Delta pilot's ‘aggressive manoeuvre' avoids mid-air collision with B-52 bomber
The incident occurred on SkyWest Flight 3788 from Minneapolis to Minot, N.D., according to a statement from SkyWest.
The flight landed safely in Minot 'after being cleared for approach by the tower but performed a go-around when another aircraft became visible in their flight path.'
Audio from the pilot was posted to TikTok by a passenger in which the pilot can be heard apologizing after explaining that the aircraft was 'kind of, sort of coming at us.'
'Nobody told us about it and so we continued and there's no radar here so the tower does everything visually and so they said, 'Report about six miles from the airport,' and so we did that. I think he realized that the spacing wasn't going to work,' the pilot said in the video.
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'They said, 'Turn right,' and I looked over and there was an airplane that was supposedly on the right-hand side. I thought it was a small airplane like the one you see at the airport right now doing touch-and-gos,' he said. 'He said, 'Turn right,' and I said, 'There's an airplane over there,' and he says, 'Turn left,' and by the time we read back to clearance, I looked over and saw the airplane it was kind of coming on a converging course with us.'
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The pilot said the other plane was 'a military plane going a lot faster than us.'
'Sorry about the aggressive manoeuvre. It caught me by surprise. It's not normal at all. I don't know why they didn't give us a heads-up,' the pilot told passengers. 'The airport base also 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 understanding. Not a fun day at work.'
SkyWest said the flight had 76 passengers and four crew members on board. There were no reports of injuries.
The near-collision is currently under investigation by SkyWest Airlines, the Federal Aviation Administration and the air force.
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'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. We can confirm that a B-52 aircraft assigned to Minot AFB conducted a flyover of the North Dakota State Fair Friday evening,' an air force spokesperson told ABC News.
The near-collision comes one day after a SkyWest flight from Omaha, Neb., to Detroit was diverted due to an 'unruly passenger,' according to police.
SkyWest Flight 3612, which was operating as a Delta connection for the flight, left Omaha's Eppley Airfield and was diverted to the Eastern Iowa Airport in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, because of an 'in-air disturbance' by a passenger.
The passenger allegedly got into an altercation with a flight attendant and attempted to open an emergency exit door mid-flight.
'The flight diverted to Cedar Rapids where police officers met the flight and arrested the individual,' the Cedar Rapids Police Department said in a press release.
Mario Nikprelaj, 23, from Nebraska, was transported to the Linn County Correctional Centre and charged with disorderly conduct, assault, possession of prescription medication, a tax stamp violation and first-degree harassment.
Police added that further charges are possible pending further investigation.
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