An error by a new air-traffic controller is being blamed for a close call between two planes on a converging course at O’Hare International Airport this week, officials said Wednesday.
The Federal Aviation Administration is investigating Monday morning’s incident involving an ExpressJet Airlines regional airliner that was cleared for takeoff while a SkyWest Airlines flight was coming in for a landing on another runway, FAA spokesman Tony Molinaro said.
The controller error occurred shortly after Vice President Joe Biden’s plane landed at O’Hare. Biden and his wife, Jill, were in Chicago to attend the inauguration of Mayor Rahm Emanuel.
The vice president’s plane was not involved in the incident, officials said. But investigators are looking into the possibility that several factors related to Biden’s arrival — landings and takeoffs were temporarily stopped when his plane touched down and a helicopter was hovering overhead — may have caused a distraction in the control tower.
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2 Responses
this is what happens when you put Joe Biden together with a sleepy traffic controller
What’s with Hoof In Mouth & accidents or near misses?