China Eastern Airlines to reward captain for preventing collision at airport

China Eastern Airlines has announced plans to offer a reward to the captain whose quick thinking recently helped to prevent a collision between two planes at a Shanghai airport.

The captain, He Chao, was credited by China's Civil Aviation Administration with "making a great contribution with his precise and correct decision at a critical moment," Nanjing Daily reported.

The critical moment came on Oct 11 when He's Airbus A320 jet, carrying 147 passengers, was preparing to take off from the Shanghai-Hongqiao International Airport.

All of a sudden, He's aircraft encountered another Airbus A330 cutting across its path.

The two planes, both owned by China Eastern Airlines, were found to have been simultaneously cleared for take-off by air traffic control.

The near-collision occurred as He sped up to take off, narrowly evading a head-on crash.

The A320 was just 19 meters from the taxiing A330. Preliminary investigation showed that air traffic control should be blamed for the incident.

China's Civil Aviation Administration suggested that the control center be held accountable, in addition to the crew members of the A330 who failed to maintain proper communication with the controller, China Radio International reported.

The airline, however, has yet to punish controllers, Nanjing Daily reported.