'PAN PAN' call mid air: How IndiGo's turbulence-hit plane landed safely in Srinagar

At one point during the flight, DGCA stated that the plane entered a steep and rapid descent of 8,500 feet per minute.

Passengers of an IndiGo flight from New Delhi to Srinagar experienced ordeal after the aircraft was caught in severe turbulence amid heavy hail and dust storm on Wednesday. 

Delhi-Srinagar IndiGo flight that hit turbulence mid-air due to inclement weather, prompting the pilot to report the "emergency" to air traffic control at Srinagar(PTI)

Due to the massive storm that struck Delhi-NCR on Wednesday, the IndiGo flight encountered extreme turbulence and also suffered external damage.

With the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) launching a probe into the matter, here's a look at what went down in the domestic flight.

IndiGo Delhi to Srinagar turbulence case | What we know

 

• Turbulence: The flight, en-route to Srinagar, suffered extreme turbulence after it got caught up in an extreme hailstorm on Wednesday night. The plane encountered the extreme weather near Pathankot in Punjab.
• Pak airspace request denied: Due to the severe weather, the IndiGo flight requested to enter Pakistani airspace to avoid turbulence and the storm. However, both the Indian Air Force's Northern Control and Lahore Air Traffic Control denied the request, according to the DGCA statement cited in a PTI news agency report. Pakistani airspace for Indian flights has been shut due to deteriorating relations between India and Pakistan. 
• What DGCA said: “As per crew statement, they requested Northern control (IAF) for deviation towards left (International Border) due to weather on the route, however, it was not approved,” PTI quoted the DGCA statement. "Later, the crew contacted Lahore to enter into their airspace to avoid the weather but the same was refused too," DGCA added. 
• IAF confirms Pak denied airspace, say sources: On Friday evening, the Indian Air Force confirmed on Friday that Pakistan denied permission for the turbulence-hit IndiGo flight 6E 214 to use its airspace on Wednesday evening, reported news agency ANI, citing sources. IAF also assisted the IndiGo flight to safely land at Srinagar airport by giving control vectors and groundspeed readouts, according to the IAF sources.
• Pilots decide to go towards Srinagar: Following this rejection, the pilots were considered returning to Delhi's IGI airport. However, since the flight was already close to the storm clouds, the pilots decided to carry on towards Srinagar, as per the report.
• Flight enters storm: With this decision, the pilots entered the storm, where they faced severe hail impact and extreme turbulence. Critical systems on the flight started to flag warnings as panic spread among the over 220 passengers.
• Rapid descent: At one point during the flight, DGCA stated that the plane entered a steep and rapid descent of 8,500 feet per minute.
• ‘PAN PAN’ call: “Crew flew the aircraft manually till they exited the hailstorm. After carrying out all check list actions (ECAM actions), crew declared PAN PAN (urgency call) to Srinagar ATC and requested for RADAR vectors and made a safe landing with auto thrust operating normally. There was no injury to any of the passengers on-board the flight. Post-flight walk-around revealed damage to the Nose radome," read the statement issued by the DGCA.