An Alaska Airlines flight aborted takeoff to avoid a potential collision with a Southwest Airlines plane at Nashville International Airport, resulting in blown tires Thursday morning, officials said.
The Alaska Airlines Flight 369, a Boeing 737 Max 9, was accelerating on the runway at 120 mph when the pilot initiated an emergency brake after spotting the Southwest plane crossing the same runway, the New York Post reported. The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) reported that both planes had been cleared by air traffic control — Alaska Airlines for takeoff and Southwest Airlines Flight 2029 for a runway crossing. The incident occurred around 9:15 a.m., according to FAA officials.
Although no injuries were reported among the 176 passengers and six crew members on board the Alaska flight, their plane was taken out of service. They were later transferred to another aircraft, according to the Post. National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) Chairman Jennifer Homendy expressed concerns during a briefing. “We are clearly very concerned about this and others we are investigating.”
Alaska Airlines flight blows out tires while aborting takeoff to avoid tarmac collision with Southwest plane https://t.co/ti29ForUdr pic.twitter.com/WbveWDYeNC
— New York Post (@nypost) September 13, 2024
Homendy raised questions about the implementation of a new runway safety technology, the Surface Awareness Initiative (SAI), which was planned for installation at Nashville International Airport by July. It is unclear whether this technology, designed to reduce runway incursions by providing controllers with timely depictions of aircraft and vehicles, was operational at the time.
Both Southwest and Alaska Airlines have confirmed their cooperation with ongoing investigations led by the FAA and NTSB, according to the outlet. (RELATED: Southwest Exec Steps Down Amid Shareholder Pressure)
Southwest Airlines, meanwhile, is also dealing with internal changes as six members of its board of directors plan to step down in November, though CEO Robert Jordan will remain.