The National Transport Safety Board (NTSB) has ordered an investigation into a ‘close call’ between Alaska Airlines and FedEx jets at Newark Liberty International Airport (EWR).
In a statement on March 19, 2026, the NTSB said that an Alaska Airlines Boeing 737 MAX 9 “overflew a FedEx Boeing 777 while both jets were attempting to land on crossing runways”.
An air traffic controller instructed the Alaska Airlines aircraft to “perform a go-around because the FedEx flight was cleared for the final approach to an intersecting runway”.
Flightradar24 has released a visual guide of the incident in which the two aircraft appear to pass directly over each other.
The NTSB is investigating a “close call” between an Alaska Airlines 737 and FedEx 777 in Newark. The flights were on approach to intersecting runways when ATC instructed Alaska to go around. The 737 climbed, passing over the FedEx aircraft on the runway. https://t.co/HRw07lC1HP pic.twitter.com/QoaBV1TMs8
— Flightradar24 (@flightradar24) March 19, 2026
According to the New York Post, additional data from Flightradar24 indicates that the two aircraft were only 300 feet apart.
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is also investigating the event, which occurred at around 20:15, local time, on March 17, 2026.
The FedEx cargo flight arrived at Newark from Memphis International Airport (MEM) while the Alaska Airlines travelled from Portland International Airport (PDX).
There were 171 passengers and six crew members on board the Alaska Airlines Boeing 737 MAX 9.
In a statement, Alaska Airlines said: “Air traffic control issued a go-around to our aircraft, which our pilots are highly trained for.”
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