Photo: Boston Globe
The quick-thinking of a JetBlue pilot with over 11,000 hours of flight experience prevented a collision between two aircraft at Yampa Valley Regional Airport in Colorado.
As JetBlue Airways Flight 1748 was preparing to take off on runway 10, a Beechcraft B300 King Air was coming in for a landing on the same runway.
The JetBlue pilot thought the other plane was several miles out and was going to land after he took off. However, the pilot of the King Air thought he was going to land before the JetBlue fight approached the runway.
As the JetBlue pilot taxied toward the runway and began take-off procedures, both pilots received a warning from the Universal Communications Frequency operator.
With no time to abort the take-off, the JetBlue pilot raised the nose of the aircraft, causing it to take off at a steeper angle. As a result of the more vertical angle, the plane's tail struck the ground, causing significant damage.
The National Transportation Safety Board said that the two planes were just 2.2 miles apart at the time.
The pilot was able to fly to Denver and landed safely so the damage could be inspected. There were no injuries as a result of the incident.
The NTSB determined that the January 2022 incident was the result of poor communication between the pilots and the air traffic controllers.