'Get Off The iPad': Spirit Airlines Flight Comes Way Too Close To Air Force One
Generally speaking, it's better if planes avoid crashing into each other. Despite several recent high-profile plane crashes, they typically do a pretty good job of that, and in a large part, that's thanks to the hard work of underfunded and underappreciated air traffic controllers. So, as you can probably imagine, air traffic control wasn't too happy with a Spirit Airlines pilot who flew too close to Air Force One on Tuesday and then failed to change course after repeatedly being told to do so, the Boston Globe reports.
Spirit Flight 1300 was headed to Boston on Tuesday and happened to pass over Long Island about the same time as Air Force One, while also flying at a similar altitude. We all make mistakes, sure, but you'd think if an air traffic controller was yelling at you to move your plane before you killed everyone on board, you'd respond immediately, but apparently not this time around. In the recording you can listen to below, you can hear the controller getting increasingly frustrated with the pilot, saying, "Spirit 1300, turn 20 degrees right. ... Pay attention. Spirit 1300, turn 20 degrees right," then, "Spirit 1300, turn 20 degrees right, now. Spirit wings 1300, turn 20 degrees right, immediately."
Ultimately, the pilot did respond and change course. And since you didn't wake up to a million texts from Uncle Randy ranting about how "they" took down Air Force One, you can also probably guess the planes didn't actually crash into each other.
The pilot's talking-to didn't end just because they changed course, though, with air traffic control then warning them to "pay attention." They kept going, too, saying, "Spirit 1300, traffic's off your left wing by six miles or eight miles. 747. I'm sure you can see who it is." They then said, "I got to talk to you twice every time. Pay attention. Get off the iPad." (As the Boston Globe points out, pilots have been allowed to use iPads instead of printed flight manuals since 2011.)
After both planes landed at their destinations without any additional issues, Spirit Airlines released a statement saying that "flight 1300 (FLL-BOS) followed procedures and Air Traffic Control (ATC) instructions while en route to Boston (BOS) and landed uneventfully at BOS." They also added, "Safety is always our top priority."
One unnamed source "with direct knowledge of the situation" also told NBC News that both planes "maintained the required separation," suggesting this was more of a "too close for comfort" situation than one that was headed for immediate disaster if air traffic control hadn't intervened. Then again, it's still disappointing to see such a slow response from the pilot. Air traffic controllers already deal with enough stress as it is. The last thing we need is more pilots making their lives harder than they need to be, especially with the recent increase in fatalities from plane crashes this year.
