The pilot realised the mistake just in time and corrected his course by making a ‘go-around’ before landing at the correct airport
The civil aviation industry was on Monday abuzz about a Singapore Airlines flight SQ422 (Singapore-Mumbai) which mistakenly approached Juhu airport for landing instead of Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport (CSIA).
However, the pilot realised the mistake just in time and corrected his course by making a ‘go-around’ before landing at the correct airport.
The incident, if true, could have turned catastrophic as the runway at Juhu airport is much smaller than the desired length for larger aircraft and it is surrounded by tall structures. The Airbus A350 had 245 passengers and 14 crew members on board. The distance between the runways in both the airports is 1.5 km and is published as caution internationally to all pilots.
Juhu airport is the oldest civil aviation airport in the country and currently handles only helicopters and fixed-wing aircraft for chartered flights. It is also used for aircraft carrying workers to oil rigs owned by ONGC in Bombay High seas.
However, Singapore Airlines denied the allegations saying that at no time did the pilots of the Airbus 350 aircraft mistake Juhu airport as
CSIA. “Due to poor visibility conditions, the crew discontinued the approach to Runway 09 at approximately 1000 feet, in accordance with standard operating procedures,” spokesperson of the airline said. Furthermore, the Air Traffic Control (ATC) Mumbai then vectored the flight for a subsequent approach on to Runway 09, he added.
A CSIA official said that the pilot had to opt for go-around due to the sun and smoggy weather. The visibility was around 3 km for most part of the day on Monday due to the weather forecast on account of Cyclone Ockhi.
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