November 16th 2024.
A plane belonging to American Airlines was given an urgent command to quickly climb after taking off from Honolulu International Airport. This command came after the aircraft came dangerously close to a mountain in Hawaii during its ascent. According to a recording shared by LiveATC, the incident occurred at 12:30am on Wednesday when Flight 298 was departing from Honolulu.
In a tense moment, an air traffic controller directed the pilot to make a sharp right turn and ascend rapidly through the terrain. "Number 298 turn right, expedite your climb through terrain and then turn right," the controller can be heard saying. Thankfully, the pilot followed these instructions and the plane narrowly avoided a potentially disastrous collision with the Koʻolau mountains.
The American Airlines flight continued on its journey and eventually landed safely in Los Angeles, a full seven hours after takeoff. However, according to NBC News, a Federal Aviation Administration official reported that the flight crew did not follow the assigned turn while departing from Honolulu. American Airlines, on the other hand, stated that the crew had requested and received clearance for a right turn and had complied with the controller's instructions. They also assured that there were no issues with terrain clearance based on the aircraft's trajectory.
Fortunately, the plane landed without incident in Los Angeles, bringing an end to the nerve-wracking ordeal. According to HawaiiNewsNow, American Airlines reiterated that the crew had requested and received clearance for a right turn and had followed the controller's instructions. Thankfully, this quick thinking and efficient communication between the pilot and air traffic controller helped prevent a potentially catastrophic accident.
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