IndiGo dismisses ‘smoke in cabin’ incident on Raipur-Indore flight

IndiGo Airlines on Thursday dismissed media claims that smoke was seen coming from a Raipur-Indore flight's cabin during taxi after landing at Indore’s Devi Ahilya Bai Holkar Airport. 

In a press statement released today, the airline clarified that the reports being circulated in the media regarding ‘smoke in the cabin’ were false and that the mist was actually produced by the HVAC system due to humidity inside the cabin. The airline further claimed that false reports have been propagated in the media by ‘entities with vested interests’ to mislead customers and authorities. 

In light of the recent aircraft mishaps facing the Indian aviation sector, IndiGo went on to clarify in its official press release that the airline faced no such incidents of malfunction in the recent past. 

IndiGo Group’s Brand Communication Head, Chhavi Lekha, raised strong objection to ‘fake news’ being circulated by entities with vested interests. She expressed her objection in one of her tweets, which was also retweeted by the airlines official handle, in which she states, “None of the @IndiGo6E have seen any malfunction in the last few days. Seems vested interests of some folks to spread fake news around this creating confusion and inconvenience for customers! Have to say poor spirit of sportsmanship .competition is healthy when it’s won on merit!”

None of the @IndiGo6E have seen any malfunction in the last few days. Seems vested interests of some folks to spread fake news around this creating confusion and inconvenience for customers! Have to say poor spirit of sportsmanship .competition is healthy when it’s won on merit! https://t.co/QYML0WAzWV

— C Lekha (@ChhaviLeekha) July 6, 2022

The incident -- initially reported by ANI which cited the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) -- allegedly happened on an A320 aircraft, when the cabin crew of the flight observed smoke in the plane after it landed in Indore on Tuesday. Soon after, the DGCA sprung into action, ordering an investigation into the alleged incident.

The airline had previously declined to comment on a PTI query on the incident on Tuesday.

Also read: IndiGo's Raipur-Indore flight reports smoke in cabin, DGCA begins probe

Also read: Nothing alarming, says SpiceJet CMD Ajay Singh on DGCA’s show-cause notice