Jet Airways Kingfisher Airlines in near collision at Chandigarh airport

Thanks to a napping Air Traffic Control at Chandigarh airport, two aircraft, one from Jet Airways and another of Kingfisher Airlines, almost achieved a physical merger, one I am sure, their managements did not want, when they planned their recently formed alliance.

TNN reports that two planes of Jet Airways and Kingfisher Airlines, with a total 139 passengers on board, were a mere 15 feet away from crashing in to each other at the Chandigarh airport on Tuesday, December 16, 2008.

Due to a delay of the Kingfisher flight IT 605, three aircraft were jostling on the apron which has only 2 parking bays.

The Air Traffic Control was caught napping, as it had given permission for the Jet Airways flight 9W 734 to taxi and take-off, without realising that the Kingfisher passengers were disembarking, close by.

By the time the Jet technical team realised something was amiss and alerted their pilots, forcing them to slam the emergency brakes, the planes were within 15 feet of crashing in to one another.

Amidst this confusion, an Air India flight from Mumbai to Chandigarh landed on schedule, adding to the congestion and chaos, since the airport has only two spots on the apron, requiring some delicate maneuvering on the part of all the players.