Ajay Devgn's Runway 34: The real story

150 people on a flight, 250 kg of fuel left, landing destination not in sight and all of it left on a frantic pilot who sent out a May Day call even before it should have been made. The pilot also, to everyone’s astonishment, wrote Good Bye to the Air Traffic Control (ATC) throwing everyone in shock. This is what Ajay Devgn’s Runway 34 is all about.

The trailer of the movie is out. First, see it.

WHAT HAPPENED ON THAT DAY?

On the fateful morning of August 18, 2015, the two pilots of Jet Airways, Flight 9W-555 on a Boeing 737-800, had the biggest tests of their lives when their flight from Doha, the capital of Qatar, to Kochi in Kerala didn't turn out to be the way they wanted them to be.

At 5.45 am, the runway was covered by haze due to overnight rain. The pilot attempted to divert landing at the Trivandrum airport. But to his dismay, the second landing at Trivandrum also saw hassles due to poor visibility. To top it, while the plane was making unsuccessful attempts to land, it ran short of fuel. It had 250 kg of fuel left against the requirement of 1,500 kg of fuel along with alternative fuel.

The pilot made three attempts to land at Trivandrum runway 14, but couldn’t do so because the visibility was less than required for landing. The captain had informed the ATC about the fuel levels running alarmingly running low.

He wanted to land even though there was poor visibility. But then, he made a May Day call, which shook the ATC room.  

WHAT IS A MAY DAY CALL?

The May Day call, earlier known as SOS (Save Our Souls) call, was actually a call made to deprive the pilot of all the communication from the ATC. After the call, the pilot is left to himself and the ATC ceases all communication with him. All is left to the wisdom of the pilot to use his intellect and save the lives of the passengers on his plane.

Ajay Devgn had earlier titled the movie May Day, and it was later changed to Runway 34. The phrase draws significance here because the pilot in this case had pulled the warning bell on the second attempt; when he had ample fuel left with him and he could have hovered in the air for quite some time.

THE FINAL LANDING

The pilot with his co-pilot on the Boeing 737-800 aircraft had made the May Day call. The aircraft was hovering in the air and there were three unsuccessful attempts to land. Emergency was declared at the airport. All the steps were taken as per the SOP; getting ambulances ready, informing city fire services, and also alerting the hospitals.

The pilot attempted landing in the fourth attempt. It was successful. He landed without a hitch. However, after the incident, both the pilots were sacked. An inquiry was ordered.

The whole landing saga wouldn’t have drawn this kind of attention if not for two reasons. First, the May Day Call; and then, the shortage of fuel. For a light aircraft like Boeing 737-800, the minimum fuel reserve after landing is about 1,500 kg. It also throws up questions on the fuel policy of Jet Airways not being in line with international safety standards.

BUT WHY DID THE PILOT DO THIS?

Two pilots, who were lauded by newspapers the very next day, were sacked for endangering the lives of 150 people on board. But the three startling questions remain:

• First, why did the pilot make the May Day call only during the second landing attempt at Trivandrum port?
• Second, why did the aircraft run out of fuel when it should have had ample reserves as per international safety standards?
• And third, why did he have to say Good Bye to the ATC instead of Good Day - the general phrase while ending a conversation?

All of these questions will be answered in the movie on April 29, 2022.