Air pressure mix-up causes mass bleeding on Indian flight
A cockpit mix-up left more than 30 passengers on an Indian plane bleeding from their ears and noses yesterday after the crew forgot to flick a switch regulating cabin air pressure.
The Boeing 737 aircraft belonged to private carrier Jet Airways and was on its way to Jaipur, capital of the western Indian state of Rajasthan, with 166 passengers on board, Xinhua reported.
"The 9W 697 Mumbai-Jaipur flight was turned back to Mumbai after take-off as, during the climb, crew forgot to select switch to maintain cabin pressure. This resulted in the oxygen masks dropping," said Lalit Gupta of the Directorate-General of Civil Aviation.
"Thirty out of 166 passengers experienced nose and ear bleeding, some also complained of headache."
The flight crew "has been taken off scheduled duties pending investigation", the company said in a statement.
People on board posted photos and videos of the incident online. Twitter user Darshak Hathi uploaded footage showing travellers using oxygen masks, reported AFP.
"Panic situation due to technical fault in @jetairways 9W 0697 going from Mumbai to Jaipur," he tweeted.
"Flt return back to Mumbai after 45 mts. All passengers are safe including me."
India's Ministry of Civil Aviation said in a tweet it had sought an "immediate report" from official agencies.
This is the latest in a string of embarrassing incidents for the airline, which like other Indian carriers has been suffering financially.
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