Pilot averted head-on collision with another plane, says Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee

West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee on Monday said a flight carrying her to Kolkata from Varanasi on March 4 had come face to face with another aircraft and the pilot had just managed to avert a collision.

"I had a narrow escape due to the efficiency of the pilot who averted an accident," Banerjee said Monday, ahead of the start of the budget session of the assembly.

The CM had sustained a back injury as the aircraft, a Dassault Falcon 2000 taken on lease by the West Bengal government, had to make sudden descent. She was returning to the Bengal capital after campaigning for Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav.


The West Bengal government on Saturday sought a report from the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) on the "turbulence" encountered by the aircraft. However, on Monday, Banerjee ruled out air turbulence and claimed that her flight was in the same flight path of another aircraft. She said her flight was just 10-15 seconds from a certain accident.

West Bengal chief secretary HK Dwivedi, in the letter sent on Saturday to the DGCA, sought a report on the issue, including the route taken by the flight and whether it was granted prior permission.

Bengal's ruling Trinamool Congress has demanded a high-level probe into the incident, including whether route clearance was given for the CM's flight before the trip.