Something wild just happened at Chicago Midway Airport on Tuesday, February 25. A Southwest Airlines plane came way too close to crashing into a private jet, and the footage is crazy.
Thankfully, the Southwest crew did exactly what they needed to do, and everyone ended up safe. Let’s dive into what happened and what experts are saying about why we’re seeing more of these close calls lately.
The near-miss at Chicago Midway Airport
There’s footage of the moment a Southwest Airlines flight nearly slammed into a private jet on the runway at Chicago Midway. It happened at around 8:50am local time on February 25.
Southwest Flight 2504, which was flying in from Omaha, Nebraska, was about to land. At the same time, a private jet — a Bombardier Challenger 350 — was taking off, headed for Knoxville, Tennessee.
It was a pretty close call, one of those moments that’ll make you hold your breath.
Audio footage from the incident
Thanks to LiveATC.net, we got to hear the air traffic control talking to the private jet. They gave the jet some instructions, but somehow, the plane ended up in the way of the Southwest flight anyway. Not great timing.
Southwest crew’s quick response
Southwest confirmed that their flight crew had to do a go-around to avoid crashing. Basically, they had to circle back and try again, just to stay clear of the jet.
After that, everything went smoothly, and the flight landed without any problems. It was one stressful moment, but the crew handled it like pros.
RELATED STORIES
Southwest statement on the incident
A spokesperson from Southwest said: “The crew followed safety procedures and the flight landed without incident. Nothing is more important to Southwest than the safety of our customers and employees.”
The FAA investigates the near-miss
After this near-miss, the Federal Aviation Administration is now investigating not just this incident, but a few others that have happened recently as well.
Recent aviation accidents
This near-miss isn’t the first scary thing to happen in the skies lately. On February 17, Delta Air Lines Flight 4819 actually flipped upside down while landing at Toronto Airport.
Thankfully, everyone on board was safely evacuated. And before that, back in January, an American Airlines plane collided with a Black Hawk military helicopter while trying to land at Ronald Reagan National Airport.
It’s been a rough patch for aviation.
Expert analysis on the rise of aviation accidents
So, what’s going on with all these close calls and crashes? Jason Matzus, an aviation expert and attorney, gave his take on it. He explained that this might just be a case of “random clustering.”
That’s when a bunch of accidents happen in a short time, making us think that plane crashes are happening more often. But in reality, it’s just a weird coincidence — not a sign of something bigger or more dangerous going on.
The safety of air travel amid recent incidents
Matzus also pointed out that, statistically, flying is still the safest way to travel. He said that even though all these incidents are getting a lot of attention, they don’t actually mean there’s an increase in plane crashes.
So, while it feels like there’s more danger, flying is still way safer than any other form of travel.
