Air India Express plane from Abu Dhabi to Calicut caught fire at an altitude of 1000 feet, carrying 184 passengers

New Delhi: An Air India Express flight to Calicut returned to Abu Dhabi airport in the early hours today due to engine failure. Quoting preliminary reports, a Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) official said a fire was noticed in the engine of the aircraft during take-off. An Air India Express spokesperson said that there were a total of 184 passengers on board the Boeing 737-800 aircraft and all of them are safe.

One of the engines of the aircraft had failed, the source said. According to a DGCA official, the flight from Abu Dhabi to Calicut was diverted midway after engine number one caught fire at an altitude of around 1,000 feet.