Akasa Plane Was Stationary, SpiceJet Aircraft Made Contact At Delhi Airport: What We Know

In a major safety lapse, a SpiceJet plane taxiing at the Delhi airport hit a stationary Akasa Air plane on Thursday afternoon, resulting in minor damage to the two aircraft. Per preliminary reports, the right winglet of SpiceJet and the left-hand horizontal stabiliser of Akasa were damaged -- both carriers are expected to incur losses worth crores.

The accident took place at 2.15 PM at Delhi airport's Terminal 1. The Akasa aircraft (Delhi-Hyderabad) was about to taxi out when the SpiceJet plane (Leh to Delhi) was taxiing in.

According to SpiceJet's spokesperson, the plane was involved in what it described as a ground occurrence.

"On April 16, 2026, a SpiceJet B737-700 aircraft was involved in a ground occurrence while taxiing at Delhi airport, resulting in damage to its right winglet and the left-hand horizontal stabiliser of another aircraft belonging to a different airline. The SpiceJet aircraft has been grounded at Delhi," the statement read.

Akasa Air also released a statement on the incident, saying the SpiceJet plane hit their stationary aircraft.

"Akasa Air's aircraft operating flight QP 1406 from Delhi to Hyderabad had to return to the bay on April 16, 2026. Preliminary information indicates that Akasa's aircraft was stationary when another airline's aircraft made contact with it," the statement reads.

All passengers and crew were safely evacuated, it said, adding the carrier's ground teams were making alternative arrangements to fly the passengers to Hyderabad.

The airline said that the authorities were notified about the accident.

"In line with established protocols, the relevant authorities have been informed, and the matter is under investigation. At Akasa Air, the safety and security of our passengers and crew remain our highest priority," it said.

Earlier this month, a catering van collided with a parked IndiGo aircraft at Kolkata's Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose International Airport.

The Directorate General of Civil Aviation, India's aviation regulator, has launched an investigation into the accident.

"On 16.04.2026 Spicejet winglet of B-737-700 aircraft, VT-SLB taxying in the allocated parking bay after operating flight SG-124 (Leh-Delhi) at Terminal 1 has hit Horizontal tail surface (HTS) of Akasa B-737 aircraft positioned on the apron after push back for operating flight on sector (Delhi-Hyderabad). Due to impact RH winglet of Spicejet aircraft and THS of Akasa aircraft is damaged. DGCA is carrying out further investigation," it said in a statement.