Latest news with #NorthDakotaStateFair
The Hill
20 minutes ago
- General
- The Hill
Air Force blames air traffic controllers for near miss involving B-52 bomber
Air traffic controllers at a North Dakota airport didn't tell the crew of an Air Force B-52 bomber that a commercial airliner was flying in the same area, causing a near miss between the planes, according to the military. In a statement released Monday evening, the Air Force said the B-52 crew told Minot International Airport's air traffic control that the bomber was nearing the area where a SkyWest Airlines pilot was approaching to land the evening of July 18. 'The tower did not advise of the inbound commercial aircraft,' the Air Force said. The pilot of the passenger jet Flight 3788, which departed from Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport, was forced to veer sharply to avoid the B-52, startling passengers, though both planes landed safely. A passenger aboard the commercial flight captured a video of the pilot's explanation over the intercom of what had occurred, during which he said he had to make an 'aggressive maneuver' to turn after spotting the bomber in his flight path. 'Sorry about the aggressive maneuver. It caught me by surprise,' the pilot said. 'This is not normal at all. I don't know why they didn't give us a heads up.' SkyWest is owned by Delta Air Lines. The Air Force explained that the bomber, from Minot Air Force Base, had been conducting a flyover at the North Dakota State Fair in Minot that was 'planned in advance' and 'approved by the Federal Aviation Administration' the Minot International Airport air traffic control and the military base's air traffic control team. Ahead of the flyover, the B-52 crew contacted its base air traffic control team as well as that of the Minot International Airport's air traffic control tower. At 7:40 p.m. the bomber crew told the base they were departing their holding point for the fairgrounds. Three minutes later the base directed the crew to contact the airport's air traffic control. 'The B-52 crew contacted Minot International Airport tower and the tower provided instructions to continue 2 miles westbound after the flyover,' the Air Force said, noting that the tower did not advise them of the incoming commercial aircraft. The flyover happened at 7:50 p.m., and the B-52 kept flying west as instructed to clear the airport's airspace before returning to base, according to the Air Force. The FAA, Air Force and SkyWest are investigating the incident, the latest in a string of recent air safety scares. On Jan. 29, an American Airlines passenger jet and an Army helicopter collided over Washington, D.C., killing all 67 people aboard the two aircraft. It was later found that the UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter, on a training exercise, had been flying in airspace well above where it should have been when it struck the regional jet out of Wichita, Kansas. On Feb. 17, another flight out of Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport owned by Delta crashed upon landing at Toronto Pearson International Airport. All 76 passengers and four crew members survived but 21 were injured. Then in late February, a Southwest Airlines flight set to land at Chicago's Midway Airport was forced to sharply rise back into the sky to avoid another aircraft crossing the runway. The FAA said Monday that a private company provides services for the Minot air traffic control tower, and that those controllers are not FAA employees.
Los Angeles Times
4 hours ago
- General
- Los Angeles Times
Air traffic controllers didn't warn a B-52 bomber crew about a nearby airliner, the Air Force says
BISMARCK, N.D. — Air traffic controllers at a small North Dakota airport didn't inform an Air Force bomber's crew that a commercial airliner was flying in the same area, the military said, shedding light on the nation's latest air safety scare. A SkyWest pilot performed a sharp turn, startling passengers, to avoid colliding with the B-52 bomber that he said was in his flight path as he prepared to land Friday at Minot International Airport. The bomber had been conducting a flyover at the North Dakota State Fair in Minot that was approved in consultation with the Federal Aviation Administration, the Minot International Airport air traffic control and the Minot Air Force Base's air traffic control team, the Air Force said in a statement Monday. As the bomber headed to the fairgrounds shortly before 8 p.m., the base's air traffic control advised its crew to contact the Minot airport's air traffic control. 'The B-52 crew contacted Minot International Airport tower and the tower provided instructions to continue 2 miles westbound after the flyover,' the Air Force said. 'The tower did not advise of the inbound commercial aircraft.' Video taken by a passenger on Delta Flight 3788, which departed from Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport, and posted to social media captured audio of the SkyWest pilot explaining over the plane's intercom that he made the hard bank after spotting the bomber in the flight path that Minot air traffic control had directed him to take for landing. 'Sorry about the aggressive maneuver. It caught me by surprise,' the pilot can be heard saying on the video. 'This is not normal at all. I don't know why they didn't give us a heads up.' The FAA, Air Force and SkyWest are investigating. It's just the latest flight scare in recent months. In February, a Southwest Airlines flight about to land at Chicago's Midway Airport was forced to climb back into the sky to avoid another aircraft crossing the runway. That followed the tragic midair collision of a passenger jet and an Army helicopter over Washington, D.C., in January that killed all 67 people aboard the two aircraft. Those and other recent incidents have raised questions about the FAA's oversight. The FAA said Monday that a private company services the Minot air traffic control tower, and that the controllers there aren't FAA employees. It is one of 265 airport towers nationwide that are operated by companies, but the roughly 1,400 air traffic controllers at these smaller airports meet the same qualification and training requirements as FAA controllers at larger airports, the agency said. Some small airports like Minot's also don't have their own radar systems on site. In fact, the vast majority of the nation's airports don't even have towers, mainly because most small airports don't have passenger air service. But regional FAA radar facilities do oversee traffic all across the country and help direct planes in and out of airports like Minot. The Minot airport typically handles between 18 and 24 flights a day. Dura and Beck write for the Associated Press. Beck reported from Omaha, Neb. AP writer Josh Funk contributed to this report from Omaha.
