Two Planes Nearly Crash on Midway Airport Runway

FAA officials are looking into two planes that were on a collision course of intersecting runways Tuesday night at Midway Airport.

Southwest Airlines Flight 3828 was cleared for takeoff and rolling toward the runway just before 8 p.m., when air traffic control spotted another flight rolling on the other runway without permission. The Delta flight was told to stop, and the pilot on the Southwest flight also elected to brake, according to ABC 7 Chicago.

The two planes were about 2,000 feet from colliding at the runway intersection.

A transcript of the radio conversation between the tower controllers and the pilots illustrates the confusion.

ATC: (inaudible)1328 stop! Stop! Stop!

(BEEPING SOUND)

DELTA PILOT: 1328, Stopping

ATC: 1328 make the right turn on to uh, taxiway Delta, right turn to Delta, hold short runway four-right.

(INAUDIBLE)

ATC: You keep answering for each other, it’s Southwest 3828 and Delta 1328 …

SW PILOT: Southwest 3828

ATC: Go ahead sir.

SW PILOT: … were we the ones clear for take-off?

ATC: Yessir, you were, you were the one – you were doing what you were supposed to be doing.

SW PILOT: … Delta was rolling also?

ATC: Yes…he took your call sign, somebody kept stepping on ya, trying to figure out who it was and then, that’s why I reiterated that it was you that I was clearing for take-off.