A Delta Connection Embraer E175 regional jet, operated by SkyWest Airlines as Flight 3788 from Minneapolis–Saint Paul to Minot International Airport, executed a sudden “aggressive maneuver” during its final approach to avoid a near-fatal mid‑air collision with a U.S. Air Force B‑52 bomber from nearby Minot Air Force Base.
While on final approach from Minneapolis–Saint Paul, the Delta Connection crew received a last-second instruction from air traffic control to turn due to “inadequate separation.”
During the turn, the pilot spotted the B‑52 rapidly converging and hauled the jet sharply behind it for safety.
Once landed safely, the pilot addressed passengers calmly:
“For those of you on the right-hand side, you probably saw the airplane coming at us. Nobody told us about it. We continued air traffic. There’s no radar here. The tower is controlled—excuse me, the tower does everything visually. And so they said, “Report about six miles from the airport.” So we did that.
I think he realized that the spacing wasn’t going to work, and he said, “Turn right.” I looked over, and there was an airplane, which—for those of you on the right-hand side—I thought was a small airplane, like the one you see at the airport right now doing touch-and-go’s. And he said, “Turn right.” I said, “There’s an airplane over there.” And he says, “Turn left.”
Then, by the time we read back the clearance, I looked over and saw the airplane that was coming on a converging course with us. Given his speed—it was a military plane—I don’t know how fast they were going, but they were a lot faster than us. I felt it was the safest thing to do to turn behind it.
Sorry about the aggressive maneuver. It caught me by surprise.
This is not normal at all. I don’t know why they didn’t give us a heads-up, because the Air Force base does have radar, and nobody said, “Hey, there’s also a B-52 in the pattern.”
Long story short, it was not fun, but I do apologize for it, and thank you for understanding. It was not a fun day at work. Have a nice evening, and I’m glad you stayed. Thank you.”
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@azamora616 #plane#nearmiss#flight3788 @delta ♬ original sound – Andrea
SkyWest confirmed a go-around was executed after spotting another aircraft in their approach path and that the incident is under investigation. The U.S. Air Force has yet to issue a statement.
KFYRTV reported:
Monica Green, who was seated in the front of the plane, described the atmosphere on board as “weirdly calm,” even as the jet made sharp, unexpected turns.
“Honestly, everyone was weirdly calm. I felt like I was gaslighting myself, like maybe I was being crazy, because no one else was reacting,” Green said. “We took a really hard turn, and that’s when the pilot got on the intercom and said, ‘sorry everybody, I’ll explain everything when we land safely.’ the way he said it, it almost sounded like he was insinuating that landing safely might not be an option for a moment. We all just kind of looked at each other and stayed quiet.”
The flight circled the Minot Airport several times before landing. Green, who flies frequently for work, said she tracked the unusual flight pattern on an app while texting her husband.
“I texted my husband saying, ‘this is weird, we keep circling the airport, but we’re not landing.’ I was a little anxious, and when he said, ‘no, this is serious,’ I started to panic internally,” Green said.
[…]
“When we landed, it was really quiet. No one stood up right away like people normally do. At the airport, I heard some people saying their friends saw it from the ground. The other plane nearly hit us, and it went so low it passed under us,” Green said.
The Delta flight ultimately landed safely, but the unusual mid-air maneuver and calm, almost stunned reaction from passengers left a lasting impression.
“Maybe I was overreacting,” Green said. “But being in the very front row, you feel everything, and those hard turns, you could tell something wasn’t right.”
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