Air India Express Boeing 737 made an emergency landing at Trivandrum International Airport (TRV), India, after suffering an in-flight hydraulic failure.

The incident occurred on February 19, 2021. Air India Boeing 737, registered as VT-AXX, was operating a regular flight from Sharjah (SHJ), the United Arab Emirates to Kozhikode (CCJ), India. The Boeing 737, which had 104 passengers on board, suffered a hydraulic failure and the flight crew made an instant decision to land at Trivandrum International Airport (TRV).

After the flight crew declared an emergency, the TRV airport authorities alerted the rescue and firefighter teams to observe the landing plane. According to Flightradar24.com data, the plane landed at 12.40 (UTC). 

Once the Boeing 737 landed and switched off its engines, the passengers were transported to the security hold area of the airport. Meanwhile, the jet has been parked in the remote bay for maintenance engineers to check.

Speaking to local media, C.V. Ravindran, the Director of Trivandrum airport, pointed out that the plane landed safely but “smoke was emanating from the rear left tire of the aircraft even while it was landing and moving through the runway to the remote bay”. 

The Director outlined that initially Cochin International Airport (COK) was considered for an emergency landing but after considerations, the TRV airport seemed to be a more appropriate option.

“It was a safe landing and the passengers are being taken care and food is being provided’’, Ravindran added.

The passengers were ferried from TRV airport to the final destination at Kozhikode airport a few hours later by another Air India Express jet. 

Fortunately, no injuries were reported.