Audio from air traffic controllers at New York City‘s John F. Kennedy International Airport shows how close two airplanes came to colliding on the runway Friday.
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The near-collision happened when Delta Air Lines flight 1943 was taking off from the same runway that American Airlines flight 106 was crossing at the same time. When controllers realized the two planes were on a collision course, they quickly commanded the Delta flight to abort takeoff, preventing the crash.
#Ongoing JFK Airport runway incursion (NY, US): Delta Flight 1943 (B-737, 151 aboard) aborted take-off roll from runway 04L after AA Flight 106 (B-777, unknown number aboard) crossed runway. Blue arrow on video points AA jet, Red arrow to Delta Jet. Updates when possible pic.twitter.com/Ttq39zGG7H
— Air Safety #OTD by Francisco Cunha (@OnDisasters) January 16, 2023
Several explicit remarks can be heard as air controllers saw the two planes set to collide before quickly advising both flights on what to do to avoid running into each other.
“Delta 1943, cancel takeoff clearance,” an air traffic controller said. “American 106 heavy hold position,” another air traffic controller repeated.
The incident is under investigation by the National Transportation Safety Board and the Federal Aviation Administration.
Delta told the Washington Examiner the Boeing 737-900 was departing to Santo Domingo Airport in the Dominican Republic when the plane’s takeoff was “stopped safely on the runway.” The spokesperson said the plane returned to the gate where the 145 customers and six crew members on board deplaned and that the flight was delayed overnight. The delay was due to “crew resources.” Passengers were given overnight accommodations, with the plane successfully departing New York Saturday morning.
“The safety of our customers and crew is always Delta’s No. 1 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,” a spokesperson for Delta Air Lines told the Washington Examiner.
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American Airlines told the Washington Examiner it would defer comment on the situation to the FAA and NTSB.
