SIA plane makes unscheduled stopover in New Delhi due to engine problem
By Channel NewsAsia | Posted: 16 February 2008 0024 hrs

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SINGAPORE: A Singapore Airlines aircraft made an unscheduled stopover in New Delhi Friday morning because an engine surged while the plane was cruising.

Flight SQ345 took off from Zurich and had originally been scheduled to reach Singapore at 7am on Friday.

A caller to the MediaCorp News hotline, Jerome Tay, said his parents were on that flight.

He said, "I was supposed to pick up my parents at the airport at 7am, but when I woke up, I received an SMS from my mom telling me not to come. She said there was an engine failure, and the plane landed in New Delhi instead, it was an unscheduled stop."

The Boeing 777-300ER is powered by two GE90-115B engines.

SIA said the aircraft experienced a surge in one of the two engines, so following safety procedures, the plane was diverted to the nearest suitable airport.

The plane landed safely in New Delhi at 3:09am.

After waiting in transit for nearly 12 hours, the 247 passengers boarded an alternative flight, and landed in Singapore at 8:40pm.

Investigations are being carried out to identify the cause of the engine surge. - CNA/ac