CHENNAI — Air India Express (IX) faced its second day of flight troubles as Flight IX-765, with 165 passengers onboard, couldn’t land at Veer Savarkar International Airport (IXZ) in Port Blair on Wednesday, May 28, 2025.
The plane left Chennai at 7:20 AM and reached Andaman skies around 9:40 AM. However, bad weather forced the pilots to cancel the landing attempt.
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Flight Circles in Air, But Can’t Land
The aircraft circled over Port Blair’s airport for a long time as the pilots looked for a safe window to land. With weather conditions getting worse, they had no choice but to return to Chennai. The plane landed back at 12:30 PM, ending a five-hour round trip that didn’t reach its destination.
Angry passengers confronted airline staff at Chennai Airport, demanding answers. Many were upset that while their flight failed, other airlines flew the same route without problems, as reported by DT Next.
Passengers Question Airline’s Performance
Frustrated flyers asked why Air India Express couldn’t land while flights from IndiGo (6E) and Akasa Air (QP) completed their trips as usual. Airport officials confirmed that three IndiGo flights and one Akasa Air flight had landed successfully in Port Blair that day.
Second Try After Heated Talks
After tense discussions with passengers, Air India Express decided to try again. All 165 travelers boarded the same aircraft for another attempt, which took off from Chennai at 2:30 PM, hoping the weather would improve.
A Repeat of Yesterday’s Chaos
The day before, a similar situation unfolded. Another Air India Express flight, this one with 168 passengers, failed twice to land in Andaman and returned to Chennai. Frustrated passengers staged a protest at the airline’s counter inside the airport.
Emergency Flight Sent for Stranded Passengers
To fix the problem, the airline arranged a special flight early Wednesday for passengers stuck from Tuesday’s failed journey. This flight managed to take them safely to Port Blair, solving one part of the ongoing issue.
Bad Weather Causes Delays for Air India Express
These back-to-back flight problems highlight Air India Express’s struggle with handling rough weather around Port Blair airport. While other airlines stuck to their schedules, Air India Express chose to delay, causing inconvenience and frustration for travelers.
Why Port Blair is a Tough Airport to Land At
Port Blair’s airport has only one runway and landings usually happen from just one direction—Runway 04. Planes take off in the opposite direction, Runway 22. This setup exists because of the high hills located to the north and northwest of the airport, making landings tricky.
Conclusion
The repeated failures show weak points in how Air India Express handles bad weather and difficult landings. It raises concerns about the pilots’ training, the aircraft’s ability to deal with bad weather, and the airline’s overall preparedness for airports like Port Blair.
After two days of delays and unhappy passengers, the airline may need to review its planning, improve pilot readiness, and update its systems. If not, trust in the carrier could drop, especially on routes to the Andaman Islands.
