A320 Was On An Instrument Approach To JFK Airport

It was what many pilots would describe as a nightmare scenario. Following a 14-hour flight from Delhi, India, the crew of an Air India A320 on an instrument approach to JFK airport in instrument conditions was faced with a failure of the plane's Instrument Landing System.

Newsweek reports that Rustom Palia was the pilot in command of the airplane. The crew initiated a missed approach and then flew for about 40 minutes while trying to come up with a solution.

But as fuel ran low, the pilots worked with air traffic controllers to see if there was an alternate airport where the weather would allow a visual approach.

Before flying to an alternate, they tried a second approach at JFK, according to The Times of India. But during that approach, other instruments, including the localizer, both radio altimeters and the TCAS also failed.

The Economic Times reports that after continuing to talk with air traffic controllers, they finally settled on Newark Liberty International Airport as an alternate. The plane landed safely at Newark.

An Air India Spokesman told The Times of India that the airline is investigating the incident, and praised the pilot's skills to kept all of the passengers and crew safe.

(Image from file)

FMI: Source report