Winnipeg Free Press
4 hours ago
- General
- Winnipeg Free Press
Air traffic controllers didn't warn a B-52 bomber crew about a nearby airliner, the Air Force says
BISMARCK, N.D. (AP) — Air traffic controllers at a small North Dakota airport didn't inform an Air Force bomber's crew that a commercial airliner was flying in the same area, the military said, shedding light on the nation's latest air safety scare. A SkyWest pilot performed a sharp turn, startling passengers, to avoid colliding with the B-52 bomber that he said was in his flight path as he prepared to land Friday at Minot International Airport. The bomber had been conducting a flyover at the North Dakota State Fair in Minot that was approved in consultation with the Federal Aviation Administration, the Minot International Airport air traffic control and the Minot Air Force Base's air traffic control team, the Air Force said in a statement Monday. This photo from the North Dakota Governor's Office shows a B-52 bomber from Minot Air Force Base in a flyover at the North Dakota State Fair on Friday, July 18, 2025, in Minot, N.D.. (North Dakota Governor's Office via AP) As the bomber headed to the fairgrounds shortly before 8 p.m., the base's air traffic control advised its crew to contact the Minot airport's air traffic control. 'The B-52 crew contacted Minot International Airport tower and the tower provided instructions to continue 2 miles (3.2 kilometers) westbound after the flyover,' the Air Force said. 'The tower did not advise of the inbound commercial aircraft.' Video taken by a passenger on Delta Flight 3788, which departed from Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport, and posted to social media captured audio of the SkyWest pilot explaining over the plane's intercom that he made the hard bank after spotting the bomber in the flight path that Minot air traffic control had directed him to take for landing. 'Sorry about the aggressive maneuver. It caught me by surprise,' the pilot can be heard saying on the video. 'This is not normal at all. I don't know why they didn't give us a heads up.' The FAA, Air Force and SkyWest are investigating. It's just the latest flight scare in recent months. In February, a Southwest Airlines flight about to land at Chicago's Midway Airport was forced to climb back into the sky to avoid another aircraft crossing the runway. That followed the tragic midair collision of a passenger jet and an Army helicopter over Washington, D.C., in January that killed all 67 people aboard the two aircraft. Those and other recent incidents have raised questions about the FAA's oversight. The FAA said Monday that a private company services the Minot air traffic control tower, and that the controllers there aren't FAA employees. It is one of 265 airport towers nationwide that are operated by companies, but the roughly 1,400 air traffic controllers at these smaller airports meet the same qualification and training requirements as FAA controllers at larger airports, the agency said. Some small airports like Minot's also don't have their own radar systems on site. In fact, the vast majority of the nation's airports don't even have towers, mainly because most small airports don't have passenger air service. But regional FAA radar facilities do oversee traffic all across the country and help direct planes in and out of airports like Minot. The Minot airport typically handles between 18 and 24 flights a day. ___ Beck reported from Omaha, Nebraska. Associated Press writer Josh Funk contributed from Omaha.
