An American Airlines pilot was forced to "slam on the brakes" to avoid colliding with an airport operations pickup truck at North Carolina's Charlotte Douglas International Airport on Wednesday.
Air traffic control audio of the incident obtained by CBS News captured the pilot telling a ramp controller, "They just went right in front of us. We nearly hit them. I had to slam on the brakes."
The pilot of Flight 1197 said his taxi light was switched on and the plane was moving when the vehicle sped past. "Someone's got to be notified right away. That's really bad," the pilot said.
The airport confirmed the incident, with a spokesperson telling CBS News that "Charlotte Douglas International Airport (CLT) is aware of the reported incident involving an American Airlines aircraft and a CLT ground vehicle while taxiing near the gate on Wednesday morning. Safety and security are top priorities at CLT."
"We're proud of the professionalism of our crew and the action they took when a ground vehicle not affiliated with American Airlines entered the aircraft's path on a taxiway," American Airlines said in another statement to CBS News.
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) confirmed that it's looking into the incident, which comes one week after a similar near-miss involving a Frontier Airlines plane and a pair of trucks at Los Angeles International Airport.
Both incidents occurred less than one month after an Air Canada jet crashed into a fire truck at New York's LaGuardia Airport, killing both pilots and injuring dozens of passengers.
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