In a Tuesday morning of airline mishaps, two aircraft came face-to-face at Delhi Airport whereas 15 passengers were injured as a Jet Airways flight veered off the runway at Dabolim airport in Goa.
A major mishap was averted at Delhi Airport on Tuesday morning when two aircraft of private carriers IndiGo and SpiceJet came face-to-face allegedly due to an ATC miscommunication, sources said.
While an IndiGo plane, which had arrived from Lucknow, had over 160 passengers on board, the Hyderabad-bound SpiceJet aircraft was carrying 187 passengers when the incident took place, they said.
The matter has been reported to the aviation regulator DGCA, which has initiated a probe into the incident.
SpiceJet confirmed the incident and said that at no point of time the safety of its passengers was at risk.
“SpiceJet flight SG 123 operating between Delhi and Hyderabad was following ATC instructions at all times at the Delhi airport. While taxing, the SpiceJet crew observed another aircraft on the same taxiway in the opposite direction. Acting promptly, the SpiceJet crew immediately stopped the aircraft and intimated the ATC,” the airline said in a statement.
“Safety is of utmost and primary concern at SpiceJet, it said, adding, “At no stage the safety of passengers and crew was compromised. All authorities concerned were immediately informed,” a SpiceJet spokesperson said in the statement.
The IndiGo spokesperson was not available for comment.
Meanwhile, a Jet Airways flight with 161 people on board veered off the runway at Dabolim airport in Goa while aligning for take-off to Mumbai early on Tuesday, with 15 passengers suffering “minor” injuries during evacuation.
The incident took place around 5 am. Flight 9W 2374 which had arrived from Dubai and was bound for Mumbai, and was about to take off when it skidded off the runway.
When the evacuation was on, the aircraft tilted forward, an eyewitness said, triggering panic among passengers.
Navy sources said 15 people suffered “minor injuries and fractures” in the process.
“A few guests have sustained minor injuries during the evacuation process and medical assistance is being coordinated by the Jet Airways team and the airport authorities,” the airlines said in a statement.
Besides 154 passengers, there were seven crew members on board.
The airport has been closed for operations till 12.30 pm for all flight operations, airport sources said.
“When people were getting down the plane, it suddenly tilted forward triggering panic and chaos,” a passenger told reporters at Chicalim cottage hospital in Vasco.
