The flight in question, operated by 737-700 registered N7861J, was operating flight number WN4805 from Portland to Baltimore-Washington Airport (BWI). The aircraft took off from runway 29 at Portland at 05:43 in the morning when both the runway and tower were still officially closed. The official opening times of both were published as 05:45, two minutes after the flight had departed. 

For the last several months, runway 29/11 has been closed overnight for a taxiway construction project, and it reopens each morning at 05:45, according to the Portland International Jetport Authority.  

According to a review of the radio communications on the website liveatc.net of the day and time in question, the airport operations vehicle can be heard on the tower frequency opening the runway about two minutes after Southwest’s departure. The occupants then asked the tower controller whether they could get hold of the Southwest Airplane that had just taken off over them while they were doing a runway inspection. The tower controller responds stating that they never talked to WN4805 as the tower frequency was not live at that point.  

A controller said on the recordings that the tower and runway were both closed overnight. 

鈥淭here精东影业 an airport vehicle,鈥� one voice warned over the radio. 

鈥淭he鈥疭outhwest鈥痯ulling on to 29, just so you know there is a vehicle on the runway, and it is still closed,鈥� adds another voice. 

But the鈥疭outhwest鈥痯ilots apparently never heard the warnings being transmitted to them.鈥疶hey were recorded communicating on a different radio frequency with regional air traffic controllers near Boston. The Boston controller later told鈥疭outhwest鈥痶hey departed three minutes before the runway reopened. 

Boston controller:鈥�淭hat runway was closed.鈥� 

Southwest鈥痯ilot:鈥�淚 thought it opened at 45 {minutes past the hour].鈥疶here were no markings or anywhere.鈥� 

Controller:鈥�淚t did open at 45, but you departed at 42.鈥� 

Pilot:鈥�淭hat精东影业 not what we鈥檙e showing, but ok.鈥� 

The incident is made even more curious by the fact that Portland精东影业 other runway 18/36 was both open and available to departing traffic at the time the Southwest flight departed.  

On June 29, 2024, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) released a statement regarding the incident.   

“Southwest Airlines Flight 4805 departed from a temporarily closed runway at the Portland International Jetport on Tuesday, June 25. 2024. An airport vehicle exited the runway before the plane began its take-off roll. The FAA and NTSB are investigating the event, which occurred around 05:45 local time.” 

The incident is now under investigation by the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) and the FAA, and鈥疭outhwest鈥痟as said it is engaged with both regulators. The aircraft landed safely in Baltimore without further incident. 

Southwest Airlines Boeing 737 MAX struck by Dutch Roll, FAA and NTSB investigate

• Airlines
• Aviation Safety

byIan Molyneaux

2024-06-14

On June 18, 2024, Southwest Flight 4069, operated by the Boeing 737-800 registration N8555Z, was en route from Las Vegas (LAS) to Oklahoma City (OKC).  

At around 12:05 a.m. local time, it received an automated warning about its altitude while still approximately 14 kilometers (nine miles) from Will Rogers World Airport. 

Flight tracking data indicated that the Boeing 737 descended to approximately 525 feet (160 meters) above ground level as it passed over the suburbs of Oklahoma City.听聽

***CLOSE CALL WITH AIRLINER OVER OKC SUBURB***

Tonight, we've confirmed the FAA is investigating why the jet, seen in this video obtained by News 4, flew within 500 feet of the ground while passing over the OKC suburb of Yukon early Wednesday.

THREAD 猬囷笍

— Spencer Humphrey (@SHumphreyTV)

An air traffic controller promptly notified the flight crew of the low-altitude alert. The pilots responded by initiating a go-around procedure. The controller instructed the aircraft to maintain a height of 3,000 feet (915 meters). 

The interaction between a pilot and ATC, captured by LiveATC.net. 

Southwest Airlines confirmed that the flight landed safely shortly after midnight. The airline has reported that it will be cooperating with the FAA on a thorough investigation of the incident. 

The Southwest Airlines Boeing 737-8, registered N8825Q, was traveling from Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport (PHX) to San Francisco Bay Oakland International Airport (OAK) on May 25, 2024, when the incident occurred.听

The Southwest Airlines flight went on to land safely in Oakland around 55 minutes, but the aircraft was found to have sustained some damage. 

In a preliminary report the FAA said the 737 MAX 鈥渆xperienced a Dutch roll, regained control and post flight inspection revealed damage to the standby PCU鈥�. The PCU is the power control unit which provides power to the aircraft精东影业 rudder. 

According to Boeing, a plane 鈥渕oves in two axes if it experiences a Dutch roll, which is caused by wind or pilot input鈥�. The 鈥渘ose may go left to right as the airplane simultaneously banks side to side鈥�.  

