Mumbai: A 53-year-old Air India air hostess suffered grievous injuries after falling off a Delhi-bound aircraft before take-off at Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport Mumbai on Monday morning.
The air hostess, Harsha Lobo, has been admitted to privately-run Nanavati Hospital with multiple fractures. The incident took place early Monday morning on the Air India’s New Delhi-bound AI 864, the airline said, terming the incident as “unfortunate” and promising an inquiry. The air hostess was reportedly closing the door of the aircraft when she fell.
The airline said in a statement that the incident occurred when Ms Lobo was “closing the door of the aircraft”, adding that it was investigating why the flight was about to take off at about 7 am, around an hour after its scheduled departure time.
“In an unfortunate incident, one of our cabin crew (members), Harsha Lobo, fell down on the tarmac from the Boeing-777 aircraft door while closing it… She sustained injuries to her legs and has been taken to the hospital for further treatment,” the airline said in a statement.
The flight bound for Delhi and scheduled to depart at 7 am, finally departed at 8.30 am. Dr Rajendra Patankar, COO, Nanavati Hospital, said, “The patient is suffering from a right leg compound fracture, fracture in both heels and soft tissue injury in her chest, abdomen and lower spine. She also suffered from a sprain in the neck (cervical spine). She is receiving treated under the orthopaedics and traumatology departments.”
Asked if Ms Lobo was out of danger, he stated, “She is under observation. We can’t say whether she is out of danger or not yet.”
Three years ago, an Air India engineer was sucked into an aircraft’s engine at the Mumbai airport when the pilots started the engines prematurely after mistaking a signal. Last week, a Dubai-bound Air India Express flight, IX 611, struck a wall at the end of Trichy airport’s runway during take-off. It diverted to Mumbai and had flown with a ripped underbelly for four hours when it landed.
