By Jay Blackman and Chantal Da Silva -
NBC News
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is investigating how two US planes could have nearly collided at high speed at New York's John F. Kennedy International Airport on Friday night.
A Delta Air Lines Boeing 737 was preparing to take off at around 8:45 a.m. ET when an air traffic controller frantically ordered it to stop as he observed another plane, operated by American Airlines, pass in front of it. on the runway, the FAA reported in a statement.
″Delta 1943, cancel takeoff clearance!” an air traffic controller was heard in an audio recording (which included a profanity resulting from his alarm) of Air Traffic Control communications made shared by the LiveATC website.
The Delta plane came to rest about 1,000 feet from where American Airlines Flight 106, a Boeing 777 bound for London, UK, had just crossed from an adjacent taxiway.
The passengers of the Delta plane, which was going to Santo Domingo, in the Dominican Republic, suffered the sudden stop, but no injuries were reported.
[A video recorded by a passenger shows the final moments inside the crashed plane in Nepal with 72 people on board]
“It was like a split second of panic that led to this audible reaction on the plane,” Brian Heale, a passenger on the Delta flight, told NBC News, “I felt the adrenaline rush and there was total silence on the plane and then there was relief when the plane came to a stop."
They identify the Latina woman who died in the plane crash in Nepal
Jan 16, 202302:24
The Delta flight, with 145 passengers and six crew members, returned to the gate after the incident and was evacuated.
His departure was delayed until the next day due to a lack of crew, according to the airline, which accommodated the passengers in hotels.
He was finally able to take off on Saturday at 10:20 in the morning.
“The safety of our customers and crew is always Delta's number one priority,” the company said, adding that it would “work with and assist federal aviation authorities in a full review” of the incident.
American Airlines forwarded all calls to the FAA.
Are you planning to travel with your pet by plane?
It is better that you follow these tips
Jan 10, 202303:29
John Cox, a retired pilot and professor of aviation safety at the University of Southern California, explained to NBC News his doubts about whether there was a "miscommunication between the American crew and air traffic controllers."
Asked about the frequency of such incidents, he said: "This happens from time to time, when there is a misunderstanding about an air traffic control clearance and someone ends up having to refuse a takeoff."