A Dutch Roll is considered to be a serious incident that can damage the aircraft and prove uncomfortable for those onboard.  

According to , the 737-8 remained at OAK until June 6, 2024, when it was flown to Paine Field (PAE) in Everatt where MRO, Aviation Technical Services, are based.听

The Aviation Herald also learned that two ribs to which the plane精东影业 standby PCU is mounted were damaged in the incident, as were the mounts of the standby actuator. 

The FAA has said that it is working with Boeing and the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) to investigate the incident.听聽

The aircraft was delivered to Southwest in December 2022.

Boeing inspects undelivered 787s over incorrectly installed fasteners, FAA aware

• Aircraft
• Aviation Safety

byIan Molyneaux

2024-06-14

Jordan has been under pressure since new investor Elliott Investment Management sent a letter to the Dallas-based airline精东影业 board of directors on June 10, 2024, criticizing the way the airline had been managed in recent years.听

According to , on June 13, 2024, a second investor, Artisan Partners, said it had raised similar concerns with Southwest Airlines.听聽

In a letter sent to Southwest, two investors at Artisan Partners urged the carrier to 鈥渞econstitute itself and upgrade the company精东影业 leadership鈥� and believes that the process should 鈥渃ommence immediately鈥�. 

However, while speaking to journalists after a Politico event in Washington Jordan said he had 鈥渘o plans to resign鈥�. 

鈥淲e鈥檝e got an investor day in September, and I鈥檓 eager to lay out a very broad plan for how we improve the company both from a customer perspective but from a financial perspective,鈥� Jordan said. 

He added: 鈥淓lliott can provide us ideas. They can talk to other shareholders, but Elliott is not directing the company.鈥� 

Elliot holds a $1.9 billion equity position in the airline, equivalent to nearly 11%, while Artisan Partners owns 1.8%. 

Elliot expressed concerns that Southwest Airlines was falling behind its industry peers in critical areas such as IT systems setup, the exploitation of revenue generation opportunities and its operational efficiency.听聽聽聽

Major shareholder calls for Southwest Airlines shake up, CEO resignation

• Airlines

byMiquel Ros

2024-06-11

In a letter sent to the Dallas-based airline’s board of directors, Elliott Investment Management voiced strong criticism of the way the airline has been managed in recent years. 

The investment fund said it was concerned about Southwest Airlines falling behind its industry peers in critical areas such as IT systems setup, the exploitation of revenue generation opportunities and its operational efficiency.  

Eliott also blamed what it called Southwest Airlines鈥� outdated IT systems and processes for the general outage which grounded a large portion of the airline精东影业 fleet in December 2022 and left millions of passengers stranded. 

The asset management firm also noted in its missive that the airline精东影业 share price has fallen by more than 50% since its peak in April 2021 and that it has barely recovered from the drop it experienced during the COVID pandemic. 

Elliot did not mince words in its call for corporate change, stating that Southwest follows outdated management practices which, by weighing down share prices, are also financially detrimental to the airline精东影业 own employees. 

According to Eliott, if the airline changes its leadership, strengthens its board and implements a thorough business review it could see its share price soar to $49 per share within a period of 12 months, an almost 65% increase over current market prices. 

Meanwhile, Southwest Airlines has replied by defending its current systems upgrade programs and signaling its willingness to engage in conversations with the discontent investors. 

In a lawsuit filed in a Dallas federal court, American Alliance for Equal Rights alleged that the airline’s program violated federal civil rights laws by excluding non-Hispanic students. 

Launched in 2004, the low-cost carrier精东影业 is operated via a partnership with the Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities. 

According to the airline精东影业 website, the program is an opportunity to help foster academic pursuits for Hispanic students while maintaining family ties, even when studying away from home. 

The airline said those eligible for the program are Hispanic students currently enrolled in an undergraduate or graduate program at a two- or four-year college or university at least 200 miles from their home. 

Recipients receive four round trip tickets valid for travel between any Southwest Airlines domestic destination. Since its launch, Southwest said the program has helped enable the possibility of studying far away from home for more than 1,500 students.

The lawsuit claims the airline can be sued under the Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 because it received federal funding during the COVID-19 pandemic. The lawsuit also said the airline can be sued under Section 1981 of the Civil Rights Act of 1866, which prohibits racial bias in contracting.

The lawsuit said two Asian and white students who were members of American Alliance for Equal rights were barred from applying to the program. The lawsuit is seeking an injunction blocking Southwest from using its eligibility criteria.

“Southwest Airlines should immediately open this program to all students, regardless of their skin color or ethnic heritage,” Edward Blum, founder of American Alliance for Equal rights said in a statement.

