Only a day before the crash at Reagan National Airport that left all passengers dead, another flight was redirected minutes before touchdown.
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As American Airlines Flight 5210 made its final approach to Reagan National Airport, the passenger plane was told of its last-minute change to the landing. As the plane was only 1,100 meters above the runway, it was instructed to pull up to avoid a collision.
A passenger on board, Marcus Webster, an experienced flier, told of the nerve-wracking experience. "We're approaching the ground and then man, all of a sudden, you just kind of felt it dip a little bit and then the nose just went right back up into the air," he said.
As a seasoned flier, he knows how the approach should be performed. This one was very irregular. As the flight was redirected over Reagan National Airport, the pilot came over the tannoy.
"Pilot gets on, and he's like, 'Yea, sorry folks, Air Traffic Control called and said we were getting a little too close to another aircraft so they diverted us back around,'" Webster said, looking back. "He was stuttering a little bit, So that would tell me that he was a little bit worked up."
Passengers Won't Be Using Reagan National After Redirected Flight
Marcus Webster said he wouldn't be using the Reagan National Airport again after his plane was redirected. The near miss their plane had was only hours before the fatal crash that killed all on board. The heavily populated airspace and understaffed airport are too much risk for him.
When asked how he would be returning home he said he would be using another airport. A near miss, just hours before a disaster, is enough to put anyone off. The fatal crash was caused by busy airspace, and the airport clearly couldn't handle it.
The plane that was redirected over Reagan National was the second in the 24 period before the crash. It is still unclear what went wrong leading up to the collision. However, the amount of rerouted planes coming into land signifies issues with air traffic control. Many people will be avoiding flying from or two there as a result.
