Mid-airs waiting to happen in Indian airspace - Curt Lewis

Mid-air collision averted after SpiceJet comes in path of Emirates

A mid-air collision was averted after a Spice Jet aircraft came in close proximity of an Emirates plane on August 11.

Aviation regulator, DGCA, said that the air proximity incident was reported within Indian airspace. While the Emirates flight was coming from Brisbane in Australia, Spicejet had originated from Chennai.

According to officials, the SpiceJet flight (SG 511) was cleared to fly at 34,000 feet. Reportedly, the plane climbed above the permitted level and was then asked to maintain 35,000 feet but it ended overshooting by a 1,000 feet, reaching a level that the Emirates flight (EK 433) was maintaining. This forced the Emirates flight to climb further to avoid collision.

"At no time were passengers in any danger - the safety of our passengers and crew as always is our top priority," the Emirates spokesperson said.

Earlier this month, a mid-air collision between two IndiGo planes was averted after the pi lot of one of the flights steered away his aircraft to a safe distance when they came close to each other. The incident resulted in four passengers and two crew members complaining of giddiness and required medical attention.

The two incidents in August add to 25 such incidents reported in 2015 and 31in 2014. Probe reports of most of these incidents are yet to be tabled. In both the cases, the Traffic Collision Avoidance System (TCAS) kicked in.