Major disaster averted at Delhi airport 

A mid-air smash like debacle was averted over Delhi airport today after an Air India plane aborted its take off as an incoming IndiGo flight did a last minute go-around before touch down on an adjacent but merging runway. IndiGo flight did a last minute go-around before touch down on an adjacent but merging runway. Had the Air India flight not aborted its take off in time in face of the 'go around' by IndiGo flight, the two aircraft could have come across mid-air, said an ATC source while explaining the dynamics of take off and landing at two adjacent Delhi airport runways - 10/28 and 09/27, merging towards Dwarka end. Aviation regulator DGCA has launched a probe into the incident, which took place at the Indira Gandhi International (IGI) Airport at around 1115 hours. 

The DGCA as well as IndiGo officials, however, insisted that there was any compromise of safety at any point of time during the operations of two flights. There were 122 passengers and crew members on-board the Goa-bound Air India Airbus A320, while the number of IndiGo's passengers was not known. The ATC sources explained that the departures from runway 10/28 are cleared only when the incoming aircraft is about to land at runway 09/27. "However, the IndiGo pilot decided to go-around just when it was about to touch down the runway 27. By that time, Air India flight had been cleared for departure from runway 28. So, the Air India pilot was asked to abort the take off as had it not happened, the two aircraft could have come across mid-air," the ATC source said. 

The source said an "unstable approach" could have been one of the reasons for the IndiGo pilot aborting landing at the touchdown and executing a go-around. An unstablised approach is one during which an aircraft does not maintain either speed, descent rate or vertical or lateral flight path, among others. According to the Standard Operating Procedure (SOP), an approach should be stabilised by 1,000 feet above runway altitude, otherwise a go-around should be executed by the pilot. IndiGo confirmed the incident but insisted that at no point of time, the safety (of passengers or flight) was compromised. "IndiGo flight 6E-398 from Ranchi to Delhi discontinued an approach on to runway 27 at Delhi at low-level as per SOP’s and landed after a few minutes. 

"At no point, the safety was compromised and nor have we heard anything adverse from the ATC Delhi," IndiGo spokesperson Ajay Sahai Jasra said in a statement. "IndiGo aircraft was landing on runway 09/27 and did the go-around. AI aircraft, taking off from runway 10/28, was asked to reject the take off as per the protocol. There was no safety issue, no collision issue and no infringement. Therefore, nowhere safety was compromised," a senior DGCA official said. Defending the pilot's decision to do a go-round, the official said, "Pilots are encouraged to do go-around and such an action is not punitive." But what made the pilot do a go-around in the critical phase of landing will be known after investigations are completed, the official said. The Air India aircraft finally took off for Goa at 12.50 pm. 

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