Air India flight to Vietnam returns to Delhi; ‘precautionary measure,' says airline

An Air India flight from Delhi to Ho Chi Minh City in Vietnam returned mid-air on Thursday due to a precautionary technical concern, the airline said. Flight AI388 landed safely in Delhi, and all passengers disembarked, following which a replacement flight departed later the same day.
'Air India flight AI388 from Delhi to Ho Chi Minh City has returned to Delhi as a precautionary measure. The flight landed safely back in Delhi and all passengers have been disembarked and served refreshments while an alternative aircraft with fresh crew has been arranged to fly the passengers to Ho Chi Minh City,' an Air India spokesperson said.
The spokesperson added, 'We sincerely regret the inconvenience caused to our passengers. At Air India, the safety of our customers and crew remains our top priority.'
According to Flightradar24 data, the flight departed at around 1.45 pm before returning to Delhi shortly after. A source in the airline said the replacement aircraft took off for Ho Chi Minh City at around 7 pm.
The development comes amid a slew of cancellations and disruptions experienced by the airlines.
On Monday, an Air India flight headed to Delhi had to return to Hong Kong because of a technical issue. The flight, AI315, was a Boeing 788. On the same day, an Air India Express flight bound for Ranchi returned to Delhi airport owing to a suspected technical issue. On June 13, an Air India flight from Phuket to Delhi returned to Phuket and made a precautionary landing after receiving a bomb threat.
The cancellations and disruptions follow the deadly crash of Air India's London-bound Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner near Ahmedabad airport.

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