The Federal Aviation Administration has launched an investigation following a close call on a runway at LAX Airport.
The incident occurred around 4:20 p.m. Friday, as an Embraer E135 charter jet carrying the Gonzaga University Men’s Basketball team from Spokane, Washington had just landed and was taxiing to its gate.
The plane, operated by Denver-based charter flight company Key Lime Air, was instructed to hold at a certain point so it would not cross the runway into the path of an Atlanta-bound Delta Airlines commercial flight taking off.
The Gonzaga team’s plane seemingly rolled past the intended holding point, leading the air traffic controller in the LAX tower to tell it to “STOP, STOP, STOP.”
“Air traffic controllers directed Key Lime Air Flight 563 to hold short of crossing a runway at Los Angeles International Airport because a second aircraft was taking off from the runway at the time,” an FAA spokesperson confirmed.
“When the Embraer E135 jet proceeded to cross the hold bars, air traffic controllers told the pilots to stop. The jet never crossed the runway edge line,” the spokesperson added, while also confirming the Federal agency had opened an investigation into the incident
The incident occurred as YouTube streamer Airline Video Live was streaming live the flights in and out of LAX airport. That livestream also includes live audio from the air traffic controllers.
“Key Lime Air takes pride in its pilots and training model, a regimen that demands the highest competency in the industry today. Safety of those entrusted to us is our highest priority,” Jon Coleman, Senior Vice President of Key Lime Air, shared in a statement to NBC 4 Saturday.
“We are working within our own Safety Management System and with the FAA to determine the facts of the event and will respond accordingly, Colemann added.
A spokesperson for Gonzaga University did not wish to comment on the matter.
“Delta flight 471 operated as normal and we are not aware of any communication from the FAA regarding this flight,” a communications manager for the airline said Saturday.
