Extreme weather conditions shook the IndiGo flight from New Delhi to Srinagar, India, on Wednesday 21 May. Passengers on board were left shaken after their plane flew through severe turbulence and got hit by a bird strike that left the nose of the aircraft heavily damaged.
The flight, carrying 227 passengers, departed from Delhi at 5.13 pm local time and after 30 minutes in the air it entered a zone of turbulence.
Severe turbulence experienced aborad @IndiGo6E Delhi-Srinagar flight today. Plane’s nose got damaged, fliers panicked but everything remained under control and safe with passengers and the aircraft upon landing @ETNOWlive #aviation #avgeek pic.twitter.com/hpXt9ap5jX
— Sumit Chaturvedi (@joinsumit) May 21, 2025
Terrifying footage captured from inside the plane shows the instant panic broke out, with multiple frightened passengers heard screaming as lightning strikes illuminated the interior of the aircraft. Running into unexpected and harsh weather conditions, the plane had to make an emergency landing in Srinagar at 6.30 pm. No injuries were recorded despite the damage caused to the exterior of the aircraft.
Experienced extreme turbulence on @IndiGo6E flight 6E2142 from Delhi-Srinagar today — sudden drop of ~3900 ft mid-air. The situation was so intense even some crew members were in tears. Grateful to the pilot for regaining control. A flight I’ll never forget. #IndiGo @DGCAIndia pic.twitter.com/x0Td1eoedN
— Ubair Shah (@shahubair) May 21, 2025
One shaken-up traveller described it as a near-death experience. Videos from the cabin show screams and prayer and passengers holding onto the seats as the aircraft shook violently.
“There was so much turbulence that I thought it was my last flight. Everyone thought we would crash. It was such a traumatic experience,” said Sheikh Samiullah, one of the passengers on the IndiGo flight. “I am a frequent flier, but I’ve never experienced anything like this. We are very thankful to the pilot for landing safely,” he added.
In an attempt to escape the hailstorm, the flight crew requested permission to fly through Pakistani airspace but Lahore Air Traffic Control reportedly denied it to them, sources said to The Times of India. Pilots still managed to take back control and navigate the damaged Airbus A321 through stormy weather back over Indian airspace and down to Srinagar.
A senior official from the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) praised the pilots’ professionalism. The plane is currently on the ground and is being inspected and maintained.
Turbulence remains one of the most common and unsettling issues for air travellers, often causing discomfort, anxiety and, in rare cases, minor injuries. A recent study by Turbli has named the flight route between Mendoza, Argentina, and Santiago, Chile, as the most turbulent in the world, due to its path over the Andes Mountains.
