Mumbai: AI aborts take-off after runway conflict with Air India Express aircraft

A potential runway tragedy was averted at Mumbai airport late on Tuesday after an Air India flight preparing to depart for Delhi aborted its take-off on the instructions of air traffic control because an Air India Express aircraft that had just landed had not yet vacated the runway. Mumbai airport is dependent on a single runway operation, catering to both landing and takeoffs with a prescribed separation distance followed.

The incident occurred around 10 pm when Air India flight AI816 was getting ready for departure from Mumbai to Delhi. According to sources, the aircraft had begun its take-off preparations when air traffic controllers intervened after noticing that an incoming Air India Express flight was still on the same runway.

The Air India Express aircraft, flight AIX1547 from Siliguri, had landed moments earlier but was yet to clear the runway. With both aircraft on the same strip, ATC instructed the Air India crew to discontinue the take-off run.

In a statement, Air India confirmed that the crew of AI816 halted the take-off run following an instruction from ATC and returned the aircraft to the bay.

“The crew operating flight AI816 from Mumbai to Delhi on 7 July discontinued the take-off run after receiving an instruction to do so from the Air Traffic Control and returned to the bay,” the airline said.

The airline said the aircraft would now undergo mandatory inspections before being cleared for further operations. It also said alternative arrangements were being made to fly passengers to Delhi at the earliest.

“The aircraft will undergo necessary checks as per standard operating procedures. Meanwhile, alternative arrangement is being made to fly the passengers to their destination at the earliest,” it said.

Air India expressed regret for the inconvenience caused to passengers and said safety remained its highest priority.

“Air India regrets the inconvenience caused to passengers due to this unforeseen situation. At Air India, the safety and wellbeing of our passengers remain top priority,” the airline said.

There were no reports of injuries or damage to either aircraft. It was not immediately clear how the two aircraft came to be on the same runway at the same time.

According to sources, AI816 was scheduled to be operated by a Boeing 777-300ER wide-body aircraft, while AIX1547 was a Boeing 737 MAX 8 narrow-body jet. Mumbai airport, one of the country’s busiest aviation hubs, handles around 980 to 1,000 flights a day, with roughly 48 air traffic movements an hour.

Flight tracking data also showed some weather-related disruption in Mumbai this week, with about 3 per cent of flights to the city cancelled, though there was no official indication that weather played a role in Tuesday night’s incident.

With PTI inputs