Vistara, Air India Planes Dodge Mid-Air Collision By Seconds, Investigation Underway

The Indian aviation authorities, Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB), was prompted to launch an investigation into an incident after a mid-air collision between two passenger planes was averted in the Mumbai, Maharashtra, airspace, reports said Sunday.

"The Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau has started an investigation as both the carriers were just 100 feet away and were full with passengers," an aviation official said Sunday, according to Xinhuanet.com.

"The incident between the two aircraft is under investigation by the relevant authorities, and it would be inappropriate to comment until the investigation is complete," a Vistara spokesperson told the International Business Times via Twitter.

The incident took place on Feb. 7 when an aircraft of private passenger airline Vistara came dangerously close, almost 100 feet, to a plane of India's national carrier Air India in Mumbai's airspace. The disaster was averted by mere seconds.

The Vistara flight, UK 997, was on its way from the Indian capital New Delhi to western city of Pune near Mumbai and was carrying 152 passengers on board, while the Air India flight AI 631 was flying from Mumbai to Bhopal with 109 people on board.

According to reports, the Vistara aircraft descended to a height of 27,100 feet, while the Air India flight was maintaining a height of 27,000 feet. Air India’s commander Captain Anupama Kohli was monitoring the situation when she noticed the Vistara aircraft heading in the direction of her flight. She could also reportedly hear the conversation between the Vistara pilot and the Air Traffic Control Unit (ATC), which indicated a miscommunication.

As the Vistara airbus closed in on her level, the red sign lit in her cockpit immediately, which was followed by a resolution advisory (RA) that said "Climb, climb, climb." The captain climbed instantly steering clear from the way of the incoming Vistara flight, a Times of India report said.

The Vistara was reportedly being flown by a lady co-pilot during the incident as the pilot, a male commander, had taken a toilet break.

After the incident, Vistara said the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) grounded both the pilots involved in the incident, pending investigation, however the airlines officials claimed that the ATC had asked UK 997 to be at 27,000 feet.

"The safety of our customers and staff is of paramount importance to us and at Vistara we diligently follow all the safety regulations and guidelines. In this particular incident, the resolution advisory (RA) got triggered due to conflicting traffic. Our pilot followed the SOP (standard operating procedure) to avoid it and carried out an uneventful landing. The matter is under investigation by relevant authorities," a Vistara spokesperson told the Times of India.

The Air India pilots were cleared for flying by the AAIB for not being at fault.

"No investigation required for Air India Crew. Air India Crew was following the right path and maintaining the desired height as allocated by ATC. The crew is very much on Dut," Praveen Bhatnagar, spokesman for Air India confirmed to IBT.