A Turkish Airlines flight from Kathmandu to Istanbul made an emergency landing at the Calcutta airport on Wednesday after the pilot reported that one of its engines had caught fire.
The Airbus A330 widebody aircraft, carrying 236 passengers, made a full emergency landing at 2.49pm, with the right engine shut down, an airport official said.
Late on Wednesday, most of the stranded passengers were accommodated at city hotels, while a few remained at the airport, the official added.
Flight THY 727 had taken off from the Kathmandu airport at 1.38pm IST.
“The pilot declared an emergency after the right engine caught fire and requested diversion to Calcutta,” a civil aviation ministry official said.
At 1.51pm, the pilot reported to Kathmandu air traffic control that the fire was under control and that the aircraft would continue to Calcutta with one engine inoperative. Sources said the right engine was switched off after catching fire.
The pilot continued to fly for some time with the engine shut and crossed Dhaka airspace before deciding it was safer to attempt an emergency landing at Calcutta rather than continue to Istanbul.
“The aircraft is parked at remote bay number 114,” an airport official said late on Wednesday.
An aircraft will transport the stranded passengers to their destination on Thursday, the official said.