New Delhi: A bus operated by Air India SATS Airport Services Private Limited, a third-party provider that handles ground services for multiple airlines, which was parked just a few metres away from an Air India aircraft, caught fire at Delhi Airport’s Terminal 3 on Tuesday.
Fortunately, there were no passengers on board at the time. It is not yet known whether any injuries have been reported. No damage was reported to the aircraft as well.
Videos have surfaced showing the coach engulfed in flames, with the aircraft clearly visible nearby, just a short distance from the burning bus.
Airport authorities are investigating the cause of the fire. Air India is yet to issue an offical statement in the matter. The Delhi International Airport Ltd (DIAL), which is responsible for the operations at the Indira Gandhi International Airport (IGIA), called it a "stray incident."
"In a stray incident, a bus operated by one of the ground handlers caught fire around noon today. Our expert ARFF team on the ground immediately swung into action and extinguished the fire within a couple of minutes. The bus was stationary and fully vacant at the time off the incident. There were no injuries/casualties. All operations continue to be normal. Safety of our passengers and staff remains paramount to us," it said on X.
The Delhi airport has three terminals and four runways, which can handle more than 100 million passengers yearly.
Terminal 3, which was inaugurated in 2010, is one of the biggest terminals in the world and has capacity to serve up to 40 million passengers every year.
