Photo Courtesy of Unsplash (@Miguel Ángel Sanz)
On Friday, two passenger jets nearly collided at John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK) in New York City.
The incident, which occurred at around 8:45 PM, involved a Delta Air Lines Airlines flight and an American Airlines flight.
According to the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), the Delta flight was attempting to take off from JFK’s runway when it came into close proximity with the American Airlines flight.
The planes came within seconds of hitting each other, with the distance between them being about 1,000 feet.
Audio from the air traffic control tower captured the panic of the controllers as they frantically tried to prevent the collision.
You can hear one person yelling, “Delta 1943 cancel takeoff plans! Delta 1943 cancel takeoff plans!”
“Rejecting,” someone responds.
The FAA has launched an investigation into the incident, which will look into the actions of the pilots, air traffic controllers, and the airport’s ground control. The National Transportation Safety Board also said in a tweet Sunday that it is investigating the incident.
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A representative of Delta Air Lines released statements regarding the incident.
They said Flight 1943 was heading to the Dominican Republic, but the flight was delayed overnight due to the incident.
According to CNBC the statement read, “The safety of our customers and crew is always Delta’s number one priority. Delta will work with and assist aviation authorities on a full review of flight 1943 on Jan. 13 regarding a successful aborted takeoff procedure at New York-JFK. We apologize to our customers for the inconvenience and delay of their travels.”
American Airlines did not comment on the incident and referred questions to the FAA.