An Air India Express flight bound for Phuket returned to Hyderabad shortly after takeoff on Saturday morning. Operated by a Boeing 737 Max 8 (VT-BWA), flight IX110 had departed Rajiv Gandhi International Airport at 6:40 AM—20 minutes behind schedule—and was expected to land in Phuket at 11:45 AM. However, the flight turned back mid-air for undisclosed reasons. Neither airline nor airport authorities have issued a statement yet.
The incident comes amid a series of technical issues plaguing Indian carriers in recent weeks. On Thursday, an IndiGo flight from Delhi to Imphal also returned shortly after takeoff due to a “minor technical snag.” The flight resumed after checks and landed in Imphal nearly 4.5 hours late.
Similarly, another IndiGo flight to Goa suffered an engine failure mid-air and was diverted to Mumbai. In past weeks, a Leh-bound IndiGo flight, an Aeroflot Bangkok-Moscow flight, and a Jeddah-Delhi flight were all forced to return or make emergency landings due to various technical problems.