2 Planes Narrowly Avoid Collision At Austin Airport, FAA Says

Two planes narrowly avoided a collision at Austin-Bergstrom International Airport on Saturday after a departing flight and arriving flight were both cleared to use the same runway, officials said.

A FedEx cargo jet was attempting to land at the airport Saturday morning and had been cleared by air traffic controllers to do so several miles from the runway. The Federal Aviation Administration said, however, a Southwest Airlines plane was also cleared to depart moments later from the same location.

The FedEx plane aborted its landing, circled the airport and landed safely shortly thereafter. Flight tracking footage shows the two aircraft nearly overlapping each other at the time.

“Shortly before the FedEx aircraft was due to land, the controller cleared Southwest Flight 708 to depart from the same runway,” the FAA said in a statement. “The pilot of the FedEx airplane discontinued the landing and initiated a climb out. The Southwest flight departed safely.”

The incident will be investigated by the FAA and the National Transportation Safety Board.

The New York Times reported Sunday that weather conditions in Austin weren’t ideal at the time of the incident. Air traffic controllers alluded to reduced visibility, although officials haven’t confirmed what caused the mix-up.

This is the second near-collision in recent weeks. Two commercial planes at John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York nearly crossed paths last month.