A Southwest Airlines flight was forced to abruptly abort its takeoff this week after a dangerous runway mix-up nearly led to a collision with a smaller aircraft.
The incident happened around 1:40 p.m. local time on Tuesday, Jan. 27, at San Antonio International Airport, according to the Federal Aviation Administration. In a preliminary statement, the FAA said air traffic controllers canceled takeoff clearance for Southwest Flight 4996 after a Pilatus PC-12 aircraft mistakenly turned onto the same runway.
At the time, the Southwest jet was already accelerating down the runway at approximately 103 mph when controllers realized the error and ordered the crew to stop. The FAA confirmed it is now investigating the incident.
Audio from LiveATC.net captured the tense moment. After initially clearing the Southwest flight for takeoff, the controller can be heard urgently shouting, “Cancel takeoff clearance! Cancel takeoff clearance, Southwest!” while redirecting other aircraft in the area.
Southwest Airlines said the plane was in the middle of its takeoff roll when the crew safely discontinued the maneuver to avoid a potential conflict with another aircraft.
“The flight later departed for Dallas without incident,” the airline said in a statement.
The smaller plane involved was a Pilatus PC-12, a type of aircraft often privately owned and operated. The manufacturer has not yet commented on the incident.
No injuries were reported, and airport operations continued following the aborted takeoff.
The near-miss comes during a busy week for Southwest, which also recently made headlines for ending its longtime open-seating policy. As of Tuesday, the airline officially began assigning seats, marking a major shift from the system it had used since its founding.
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