While attempting to land at Reagan Airport in Washington, DC, an American Airlines flight narrowly avoided a collision. This comes just a few weeks after the deadly plane and helicopter crash that killed 67 people at the same airport.
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American Airlines Plane Performs Quick Maneuver To Avoid Collision
Around 8:30 AM on Tuesday, the Airbus A319 was arriving from Boston and preparing for its landing. This is according to the Federal Aviation Administration, as per the New York Post. Just as it was nearing its touchdown, the plane made a quick turn-around to avoid crashing into a plane that was on the same runway.
"An air traffic controller instructed American Flight 2246 to perform a go-around," said FAA officials. This was to "ensure separation was maintained between this aircraft and a preceding departure from the same runway."
Although this incident sounds like a near-death experience, American Airlines claims that this is a typical maneuver. This is considered a standard procedure that "can occur nearly every day." The spokesperson called it "a tool in both the pilot's and air traffic controller's toolbox" to maintain safety operations.
Can you believe that on the same day that this incident occurred, another plane nearly crashed into another aircraft in Chicago? A Southwest Airlines flight was forced to use the same go-around pattern to avoid colliding with a private plane.
The deadly American Airlines plane crash shook the nation, and everyone is certainly on edge now. On top of that, numerous other plane crashes have occurred since those 67 people perished.
Just one week ago in Arizona, two single-engine planes collided mid-air, killing multiple people on board. Then, just a few days before that, a small private plane in Georgia fell from the sky and crashed, killing two.
Although some of these situations differ in many ways, they all show how important the go-around maneuver is. If this American Airlines flight hadn't moved fast enough, the outcome could've been deadly. The same goes for the Chicago flight on the same day.
