Close call reported between Delta flight and Air Force jet near Reagan National

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A Delta Air Lines Boeing 767-332(ER).

Joan Valls | Nurphoto | Getty Images

A Delta Air Lines flight had a reported close call Friday with a U.S. Air Force jet near Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport.

CNN first reported the close call between the Airbus A319 that was departing Reagan and an Air Force T-38 jet, which is often used for training.

The aircraft were close enough that alarms went off in the cockpit of the Airbus, CNN reported.

Delta Flight 2983, which was destined for Minneapolis-St. Paul, was on a regularly scheduled route during the incident. It had two pilots, three flight crew members, and 131 passengers on board, according to the airline.

It departed at 2:55 p.m. ET and, during the incident, its Traffic Collision Avoidance System kicked in along with flight crew who did as trained, Delta said.

“Nothing is more important than the safety of our customers and people,” Delta said in a statement. “That’s why the flight crew followed procedures to maneuver the aircraft as instructed.”

No injuries were reported.

“We will cooperate with regulators and aviation stakeholders in any review of this flight,” the airline said.

According to flight tracker FlightAware, the Delta flight arrived at its gate at Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport gate at 5:46 p.m., 10 minutes late following 20 minutes on a taxiway at Reagan National.

The Air Force did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The incident follows an unusual streak of aircraft crashes and mishaps since the beginning of the year, including the Jan. 30 collision of an American Eagle flight from Kansas with an Army helicopter over the Potomac River in Washington D.C. that killed 67 and prompted restrictions on helicopters and military flights in the area.


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