SpiceJet has courted a controversy yet again. The carrier encountered a horrific scene mid-air when its cabin filled with smoke, choking passengers on board. Following which, it was forced to make a “full emergency” landing at Hyderabad airport on Wednesday night.

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Fresh visuals from inside the aircraft

Unable to curtail the crisis, the crew on board the flight from Goa to Hyderabad reportedly also told passengers to start praying. Now, a flyer has tweeted videos from inside the aircraft at the time the horrific incident was unfolding. Take a look.

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One Vivek Vishal took to Twitter and wrote, “Spicejet risks people’s life, we were choking for 25 mins and even oxygen masks didn’t deploy. Strict action should be taken against such a negligent airline.”

The visuals show a crew member making announcement in a high-pitched voice, instructing passengers to “bend down”. The flyers, on the other hand, can be seen with their heads bowed down and hands folded, like a praying position. 

Passengers’ horrific ordeal

“They (the crew members) told us to pray to God… pray for our families… It was mortifying. Many of my co-passengers panicked and started shrieking,” said another passenger identified as Srikanth M to Times of India.

Further, the IT professional claimed that the crew snatched his phone and forced him and other passengers to delete pictures and videos of the incident. “The airline staff forced us to delete videos and photos of the incident… they snatched my phone when I refused,” he said.

Another passenger named Anil P said that something went wrong in the bathroom. “Something happened in the washroom. We heard the crew talk in hushed tones. In another 20 minutes, there was smoke all around us. Soon, the lights came on and the crew asked us to stop talking, not to leave our seats,” he added.

Spicejet’s clarification

Already facing disciplinary action by the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) owing to safety incidents previously, the low-cost airline clarified the observance of smoke in the flight was due to the air conditioning system.

However, the airline spokesperson denied claims that its crew asked passengers to pray. The spokesperson also stated that the crew handled the situation calmly.

ANI

There were 86 people on board and SpiceJet informed that they had landed and deplaned safely, but one passenger sustained minor injuries on their feet while exiting the aircraft.

The incident unfolded after the pilot observed the smoke and alerted the air traffic controller (ATC), who in turn informed the ground staff.

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