Near-miss USA

Chicago controller halts Delta jet's near-miss on takeoff: '1328, stop, stop stop!'

This graphic from CBS Chicago illustrates how Southwest Airlines Flight 3828 to Tulsa, Oklahoma, had been cleared for takeoff and was speeding down the runway at the same time Delta Air Lines Flight 1328 to Atlanta was beginning to take off on the intersecting runway without proper clearance. (CBS Chicago/Google Earth)

CHICAGO - Two passenger jets began to take off at the same time on intersecting runways at Chicago's Midway International Airport, prompting a controller to shout over the radio for one of the pilots to halt to avoid a collision, aviation officials said Wednesday.

The Federal Aviation Administration was investigating Tuesday night's near-miss in which each plane stopped about 2,000 feet from the runway intersection.

Southwest Airlines Flight 3828 to Tulsa, Oklahoma, had been cleared for takeoff and was speeding down the runway. At the same time, an air traffic controller saw Delta Air Lines Flight 1328 to Atlanta beginning to take off on the intersecting runway without proper clearance, the FAA said.

"1328, stop, stop stop!" the controller shouted, according to audio posted on the website LiveATC.net.

"1328 stopping," the pilot answered in a calm voice, before the controller directed both planes to different taxiways.

The Southwest plane also safely aborted its takeoff, according to airline spokesman Brian Parrish. The aircraft later continued on to Tulsa.

NTSB expected to investigate close call at Midway

Close call between two airliners at Midway Airport

Two airliners shared a close call at Midway Airport after similiar-sounding flight numbers caused confusion during takeoff.

contact the reporter Delta Air Lines Southwest Airlines Federal Aviation Administration National Transportation Safety Board Midway Airport O'Hare International Airport Jon Hilkevitch

Close call at Midway Airport may have been because of similar flight numbers
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.

Midway traffic
Passengers wait to travel at Midway Airport in July 2012. A Southwest Airlines plane, cleared for takeoff on Midway runway 31 Center on June 16, 2015, came close to colliding with a Delta Air Lines flight that had not been cleared for takeoff. (Zbigniew Bzdak, Chicago Tribune)
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 to Atlanta, officials said.

Delta released a statement saying that 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 crew members on board, according to Southwest officials.

The National Transportation Safety Board, which has investigated runway incursions at O'Hare International Airport in recent years, is expected to assign investigators to examine the incident at Midway, officials said.

Runway incursions involving planes taxiing on the airfield, taking off or landing are a top safety concern - much more so than the risk of a midair collision - and the FAA has worked with airports and airlines to reduce the danger at airports, officials said.

The FAA, as part of its NextGen air traffic modernization program, is developing a program to provide data communications between pilots and air traffic controllers in place of voice communications for many routine functions.

Data communications will improve safety by reducing communications errors that can occur during verbal exchanges, the FAA said, particularly involving pilots for whom English is a second language, as well as cut the time spent exchanging information and reconfirming it.

The new data system, which is likely years off, would also reduce delays, fuel burn and pollution, according to the agency.