 Hours (local time) on June 8, 2023."

The ferry flight is carrying essentials in addition to a sufficient amount of food to cater to all passengers.

The aircraft operating the ferry flight will take all passengers and crew to San Francisco on June 8, 2023.

The flight with 216 passengers and 16 crew was diverted to Magadan, Russia (GDX) where it landed safely.

Earlier, Air India said in a statement it was in touch with the authorities at Magadan airport, which extended all necessary cooperation and support to the passengers upon the flight's touchdown in the Russian city.