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NEW DELHI: Air India Mumbai-Newark flight of Wednesday returned to the origin four hours after taking off for the US. The Boeing 777 (VT-AEQ), which took off from Mumbai at 1.14 am with a lean Diwali outbound load of just over 100 people on board, had a technical issue a couple of hours into the journey and then returned to land safely at 5.30 am. Consequently, the return flight the aircraft was to operate from Newark to Mumbai has also been cancelledAn AI spokesperson said: “The crew of flight AI191 operating from Mumbai to Newark on Oct 22 made a precautionary air-return to Mumbai due to a suspected technical issue. The flight landed safely back in Mumbai, and the aircraft is undergoing necessary inspections. Consequently, AI191 and AI144 (scheduled to operate from Newark to Mumbai) were cancelled.””All affected passengers at Mumbai have been provided hotel accommodations and have been rebooked on alternative Air India and other airlines’ flights to their destination. The passengers of AI144 from Newark were also notified of the cancellation and are being assisted with alternative arrangements at the earliest opportunity. At Air India, the safety and wellbeing of our guests and crew remain top priority,” the spokesperson added.