An American
Airlines flight bound from Miami
to Bermuda
experienced an unexpected delay on Saturday when it was forced to abort its takeoff
after a business jet crossed its runway at Miami International Airport.
An airline spokesperson
told CNN
that American Airlines Flight 308 had initiated takeoff procedures “after
receiving clearance,” but stopped when the flight crew saw that another
aircraft had entered the runway.
At one point, the
two aircraft reportedly came within roughly one-third of a mile of each other.
At the time of the
incident, at around 6 p.m. ET, air traffic control audio captured a tense
exchange between controllers and the business jet pilot.
"You just
crossed an active runway," an air traffic controller told the person piloting
the business jet, NetJets Flight EJA434.
The pilot replied,
"You just told me to cross the runway, sir."
The controller
responded, "No, we said Amerijet 461."
Private aviation
company NetJets told CNN that the aircraft was being operated by a third-party
maintenance vendor at the time of the runway incursion.
The close call is
just the latest in a spate of recent aviation safety scares that have made headlines
as the busy Fourth of July travel period approaches. Just one day earlier, a
United Airlines flight arriving in New Jersey narrowly missed colliding
with a drone while making its landing approach.
Although slightly
delayed, American Airlines Flight 308 later continued on to Bermuda, the spokesperson
confirmed.
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