Delta Jet Veers to Avoid Light Plane
A Delta Air Lines Boeing 737 had to veer off course to avoid a possible collision with a single-engine Cessna as the passenger jet was approaching Sacramento Metropolitan Airport, federal officials said Monday.
Federal Aviation Administration spokesman Russell Park said there were no injuries and that the Delta jetliner landed safely after the incident about 1 p.m. Sunday. The blue and white Cessna and its pilot were not immediately identified.
The FAA said the jet was about 15 miles south of the airport and descending from 11,000 feet to 10,500 feet when the pilot saw the private plane a quarter of a mile away. The Delta pilot took the evasive action and notified the control tower.
Delta jets have been involved in a series of recent incidents, including one in which a pilot accidentally shut down the engines and caused his plane to plunge toward the Pacific Ocean. In another incident, a Delta and a Continental airliner nearly collided. That Delta pilot reportedly tried to get the other pilot not to report it. In another incident, a Delta pilot accidentally landed at the wrong airport in Kentucky.
The FAA is investigating the airline.
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