Air India plane stuck under motorway overpass embarrasses airline

The decommissioned Air India plane was caught in an embarrassing position beneath the overpass. Photo / Screenshot, Ashoke_Raj, Twitter

Embarrassing footage of an Air India plane trapped under a busy New Delhi overpass has gone viral.

The deregistered Boeing 737 had been strapped onto a truck for transport when it got stuck. Spotted by aviation journalist Ashoke Raj, the bright livery caused Air India much chagrin.

The airline was quick to state that it was no longer the property of Air India and was being transported to be decommissioned by its new owner.

"This is a [deregistered] scrapped aircraft of Air India which has been sold off. This was transported last night by the party. Air India has got no connection whatsoever with the aircraft under any circumstances," said a statement shared by Ashoke Raj.

With wings detached, the height of the aircraft had not been considered, leading it to become stuck on the busy, multi-lane motorway.

Statement:
This is a detegisteted scrapped aircraft of Air India which has been sold off. This was transported last night by the party. Air India has got no connection whatsoever with the aircraft under any circumstances: @airindiain

— Ashoke Raj (@Ashoke_Raj) October 3, 2021

A Delhi Airport official confirmed to The Times of India that the aircraft involved was not active and had been sold for scrap metal.

The Airport told The Times the aircraft transporter was not part of their fleet, saying that the "diver may have made a judgement of error."

One commentator claiming to be a former worker with the Indian Air Force blasted the "grossly unprofessional work"

Grossly unprofessional work. Generally two to three recces are carried out before transportation of an aircraft by road

— sanjeev srivastav (@sanjoosri) October 4, 2021

"Generally two to three recces are carried out before transportation of an aircraft by road," which had clearly not been properly done for the route.

Others said Air India should take care to scrub their name off scrapped planes in future.

The airline faced similar embarrassment in 2019 when a decommissioned Air India post plane was caught under a low bridge in West Bengal.