Two IndiGo planes came dangerously close to each other and were on the verge of collision over Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International (IGI) Airport on November 17.
Due to this, the vertical and lateral separation between them went below the required permissible levels. The aircraft embroiled in the incident were Airbus A321 bearing registration VT-IUO and Airbus A320 (VT-ISO).
The first plane was operating a Delhi-Hyderabad flight, while the second was on its way to Raipur from Delhi. An investigation is being done by the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) which called it a “serious incident”.
“At the time of the closest vertical separation (400 feet), lateral separation was 1.2 NM (nautical miles). At the time of the closest lateral separation (0.2 NM), vertical separation was 800 feet. There was no injury to any of the occupants on board in both aircraft. There was no damage,” the AAIB stated in its preliminary report released recently.
As per the report, the A321 departed at 12:31 PM on November 17 and was signalled by the air traffic controller. But the aircraft “was observed turning left toward the takeoff path of RWY 29R (Runway 29 Right)”. At that moment, the A320 got departure clearance and took off from Runway 29 Right.
“During this sequence, a breach of separation occurred…triggering a Current Conflict alert,” the AAIB said. Both aircraft received TCAS-RAs (Traffic Alert and Collision Avoidance System-Resolution Advisory) provided by the Traffic Alert and Collision Avoidance System to pilots.
The AAIB got the data from the aircraft’s cockpit voice recorders and flight data recorders, among others. The probe agency has also recorded the statements from the given flight crew and air traffic controllers, Indian Express reported.
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