NEW DELHI: An Air India flight from Hong Kong to New Delhi experienced a fire in its tail section shortly after landing at Indira Gandhi International Airport on Tuesday afternoon, according to airport officials. The incident, which occurred around 12:30 p.m., involved Flight AI 315, an Airbus A321 that had departed Hong Kong International Airport at 8:59 p.m. local time on Monday and arrived at Delhi’s Terminal 3 at 12:31 p.m.
The fire originated in the aircraft’s Auxiliary Power Unit (APU), a backup power system located in the tail cone. An airport official reported that smoke was observed emanating from the APU exhaust, a small opening on the tail’s exterior. The APU automatically shut down as designed, and the fire was extinguished, Air India stated. Passengers and crew had already begun disembarking when the incident occurred, and all were safely evacuated with no injuries reported. The aircraft sustained some damage and has been grounded for further investigation, with the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) notified.
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A senior airport official raised concerns about a potential breach of aviation safety protocols, noting that Air India allegedly failed to inform Air Traffic Control (ATC) about the fire. Under standard procedures, airlines are required to notify ATC immediately, enabling the airport’s control center and fire safety teams to respond promptly. In this case, neither ATC nor the Delhi International Airport Limited (DIAL) Safety Unit was alerted, according to the official. Air India has not yet responded to these allegations.
The incident adds to recent scrutiny of Air India’s safety record, following other reported issues on Monday, including a Kolkata-bound flight that aborted takeoff due to a technical snag and another flight from Kochi that veered off the runway in Mumbai. The aircraft remains under inspection as authorities investigate the cause of the APU fire.