An Air India flight AI 2455 from Thiruvananthapuram to Delhi carrying senior political leaders, including Congress General Secretary K.C. Venugopal and four other MPs, was forced to make an emergency landing in Chennai late Sunday due to a suspected radar malfunction. The flight, which also had Tamil Nadu MP Robert Bruce onboard, encountered a tense situation as passengers reported an aborted landing attempt because another aircraft was on the runway. The ordeal lasted over an hour before the plane safely landed.

K.C. Venugopal described the experience as a “narrow escape from a major mishap” and confirmed that he informed the Director General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) about the radar issue. Fellow MP Adoor Prakash revealed that during the first landing attempt, the pilots had to immediately pull up the aircraft after spotting another plane on the runway. The crew then circled for nearly half an hour before safely touching down, earning praise from passengers for their professionalism in handling the crisis.

Sources said the technical glitch in the radar system prompted the diversion to Chennai, but the unexpected presence of another aircraft during the first landing attempt heightened the risk of a runway incursion. The DGCA is expected to investigate both the radar malfunction and the air traffic coordination lapse that led to the aborted landing. Airport authorities have yet to issue an official statement on the incident.