By David Shepardson and Phil Stewart
WASHINGTON (Reuters) -The Federal Aviation Administration said on Monday it is investigating a near miss between a SkyWest Airlines jet and a U.S. Air Force jet over North Dakota last week.
SkyWest Flight 3788, an Embraer ERJ-175 operating as a Delta Connection flight from Minneapolis to Minot, North Dakota, landed safely in Minot on Friday after performing a go-around during its landing approach when another plane became visible in its flight path, SkyWest said.
The Air Force confirmed a B-52 aircraft assigned to Minot Air Force Base conducted a flyover of the North Dakota State Fair on Friday. “We are currently looking into the matter,” the Air Force said.
The SkyWest pilot reportedly said the incident caught him by surprise, prompting him to make an aggressive move to avoid a possible collision, according to a video recording posted by a passenger on social media. SkyWest did not immediately comment on the video or confirm its accuracy.
The National Transportation Safety Board and FAA are investigating another close call involving a Delta jet and a group of Air Force jets near Reagan Washington National Airport on March 28.
The jet in that incident, a Delta Airbus A319, received a cockpit collision warning alert that another aircraft was nearby, and controllers issued corrective instructions to the Delta plane and one of the military jets. The Delta plane had been cleared to depart as four Air Force T-38 Talons were heading to nearby Arlington National Cemetery for a flyover.
The NTSB said in a preliminary report there had been confusion about when controllers were to halt traffic during the flyover.
There has been intense focus on military traffic near civilian airplanes since an Army helicopter collided with an American Airlines regional jet on January 29 near Reagan National, killing 67 people.
In early May the FAA barred Army helicopter flights around the Pentagon after another near miss.
(Reporting by David Shepardson; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama and Paul Simao)
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