Last month's hair-raising near-miss at Chicago's Midway Airport could have been a disastrous collision but for the quick thinking of two Southwest Airlines pilots. As reported by the Chicago Sun-Times, the Southwest flight, arriving from Omaha on February 25 was forced to pull off a last-second go-around maneuver when a Flexjet business aircraft mistakenly crossed onto their runway. Dennis Tajer, a seasoned pilot and spokesperson for the Allied Pilots Association, called the Southwest pilots "heroes," acknowledging the potential tragedy averted at the hands of their instantaneous decision-making.
The incident unfolded at approximately 8:50 a.m., with the Southwest plane mere feet from landing when the conflicting Flexjet entered its path. Video footage, according to CBS News, shows the Southwest flight—just inches from touchdown—throttling up and climbing to safety. The maneuver was reportedly initiated to avoid a possible conflict, with the Southwest crew performing it as a precautionary step, the airline confirmed.
Eric Jones, an aviation expert from Lewis University, detailed the complexity of a go-around, a procedure that pilots must execute swiftly to ensure the plane reenters airspace safely. "You’ve got to bring the landing gear up, clean up the flaps, bring them up to the stowed position and initiate enough power" and a consistent upward climb, Jones told the Sun-Times. An audio recording from air traffic control captured the chilling moment when the Flexjet pilot confused the instructions, necessitating a stern correction from the controller. Moments after, the Southwest pilot communicated the "going around" status.
The Southwest aircraft landed later without incident, per the airline's statement. Many passengers, however, remained unaware of the dire situation, only learning of it upon seeing the go-around video post-flight. The seriousness of the ordeal is underscored by the NTSB's ongoing investigation, with the agency echoing concerns about a spike in safety incidents during the previous year, as mentioned by CBS News.
The Southwest pilots are expected to receive honors for their composed handling of the emergency, though the pilots themselves remain humble, shying away from the spotlight, according to the president of the Southwest Airlines Pilots Association, Jody Reven.
