Federal Aviation Authority (FAA) is investigating the Air Canada Flight AC759 incident at San Francisco Airport. As per the preliminary report, “Air Canada flight 759 from Toronto descended below 100 feet and aborted the landing after overflying the first airplane on the taxiway.”
Air Canada flight AC 759 from Toronto carrying 135 passengers and 5 crew members was on an FMS Quiet Bridge visual approach for landing on runway 28R at San Francisco International Airport, CA in darkness but good visibility conditions on 7th July. The flight was cleared to land behind a Delta Air Lines Boeing 737-900 (DL 521) and the landing clearance correctly acknowledged.
On final approach, the aircraft began deviating to the right of the proper approach track aiming to the parallel taxiway “charlie”. The flight crews immediately responded and aborted the landing hence, making a go-around and safely landing at about 15 minutes later.
FAA investigators said, “The Air Canada pilot that mistook a crowded taxiway for his approved runway actually flew over at least one plane on the ground before aborting his landing.”
However, new report suggest that the plane was just passing over a second Philippine Airlines jet at 106 ft in the air and continued his descent when an SFO air traffic controller finally warned him to abort his landing.
The plane continued to descend as low as 81 feet and then aborted landing. As per the aviation experts, such type of aborted landing at low height takes a moment to stop the jet’s inertia and climb again.
Air Canada flight AC759 luckily averted the huge disaster ever in the aviation history.
