Air India emergency landing: Delhi-Mumbai flight returns due to engine glitch, govt orders probe

A Mumbai-bound Air India flight returned to Delhi on Monday, December 22, and made an emergency landing after a technical glitch was reported. Meanwhile, the government has ordered DGCA to probe the matter.

"AI887 from Delhi to Mumbai on 22 December, after take-off, returned to Delhi due to a technical issue, as per standard operating procedure," Air India Spokesperson said, as per news agency ANI.

"The aircraft landed safely at Delhi, and the passengers and crew disembarked," the spokesperson added.

However, News18 reported that the engine of the aircraft witnessed the glitch due to which the flight had to return. Meanwhile, according to a report by Times Now, the issue was a "serious glitch".

The airline later clarified that the emergency landing was made due to a technical issue, without detailing the type of glitch that affected the flight.

"The crew operating flight AI887 from Delhi to Mumbai on 22 December decided to return to Delhi shortly after take-off due to a technical issue as per standard operating procedure. The aircraft landed safely at Delhi and the passengers and crew have disembarked," the airline said in a statement.

"Air India sincerely regrets inconvenience caused due to this unforeseen situation. The aircraft is undergoing the necessary checks. Our ground team at Delhi is providing immediate assistance to the passengers and alternative arrangements have been made to fly them to their destination shortly," it added.

Incident draws govt attention

The incident has drawn the attention of the Ministry of Civil Aviation and the Directorate General of Civil Aviation, with the authorities ordering checks to determine the cause of the incident.

"The Ministry of Civil Aviation has taken note of the Air India flight AI-887 incident involving a technical issue shortly after take-off. The aircraft landed safely. The Ministry has sought a detailed report from Air India, and DGCA has been directed to conduct a thorough investigation," the ministry said in a statement on X (formerly Twitter).

"The airline has been directed to extend all assistance to passengers and accommodate them on subsequent flights. Passenger safety remains paramount," it added.

In an update, the DGCA said, "On 22.12.2025 Air India B777-300ER aircraft VT-ALS operating flight AIC 887 (Delhi-Mumbai) was involved in Airturnback as during flap retraction after take-off, the flight crew observed low engine oil pressure on Engine No. 2 (Right-Hand engine)."

"Shortly thereafter, the engine oil pressure dropped to zero. Following the procedure crew shutdown the No.2 engine and aircraft landed safely at Delhi," it added.

The regulatory body further stated that inspection or rectification is in progress and the incident would be investigated by the Permanent investigation board of the Airline under the supervision of Director Air Safety(NR), DGCA.

A London-bound Air India flight had crashed in Ahmedabad shortly after taking off on June 12, killing 260 people.