A routine Thiruvananthapuram-to-Delhi journey turned into a tense experience for passengers on Air India flight AI 2455 on Sunday, according to Congress leader and MP KC Venugopal. The lawmaker claimed the aircraft narrowly avoided a potential disaster during its diversion to Chennai, alleging that another plane was on the runway as they attempted to land.

Venugopal, who was travelling along with four other Members of Parliament — Kodikkunil Suresh, Adoor Prakash, K Radhakrishnan, and Robert Bruce — said the pilot’s quick thinking and “a fair dose of luck” prevented tragedy. “Passenger safety cannot depend on luck,” he wrote on X, describing the incident as a “harrowing journey.”

The MP recounted that the flight’s troubles began with a delayed departure from Thiruvananthapuram. Shortly after take-off, the aircraft was hit by severe turbulence. About an hour into the journey, the captain reported a flight signal fault and announced a diversion to Chennai. Venugopal claimed that after circling for nearly two hours, the first landing attempt was aborted because another aircraft was on the same runway. “In that split second, the captain’s decision to pull up saved every life on board. We landed safely on the second attempt,” he said.

Air India, however, strongly refuted the claim of a runway intrusion. Responding to the MP’s post, the airline said the go-around during the first approach at Chennai was instructed by Air Traffic Control (ATC) due to weather conditions and operational procedures — not because of another plane on the runway. The airline added that the diversion itself was precautionary, triggered by a suspected technical issue.

In its statement, Air India clarified: “The diversion to Chennai was precautionary due to a technical indication and poor weather. ATC instructed a go-around during the first approach, but there was no runway obstruction.”