{"id":4317,"date":"2026-11-10T13:04:58","date_gmt":"2026-11-10T13:04:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blog.cedritech.com\/?p=4317"},"modified":"2026-11-10T13:04:58","modified_gmt":"2026-11-10T13:04:58","slug":"air-france-american-airlines-jets-nearly-collide-after-wrong-turn-in-midair-over-lax","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blog.cedritech.com\/?p=4317","title":{"rendered":"Air France, American Airlines jets nearly collide after wrong turn in midair over LAX"},"content":{"rendered":"<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">The FAA is investigating after two passenger jets narrowly avoided a midair collision shortly after taking off from Los Angeles International Airport when one aircraft reportedly made an unauthorized turn into the other&#8217;s flight path.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">The close call occurred Saturday at approximately 12:20 a.m. after the pilots of Air France Flight 28, traveling from Los Angeles to Papeete, Tahiti, turned into the path of an American Airlines aircraft that had departed from a parallel runway, according to the FAA.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">Flight tracking data indicates the two planes came within 400 feet vertically of each other, but air traffic controllers quickly stepped in to keep them apart.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"relative mb-4\">\n<div class=\"relative\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"rounded-lg\" src=\"https:\/\/s.yimg.com\/lo\/mysterio\/api\/acdc647b8cddac4bb044bfc276730351c7782b3da99bbbb0f328b0729028b895\/lightyear_networkapi\/resizefill_w960%3Bquality_80%3Bformat_webp\/https%3A%2F%2Fmedia.zenfs.com%2Fen%2Fktla_articles_362%2F37deb7ea098fb1a67864c5336c5248e9.jpg\" alt=\"Flight path of Air France jet before near collision LAX\" width=\"960\" height=\"540\" data-nimg=\"1\" \/><\/div><figcaption class=\"relative text-sm mt-1 pr-2.5\">\n<div>\n<p>Flight data shows the paths of an Air France jet and American Airlines plan after takeoff from LAX. (Flight radar)<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">&#8220;Air France 028 heavy, fly heading of 270 immediately,&#8221; a controller can be heard instructing the Air France crew in ATC audio.<\/p>\n<div class=\"max-md:faux-bleed mb-4 bg-accent\/2 pb-5 md:invisible md:mb-0 md:h-0 md:overflow-hidden md:pb-0\">\n<div class=\"flex w-full flex-nowrap justify-center\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">The controller then warned the American Airlines flight about the approaching Air France jet. &#8220;Traffic alert, traffic 12 o&#8217;clock, less than a mile, maintain 2,000.&#8221;<\/p>\n<div class=\"mb-4\"><\/div>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">The controller is heard repeatedly asking the Air France pilots why they deviated from their assigned route.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">&#8220;Air France 028 Heavy, you were instructed to climb via SID not, uh, turn to a, uh, heading,&#8221; an air traffic controller told the pilots.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">A standard instrument departure, or SID, is a published route programmed into the aircraft&#8217;s computer to stay on course manually or with auto-pilot, designed to guide aircraft safely away from an airport.<\/p>\n<div class=\"max-md:faux-bleed mb-4 bg-accent\/2 pb-5 md:invisible md:mb-0 md:h-0 md:overflow-hidden md:pb-0\">\n<div class=\"py-2 text-center text-xs uppercase\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"flex w-full flex-nowrap justify-center\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">Seconds later, ATC asked, &#8220;Why did you turn to a heading?&#8221;<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">The pilots of the Air France flight said they were instructed to follow a particular departure procedure.<\/p>\n<div class=\"mb-4\">\n<div id=\"recirc-465b3863-837d-37ea-a36c-45f076fd9ef7\" class=\"mb-4\">\n<div class=\"grid gap-4 lg:grid-cols-2 lg:grid-rows-[auto_auto_1fr]\">\n<div class=\"relative w-full\">\n<div class=\"relative hidden md:flex\">\n<div class=\"grow\">\n<div class=\"h-4 bg-tertiary w-2\/5\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div id=\"_r_mf_\" class=\"absolute inset-0 rounded-[4px] focus-within:ring-2 focus-within:ring-link\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">\u00a0United jet may be linked to small plane flipping at Southern California airport<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">&#8220;We were instructed to fly SUMMR TWO departure,&#8221; a pilot is heard responding.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">&#8220;Possible pilot deviation. I have a number for you to call when you&#8217;re ready,&#8221; the controller then said.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">Such a request generally means air traffic control wants the pilots to contact authorities and discuss the incident.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">&#8220;Sorry about that. That aircraft just turned in front of you,&#8221; the controller said to the American Airlines pilots after the danger passed.