A near collision between two aircraft was avoided earlier Thursday at Washington, D.C.’s Reagan National Airport.
JetBlue and Southwest Airlines airplanes avoided each other by only 400 feet. Air traffic control recordings show controllers yelling at the JetBlue flight to stop its takeoff as the Southwest flight began taxiing on the runway.
“An air traffic controller instructed Southwest Airlines Flight 2937 to cross Runway 4 at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport while JetBlue Flight 1554 was starting its takeoff roll on the same runway,” the Federal Aviation Administration told CNN. The FAA is investigating the situation.
“JetBlue 1554, stop! 1554, stop!” the tower controller said.
“2937, stop!” the ground controller said.
Air traffic controllers had directed the Southwest plane to taxi on the runway after the JetBlue flight was cleared for takeoff.
“We stopped. We were cleared to cross Runway 4,” the Southwest pilot responded.
Afterward, the JetBlue plane taxied back to the runway, where it took off for Boston. The Southwest flight was directed to continue taxiing onto the runway and took off for Orlando.
JetBlue said their Boston-bound aircraft “aborted take-off due to another aircraft attempting to cross the runway.”
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“We are aware of the incident and are working with the FAA to fully understand the circumstances,” Southwest Airlines told CNN.
According to a New York Times report, near collisions at airports have been increasing.
