NJ - Jet Nearly Lands On Wrong Runway

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Jet Nearly Lands On Wrong Runway

By RALPH R. ORTEGA Daily News Staff Writer

ure, airline pilots have their ups and downs.

But a Continental Airlines pilot landing at Newark Airport yesterday apparently couldn't figure his right from his left.

A Boeing 757 with 132 people on board nearly landed on a closed runway where an airport employee sat in a sport-utility vehicle on the tarmac.

No injuries were reported in the 6:15 a.m. incident, the first of two troubled landings involving Continental planes at Newark yesterday.

But the Federal Aviation Administration immediately began investigating, calling such pilot error an "unusual occurrence."

Continental and FAA officials declined to release the pilot's name.

Officials said air traffic controllers instructed the pilot of Continental Flight 150, arriving from San Francisco, to land the jetliner on Runway 22-Right.

But the pilot lined up over 22-Left.

The landing strips are next to each other, paralleling the New Jersey Turnpike.

A controller in the tower caught the snafu, telling the pilot to "pull up!"

At that point, the plane was several hundred feet off the ground, officials said.

Airport duty manager Dan Harvey, who was parked at the far end of the 10,000-foot runway doing an inspection, had monitored the mixup by radio.

Harvey said he saw the lights of the jet as it approached and moved his car to safety.

"I was never in a danger situation," he said.

The pilot circled for 20 minutes before landing the jet on the correct runway.

The 125 passengers and seven crew members were unharmed.

In the second incident, a 50-seat Continental jet spun around and blew four tires after its brakes locked upon touchdown last night, officials said.

No injuries were reported after Flight 4282 from Savannah, Ga., had the rough landing at 9:47 p.m., police said.

Port Authority police Sgt. William Korbul said there were 24 passengers and three crew members aboard. Continental Airlines spokeswoman Karla Villalon said there were 20 passengers and three crew members.

"The pilot reported landing was normal, but the brakes locked and that's when the plane turned on the runway," Villalon said.

"It spun around," Korbul said. "It blew four tires and could not be moved."

The passengers and crew got off the plane by stairway and were taken to a terminal by bus.

How It Happened

Air traffic controller tells Continental Flight 150 to land on runway 22R. Pilot sets up to land on parallel runway 22L, which was closed. Air traffic controller spots snafu, directs pilot to "pull up!" Pilot pulls plane up, circles for 20 minutes, then lands on correct runway.

http://www.nydailynews.com/2000-08-25/News_and_Views/Beyond_the_City/a-77785.asp

-- Doris (reaper1@mindspring.xom), August 25, 2000


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