Bird hit of AI flight closes Guwahati airport

Kolkata, Feb 7 (UNI) Guwahati airport had to be closed for about two hours this afternoon after an Air India flight hit a bird while landing and then got stranded on the runway, aviation sources here said.

No plane could land or takeoff from the airport from 1200 hrs to 1352 hrs after the incident.

An airlines spokesman said here that the Airbus-320 of flight IC-229 with 82 passengers made an emergency but safe landing after the avian hit. The plane developed hydraulic problems on the runway and had to be towed away to clear the runway.

The aircraft was grounded.

Air traffic control sources here stated that a Sahara flight from Delhi to Guwahati was diverted to Kolkata while a Kingfisher Deccan Kolkata-Guwahati flight returned here because of the temporary closure of the airport.

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