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The Hill
3 days ago
- General
- The Hill
Passenger jet pilot makes hard midair turn to avoid B-52 bomber
A passenger jet made a hard turn midair on Friday to avoid a collision with a B-52 bomber, according to the pilot and the Air Force. SkyWest Flight 3788, operating as Delta Connection from Minneapolis, landed safely in Minot, N.D., after the pilot 'performed a go-around when another aircraft became visible in their flight path,' a SkyWest spokesperson to The Hill. SkyWest is investigating the incident, the spokesperson added. The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) said it is also investigating the incident, in a statement to NewsNation. An Air Force spokesperson said it is 'looking into the matter' and confirmed that 'a B-52 aircraft assigned to Minot AFB conducted a flyover of the North Dakota State Fair Friday evening.' The pilot explained to the flight passengers what took place before he made an 'aggressive maneuver' to avoid a collision and apologized for the incident, according to a recording of his comments posted online by a passenger. The pilot told the flight that there's no radar in the area, so the 'tower does everything visually' and instructed the passenger jet to report as they were about 6 miles from the airport, which the pilot said they did. 'I think he realized that the spacing wasn't going to work, and he said, 'Turn right,'' the pilot explained. But the pilot said he saw an aircraft to his right. 'I said, 'There's an airplane over there.' And he says, 'Turn left,'' the pilot added. 'And then by the time we read back the clearance, [we] looked over and saw the airplane that was kind of coming on a converging course with us.' The pilot told the flight of passengers that he made a calculated decision to avoid a potential collision. 'And so given his speed — it was a military [aircraft], I don't know how fast they were going, but they were a lot faster than us — I felt it was the safest thing to turn behind it,' he said. The pilot apologized and said he, too, was caught by surprise and was not given a heads up that the B-52 bomber would be sharing the airspace. 'So sorry about the aggressive maneuver. It caught me by surprise. This is not, not normal at all,' the pilot said. 'I don't know why they didn't give us a heads up because the Air Force Base does have radar, and nobody said, Hey, there's also a B-52 in the pattern.'' 'Long story short, it was not fun, but I do apologize for it, and thank you for understanding. It was kind of a, not a fun day at work,' the pilot said, prompting applause from the passengers.
Reuters
3 days ago
- General
- Reuters
FAA investigating close call between SkyWest jet, B-52 bomber
WASHINGTON, July 21 (Reuters) - The Federal Aviation Administration said Monday it is investigating a close call between a SkyWest Airlines (SKYW.O), opens new tab jet and an Air Force jet over North Dakota. SkyWest Flight 3788, an Embraer ERJ-175 operating as Delta Connection (DAL.N), opens new tab from Minneapolis to Minot, North Dakota, landed safely in Minot Friday after being cleared for approach but performed a go-around when another aircraft became visible in their flight path, SkyWest said.
Metro
3 days ago
- General
- Metro
Passenger plane forced to swerve in mid-air to avoid crashing into B-52 bomber
A domestic US flight was forced to make an 'aggressive manoeuvre' to avoid hitting a military plane mid-air. Passengers on the Delta Connection flight from Minneapolis, Minnesota, to Minot, North Dakota, described feeling the plane suddenly take a 'really hard turn'. The pilot then made an announcement to the cabin apologising and promised to 'explain everything when we land safely'. In footage filmed from inside the cabin after coming to a stop, the pilot can be heard apologising again to stunned passengers. 'It caught me by surprise, this is not normal at all. I don't know why they didn't give us a heads-up. 'You probably kind of saw the airplane coming at us. Nobody told us about it.' To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video The plane had been cleared for approach as it neared its destination but 'performed a go-around when another aircraft became visible in their flight path', according to a statement from operator SkyWest. The aircraft in question was a B-52 Stratofortress bomber flown from Minot Air Force Base. An Air Force spokesperson confirmed a B-52 'conducted a flyover of the North Dakota State Fair' at the time and said officials were 'looking into the matter'. Monica Green, who wasn't able to see the bomber from her seat, said that after getting to the airport she heard people on the ground describe seeing the other plane 'nearly hit us, and it went so low it passed under us'. Speaking to KMOT News, she praised the pilot's transparency, saying it left everyone 'weirdly calm' despite the sudden swerving. She added: 'We took a really hard turn, and that's when the pilot got on the intercom and said, ''sorry everybody, I'll explain everything when we land safely''. 'The way he said it, it almost sounded like he was insinuating that landing safely might not be an option for a moment,' she added. 'He was almost shaking, trying to find the right words, but he was nice and detailed. It felt good that they weren't just going to brush it off.' The plane circled Minot Airport a few times before landing SkyWest has also said it is investigating the incident. Delta and Minot Air Force Base have been approached for comment. Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@ For more stories like this, check our news page. MORE: Officer smashes car window then punches driver stopped for not having headlights on MORE: British airport announces 'major redesign' including new restaurants and runway views MORE: Major disruption at London Waterloo to last well beyond afternoon rush hour
