Air India's A irbus A 319 carrying 122 passengers who were traveling from Abudhabi to New Delhi had to make an emergency landing in Pakistan. They were brough back to Delhi safely in a special plane.

Heres the whole story. The Airbus A 319 was carrying 122 passengers from Abu Dhabi to New Delhi, but the pilot had to make an emergency landing at 2:57 am IST in Nawabshah in Sindh. Apart from the passenges there were also six crew members on board. A warning light lit upin the cockpit and the pilot who was then flying over Pakistan contacted the Nawabshah airprort seeking permission to land. Nawabshah was the nearest airport from the location.

All the hydraulic systems of the plane that control the braking and the steering failed according to the initial reports. There were 2 main and 1 back up system on board. However, the sources now report that there was a technical glitch and there was no overheating of the hydraulic systems. It was a false alarm they say.

A report regarding the emergency landing of the plane was submitted to Manmohan Singh by the Aviation Ministry. Pakistan officials offered refreshements to the passengers and they were invited to use the lounge at the airport. However, the pilot politely refused the offer with the issue of safety. Airbus that was stranded was also repaired by a team of 8 engineers who were sent to Nawabshah airport. It is now in Delhi.

Pakistan offered transit visas to the passengers as a generous gesture but the veracity of this report is debatable.

AW - Anil