File photo: An Air India Boeing 787 Dreamliner
An Air India Dreamliner was on its way from Delhi to Bangalore with 150 passengers when a large panel on its belly fell off, according to the civil aviation regulator or DGCA, which is now investigating the incident.
The plane landed safely in Bangalore on Saturday.
When the panel came undone, a large hole was left in the cargo section , said sources according to the Press Trust of India.
The hole was reportedly noticed by ground staff which inspected the aircraft at the Bangalore airport ahead of its return journey.
A spare panel was flown to Bangalore and fitted on the Boeing 787, which was later declared fit to fly. But the return flight was delayed by over nine hours, according to the Press Trust of India.
"It was not an emergency. There was no safety problem," according to an unnamed source in Air India quoted by the news agency.
Besides long-haul international operations, Air India operates Dreamliners on domestic routes between Delhi, Chennai, Bangalore and Kolkata.