Major mishap averted at Delhi airport as 2 planes come face-to-face on same runaway

A major mishap was averted at Delhi airport Tuesday after two passenger planes came dangerously face-to-face on the runaway, a senior aviation official said.

"The incident took place at the Indira Gandhi International Airport's domestic terminal when a flight of low-cost private airline Spicejet was about to take off just at a time when another flight of no-frills private airline IndiGo had just landed on the same runaway," he said.

Both the pilots, however, managed to avert a disaster as the two domestic flights were loaded with passengers, the official said, adding that preliminary probe has suggested it could possibly be due to a miscommunication with air traffic controllers.

India's Directorate General of Civil Aviation, the safety regulator, has ordered a major probe into the incident.

The near-miss disaster came hours after 15 passengers sustained injuries during evacuation after a passenger plane of another private airline, Jet Airways, skidded off the runaway during take-off at the international airport in the western state of Goa. Endit