Southwest Jet Nearly Collides with Medical Helicopter During Landing

A Southwest Airlines jet carrying dozens of passengers narrowly avoided disaster after coming within just feet of a medical helicopter during its approach to Cleveland Hopkins International Airport on Wednesday, October 29.

According to federal investigators, the Boeing 737 operating as Flight 1333 was descending toward the runway when it came dangerously close to an Airbus H145 medical helicopter at the exact same altitude—2,075 feet—and just 0.56 miles apart, flight-tracking data from Flightradar24 shows.

The NTSB is investigating a loss of separation incident near Cleveland (CLE) on Wednesday. A Southwest 737 received a TCAS RA as a medical helicopter passed in front at the same altitude. Granular ADS-B data shows ~0.56 miles of lateral separation. https://t.co/WH8XLlTyZK pic.twitter.com/Q26G8Ti2Fd

— Flightradar24 (@flightradar24) November 1, 2025

Audio from air traffic control recordings reveals a tense exchange moments before the near collision. A controller can be heard instructing the helicopter pilot to pass behind the Southwest plane. The pilot hesitated and replied, “Sir, it’d be better if we go above it and in front of it, if we can?”

Realizing the potential for catastrophe, the Southwest pilots abruptly aborted their landing and executed a go-around maneuver to avoid the helicopter, according to a statement from the airline.

“The pilots discontinued their initial approach to the runway due to the presence of another aircraft,” a Southwest spokesperson told Business Insider. “They followed all standard safety procedures and landed safely shortly after.”

The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) confirmed it has opened an investigation into the incident, calling it a “serious safety event.” The agency will review air traffic control instructions, cockpit communication, and radar data to determine how two aircraft ended up in such close proximity.

Experts say this type of near miss could have been catastrophic. “When you have two aircraft at the same altitude and that close laterally, it’s a razor-thin margin between a safe pass and a tragedy,” retired FAA inspector John Cox told RadarOnline.com.

The Cleveland scare comes as the nation’s air traffic control system faces a staffing emergency, worsened by the ongoing government shutdown, which has delayed pay for thousands of federal employees. Aviation unions have warned for weeks that fatigue, staffing shortages, and morale issues are creating unsafe conditions in control towers nationwide.

“This is exactly what happens when you stretch air traffic controllers to the breaking point,” said National Air Traffic Controllers Association (NATCA) representative Kim Shepard. “We’ve been warning Congress for months—sooner or later, one of these near misses will turn fatal.”

The incident also follows a deadly plane-helicopter collision in Washington, D.C. earlier this year, which killed 67 people. That tragedy prompted renewed scrutiny of FAA oversight and coordination between civilian and emergency aircraft.

Though no one was injured in Cleveland, aviation analysts warn this latest near miss should serve as a wake-up call. “We’ve dodged another bullet,” Cox added. “But the clock is ticking until the next one.”