Regulators are investigating how two jets carrying a combined 159 people came seconds away from disaster above Syracuse Airport
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Two jets carrying 159 people came seconds away from disaster above Syracuse Airport
The US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has opened an investigation after two commercial jetliners came perilously close to a mid-air collision in upstate New York on Monday. Dashcam footage captured the moment the planes crossed each other’s paths.
The incident took place in the skies above Syracuse Hancock International Airport on Monday morning, as American Airlines flight 5511 was coming in for landing, and Delta Air Lines flight 5421 was taking off from the same runway. The two Bombardier CRJ700 aircraft were carrying a combined 159 people.
Dashcam footage captured by a police car on the ground showed the jets rapidly converging on each other’s flight paths, before the American Airlines pilot turned to avoid the plane climbing below him.
Both planes were cleared to use Runway 28 at the airport, according to air traffic control audio posted on LiveATC.net. As the jets approached each other, a different voice asked the controller “who’s cleared for takeoff on 28?” The controller can then be heard telling the American pilot to “go around.”
The FAA is investigating a situation where two planes (Mitsubishi CRJ-900LR) from American Airlines (flight AA5511) and Delta (flight DL5421) almost crashed mid-air over Syracuse (SYR), New York on 08 July 2024.
— FL360aero (@fl360aero) July 10, 2024
The flight controller authorized the Delta CRJ-900LR (N927XJ) to… pic.twitter.com/uvvcghBZh3
According to CBS News, the American Airlines pilot climbed before turning right, a move that caused the plane to lose some altitude. After the turn, flight 5511 was just 675 feet (205 meters) above flight 5421, and 425 feet (129 meters) off its path.
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The FAA said on Wednesday that it was investigating the incident, and Delta confirmed to CBS that it would cooperate with the probe. American Airlines acknowledged the investigation, but offered no comment.
The near-miss is the latest in a series of accidents at American airports. On Monday, a United Airlines Boeing 757 lost a wheel as it took off from Los Angeles International Airport, before ultimately landing safely in Denver, Colorado. Back in January, a Boeing 737 MAX 9 operated by Alaska Airlines lost a chunk of its fuselage in mid air shortly after takeoff from Portland, Oregon. The company’s output plummeted as multiple other safety issues were made public in the months since.
