DGCA de-rosters air traffic controller after flight close call incident

New Delhi: Following a near-collision incident of aircrafts at Mumbai's Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport on Saturday morning, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has de-rostered the Air Traffic Control (ATC) staff involved, an official said on Sunday.

The potentially disastrous situation unfolded when an inbound IndiGo flight attempted to land at Runway 27 while an Air India flight was still in the process of taking off. The incident occurred in the early hours of Saturday, involving IndiGo flight 5053 arriving from Indore’s Devi Ahilyabai Holkar Airport and Air India flight 657 departing for Thiruvananthapuram International Airport.

A video circulating on social media captured the tense moments of the event. The footage shows the Air India flight accelerating down the runway, seemingly unaware of the IndiGo flight descending towards the same runway. The proximity of the two aircraft highlighted a severe lapse in coordination.

As the IndiGo flight approached closer to the ground, the Air India flight managed to take off just in time, narrowly avoiding a catastrophic collision. Sources indicate that the pilots of the Air India flight were likely unaware of the impending danger posed by the landing aircraft. The aviation watchdog's decision to de-roster the ATC staff is part of a comprehensive investigation into the incident.

An official from the DGCA said, "We have initiated an inquiry to determine the root cause of this grave error and to implement measures to prevent such occurrences in the future. The safety of passengers is our utmost priority." Meanwhile, IndiGo said that the flight from Indore was given landing clearance by ATC at Mumbai Airport.

“The Pilot in Command continued the approach and landing and followed ATC instructions. At IndiGo, passenger safety is paramount to us, and we have reported the incident as per procedure,” said the airline spokesperson.

Source: IANS