CHICAGO — Confusion over similar-sounding flight numbers is under investigation as the cause of a close call between two airliners taking off on intersecting runways at Midway Airport, an aviation source said Wednesday.
A Southwest Airlines plane, Flight 3828, was cleared for takeoff on runway 31 Center on Tuesday night, according to the Federal Aviation Administration. As Flight 3828 began its takeoff roll, Delta Air Lines Flight 1328 also began rolling on runway 4 Right without clearance from the Midway tower, according to the preliminary FAA investigation.
Both planes were operating at full takeoff power, which is standard procedure on the Southwest Side airport’s relatively short runways, the source said.
The controller directing both planes spotted the Delta plane’s movement and ordered the Delta pilots to stop immediately, the FAA said. The Southwest pilots also hit the brakes. Each aircraft traveled about one-third down its respective runway, stopping 2,000 to 3,000 feet short of the runway intersection between 31 Center and 4 Right, the source said.
Before the incident, a Midway ground controller had notified both pilots about the similar and potentially confusing flight numbers of the two planes waiting to depart, and he advised the pilots to listen carefully to radio calls, according to tapes of the incident, which are on http://www.LiveATC.net.
On the transmission, the tower controller is heard clearing Southwest Flight 3828 for takeoff. But when the Southwest pilot radios back confirmation, his voice is obscured, or “stepped on,” by a dual transmission, apparently from Delta Flight 1328. During a dual transmission, each pilot hears only some of what is being communicated.
A second dual transmission then occurs, and seconds later, as the Southwest plane is accelerating down runway 31 Center, the Delta plane is also on a takeoff roll on intersecting runway 4 Right, sources said.
A controller abruptly yells, “Stop, stop, stop, stop!” A pilot says, “Aborting,” and another pilot announces, “SWA stopping.”
After both planes safely make an emergency stop short of the intersection, the Southwest pilot is heard on the tape asking the control tower whether he mishandled his takeoff clearance. “Were we the ones cleared for takeoff?”
The controller responds, “Yes, sir, you were. You were doing what you were supposed to be doing.”
“Delta took our — Delta was rolling also?” the pilot asks.
“He took your call signs,” the controller says. “Somebody kept stepping on you. I couldn’t figure out who it was, that’s why I reiterated that it was you that I was calling for takeoff.”
The controller is also heard providing an FAA phone number and advising the Delta captain to report a pilot deviation.
The Southwest plane taxied back to the terminal for a safety check because of overheated brakes from the emergency stop, the source said. The plane ended up leaving for Tulsa, Okla. where it landed safely, according to a Southwest spokesman.
The Delta crew also contacted its company, but the plane quickly got back into the departure line and flew out of Midway, officials said.
Delta released a statement saying it was “fully cooperating with the FAA’s investigation.”
The Delta plane, a Boeing 717-200, is designed to carry 110 passengers. It was not immediately known how many passengers were on the plane.
The Southwest plane was a Boeing 737 and had 139 passengers and five crewmembers onboard the flight, according to Southwest officials.
Talk to us
> Give us your news tips.
> Send us a letter to the editor.
> More Herald contact information.
