New Delhi: In a shocking revelation, it has been reported that former prime minister Manmohan Singh's plane could have crashed in 2007.
As per The Times of India, the incident dates back to November 11, 2007 when the then PM Manmohan Singh was travelling to Russia on an official visit.
The report, published online on Wednesday, claims the Air India One flying Dr Singh failed to lower its landing gear in time while landing at the Moscow airport.
The corrective action by pilots of the Boeing 747 was taken only after being alerted by the Moscow Air Traffic Control (ATC).
The ATC, upon noticing the error, had warned the pilots that they had failed to lower the aircraft wheels. Warning lights in the cockpit also alerted the pilots, the report said.
As per the flight data recorder (FDR) of Air India One, the plane flew below the 'electronic glide slope' for some time before the landing gear was brought down for landing.
As per the newspaper, the electronic glide slope is the flight path a descending aircraft takes to land gently on the runway.
The newspaper could not elicit any response from the national air carrier on the revelation.
An unnamed pilot, meanwhile, told the newspaper that the pilots of Air India One could have delayed the lowering of the landing gear in order to keep the flight quiet for some more time for the PM on board.
The bringing down of the landing gear increases drag and causes noise disturbance in the aircraft.
