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Pilots on Indian flight forget to switch on cabin pressure

An Indian security official looks on as an aircraft of Jet Airways taxies after landing at Indira Gandhi International Airport in New Delhi, India.
Raveendran | AFP | Getty Images

Around 30 passengers on a domestic flight in India suffered ear pain and nose bleeding after pilots "forgot" to flick a switch that regulated cabin pressure.

The Mumbai-Jaipur Jet Airways flight 9W 697 was diverted safely back to Mumbai on Thursday with 166 passengers and five crew members on board.

A passenger tweeted a video of the cabin interior as oxygen masks dropped down.

https://twitter.com/DarshakHathi/status/1042588121634951170

The incident happened after the flight crew neglected to turn on the switch that helps maintain cabin pressure during the ascent, according to a report by news agency ANI.

The Hindustan Times quoted a senior official of India's aviation regulator, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), who confirmed that the crew had forgotten to select the correct setting.

Another person took to Twitter to lambast the airline, claiming that passenger safety had been "completely ignored."

https://twitter.com/satishnairk/status/1042603092024410112

In a statement, Jet Airways said it regretted the inconvenience caused by a loss in cabin pressure and that the cockpit crew had been taken off scheduled duties.

"The B737 aircraft, with 166 guests and five crew, landed normally in Mumbai. All guests were deplaned safely and taken to the terminal. First aid was administered to a few guests who complained of ear pain, bleeding nose etc."

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