Southwest Airlines fired pilot who spoke in Spanish during engine fire incident

• Airlines

byJean Carmela Lim

2024-05-23

The acquired aircraft is a 23.3-year-old Boeing 737-700 that was previously operated by Southwest Airlines under the registration N7841A. The Canadian-based company plans to acquire up to 10 of the former Southwest Boeing 737-700 aircraft. The low-cost US carrier has already provided 6 Boeing 737-300s to Coulson Aviation in the past.

鈥淥ur new 737-700 Next Gen FIRELINER program will build on our existing 737-300 platform which has been extremely successful for us,鈥� Britt Coulson, President and COO of Coulson Aviation, commented. 鈥淭he FIRELINER platform has been the go-to Large Air Tanker for foreign governments to purchase due to its unique multi-role capability allowing it to transport passengers when not deployed on active firefighting missions as well as supports a streamlined process in finding both flight and maintenance crew and aircraft parts.鈥�   

According to Coulson Aviation, the Next Gen FIRELINER features a 5,000 US gallons (19,000 liter) payload, reduced fuel consumption, extended range, and higher speed. This places the aircraft in the higher range of the LAT class. With up to double the volume of competing LATs, it can swiftly reach fires, improving the success of initial attack missions to keep fires small.

For comparison, a Very Large Air Tanker (VLAT) based on airframes such as the Boeing 747 or the DC-10 can deliver over 8,000 US gallons (30,000 liters) of fire retardant.

Coulson Aviation was the first to modify a Boeing 737 for firefighting. The first aircraft, nicknamed Gaia, was deployed in Australia to assist the New South Wales Rural Fire Service in November 2018.

ATSB details how two pilots escaped a B737 firefighting aircraft after a crash

• Aviation Safety

byRytis Beresnevicius

2023-05-03

David Legeros was in command of the B737-700 aircraft that took off from William P. Hobby International Airport (HOU) in Houston, Texas on August 15, 2023. The flight was headed for Cancun International Airport (CUN) in Mexico. 

Less than 20 minutes later, the aircraft returned to Houston after flames spewed from the aircraft精东影业 right-hand engine. 

Although the plane was able to land safely and no injuries were reported, showed that instead of taking control of the flight, Legeros chose to let the First Officer fly while he communicated with Houston air traffic control for a return emergency landing.

Moreover, the court papers state that Legeros then addressed passengers in Spanish and English to try and reassure them that the situation was under control.

According to a report by , Legeros stated that it was the decision to let the first officer fly during the diversion that 鈥渓anded him in hot water鈥� with Southwest management because the airline精东影业 standard operating procedures mandate that the captain should take control of the aircraft during an emergency situation.

Legeros reasoned that if he had taken control of the plane, the aircraft could have suddenly jolted and detached the burning engine, leaving the risk of it falling to the ground.

鈥淗ad SWA (Southwest Airlines) decided to reward Mr Legeros, or even ignore him, following his heroics, this story would be over, but SWA decided to punish him,鈥� the petition states.

The court documents also allege that Southwest management had criticized Legeros for speaking Spanish to the passengers, despite claims that the majority of the flight passengers were Hispanic. 

When investigations concluded on Flight WN307, the airline found that Legeros was engaged in serious misconduct, and, according to documents, was 鈥渇orced鈥� to sign a 鈥楲ast Chance Agreement鈥�.

鈥淏ased on the pretense of some 鈥榮erious misconduct,鈥� but in reality due to his status as a person of color, SWA [ Southwest Airlines] has been looking to push Mr. Legeros out,鈥� the complaint alleges.

While Legeros was still grounded from duty, he was advised that the airline needed to conduct a 鈥楩itness for Duty鈥� psychological evaluation in January 2024.

Legeros claimed he could not attend the initial evaluation due to his father being in hospital.

The lawsuit claims that Southwest now wants him to attend a meeting with its Chief Pilot where he would be allowed to resign or be terminated.

Legeros is seeking injunctive relief to prevent Southwest from compelling a psychological exam or the Fitness for Duty evaluation.

Southwest Boeing 737 engine spews flames shortly after take-off: video

• Airlines

byIan Molyneaux

2023-08-18

The slot will see a new, daily nonstop service run from the Washington airport to Harry Reid International Airport (LAS) in Las Vegas which is one of five new routes approved as part of the .听

Flights from DCA have traditionally been restricted by a rule that does not permit flights to exceed 1,250 miles, although exceptions to the rule are made.  

It was originally conceived that flights from Washington Dulles International Airport (IAD) would operate long-haul flights from the region.  

According to Southwest, the new nonstop service would 鈥減rovide airline consumers with much-needed choices and competition on the DCA to LAS nonstop route that currently has only one flight per day operated by another airline鈥�.听

Southwest says that if awarded the new slot it would 鈥渟ignificantly lower average fares鈥� from DCA to LAS.  

