- A lot of
SpiceJet Passengers have been safe in five such incidents in the past three months. - In the month may,
SpiceJet came in second in terms of flight cancellations, according to a report by the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA). - SpiceJet also topped the list of airlines whose services are the most unsatisfactory, followed by Indigo, according to a recent survey by LocalCircles.
On July 2, a SpiceJet flight made an emergency landing at Delhi airport after smoke was discovered in the cabin while flying at an altitude of 5,000 feet. Still, all passengers were safe.
“A SpiceJet aircraft operating from Delhi to Jabalpur returned safely to Delhi airport today after crew noticed smoke in the cabin while passing 5000 feet; passengers disembarked safely,” a Spicejet spokesperson said.
Many SpiceJet passengers have been safe during five such incidents in the past three months. But the turbulent times passengers were going through could keep them away from the country’s third-largest airline. It has a market share of about 13% in the aviation sector, in terms of passengers carried.
High flight cancellations by SpiceJet
And it’s not just safety either. In the month of May, SpiceJet ranked second in terms of flight cancellations, according to a report by the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA). The infamous top spot is occupied by the Gurugram-based Fly Big airline.
SpiceJet also topped the list of airlines whose services are the most unsatisfactory, followed by Indigo, according to a recent survey by LocalCircles. Airlines in general have been cutting back and making concessions to passenger comfort – said 79% of Indian passengers surveyed.
“On an aggregated basis, flight delays, onboard services, boarding and check-in procedures, baggage handling and timely information sharing among the major issues facing Indian passengers with airlines,” the LocalCircles report said.
And 41% of respondents said “flight delays” as the main unsatisfactory factor, followed by poor aircraft interiors including seat, entertainment system for 28% of them.
According to Domestic Airlines traffic data for May 2022, released by the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), about 550 passenger complaints were registered against domestic airlines, of which 0.8 per 10,000 passengers were against Spicejet.
Bird strikes, engine shutdowns and turbulence injuries
The frequency of SpiceJet ‘security incidents’ has also become another cause for concern. On June 19, two incidents were reported: a flight to Delhi carrying more than 185 passengers caught fire shortly after takeoff from Patna airport and had to make an emergency landing. The airline clarified that a bird strike had damaged their fan blades.
On the same day, another flight, the Bombardier Q400 Dash 8 plane, was due from Delhi to Jabalpur, a
emergency landing in Delhi because cabin pressure could not be built up as the plane got higher.
On May 4, a SpiceJet Boeing 737 MAX plane flying from Chennai to Durgapur was forced to turn back because its engine shut down mid-air. This happened after an oil filter warning appeared.
A few days earlier, many passengers were seriously injured in a SpiceJet plane flying from Mumbai to Jabalpur due to severe turbulence before landing.
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