![](https://cdn.onemileatatime.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/12/Southwest-Airlines-737-13.jpeg)
Southwest Airways can’t appear to remain out of the information in terms of regarding incidents these days, from a scary go round in Hawaii, to a dangerously low strategy in Oklahoma Metropolis, to an inflight Dutch roll. Properly, we are able to now add one more incident to the record, as flagged by @xJonNYC.
Southwest 737 makes use of closed runway in Portland, Maine
This incident occurred on Tuesday, June 25, 2024, and entails Southwest flight WN4805, scheduled to function at 5:40AM from Portland, Maine (PWM), to Baltimore, Maryland (BWI). The flight was operated by a 19-year-old Boeing 737-800 with the license plate N7861J.
The air visitors management tower on the airport doesn’t open till 5:45AM. Nonetheless, planes can nonetheless take off earlier than then, simply by stating their intentions on the CTAF (Widespread Site visitors Advisory Frequency). So pilots are speculated to report that they’re taxiing, coming into the runway, and so on., in order that different pilots can plan accordingly.
There are two main points with this incident. To start with, the Southwest jet reportedly wasn’t on the CTAF when it departed, so it wasn’t speaking with different plane on the airport. That is after all a serious security subject. It’s not clear if the pilots had been simply on the mistaken frequency, if that they had points with their radios, or what.
However right here’s the a lot greater subject. The jet took off at 5:42AM from runway 29, despite the fact that the runway was closed on the time, and is believed to have even had a floor providers car on it on the time.
Previous to flying, pilots are speculated to evaluate the NOTAMs (Discover to Airmen, or Discover to Air Mission) for an airport, and the NOTAMs for the airport made it clear that that runway 11/29 was closed till 5:45AM, aside from taxiing and crossing the runway.
Some won’t assume that it’s an enormous deal to take off from a closed runway just some minutes early, however precision issues. And on this case it additionally mattered as a result of there was reportedly a car on the runway on the time.
@AirlineFlyer shares a few of the communications that later occurred on the air visitors management frequency. An operations car that was reportedly on the runway on the time contacted tower (because it was across the opening time), and said the next:
“Did you ever come up with that Southwest airplane as soon as he’s airborne or is he nonetheless sort of MIA in that regard?”
The air visitors controller responded with the next:
“We by no means talked to the plane, we’re technically not open there till 0545.”
Then the operations car responded with one thing unintelligible, to which the air visitors controller responded with the next:
“I’m not both, contemplating you had been on the runway and needed to exit, and he wasn’t even on CTAF.”
What a complicated, reckless incident
As of now, there are extra questions than solutions. What we do know with certainty is that the airplane took off on a closed runway, and the pilots weren’t following NOTAMs. That’s an enormous no-no. Then the pilots additionally didn’t talk on the frequency, which is one more main drawback.
It’s additionally believed {that a} car was on the runway across the similar time the jet took off, provided that the runway was speculated to be closed. Nonetheless, we don’t understand how shut of a name that was, because it sounds just like the car could have exited the runway when it noticed the 737 getting ready to depart.
Taking off on a closed runway, all whereas not being on the proper frequency, is solely reckless. Clearly errors occur, however the price of incidents we’ve seen these days at Southwest raises some questions as to what’s occurring.
It’s one factor if the pilots had “simply” ignored the NOTAM, or if that they had “simply” not communicated on the widespread frequency. However to take off on a closed runway whereas not speaking with others on the airport? That’s an enormous drawback…
I’m certain this can be investigated by the FAA, and I’m curious to see what comes of it.
![](https://cdn.onemileatatime.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/12/Southwest-Airlines-737-19.jpeg)
Backside line
A Southwest Airways Boeing 737 took off from a closed runway in Portland, Maine, whereas not even speaking on the visitors frequency. The airplane took off a couple of minutes earlier than the tower opened for the morning, which there’s nothing mistaken with. The problem is the shortage of communication from pilots, plus their sloppiness with not reviewing the NOTAMs previous to departing.
For the elevated scrutiny we’ve seen on the FAA concerning United Airways, it looks like perhaps Southwest Airways wants just a little extra oversight as nicely…
What do you make of this Southwest Boeing 737 incident in Portland, Maine?