New Restrictions For All Flights After Near-Mishap In Washington
CHICAGO (CBS) -- The Federal Aviation Administration has issued new restrictions on takeoffs and landings across the country, after three planes came dangerously close together in Washington, D.C.
As CBS 2's Kris Habermehl reports, at O'Hare and Midway international airports and all the other airports across the country, the FAA has halted opposite-direction operations, in which flights are permitted to take off from, or land on, the opposite end of the runway from established traffic.
The reason for the restriction was a July 31 incident at Reagan National Airport, in which two U.S. Airways flights that were taking off, and a third that was landing, came dangerously close, Reuters reported.
Typically, aircraft take off and land with the wind, and at Reagan, a significant wind change led to the mishap with the three planes.
Air traffic controllers interceded when they saw one aircraft would be impinging on each other's air space.
Opposite-direction operations will be suspended until procedures can be put in place to avoid such mishaps in the future, Reuters reported.
