Passengers of a Philippine Airline jet at San Francisco Airport neared catastrophe after an Air Canada aircarft almost landed on the taxiway with four planes awaiting takeoff instead of the runway.
The National Transportation Safety Board said the Airbus A320 was cleared to land on runway, but instead approached for a parallel taxiway.
More than 1,000 lives were put in danger during the near miss, including lives inside the fully loaded PAL plane and a United Airlines 787 plane headed to Sydney, Australia.
Data from FlightAware showed that Air Canada Flight 759’s was 81 feet away from the ground and was only 26 feet above a United Airlines 787 plane, the third plane in line for takeoff.
An animation, released by Bay Area News Group, showed the Air Canada jet was also 51 feet away from hitting a Philippine Airlines flight on the ground.
Air Canada’s plane, an Airbus A320, also almost crashed into two other United Airlines flight vehicle.
Mountain View pilot Max Trescott, an aviation expert, said the Air Canada pilot waited five more seconds to maneuver.
“I find it remarkable that the Air Canada crew had still not fully comprehended their situation as they were passing over the second airlines, when the tower called for the go-around,” The Mercury News quoted Trescott as saying.
Photo credit: Daily Mail UK
