Indonesia’s transportation ministry today urged an investigation into a collision between two planes at an airport in the country’s capital last night, reports China’s Xinhua news agency.

A Boeing 737-800 operated by Batik Air, the full-service operator of one of Asia’s biggest airliners Lion Air Group, was taking off from Halim Perdanakusuma airport when its wing clipped the tail of a TransNusa plane being towed off the runway.

The aircraft was scheduled for a flight to Makassar, South Sulawesi.

No casualties were reported, but 49 passengers and seven crew members of the Batik Air plane, which saw one of its wings erupting in flames, were forced to evacuate using inflatable ramps.

Meanwhile, there was only one person, the pilot, on the TransNusa plane.

The incident, which took place at around 8pm local time, prompted immediate closure of the largely-domestic airport until midnight last night.

Hadi M Djuraig, spokesperson of the transportation ministry, said in a statement today that his office had ordered the country’s transportation safety commission, known as KNKT, to conduct an investigation into the incident.

He added that the KNKT would also probe the airport’s air traffic control (ATC) team, operator company Angkasa Pura (AP) II, and the ground-handling company.

Flights to and from the airport have reopened according to schedules.

“In regards to what happened, we are waiting for the investigation result from the authorities,” said Edward Sirait, president director of Lion Air Group, in a statement.

- Bernama