Austin Close Call Spotlights Myriad Air Traffic Hazards

Austin close call graphic

An arriving FedEx Boeing 767 and departing Southwest Airlines 737 using the same runway came within 115 ft. of each other at Austin-Bergstrom International Airport in February 2023. An air traffic controller said he misjudged how quickly the Southwest flight would act on its takeoff clearance, but a review of investigators’ factual reports compiled so far reveals several systemic issues that likely contributed to the close call.

Credit: Graphic: Colin Throm/AW&ST. Source: NTSB.
An air traffic controller’s candid response to an investigator’s query seems to explain why a FedEx Boeing 767-300 freighter and a Southwest Airlines Boeing 737-700 came within 115 ft. of each other on a foggy Austin, Texas, morning nearly a year ago. Had he not “launched Southwest” for takeoff in...

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