3 Planes in Narrow Miss at Reagan National

The National Transportation Safety Board announced today that they will be investigating an incident from Tuesday, where three planes came within seconds of hitting one another at a Washington airport.

Two planes taking off were routed towards an incoming plane at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport. The planes were a few miles within each other, travelling hundreds of miles per hour, when an air traffic controller ordered the flight, making a landing, to make an abrupt turn south.

“We were [cleared for landing] at the river there. What happened?” the pilot is heard asking on an audio recording.

“We’re trying to figure this out, stand by,” the controller responded.

The Washington Post, which first published the story yesterday, reported that all three flights are operated by US airways, with 192 passengers and crew onboard.

In March 2011, an air traffic control supervisor at Reagan National fell asleep while the only person on duty.