“Southwest has a long history of connecting people across the nation with important moments in their lives through competitive airfares, friendly and flexible policies, and the unmatched Hospitality of our People,” Bob Jordan, President & Chief Executive Officer at Southwest Airlines, said. “We look forward to demonstrating to the DOT that Southwest’s proposal will maximize benefits to the traveling public.” 

Southwest is also applying to provide what would be the only one-stop, same-plane/no change service between DCA and Sacramento International Airport (SMF) via LAS. 

Southwest plans to operate the proposed service between DCA and LAS seven days a week on a Boeing 737 MAX aircraft with 175 seats. 

“We believe Southwest’s proposed new DCA-LAS nonstop service will lower fares and increase access for the nation’s capital, Las Vegas, and western states,” Jordan added. “Customers in both markets will benefit from competitive airfares and nonstop, hassle-free transportation aboard the airline that invented friendly, reliable flying.” 

The five new proposed routes faced stiff opposition before being approved as part of the FAA Reauthorization Act. 

Those against the new routes were concerned that DCA passengers would face more delays at the airport, which is already marred by slot constraints.听聽

What other US airlines plan

On May 15, 2024, Alaska Airlines confirmed it was applying for the nonstop service between San Diego International Airport (SAN) and DCA.    

American Airlines has expressed interest in a nonstop service between San Antonio International Airport (SAT) and DCA. 

United Airlines, which has a heavy presence at IAD, reportedly opposed the new routes while Delta Air Lines is considering its options.  

The DOT has 60 days to approve applications from airlines.听

Brussels Airlines looking at Airbus A321neo and A350 for fleet expansion plans聽

• Airlines

byLuke Peters

2024-05-21

While airlines continue to wrestle with ways to create happy customers, the latest North America Airline Satisfaction Study suggests that it may be easier to achieve than they think.听聽

According to the latest annual survey, released on May 8, 2024, airlines that performed best were those with friendly staff who are simply nice to their passengers.  

Against the backdrop of crowded airports, expensive fares and annoying fellow travelers the study found that carriers making big investments in staff training and trying to improve the overall flight experience were the ones with the happiest flyers.  

鈥淭here are many aspects to the overall air travel experience that airlines cannot control, but one area in which they can profoundly influence is the positive effect that airline staff has on passengers The big takeaway from this year精东影业 study is the power of people to positively influence the overall flight experience,鈥� Michael Taylor, Senior Managing Director of travel, hospitality, retail and customer service, said. 

Taylor added: 鈥淎irlines that are investing in staff training and recruitment are finding ways to overcome the negative effects of crowded gates and planes simply by being nice to their customers.鈥� 

The study also discovered that the two biggest factors driving overall airline customer satisfaction are ease of travel and trust and while the cost of a ticket was important a seamless journey was more of a priority.  

The top performing airlines were also those that made substantial investments in the people side of their business and the level of trust passengers have in their carrier is correlated to media coverage about that airline.听

Study results

The two big winners for customer satisfaction in this year精东影业 JD Power study were Delta Air Lines and Southwest Airlines with Air Canada and Frontier Airlines performing worst.  

For customer satisfaction in the first and business segment, Delta received a score of 743 out of 1,000 and JetBlue Airways (736) ranked second. 

Delta was top for a second year running in the premium economy segment with a score of 716. Alaska Airlines (687) ranked second and American Airlines (684) in third place. 

In the economy segment Southwest claimed first place with a score of 716, while Delta (651) came second and Allegiant Air (633) third. 

The study, fielded from March 2023 through March 2024, was based on 9,582 passengers that had flown on a major North America airline within the preceding month. 

Passengers were asked to use a poor-to-perfect six-point rating scale and rate the carriers on airline staff, digital tools, ease of travel, level of trust, on-board experience, pre/post-flight experience and value for price paid.听 聽

Full results聽of study

First and business segment:聽聽

• Delta: 743
• JetBlue: 736
• United: 698
• Alaska: 695
• American: 676
• Air Canada: 629

Premium economy segment:聽

• Delta: 716聽聽
• Alaska: 687聽聽
• American: 684聽聽
• JetBlue: 667聽聽
• WestJet: 664聽
• United: 641聽
• Air Canada: 628聽

Economy segment:聽聽

• Southwest: 685聽
• Delta: 651聽
• Allegiant Air: 633聽
• Alaska: 630聽
• JetBlue: 630聽
• American: 611聽
• WestJet: 591聽
• United: 585聽
• Air Canada: 542聽
• Spirit Airlines: 507聽
• Frontier: 472聽

Exploring the use of robotics and automation to enhance airport ground handling

• Aviation Technology and Innovation

byJean Carmela Lim

2024-07-06