In an unusual incident, the fuselage of a decommissioned Air India Airbus A320 found itself lodged under Motihari’s Piprakothi bridge in Bihar, India.
The aircraft, retired from service in 2021, was en route from Mumbai to Assam, where a businessman had purchased it at auction with plans to transform it into an aircraft-themed restaurant.
On the 29th of December, 2023, the aircraft shell was being transported on a large truck. However, a miscalculation during the journey resulted in the fuselage becoming wedged beneath the bridge, bringing traffic on the busy road to a standstill.
Local crowds gathered to witness the unexpected situation as attempts were made to free both the plane and the truck. Visuals of the incident circulated on social media show the aircraft trapped under the bridge.
#Mumbai | #AirIndia A320 fuselage gets stuck beneath a bridge in Motihari while being transported from Mumbai.@airindia #aviation #viralvideo @avia pic.twitter.com/sy3wO6TtCg
— Mumbai Tez News (@mumbaitez) December 29, 2023
Efforts to dislodge the fuselage included deflating the tires of the trailer, with locals and truckers lending a hand.
This incident is not the first of its kind involving the transportation of decommissioned Air India A320 aircraft. Similar occurrences were reported in November of the previous year, with an airplane getting stuck under an underpass in Andhra Pradesh. In October 2021, another Air India A320 faced a similar fate, becoming stuck beneath a bridge close to Delhi Airport during its journey to a new owner.
The challenges encountered in moving decommissioned aircraft highlight the complexities of transporting large airplane fuselages through roadways and the need for meticulous planning to avoid such incidents.
