When an Air France Boeing 747 aircraft went up in flames at the Chennai airport Premium

Air France Boeing 747 crash-lands at Chennai Airport, leading to a major fire incident and emergency response.

At around 11:25 p.m. on March 5, 1999, an Air France Boeing 747 freighter aircraft (AF-6745), carrying five crew members and 66 tonnes of assorted cargo, attempted to land at Chennai Airport in Meenambakkam. It missed the first landing attempt. Captain Jean, who was piloting the aircraft from Paris with stopovers at Karachi and Bangalore, informed Chennai Air Traffic Control (ATC) that the plane had developed a “technical snag.”

A short while later, the aircraft approached again from the Pallavaram end of Runway 7 (the main runway). This time, its nose-wheel landing gear failed to deploy, and the jumbo jet landed with a thud, “screeching to a halt after covering half the runway on its belly.” Smoke billowed from the nose-wheel area.

The Airport Fire Service swung into action, deploying airfield fire rescue vehicles, five crash fire tenders, and one water tender. Four of the five crew members were rescued using a step ladder through the tail-end of the aircraft. “The last occupant, an Indian national, was rescued with the help of a rope ladder. He injured his leg when he jumped off in panic. The injured crew member, Mr. Nandhya Hillol, was rushed to a city hospital,” reported The Hindu on March 7.

Airport authorities declared a “full emergency,” alerting all emergency services, and Chennai Airport was shut down at 11:50 p.m.

According to the Tamil Nadu Fire and Rescue Services Department, “The control room in Chennai received information about the fire at 23:35 hours.” The incident is listed on the department’s website among the major fire accidents it has handled.

Two fire units from nearby Guindy and Tambaram were dispatched. The situation quickly became alarming. Two foam tenders and two water tenders joined the firefighting efforts. Subsequently, eight more water lorries reached the site. “Airport Fire Station and Tamil Nadu Fire and Rescue Services personnel conducted intense firefighting. The Director of Fire Services, along with the Deputy Director, two Divisional Fire Officers, and about 50 firemen, as well as the Assistant Director (Fire) and 40 others from the Airport Fire Service, battled the blaze for over three hours, finally extinguishing it by 2:30 a.m. on March 6,” the department said. By then, only charred metal parts, the tail, and nose sections remained on the damaged runway.

According to The Hindu, the fire broke out about 40 minutes after the aircraft crash-landed. It spread rapidly from the wings to the fuselage and tail. A series of explosions followed as the fuel ignited.