Air India plane skids off runway during landing in Mumbai

An Air India plane has skidded off a runway and burst three of its tires as it landed in Mumbai. The plane, an Airbus A320, suffered damage to the underside of an engine, forcing the runway at Mumbai International Airport to shut down amid heavy rain in the region. Air India flight AI2744, which had flown from the Indian city of Kochi, lost control and veered off the airport's main runway onto an unpaved area before stopping on a taxiway. Pictured: Air India Airbus A350-900 aircraft spotted flying for landing at the runway of London Heathrow Airport LHR in the United Kingdom.

Photos of the plane showed significant damage to the outermost part of the plane's engine, as well as clumps of wet grass lodged into its wing. A spokesperson for Air India said: 'Flight AI2744, operating from Kochi to Mumbai on 21 July 2025, experienced heavy rain during landing, resulting in a runway excursion after touchdown. 'The aircraft taxied safely to the gate and all passengers and crew members have since disembarked. The aircraft has been grounded for checks.

'The safety of passengers and crew remain our top priority.' Mumbai International Airport said in a statement that its primary runway suffered 'minor damages' during the incident. The airport said a backup runway has now been 'activated' to allow planes to arrive and depart.

Air India is already facing heavy scrutiny following the release of a preliminary report into the deadly crash of one of its Boeing 787 Dreamliners in the Indian city of Ahmedabad last month, killing 260 people. Just one person, British national Vishwash Kumar Ramesh, 40, who was sitting in seat 11A, managed to walk away alive, only suffering cuts to his face and some chest injuries.

A further 19 people were killed after the plane collided into a densely populated part of the city. The 15-page report revealed that the switches controlling fuel supplied to the plane's engines were in the 'cutoff' position, instead of the 'run' position. The report read: 'The Engine N1 and N2 began to decrease from their take-off values as the fuel supply to the engines was cut off.'

Vishwash's family said he is still haunted by nightmares where he sees 'everyone die.' He is reportedly wracked with guilt as he faces the reality of being the only person out of 242 passengers and crew to survive the crash after the jetliner slammed into the ground and burst into flames. He struggles to sleep at night, according to a member of his extended family, Krunal Keshave, 24, from Leicester.

'He sleeps but doesn't sleep properly. When he sleeps, he dreams he is on the flight. He remembers seeing everyone die in front of his eyes.' The miracle survivor previously said he feels 'terrible' he could not save his brother Ajay, 35, and feels tormented with guilt over his death. The pair ran a fishing business in Diu, India and would live there during the fishing season - which begins in September and ends in May - then would return to Leicester for the off-season.

'He sees him everywhere...He speaks but he doesn't speak about the crash. He is currently trying to have a normal life, but he is not going out too much. He is spending time at home with the family. He was living in the house in Diu with his brother before the crash,' Krunal told The Sunday Times . Another relative said: 'He feels guilty that he is the only one to have lived when everybody else, including his brother, died. It's a lot to live with.'

The 40-year-old told The Sun : 'It's a miracle I survived. I am OK physically but I feel terrible that I could not save Ajay.' Vishwash had tried to book two seats next to each other on flight AI171, which crashed into a densely populated part of the city of Ahmedabad shortly after takeoff. But by the time he came to make the reservation, he was forced to pick two seats apart from each other in row 11.

Vishwash said: 'If we had been sat together we both might have survived. 'I tried to get two seats together but someone had already got one. Me and Ajay would have been sitting together. 'But I lost my brother in front of my eyes. So now I am constantly thinking 'Why can't I save my brother?'