Air India flies stranded passengers from Russia to US

An Air India plane has taken off with stranded passengers from a US-bound flight after its plane made an emergency landing in Russia.

The Delhi-San Francisco flight had 216 passengers and 16 crew on board when one of its engines caught a snag on Tuesday.

The plane was forced to land in Magadan in the Far East region of Russia.

On Wednesday, Air India said it had sent a ferry flight to Russia with food and other essential items for passengers.

The airline has been criticized by many for the poor accommodation and facilities provided to Magadan passengers.

On Wednesday morning, a Twitter user shared a video which he said was taken by one of the passengers. The footage shows passengers sleeping on mattresses on the floor, some in a single room, with their belongings next to them.

Air India said that due to “infrastructural limitations” around the airport, the passengers were put in a “makeshift accommodation” after efforts were made to shift them to local hotels.

“As we do not have any Air India staff based in the remote town of Magadan or in Russia, all ground support provided to passengers is the best possible in this unusual situation through our round-the-clock interaction- liaison with the Consulate General of India in Vladivostok, Indian ministry of external affairs, local ground handlers and Russian authorities,” the airline said in a statement.

On Tuesday, the airline said flight A1173 from Delhi to San Francisco made a “safe landing” in Russia after it “developed a technical issue with one of its engines”. The “aircraft is undergoing mandatory ground checks”, it added.

The United States said it was “closely monitoring the situation”.

Vedant Patel, State Department Deputy Spokesperson, told reporters “there are likely US citizens on board the flight” but he said he “could not confirm” their numbers.

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