Federal officials are investigating a near-collision of a commercial airliner and a news helicopter over a Houston airport runway, the Houston Chronicle reports. The incident involved a Southwest Airlines domestic flight carrying 140 passengers and a helicopter used by several local news stations. The aircrafts came within 125 feet of each other, and both pilots were forced to take evasive maneuvers to avoid colliding. No injuries were reported.
Preliminary findings indicate that both aircrafts had been given unrestricted clearance to takeoff by air traffic controllers, implicating fault on the part of ground control. However, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) are conducting a thorough investigation of the incident and consider the case to still be open. The goal of the investigation is to determine the exact events leading to the near-accident and how helicopter and plane crashes like these can be prevented.
This is the third near-collision involving a Southwest operated aircraft since February. Southwest officials have said that they are cooperating fully with the federal investigation but declined to further comment on the matter.
While fast and efficient air travel still poses many safety risks to the general public. Helicopters share air and runway space with much larger commercial airliners and rely on the competence of ground controllers to prevent catastrophic aviation crashes. If you have been injured in a helicopter accident, call the experienced helicopter injury crash attorneys at Panish Shea & Boyle LLP at (877) 800-1700 for a free and comprehensive consultation about your case.
