An Indian flight from Mumbai narrowly averted a collision with another aircraft on the runway at the airport in Delhi on Thursday, hours after a near mid-air collision between Jet Airways flight and Air Force jets in the skies over Rajkot.

Indian flight IC-168 from Mumbai was set to land at about 8 pm after receiving clearance from the air traffic control at the Indira Gandhi airport when the pilot suddenly noticed another aeroplane on the runway assigned to it.

After announcing that another aircraft was on the runway, the pilot made a sharp climb that "shocked" the passengers, a senior government official who was on the Indian flight told PTI.

The official complimented the pilot's quick reflexes, which she felt had saved the lives of about 150 passengers in the "packed flight".

The Airbus A320 later landed after hovering over the airport for about 20 minutes.