Ants, yes ants, delay Delhi-London flight carrying Bhutan Prince

Air India’s Delhi-London flight, which was to depart from the Indira Gandhi International airport at 2 pm on Monday, got delayed for more than three hours after a swarm of ants was found in the business class.

The AI-111 flight departed from the Delhi airport at around 5:20 pm, after the plane was replaced with another Boeing 787-8 aircraft. Ants were found in a section of the business class just before the plane was about to take off.

Jigme Namgyel Wangchuck, the prince of Bhutan and son of the current King Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck, was among the passengers on board the flight.

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Earlier in July, an Air India Express flight, which was going to Saudi Arabia, made an emergency landing at Thiruvananthapuram International airport within an hour of taking off, after a crack was detected in its windshield. The flight had no passengers on board except the crew members, and was only carrying cargo. Another flight was sent and another set of crew members was appointed and the flight was rescheduled.

In May this year, an Air India flight to Newark in the United States returned to Delhi within half an hour after its take-off, after a bat was spotted inside the plane. The aircraft landed safely and wildlife staff were called to catch and remove the bat’s carcass, which was found dead inside the plane’s business class area.

(With inputs from Agencies)