Boston Globe
20 hours ago
- General
- Boston Globe
A pilot made sharp turn to avoid a B-52 bomber over North Dakota
Advertisement An Air Force spokesperson confirmed Monday that a B-52 bomber assigned to nearby Minot Air Force Base conducted a flyover Friday of the North Dakota State Fair, which is held in Minot. The Air Force is 'looking into' the incident, the spokesman said. Get Starting Point A guide through the most important stories of the morning, delivered Monday through Friday. Enter Email Sign Up The North Dakota incident comes nearly six months after a midair collision between an Army helicopter and a jetliner over Washington, D.C., that killed all 67 people aboard the two aircraft. That collision and subsequent close calls with Army helicopters over the nation's capital put the spotlight on the interaction between military and civilian flights. Officials have focused on improving communications between the two and making sure that air traffic controllers know where military aircraft are at all times because the Army helicopters around Washington were flying with a key locating device turned off. Advertisement SkyWest, a regional carrier for Delta and other large airlines, said the Friday flight had departed from the Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport and landed safely in Minot after performing a 'go-around' maneuver when another aircraft became visible in the SkyWest plane's flight path. Minot is 100 miles (160 kilometers) north of Bismarck, North Dakota's capital city, and about 50 miles (80 kilometers) from the Canadian border. Minot Air Force Base is about 10 miles (16 kilometers) north of Minot, North Dakota's fourth-largest city. The base is home to 26 B-52 bombers, intercontinental ballistic missile operations, and more than 5,400 military personnel. In the video, the pilot noted that Minot's small airport does not operate radar and directs flights visually. When the airport tower instructed the SkyWest flight to make a right turn upon approach, the pilot said he looked in that direction and saw the bomber in his flight path. He informed the tower and made a hard turn to avoid the bomber, he said. 'I don't know how fast they were going, but they were a lot faster than us,' the pilot said of the bomber. Passengers can be heard applauding as the pilot wrapped up his explanation. The Federal Aviation Administration issued a statement Monday morning simply saying it's investigating the incident. By midafternoon, it had issued a second statement to note that air traffic services were provided by a private company that services the Minot air traffic control tower. 'These controllers are not FAA employees,' the agency said. Some small airports like Minot's don't have their radar systems on site. The vast majority of the nation's airports don't even have towers. But regional FAA radar facilities do oversee traffic all across the country and help direct planes in and out of airports like Minot. The Minot airport typically handles between 18 and 24 flights a day. Advertisement The pilot's frustration is evident in the video. 'The Air Force base does have radar, and nobody said, 'Hey, there's a B-52 in the pattern,'' the pilot told passengers. SkyWest said it is also investigating.
NBC News
a day ago
- NBC News
Near collision between B-52 and SkyWest jet was caught on camera
A concertgoer at the North Dakota State Fair recorded footage of a B-52 bomber and a SkyWest jet on a collision course, but he didn't realize he was watching a potential disaster unfolding before his very eyes. Josh Kadrmas said he was in the crowd on the opening day of the annual fair Friday waiting for the B-52 flyover when he aimed his cellphone at the sky. ' We could see the exhaust from the B-52 far to the east, so I started recording as it was announced to the crowd the B-52 was going to fly over the grandstand," he told NBC News. What Kadrmas also wound up catching was faint footage of Delta Flight 3788, which is operated by SkyWest, heading into the same airspace as the bomber. 'I didn't think this would be a disaster at the time as the smaller plane was difficult to see from the stands," he said. Luckily, the disaster was averted when the pilot of the controls of the Minneapolis-to-Minot plane spotted the bomber in time and was able to perform a go-around maneuver to avoid hitting it and land safely at the North Dakota airport. Meanwhile, the bomber stayed on course and flew over the cheering crowd gathered at the grandstand, a crowd that included North Dakota Gov. Kelly Armstrong, who posted shots on X of himself at the fair and of the B-52 in the sky. Now the Federal Aviation Administration, Air Force and the airline are all investigating the incident, which happened as thousands of people were gathered below on the fairground. 'We are aware of the recent reporting regarding commercial and Air Force aircraft operating in airspace around Minot International Airport," an Air Force spokesperson told the local Minot Daily News. "We are currently looking into the matter." The FAA stressed the air traffic controllers manning the tower at Minot International Airport work for a commercial contractor. "These controllers are not FAA employees," the agency said in a statement. While nobody was hurt, the near miss happened six months after a military helicopter hit a passenger plane near Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport in the Virginia suburbs of Washington, killing 67 people. Neither the airline nor investigators have released the name of the pilot. But in video verified by NBC News that was recorded by passenger Monica Green and posted to social media, the pilot explained to passengers what happened in the air. The controllers in the tower, the pilot said, told him to turn right but that when he looked over he saw the bomber. He said that he was then instructed to turn left, but at that point he 'saw the airplane that was kind of coming on a converging course with us" and flying at a faster clip. So, the pilot said, he made the decision to turn behind the bomber. Safely on the ground, the pilot apologized for the "aggressive maneuver." "It caught me by surprise,' the pilot said in the video. 'This is not normal at all. I don't know why they didn't give us a heads-up.' Wrapping up, the pilot concluded: 'Long story short, it was not fun, but I do apologize for it, and thank you for understanding.' The passengers applauded, the video showed.
