Jet Airways plane carrying Sharad Pawar returns safely after scare

NEW DELHI: A major air accident was averted when a Jet Airways flight with Union Minister Sharad Pawar on board returned to Delhi airport safely after it was found that a rear door was not locked properly. Taking a serious note of last evening's incident, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) suspended at least two cabin crew members of the Delhi-Mumbai flight (9 W362), official sources said here today. When the Boeing-737 reached the height of about 5,000 metres after taking off at 1725 hours, the cabin crew on the rear of the plane informed the pilot that they could hear "a hissing sound and see the sky through one corner of the door". The Commander of the plane immediately reported emergency to the Delhi air traffic control, which asked them to burn fuel in the air in order to make a safe landing. The aircraft then climbed about 8,000 metres and circled above to burn fuel before making a safe landing an hour after take off. The DGCA preliminary inquiry showed that the cabin crew had not shut the door properly "before reporting door closed" to the pilot, sources said.