A potentially catastrophic mid-air collision was narrowly avoided in the stormy skies over Portland International Airport when an Alaska Airlines flight attempted to land on a runway while a SkyWest plane was taking off. The terrifying near miss was captured on video by the YouTube channel VASAAviation, which also provided a visual simulation of the incident.
The two planes reportedly came within approximately 250 vertical feet of each other during the incident. According to the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), a near-midair collision is defined as occurring when planes are less than 500 feet from each other. The FAA has launched an investigation into the incident.
The FAA’s initial statement indicated that the pilot of the Alaska Airlines plane had initiated a go-around while attempting to land at Portland International Airport due to strong winds. This action brought the aircraft into close proximity with the SkyWest Airlines flight, which had just departed. Air traffic controllers instructed the Alaska Airlines pilot to turn away from the SkyWest aircraft to prevent a collision.
The audio from the air traffic controller’s communication with the Alaska flight became increasingly panicked as they attempted to guide the aircraft to safety. The controller instructed the Alaska flight to follow the “runway heading” path, while the SkyWest flight was told to turn right as it departed the runway. However, the Alaska flight appeared to misunderstand the instructions and began turning right into the path of the departing plane. The air traffic controller provided increasingly frantic directions and even misidentified the Alaska flight number.
Ultimately, the Alaska flight was rerouted to an airport located 150 miles away and was unable to land in Portland.
Both Alaska Airlines and SkyWest released statements downplaying the incident. Alaska Airlines stated that the crew of Flight 1299 maintained a safe level of separation from the other aircraft and reacted immediately to cockpit indications. SkyWest also asserted that the safety of the flight was not compromised at any point.
The exact number of passengers aboard the two aircraft is not known, and the FAA is continuing to investigate the proximity and circumstances of the near-miss incident.