A potential disaster was averted Friday when a Phoenix air traffic controller noticed two American Airlines jets were mistakenly assigned the same flight number, and he quickly acted to ensure they maintained a safe distance.
Audio recordings from shortly after midnight Friday reveal the controller's actions as he managed American 2482, with one aircraft arriving from Chicago and another departing from Phoenix simultaneously.
"I’ve been working air traffic for 25 years. I’ve never seen two aircraft pretty much merge with the same call sign. That’s pretty incredible," the controller stated after the departing plane had safely cleared the airspace. He explained that if both pilots believed they were being instructed to fly at the same altitude, a collision could have occurred.
To resolve the confusion, the controller began differentiating the planes by referring to "American 2482 on the arrival" and "American 2482 on the departure." He maintained separation by keeping the arriving plane safely above the departing one as their paths converged and ensured the pilots visually identified each other while still miles apart. The controller also instructed the departing plane not to climb too steeply, preserving a buffer between the two aircraft.
The pilot of the arriving flight commended the controller for his "nice work" after the planes had safely passed each other. The controller responded, "It could have been disastrous, but I’m glad it worked out."
Aviation safety expert Steve Arroyo suggested that the issue likely stemmed from an oversight within the airline's dispatch center, where it was not recognized that the two flights would overlap in the air with identical flight numbers. Arroyo, who has witnessed similar incidents only a few times in his four decades in aviation, noted that while such errors can occur, the system's safeguards proved effective.
American Airlines Flight 2482 is typically a round-trip route between Chicago and Phoenix flown by the same aircraft. However, a weather delay in Chicago meant a different aircraft was used for the departing flight from Phoenix, leading to the unusual situation where two planes shared the same airspace before the arriving flight landed.
The Federal Aviation Administration and American Airlines have each stated they will investigate the incident. Both organizations expressed relief that no one was harmed.
"The diligence and professionalism of air traffic controllers and our pilots ensured required separation was always maintained and the issue was identified and addressed. Both flights continued safely and without incident," American Airlines said in a statement.