New Delhi: An flight travelling from Bengaluru to Bhubaneswar made an emergency landing at after adverse weather conditions prevented the aircraft from landing safely at its original destination. Flight QP 1503, operated using a Boeing 737 MAX 8 aircraft, was carrying 194 passengers and crew members when the pilot decided to divert the flight as weather conditions over Bhubaneswar reportedly became unsafe for landing operations. The sudden diversion led to emergency procedures being activated at Lucknow airport late on Wednesday night.

According to initial reports, the aircraft had declared a “PAN PAN” alert with Air Traffic Control after fuel levels dropped during the diversion process. The pilot reportedly requested priority landing clearance and informed authorities that the aircraft needed a clear single-attempt approach because of fuel limitations. Following the alert, Air Traffic Control immediately declared a full emergency and standard safety response systems were activated at the airport. Crash fire tenders and emergency rescue teams were deployed along the runway within minutes as a precautionary measure to ensure passenger safety in case of any complication during landing.

Despite the tense situation, the aircraft landed safely on runway 09 at Lucknow International Airport without any incident. Airport officials later confirmed that all emergency procedures were handled smoothly and no passenger or crew member was harmed during the operation. Akasa Air later clarified that the diversion was purely due to unfavourable weather conditions in Bhubaneswar and stated that all safety and operational protocols were followed according to aviation standards. The airline added that the flight later resumed its journey from Lucknow and landed safely in Bhubaneswar shortly after midnight, while apologising to passengers for the inconvenience caused due to circumstances beyond their control.