FAA Probes JFK Near Miss After Earlier Nashville Southwest Near Collision
The FAA is investigating a near miss in Nashville after air traffic control put two Southwest jets on converging paths.
The incident happened around 5:30 p.m. local time on Saturday near Nashville International Airport. Southwest Flight 507 from Myrtle Beach executed a go-around because of gusty winds and was told to turn right by controllers. That instruction put it into the path of departing Southwest Flight 1152 to Knoxville on a parallel runway, the FAA said. Both flight crews received onboard traffic alerts and maneuvered to avoid what preliminary data suggests may have been as little as 500 feet of vertical separation.
FlightRadar24 data, FAA statements, and airline comments helped build the timeline and confirm the close-call framing. Southwest praised its crews for following air traffic control and traffic-alert guidance and said customer safety remained the priority. Aviation analyst Robert Sumwalt noted that the Traffic Collision Avoidance System acts as the last line of defense when controllers' instructions create conflicts. Social-media posts from CBS accounts amplified details and timeline, giving the public near real-time confirmation of the FAA's comments and flight-data estimates.
Reporting later expanded the story into a potential pattern after Fox News detailed a separate near miss at New York's JFK airport. At JFK, Republic Airways Flight 4464, operating as American Airlines 4464, and Air Canada Express Flight 8554 flew parallel approaches and received onboard collision warnings. Republic executed a go-around after a resolution advisory, and Air Canada reported its crew followed traffic warnings and landed safely. Fox framed the two incidents as part of a "string of close calls," and regulators' investigations now raise questions about whether local errors reflect wider air-traffic safety issues.
đź“Ś Key Facts
- The FAA is investigating a near miss near Nashville in which Southwest Flight 507 (from Myrtle Beach) executed a precautionary go-around around 5:30 p.m. local time due to gusty winds and—after ATC instructed it to turn right—was placed in the path of departing Southwest Flight 1152 to Knoxville from a parallel runway.
- Preliminary flight data and FlightRadar24 tracks indicate the two Southwest aircraft may have come as close as roughly 500 feet vertically as Flight 1152 passed over Flight 507; reporting from flight recordings and radar tracks is being reviewed to refine the closest separation and the sequence of vectors and altitude changes.
- Both flight crews responded to onboard traffic‑alert/collision‑avoidance systems (TCAS) and maneuvered or executed go‑arounds after receiving warnings or resolution advisories; the flights landed safely and Southwest praised its crews’ professionalism while emphasizing customer and employee safety.
- The FAA has acknowledged that air‑traffic control instructions put Flight 507 into the path of another airplane and has opened a safety investigation into the Nashville incident.
- Separately, the FAA is probing a JFK near miss involving Republic Airways Flight 4464 (operating as American 4464) and Air Canada Express Flight 8554 on parallel approaches: Republic deviated from its intended approach, received a resolution advisory and executed a go‑around, while Air Canada reported a traffic warning and ATC direction and subsequently landed.
- News outlets note the two incidents — Nashville and JFK — are being examined together as part of renewed scrutiny of air‑traffic procedures and a broader inquiry into a string of recent close calls, with statements issued by the FAA and the airlines.
đź“° Source Timeline (6)
Follow how coverage of this story developed over time
- Reports a new near miss at John F. Kennedy International Airport involving Republic Airways Flight 4464 (operating as American Airlines 4464) and Air Canada Express Flight 8554 on parallel approaches.
- FAA says Republic 4464 missed its intended approach path, flew too close to Air Canada 8554, and executed a go-around after receiving a resolution advisory, with both flights responding to onboard collision warnings.
- Airlines provide on-record statements: Republic describes complying with a resolution advisory and executing a go-around, while Air Canada says its crew received a traffic warning and ATC direction and that the flight landed safely.
- Fox frames the JFK incident explicitly as part of a "string of close calls" following the recent Southwest near miss near Nashville that is already under FAA investigation.
- Confirms the incident timeline and controller instructions that placed the planes on converging paths during the go-around and departure.
- Provides additional narrative detail from flight recordings and radar tracks about the sequence of vectors and altitude changes.
- Includes fresh or more precise statements from the FAA and possibly from Southwest about the scope of the safety investigation.
- Offers refined estimates or confirmation of the closest separation between the aircraft and clarifies which systems (like TCAS) issued alerts.
- CBS piece reinforces that an FAA investigation is underway into the Nashville near miss.
- It restates that FAA officials say air traffic control instructions put one Southwest flight into the path of another.
- No materially new numbers, timelines, or procedural details are added beyond confirming the close-call framing.
- Confirms the incident occurred around 5:30 p.m. local time on Saturday near Nashville International Airport.
- Details that Southwest Flight 507 from Myrtle Beach executed a go-around due to gusty winds and was instructed to turn right.
- Identifies the departing aircraft as Southwest Flight 1152 to Knoxville taking off from a parallel runway.
- Reports preliminary flight data indicating roughly 500 feet of vertical separation as Flight 1152 passed over Flight 507.
- Includes FAA statement explicitly acknowledging that air traffic control instructions put Flight 507 in the path of another airplane.
- Provides Southwest's formal statement praising crew professionalism and emphasizing customer and employee safety.
- Quotes aviation safety analyst Robert Sumwalt explaining the role of the Traffic Collision Avoidance System as a last line of defense.
- FAA says Southwest Flight 507, during a go-around, received air traffic control instructions that put it in the path of departing Southwest Flight 1152 from a parallel runway.
- Both flight crews responded to onboard traffic-alert systems and maneuvered to avoid a potential midair conflict.
- Southwest states the go-around was precautionary due to gusty winds and that pilots complied with both ATC instructions and the traffic alert.
- FlightRadar24 data cited in the report suggests the aircraft may have come as close as about 500 feet apart vertically, potentially fitting the official definition of a near midair collision.