Southwest Plane Reportedly Came Within 67 Feet of LaGuardia Control Tower During Severe Weather Landing

The FAA and Southwest Airlines told PEOPLE that the plane was eventually diverted to Baltimore, where it made a brief layover before returning to New York

An investigation is underway after a Southwest flight went off its path after trying to land at LaGuardia Airport and reportedly came as close as 67 feet from the control tower.

Southwest Airlines Flight 147 was attempting to land at the New York City airport on March 23 at around 1 p.m. when it veered off course due to bad weather conditions, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) confirmed to PEOPLE.

"An air traffic controller instructed the [flight crew] to perform a go-around" before "the flight diverted," the agency said.

Per audio of the control tower's live feed obtained by CBS News, one pilot told air traffic controllers that they would be performing a go-around because the flight was coming in "too fast, too high with the tailwind."

Related: Southwest Airlines’ New Seat Design for 2025 Sparks Outrage: ‘We Are Getting Lawn Chairs’

Later, an air traffic controller could be heard telling the pilot to "go around" again and climb to 2,000 feet. The controller then told the pilots of the Boeing 737 that the plane "was not aligned with the runway at all. It was, like, east of final. He was not gonna land on the runway," per CBS News.

According to flight tracking data from Flightradar24 reviewed by the outlet, the plane had seemingly veered east off course, resulting in its flight path no longer lining up with the runway. It was flying at 300 feet when air traffic controllers told the pilot to pull up. The flight crew then asked to divert their landing to another airport.

"[They] eventually landed safely at Baltimore/Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport," the FAA said.

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In a statement to PEOPLE, Southwest Airlines also confirmed Flight 147 landed at the Baltimore airport "on Saturday, March 23, after encountering turbulence and low visibility at New York LaGuardia Airport. The aircraft returned to LaGuardia after a brief layover."

The airline added, "We are reviewing the event as part of our Safety systems."

Audio from the control tower confirms that at least one other flight was asked to perform a go-around that day, including JetBlue Flight 698, which was also trying to land at around 1 p.m. Those pilots reported encountering wind shear.

Related: Pilots and Experts Warned of Rise in Near Collisions at Airports Before Deadly Japan Airlines Crash

Flight collisions have been the subject of recent investigations over the past several months, after an examination by the New York Times warned near collisions in the sky and on the tarmac were on the rise back in August 2023. Earlier this year, a Japan Airlines (JAL) passenger jet collided with a smaller Japan Coast Guard plane at Tokyo’s Haneda airport, resulting in the death of five people and the Coast Guard plane catching on fire.

In August, the Times released a report digging into the recent increase in dangerous close calls happening between planes both in flight near airports and on runways.

According to the investigation, which focused on U.S. airports, incidents involving aircrafts nearly coming into contact with one another have seen a rapid rise across the country, involving almost every airport and major airline. The investigation cited a lack of warning systems at airports coupled with a staffing shortage of air traffic controllers as some of the main contributing factors to these near-catastrophes that happen, on average, multiple times a week.

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