A significant incident occurred at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA) on Tuesday morning when an American Airlines flight was forced to abort its landing to avert a potential collision. The incident unfolded around 8:20 am as Flight 2246 approached the runway. The pilot spotted another aircraft preparing to take off from the same runway and made the decision to execute a go-around manoeuvre to maintain safety.
According to a statement from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), an air traffic controller directed Flight 2246 to perform the go-around to ensure adequate separation from the departing aircraft, which was also on the same runway. American Airlines later confirmed that the flight landed safely and normally after receiving clearance from Air Traffic Control, characterising the go-around as a “standard” operation. The airline explained that their no-fault go-around policy asserts that such manoeuvres are a normal part of flight operations and are conducted frequently in the National Airspace System.
The incident at DCA comes weeks after a tragic crash at the same airport that resulted in the deaths of 65 people, drawing heightened attention to safety protocols in air travel.
Less than two hours later, a similar occurrence took place at Midway International Airport in Chicago, where a Southwest Boeing 737-8H4 flight, arriving from Omaha, Nebraska, had to abort its landing due to a near miss with a private aircraft. The Southwest flight approached the runway around 9:50 am when it nearly collided with a Bombardier Challenger 3500 operated by Flexjet, which was en route to Knoxville, Tennessee. In dramatic footage captured during the event, the Southwest pilot executed a go-around after briefly touching the runway, successfully avoiding a potentially catastrophic situation. Fortunately, there were no injuries reported, and the Southwest flight landed safely shortly after.
These incidents follow a series of aviation-related occurrences in North America within the current calendar year. In addition to the aforementioned incidents in Washington, two planes collided midair at Marana Airport in Arizona last week, resulting in the deaths of two individuals. The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) is investigating that collision involving a Cessna 172S and a Lancair 360 MK II, which took place at an uncontrolled airport without an operational air traffic control tower.
Further adding to the context, a close call was reported in December when a Delta Airlines flight nearly collided with a private jet carrying the Gonzaga University men's basketball team in Los Angeles. In that instance, air traffic controllers intervened just in time to prevent a dangerous situation as the Embraer E135 jet was set to cross the runway.
As a whole, these recent events reflect ongoing concerns regarding air travel safety, particularly in light of multiple incidents occurring this year alone, with the aviation community closely monitoring operations at airports nationwide.
Source: Noah Wire Services