<\/p>\n<div class=\"max-md:faux-bleed mb-4 bg-accent\/2 pb-5 md:invisible md:mb-0 md:h-0 md:overflow-hidden md:pb-0\">\n<div class=\"py-2 text-center text-xs uppercase\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"flex w-full flex-nowrap justify-center\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">The two aircraft, which likely carried a combined 500 passengers, continued to their destinations without any reported injuries.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">The FAA is investigating the possible pilot deviation to determine whether the crew failed to follow instructions and whether further action is warranted.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">With more than four decades as a flight instructor, commercial airline pilot and international pilot for the U.S. Air Force, Captain Richard Levy said this is a first he&#8217;s heard of this happening.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">&#8220;I worked 41 years for a major airline,&#8221; he told KTLA&#8217;s Hailey Winslow. &#8220;I&#8217;ve never heard of an aircraft flying the wrong departure. And I&#8217;ve been in training most of my career, I&#8217;m not sure I&#8217;ve ever seen someone mis-program it.&#8221;<\/p>\n<div class=\"max-md:faux-bleed mb-4 bg-accent\/2 pb-5 md:invisible md:mb-0 md:h-0 md:overflow-hidden md:pb-0\">\n<div class=\"py-2 text-center text-xs uppercase\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"flex w-full flex-nowrap justify-center\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">Captain Levy continued, &#8220;And how does that happen? We call it pilot error, a mistake, they may have programmed the wrong departure in the aircraft&#8217;s computer.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">Though it&#8217;s not part of the audio recording of this incident, Levy said a warning inside the aircrafts likely went off. The flight deck is equipped with a &#8220;traffic collision avoidance system&#8221; that alerts pilots when another aircraft is too close with a &#8220;resolution advisory&#8221; to &#8220;climb or descend,&#8221; he said.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">The FAA issued a statement about the incident, saying, &#8220;The crew of Air France Flight 28 made an unauthorized turn after departing Los Angeles International Airport and went into the path of another aircraft that departed from a parallel runway. Air traffic control immediately issued corrective instructions to the Air France flight.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">An Air France spokesperson told KTLA, &#8220;Air France confirms that the crew of flight AF028, from Los Angeles to Papeete on 7 November 2026, received a request from air traffic control shortly after take-off to adjust its flight path. The crew immediately followed the instructions before continuing the flight. The aircraft landed normally in Papeete at 5:59 am (local time).&#8221;<\/p>\n<div class=\"max-md:faux-bleed mb-4 bg-accent\/2 pb-5 md:invisible md:mb-0 md:h-0 md:overflow-hidden md:pb-0\">\n<div class=\"py-2 text-center text-xs uppercase\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"flex w-full flex-nowrap justify-center\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\"><em>Copyright 2026 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.<\/em>For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KTLA.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The FAA is investigating after two passenger jets narrowly avoided a midair collision shortly after taking off from<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":4318,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[114,52,7,48],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4317","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-airlines","category-france","category-news","category-us"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.cedritech.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4317","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.cedritech.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.cedritech.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.cedritech.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/6"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.cedritech.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=4317"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/blog.cedritech.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4317\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4319,"href":"https:\/\/blog.cedritech.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4317\/revisions\/4319"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.cedritech.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/4318"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.cedritech.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=4317"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.cedritech.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=4317"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.cedritech.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=4317"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}