Delta jet aborts takeoff to avoid collision with plane landing in Mexico City

Pilots of a Delta Air Lines jet with 144 passengers on board and bound for Atlanta from Mexico City on Monday morning had to slam the brakes on during takeoff to avoid colliding with a jet landing on the same runway.

Delta flight 590 was taking off from Benito Juarez International Airport, Mexico’s largest and busiest airport, when AeroMéxico Connect flight 1631 appeared overhead and in front of them, according to Delta and data from Flightradar24 confirmed by National Post.

At 7:28 a.m., the two-person flight crew of the Delta Boeing 737-800 had accelerated to 62 knots (115 km/h) when the AeroMéxico Embraer 190 regional jet, a slightly smaller aircraft, proceeded to land ahead of it and decelerate.

Data shows the two planes came within 200 feet (61 metres) of one another.

In air traffic control recordings obtained by ABC , one of the Delta pilots is heard saying they will hold on the runway, followed by another thus-far unidentified voice saying “Wow” and another chiming in with “Increíble,” Spanish for incredible.

It’s not immediately clear how many people were aboard the Embraer, but it typically seats 96 to 114.

Delta said its aircraft promptly returned to the gate after the close call, where it took on additional fuel and conferred with its safety and flight operations officials. It sent flight 590 on its way about two hours later.

“We appreciate the flight crew’s actions to maintain situational awareness and act quickly,” the airline wrote in a statement to National Post.

It promised to work with authorities and said it has already contacted aviation authorities in Mexico, the U.S. National Transportation Safety Board and the Federal Aviation Administration.

In a statement provided to CBS, AeroMéxico said it, too, was liaising with authorities.

National Post has contacted the airline, the NTSB and Mexico’s Federal Civil Aviation Agency. The FAA, when contacted, deferred to the airline and Mexican officials.

Our website is the place for the latest breaking news, exclusive scoops, longreads and provocative commentary. Please bookmark nationalpost.com and sign up for our daily newsletter, Posted, here.