Two American Airlines jet with same flight number avoid possible disaster
A potential disaster was averted Friday when a Phoenix air traffic controller recognized two American Airlines jets mistakenly were flying the same flight number and acted quickly to avoid confusion and keep them a safe distance apart. Audio of the incident shortly after midnight Friday shows how he found a solution to ensure the planes that were both called American 2482 maintained proper…
A Phoenix air traffic controller averted a potential disaster on Friday when two American Airlines jets mistakenly shared the same flight number, American 2482. The controller recognized the mistake and acted quickly to maintain proper separation between the two planes. Audio of the incident shows how he instructed the arriving plane to fly above the departing plane, even as their paths converged.
The controller also directed the departing plane not to climb too high, ensuring a safe gap between the aircraft. Aviation safety expert Steve Arroyo suggested that someone at the airline's dispatch center may have overlooked the fact that both planes would be in the air at the same time with identical flight numbers. Despite the potential for a disastrous collision, the system's safeguards and the controllers' and pilots' professionalism prevented any incident.
The Federal Aviation Administration and American Airlines will investigate the incident, but for now, both flights continued safely and without further incident.
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