3 days ago
- General
- San Francisco Chronicle
United jet turns wrong way after takeoff at SFO, nearly collides with SkyWest plane
Two commercial jets departing San Francisco International Airport on parallel runways came unusually close to colliding this month, prompting a federal investigation into the incident.
The incident occurred on May 13, when United Airlines Flight UA1152, an Airbus A320 bound for Dallas, lifted off from Runway 1R and was cleared to turn right.
Moments later, SkyWest Flight 5273, a CRJ-200 headed for Fresno, departed from Runway 1L under instructions to turn left, according to audio recordings from the air traffic control tower.
Shortly after takeoff, however, the United jet veered left — directly into the SkyWest aircraft's path.
At their closest, the two planes were just over a mile apart horizontally and 280 feet apart vertically, according to the airline news site One Mile at a Time, which first reported the incident.
A traffic-alert warning then prompted the SkyWest crew to execute an evasive maneuver, narrowly averting a collision.
In a subsequent debriefing, the United captain said the first officer — making his first departure from SFO — followed the flight-management system's guidance, which incorrectly indicated a left turn. By the time the captain intervened and selected a new heading, the aircraft was already perilously close.
Adding to the confusion, the controller twice instructed 'fly runway heading' when he meant 'fly present heading,' according to the recordings. At the time, the controller was juggling multiple flights, including a Turkish Airlines jet awaiting landing clearance.
Both flights continued to their destinations safely.
The Federal Aviation Administration has opened an investigation into the incident, and a United spokesperson confirmed the airline was reviewing the events in detail.
