CHICAGO (WBBM NEWSRADIO) - A Southwest Airlines plane landing at Midway Airport this morning was forced to avoid a private jet.
Online video captured the moment, a Southwest plane from Omaha beginning to descend onto the runway and then suddenly elevating as a private jet emerged in its path.
The Federal Aviation Administration says a FlexJet business plane entered a runway without authorization, as Southwest Airlines Flight 2504 from Omaha was cleared to land there.
In audio from LiveATC.net the FlexJet pilot appears to misunderstand instructions from traffic control while the Southwest pilot questions what happened.
Dan Ronan is a licensed pilot and a transportation reporter for CBS affiliate WTOP in Washington.
“The actions of the private jet pilot here, if you look at the transcript of what they said, the pilot responds and he doesn't get the read back correct, which causes the confusion.”
Southwest Airlines says its pilot pulled up to avoid the FlexJet plane and later landed safely at Midway.
Southwest Airlines issued the following statement:
“Southwest Airlines Flight 2504 landed safely at Chicago Midway Airport on Tuesday morning after the Crew performed a precautionary go-around to avoid a possible conflict with another aircraft that entered the runway. The Crew followed safety procedures and the flight landed without incident. Nothing is more important to Southwest than the Safety of our Customers and Employees.”
The private jet belonged to Flexjet Airlines. They issued the following statement:
"We are aware of the occurrence today in Chicago. Flexjet adheres to the highest safety standards and we are conducting a thorough investigation. Any action to rectify and ensure the highest safety standards will be taken."
WBBM's Jim Gudas contributed to this report.