CBS News
3 days ago
- General
- CBS News
SkyWest flight does "aggressive maneuver" to avoid a B-52 military aircraft, pilot says
The pilot of a SkyWest flight told passengers Friday night that he performed an "aggressive maneuver" to avoid an apparent B-52 military aircraft in-flight as he came in for a landing in Minot, North Dakota — then apologized for the sudden move. The airline said in a statement that SkyWest flight 3788, operating as Delta Connection on a flight from Minneapolis, "landed safely in Minot after being cleared for approach by the tower but performing a go-around when another aircraft became visible in their flight path. We are investigating the incident." In a video recorded by passenger Monica Green and obtained by CBS News, the pilot is heard calmly announcing to passengers: "For those of you on the right-hand side, you probably saw the airplane kinda sorta coming at us. Nobody told us about it and so we continued." The pilot explained that the tower at the Minot airport doesn't have radar, so air traffic controllers do everything visually. The pilot said he "saw the airplane that was kind of coming on a converging course with us." "Given his speed," the pilot continued, "it was a military (aircraft). I don't know how fast they were going but they were a lot faster than us. I thought the safest thing to do was to turn behind it. So, sorry about the aggressive maneuver. It caught me by surprise. "This is not normal at all. I don't know why they didn't give us a heads-up because the (nearby) Air Force base does have radar and nobody said, 'Hey, there's also a B-52 in the pattern.'" The Air Force confirmed in a statement to CBS News that a B-52 aircraft assigned to Minot Air Force Base was operating in the area at the time, having conducted a flyover of the North Dakota State Fair. "Long story short, it was not fun but I do apologize for it and I thank you for everything. It was not a fun day at work today," the pilot added, at which point the passengers started applauding. SkyWest said the flight had 76 passengers and four crew members on board. An Air Force spokesperson told CBS News, "We are aware of the recent reporting regarding commercial and Air Force aircraft operating in airspace around Minot International Airport. We are currently looking into the matter." Green, the passenger who recorded the video, said that as the aircraft was descending, she felt it jolt to the right. The Federal Aviation Administration said it is working to gather information on what Van Cleave contributed to this report.
CBS News
3 days ago
- General
- CBS News
SkyWest flight does "aggressive maneuver" to avoid military aircraft, pilot says
The pilot of a SkyWest flight told passengers Friday night that he performed an "aggressive maneuver" to avoid an apparent B-52 military aircraft in-flight as he came in for a landing in Minot, North Dakota — then apologized for the sudden move. The airline said in a statement that SkyWest flight 3788, operating as Delta Connection on a flight from Minneapolis, "landed safely in Minot after being cleared for approach by the tower but performing a go-around when another aircraft became visible in their flight path. We are investigating the incident." In a video recorded by passenger Monica Green and obtained by CBS News, the pilot is heard calmly announcing to passengers: "For those of you on the right-hand side, you probably saw the airplane kinda sorta coming at us. Nobody told us about it and so we continued." The pilot explained that the tower at the Minot airport doesn't have radar, so air traffic controllers do everything visually. The pilot said he "saw the airplane that was kind of coming on a converging course with us." "Given his speed," the pilot continued, "it was a military (aircraft). I don't know how fast they were going but they were a lot faster than us. I thought the safest thing to do was to turn behind it so .. sorry about the aggressive maneuver and it caught me by surprise. "This is not normal at all. I don't know why they didn't give us a heads-up because the (nearby) Air Force base does have radar and nobody said, 'Hey, there's also a B-52 in the pattern.'" "Long story short, it was not fun but I do apologize for it and I thank you for everything. It was not a fun day at work today," the pilot added, at which point the passengers started applauding. SkyWest said the flight had 76 passengers and four crew members on board. Green, the passenger who recorded the video, said that as the aircraft was descending, she felt it jolt to the right. The Federal Aviation Administration said it is working to gather information on what Van Cleave contributed to this report.
