Stray plane delays 10 flights

For almost 40 minutes on Thursday, a runway at Changi Airport had to be shut down and 10 flights delayed because an aircraft being towed somehow strayed onto a taxiway.

The New Paper understands that the aircraft, a Singapore Airlines Boeing 777-300, was being moved from a boarding gate at Terminal 3 when it was towed too quickly and accidentally entered the taxiway near the runway.

The incident, which happened around 12.30pm, was considered a case of runway incursion and, as a result, the runway was closed, delaying six arrivals and four departures.

One of the worst air disasters in history was the result of a runway incursion.

That happened in 1977, when a KLM flight attempted to take off while a Pan Am aircraft was still on the runway at an airport in Tenerife, Spain. The two planes collided, killing 583 people.

All runway incursions are seen as serious incidents.

Mr Paul Yap, a 42-year-old lecturer and course manager of Temasek Polytechnic's Diploma in Aviation Management and Services, said such incidents are very rare at Changi Airport.

He said: "There are many measures put in place to prevent such an incident from happening but, of course, human error can occur.

Controlled areas

"Runways and taxiways are all controlled areas and permission is needed from air traffic control to enter these areas."

He added that while such incidents may not lead to loss of life, possible consequences include damage to aircraft should they come into contact with other aircraft or vehicles.

Passengers would also be inconvenienced because of delays.

When asked about a possible reason the runway was closed for so long, Mr Yap said: "It could have taken some time to remove the aircraft from the narrow taxiway."

Mr Yap had held various posts at Changi Airport over seven years before joining Temasek Polytechnic.

When contacted, a Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore spokesman said the matter was being reviewed.

"We can confirm that no danger was posed to surrounding aircraft or personnel at Changi Airport."

An SIA Engineering Company spokesman said: "We are assisting the relevant authorities in reviewing the matter."

SOURCE

Very careless move by the airport worker responsible for the towing of the aircraft. Such incidents should not be occurring in a high standard airport like Changi Airport. More measures will have to be implemented in order to prevent this from happening again.