February 6th 2023
Southwest and FedEx planes nearly collide at Texas airport
by bbc news
Aviation officials are investigating a near-collision between a FedEx cargo plane and a Southwest passenger flight at a Texas airport on Saturday.
The cargo plane had to abort its landing as the Southwest flight was cleared to depart on the same runway, officials said.
A voice reportedly from an air traffic control recording is heard warning: "Southwest abort. FedEx is on the go."
The planes were under 1,000ft (304m) apart, a flight-tracking service said.
But an air traffic controller cleared Southwest Flight 708 for departure from the same runway with the FedEx crew about three miles away, flight data interpreted by FlightRadar24 shows.
The FedEx plane at one point reported an altitude of 75ft before climbing as it caught up to the Southwest plane, which remained on the runway.
An animated video released by FlightRadar24 shows the cargo plane approaching and passing directly over the commercial flight before making a sharp turn away from the runway.
"The pilot of the FedEx airplane discontinued the landing and initiated a climb out," the FAA said in a statement. "The Southwest flight departed safely."
Both planes completed their journeys without further incident, with the FedEx flight circling the airfield and landing safely 12 minutes later, while the Southwest flight travelled to Cancun, Mexico.
Investigators with the FAA and the National Transportation Safety Board are probing the incident.
It comes less than a month after a similar close call between an American Airlines and Delta Airlines plane in New York.
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