Close call between Delta flight, Air Force jet reported near DCA
A Delta flight received an onboard alert that an Air Force jet was close by as it took off near Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA) on Friday afternoon, just months after the region experienced the deadliest aviation incident since 2001.
The Minneapolis-bound Delta flight — with 131 passengers on board — was cleared for takeoff while four U.S. Air Force T-38 jets were flying toward Arlington National Cemetery in Arlington, Va., for a flyover, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) said. The agency is investigating the incident.
The close call, which was first reported by CNN, is the latest incident near Washington, as the nation's capital reels from a January midair collision between an American Airlines passenger plane and Army Black Hawk helicopter near Reagan National Airport that killed all 67 people on board both aircrafts.
On Friday, Delta’s Airbus A319 aircraft departed its gate at 2:55 EDT. The cockpit then received word from air traffic controllers at approximately 3:15 p.m. about the jet in the region. Both aircrafts took corrective action.
“Nothing is more important than the safety of our customers and people,” Delta said in a statement to The Hill. “That’s why the flight crew followed procedures to maneuver the aircraft as instructed.”
The military jet took off and landed at Langley Air Force Base in Virginia, CNN reported. The Hill has reached out to the Air Force for comment.
Air traffic near DCA has been in the spotlight as concerns have emerged about close calls at the airport since the January collision led to an icy search through the Potomac River for what was left of the aircraft and the victims. The FAA has documented several close calls in recent years, as the Associated Press reported earlier this month.
Since the deathly incident, the Trump administration announced it would permanently limit military helicopter operations near the airport. And some lawmakers have called on the Defense Department to reduce air traffic near the airport even more.
Earlier this week, the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) Chair Jennifer Homendy and acting FAA Administrator Chris Rocheleau testified at a Senate hearing about the collision – just two weeks after the NTSB unveiled its preliminary report following the incident.
President Trump and other Transportation Department officials have placed blame on the shortage of air traffic controllers and policies installed under the previous administration. The president vowed to overhaul the FAA after the January crash.