An Alaska Airlines plane aborts takeoff to avoid hitting a Southwest Airlines aircraft
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — An Alaska Airlines flight that had been cleared for takeoff in Nashville, Tennessee, was forced to abort Thursday to avoid colliding with a taxiing Southwest Airlines plane, authorities said.
No injuries were reported.
Alaska said in a statement that the pilots of Flight 369 to Seattle had to quickly apply the brakes due to “a potential traffic conflict on the runway.” The aircraft was carrying 176 passengers and six crew members.
“We’re grateful for the expertise of our pilots who immediately applied the brakes to prevent the incident from escalating,” the airline said. “We’re deeply sorry for the concerning experience this created for our guests and crew members. Thankfully, no injuries were reported by our guests or crew members.”
The Federal Aviation Administration said that Southwest Airlines Flight 2029 had been cleared to cross the runway in front of the Alaska flight. The FAA and National Transportation Safety Board were investigating the incident.
“Southwest Airlines is contact with the FAA and NTSB and will participate in the investigation. Nothing is more important to Southwest than the Safety of our Customers and Employees,” Southwest said in a statement.
The aborted takeoff resulted in the Alaska plane’s tires deflating due to heat buildup from the “rapid stop on the runway, as designed,” the airline said. The flight was rescheduled for Thursday evening in a separate plane.
The NTSB identified the aircraft involved as an an Alaska Airlines Boeing 737 Max 9 and a Southwest Airlines a Boeing 737-300.
Thursday’s incident comes just days after two Delta Air Lines planes collided on a taxiway at Atlanta’s airport, with the larger plane knocking over the tail of a smaller regional jet. A passenger on one of the planes called Tuesday’s collision “terrifying” but no injuries were reported.
