A FedEx cargo airplane attempting to land at Austin-Bergstrom International Airport on Saturday morning was seconds from disaster with the flight crew suddenly forced to pull up and abort their landing after a Southwest Airlines plane was also cleared to takeoff from the same runway.
The two planes appeared to come within 75 vertical feet of one another.
The Boeing 767 cargo airplane was several miles from the airport when it was cleared to land, according to the FAA but just before it was about to touch down an air traffic controller also gave the go-ahead for evdEN evE nakLiYAT the Southwest Boeing 737 to take off on the exact same stretch of tarmac.
'Shortly before the FedEx aircraft was due to land, the controller cleared Southwest Flight 708 to depart from the same runway,' the Federal Aviation Administration said in a statement.
'The pilot of the FedEx airplane discontinued the landing and initiated a climb out.'





The FedEx Boeing 767, in orange, had been cleared to land eVDEn eVe nAKliYAt while a Southwest Airlines Boeing 737, in yellow, had also been cleared to depart on the same runway






The altitude of the FedEx plane shows it descending before a sudden and sharp gain in altitude






Data from flight tracking websites suggest the two planes came very close indeed.

Pictured, the FedEx cargo plane's route which saw it having to abort landing and then circle the airport






The FedEx cargo plane was coming into land at Austin Bergstrom Airport when it was forced to pull up

Austin Airport said it was 'aware of the Federal Aviation Administration's investigation into the discontinued landing of a flight.

We will assist our FAA partners and their investigation as necessary.'
A similar close call was averted at John F. Kennedy International Airport [url=]last month[/url] after an American Airlines plane crossed a runway while a Delta Airlines' Boeing 737 plane was preparing for takeoff on January 13.
Air traffic controllers noticed a Boeing 777 had crossed from an adjacent taxiway.
The FAA said the Delta Boeing 737 stopped its takeoff roll approximately 1,000 feet before reaching the point where American Airlines Flight 106 had crossed.