An Air France Airbus A350-900 and an American Airlines Airbus A321 came frighteningly close to each other in the skies above Los Angeles International Airport on Saturday, after the Air France jet veered off its assigned departure route moments after takeoff. Both planes continued on to their destinations, and no injuries or damage were reported, but the near-miss has left aviation officials searching for answers about why the Air France crew turned the wrong way.
Air France Flight AF28, headed for Papeete, Tahiti, departed LAX Runway 24L, while American Airlines Flight AA1660, bound for Dallas/Fort Worth, took off from Runway 25R, according to AeroTime. The Air France crew had been cleared for the SUMMR2 Standard Instrument Departure, a published route meant to guide aircraft safely away from the airport, but instead of following that procedure, the A350 initiated an unexpected left turn, AeroTime reported.
That turn sent the widebody jet into the flight path of the American Airlines A321, according to the New York Post, which reported the two aircraft likely carried about 500 passengers between them. Accounts of exactly how close the planes came differ: AeroTime reported the jets came within approximately 400 feet of vertical separation, while AirLive, citing Wingbits ADS-B tracking data, reported separation narrowing to roughly 300 feet at a distance of 1.6 nautical miles, with the aircraft about 0.76 nautical miles apart laterally. The discrepancy between those figures has not been resolved in available reporting.
Controllers Scramble to Pull the Jets Apart
Air traffic controllers moved quickly once the Air France jet drifted off course. Per AeroTime, the Air France crew was instructed to immediately turn to a heading of 270 degrees, while the American Airlines crew was told to maintain 2,000 feet and was warned of traffic less than a mile away. The Post reported that the warning specified the approaching jet was at 12 o'clock, and that the American Airlines crew complied with the altitude restriction.
According to the Post, the controller told the Air France pilots they had been instructed to climb via the SID, not turn to a heading, and asked the crew multiple times why they had made the turn. The Air France pilots requested more time to respond and ultimately confirmed they had been assigned the SUMMR2 departure procedure, the Post reported. The controller also told the American Airlines pilots the Air France jet had turned in front of them, apologized to the crew for the encounter, and praised them for following directions, per the Post's account.
Possible Pilot Deviation Flagged, Explanation Still Unclear
Per AeroTime, the controller advised the Air France crew of a possible pilot deviation and gave them a phone number to call for follow-up. The Post reported that such a request typically means controllers want pilots to discuss the incident with aviation authorities, though it does not necessarily mean the crew will face disciplinary action. A possible pilot deviation generally refers to a situation in which a pilot may have failed to comply with an air traffic control clearance or instruction, per the Post.
As of Sunday, no official investigation findings or confirmed explanation for the Air France aircraft's turn had been made public, AeroTime reported. AirLive reported that FAA officials are expected to review flight recorder data and air traffic control audio to determine why both aircraft executed left turns following departure. The Post reported that whether the FAA had opened a formal investigation remained unclear, and that the outlet had contacted the agency but had not received an immediate response.
Not the First Close Call Over LAX
This is not the first time departures off LAX's Runway 24L have raised alarms. One Mile at a Time reported that there have been repeated issues with planes leaving that runway making an unauthorized turn to the left, and separately reported that a TAP Air Portugal A330neo made a similar unauthorized left turn a couple of weeks before the Air France incident. JFeed reported that another Air France aircraft had made a similar unauthorized turn a couple of months earlier.
A comparable close call unfolded at LAX in 2025, when an American Airlines jet and an ITA Airways aircraft nearly collided after a pilot deviation, according to Simple Flying. View from the Wing reported that the October 31, 2025, incident involved an ITA Airways A330neo departing for Rome that turned left toward an American Airlines A321 bound for New York.
Under federal aviation rules, pilots generally may not operate an aircraft contrary to an air traffic control instruction in controlled airspace except in an emergency, according to federal regulations. That rule alone does not establish what happened in Saturday's incident or whether it was violated, and the cause of the Air France crew's turn remains unclear.
