U.S. investigates aborted FedEx touchdown in Texas, two planes cleared for identical runway

Feb 4 (Reuters) – The Federal Aviation Management and the U.S. Nationwide Transportation Protection Board are investigating an aborted touchdown in Austin, Texas, on Saturday morning by means of a FedEx (FDX.N) shipment airplane that were set to land on a runway on which a Southwest Airways (LUV.N) jet used to be additionally cleared to go away from, the companies stated.

The 2 planes got here as regards to colliding when the FedEx airplane used to be compelled to overfly the Southwest airplane to steer clear of a crash, two assets briefed at the topic advised Reuters.

“In a while prior to the FedEx plane used to be because of land, the controller cleared Southwest Flight 708 to go away from the similar runway,” the Federal Aviation Management (FAA) stated.

The NTSB one after the other stated it used to be investigating “a imaginable runway incursion and overflight involving airplanes from Southwest Airways and FedEx.”

The incident took place in deficient visibility stipulations in Austin. The FAA stated FedEx Categorical Flight 1432, a Boeing 767 shipment airplane, which had departed from Memphis, used to be cleared to land on Runway 18-Left round 6:40 a.m. whilst the plane used to be a number of miles from the airport. The Southwest airplane had now not but departed when the FedEx airplane used to be nearing the runway.

“The pilot of the FedEx plane discontinued the touchdown and initiated a climb out,” the FAA stated.

It used to be now not transparent exactly how shut the 2 airplanes got here to colliding, however flight monitoring web page information recommended they got here very shut.

The Cancun, Mexico-bound Southwest flight, a Boeing 737-700, safely departed and landed at 9:47 a.m. ET.

Southwest declined to remark. FedEx stated its flight “safely landed after encountering an match,” however declined additional remark as a result of the continued investigations.

The NTSB and FAA are investigating some other contemporary near-miss runway incident.

On Jan. 13, a Delta Air Strains (DAL.N) airplane got here to a secure prevent at New York’s John F. Kennedy Airport after air visitors controllers spotted a Boeing 777 had crossed from an adjoining taxiway.

The FAA stated the Delta Boeing 737 stopped its takeoff roll roughly 1,000 ft prior to attaining the purpose the place American Airways (AAL.O) Flight 106 had crossed.

Reporting by means of David Shepardson; Enhancing by means of Sandra Maler and Leslie Adler

Our Requirements: The Thomson Reuters Consider Ideas.