NEW DELHI: A Singapore Airlines (SIA) Airbus A380 rolled backwards at Delhi airport’s parking area on Monday evening (November 25) as the pilots allegedly forgot to apply the parking brake.

Fortunately, it did not hit any other aircraft or ground personnel vehicles.

The drivers quickly applied the brakes once they realized the mistake, TOI reported.

The world’s largest double-decker commercial airline had landed at the Indira Gandhi Airport from Singapore around 8 p.m.

“The car park has a slight slope to ensure water flows towards the apron in the event of rain.

“After docking at the parking lot, the plane turned around at 8:14 p.m. Then the pilots applied the parking brake,” airport sources said.

In a statement, SIA said: “A Singapore Airlines (SIA) Airbus A380, operating flight SQ406 from Singapore to New Delhi, suffered a rollback after parking at IGIA on November 25, 2024.

“The pilot immediately applied the brakes to stop the plane. Once the plane came to a stop, the pilots informed air traffic control and ground personnel towed the plane safely to its designated parking area.

“All passengers disembarked from the aircraft normally and no injuries were reported.

“A cabin crew member suffered a minor bruise to the thigh, received medical treatment and was cleared to return to duty. SIA apologizes for any inconvenience caused by this incident.

“The safety of our customers and crew is always our top priority.”

An aircraft parking brake is also called a hand brake or emergency brake. This is an essential safety feature that prevents an aircraft from moving when parked.

This is a lever in the cockpit that is usually located near the main control panel or pedals.

Normal standard operating procedure states that when an aircraft stops in a bay, the parking brake is applied and then the engines are stopped.

Post this, engineering staff puts aircraft chokes (triangular blocks placed in front and behind the aircraft wheels). The parking brakes are only released after this.

However, in this case, the parking brake was not applied to the full position; the engines were stopped and the plane rolled backwards, senior pilots said. – Agencies