A Swiss Air plane nearly collided with four other planes at JFK airport after a communication error caused the planes to cross the runway as they prepared to take off.
The incident occurred last week and is now being investigated by the Federal Aviation Administration, after the fast pilot aborted takeoff.
The A330 had been given the go-ahead to take off from New York airport and was moving down the runway at 65 km/h, despite four other planes crossing the same stretch of asphalt from the taxiways.
Despite the green light, the pilot noted that air traffic control had also cleared four other planes to cross the same runway.
Audio taken from air traffic control confirmed that the flight was cleared for takeoff, before the pilot said: ‘Swiss 17k heavy refusing takeoff. Traffic on the runway.
The A330 had received clearance to take off from New York airport and was accelerating down the runway (file photo)
This graphic shows how the white A330 began to circulate on a runway crossed by four planes
Had it stayed on course, it would have been on track to collide with four other planes.
The airline said: “Due to the high level of situational awareness and quick reaction of our crew, a potentially dangerous situation was quickly de-escalated.”
Robert Sumwalt, executive director of the Boeing Center for Aviation and Aerospace Safety at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, said C.B.S.: ‘It is a situation where one controller does not know what the other controller is doing.
“It’s a totally unacceptable situation, as it turns out it’s not what I would call a difficult situation. Still, it’s not something that should happen.”
While John Nance, aviation expert and ABC News contributor, told ABC7: ‘Moving four planes across an active runway and one controller without speaking to another indicates a special level of stress.’
Last week’s incident came just a day after another close call at Washington’s Reagan National Airport.
Two crowded planes came within 400 feet of each other after a JetBlue flight was cleared to take off.
The pilot was forced to slam on the brakes after Air Traffic Control noticed that a Southwest Airlines plane had also been cleared to taxi on that same runway.
In audio obtained from Air Traffic Control, the controller can be heard saying: ‘Stop southwest! Southwest Stop 2937!’
Two crowded planes came within 400 feet of each other after a JetBlue flight was cleared to take off.
The pilot was forced to slam on the brakes after Air Traffic Control noticed that a Southwest Airlines plane had also been cleared to taxi on that same runway.
Southwest Airlines Flight 2937, headed to Orlando, Florida, took off from the airport at 7:47 a.m., according to FlightAware.
JetBlue Flight 1554 was bound for Boston and took off from Reagan National Airport at 1:48 p.m.
JetBlue said in a statement that the flight aborted takeoff because another plane attempted to cross the runway, but no injuries were reported.
The plane was inspected before departing for Boston and JetBlue said it will “work closely with federal officials as this event is fully investigated.”
Southwest said in a statement that it was aware of the incident and was “working with the FAA to fully understand the circumstances.”
In the fiscal year ended Sept. 30 last year, “significant” air traffic control failures increased 65 percent from the previous year.
This represented 503 incidents, according to internal FAA data reviewed by the New York Times.
Controllers say that due to staff shortages, they are often forced to work 10-hour shifts six days a week, irregular hours that leave them exhausted, mentally depressed and turning to alcohol to cope.
In a statement, the FAA said the Times’ extensive report “does not reflect the high level of safety in our nation’s airspace.”
Management also added that it is “deeply committed to the health and well-being of our air traffic controllers and all of our employees.”
In 1977, two Boeing 747 planes collided on the runway at Los Rodeos airport in Tenerife, killing 583 people.
KLM Flight 4805 had begun its takeoff directly toward a Pan Am plane, causing a fire.
The two planes had been diverted to Tenerife due to a terrorist alert at the Gran Canaria airport.