Two aircraft came within 500 feet vertically of each other while approaching New York City’s John F. Kennedy International Airport on Monday, according to flight-tracking data.
This incident marks at least the second close call at the travel hub in recent weeks, following a separate event where a plane struck a light pole and damaged a bakery truck during landing in New Jersey.
Air traffic control audio obtained by ABC7 reveals that a controller at JFK alerted the pilot of Delta Flight 5289 (operated by Endeavor Air) to a smaller aircraft flying less than 500 feet above them. Data from Flightradar24 shows the planes were separated by approximately 475 feet vertically as their paths crossed — with the Endeavor aircraft at about 2,100 feet and the Cirrus plane at roughly 2,575 feet.
The Federal Aviation Administration stated that Endeavor Air Flight 5289 was on final approach to Runway 22L around 5:15 p.m. Monday when a Cirrus SR22 crossed overhead while preparing to land on Runway 22R. “Air traffic control provided traffic advisories to both pilots, and each reported the other in sight. The required separation was maintained,” the FAA said, per the New York Post.
Endeavor Air Flight 5289 was traveling from Frederick Douglass Greater Rochester International Airport in upstate New York to JFK. Controllers were not in contact with the smaller plane when the two aircraft crossed paths. Delta pilots were instructed to hold steady and reported continuously having a small propeller plane within sight.
The incident occurred just days after two passenger planes came less than 400 feet apart while approaching JFK.