In a hair-raising episode on Sunday, a Jetstar A320 and a Qatar Airways Boeing 777 came dangerously close to colliding on the tarmac at Sydney Airport, the Australian Transport Safety Bureau disclosed while initiating an inquiry into the near-miss.
The Jetstar aircraft was maneuvering toward takeoff, bound for Queensland’s Gold Coast, when its flight crew noticed the Qatar Airways jet, which was being navigated by an aircraft tug, alarmingly near on an intersecting taxiway, the safety officials reported.
“Both aircraft were stopped abruptly,” the transport safety bureau confirmed in a formal statement.
This sudden halt resulted in an injury to a cabin crew member aboard the Jetstar plane, and there was damage to the connection between the Qatar Airways aircraft’s nose gear and the tug, according to regulatory authorities.
Jetstar, the low-cost subsidiary of Australia’s flag carrier Qantas, announced it was conducting its own investigation into the incident.
“Our aircraft was following instructions by Air Traffic Control when the pilots were forced to brake firmly after another aircraft came in close proximity,” a Jetstar spokesperson said in a statement.
Qatar Airways did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Airservices Australia, the federal agency responsible for managing air traffic, said it enacted “departure spacing” at the airport “to safely manage projected airborne and departure demands” following the near-miss.
It declined to comment on the cause of the incident, as it was under review.
The near-miss comes a day after the airport was hit by widespread delays, after Airservices Australia enacted the same strategy due to what it said were “roster constraints” with air traffic controllers.