Delta Crew Averts Disaster at Boston Logan in Last-Second Go-Around

A Delta Air Lines Airbus A319 flight crew prevented a potential catastrophe at Boston Logan International Airport after spotting an American Airlines Boeing 737 accelerating across an intersecting runway during their final approach. The quick decision to abort the landing and climb away likely averted a serious collision between two commercial aircraft carrying passengers.

The incident took place at approximately 11:30 AM local time on June 20, 2026, raising fresh concerns about runway safety and air traffic control workload at one of the country's busiest airports.

What Happened on the Runway

Delta Flight 2351, arriving from Dallas, was cleared to land on Runway 33L at Boston Logan. Simultaneously, the tower controller cleared American Airlines Flight 3161, a Boeing 737 bound for Charlotte, to depart from Runway 27, an intersecting runway, without adequate separation between the two movements. The two runways cross approximately 2,300 to 2,600 feet from the Runway 33L landing threshold.

As the Delta Airbus A319 was seconds from touchdown, the crew spotted the American Airlines jet accelerating from their right. They immediately initiated a go-around, climbing more than 2,000 feet within seconds. An audio recording of the tower frequency captured the controller asking the American Airlines crew, 

American, where are you going?"

another pilot on the frequency then corrected the controller and pointed out that takeoff clearance had already been issued.

The Delta crew stayed composed, looped back into the pattern, and landed safely on the second approach. A Delta spokesperson confirmed the crew acted in line with established procedures, coordinating with air traffic control and performing the go-around.

How Close the Two Aircraft Came

Aviation expert Todd Curtis, a former safety engineer at Boeing, estimated the distance between the two aircraft using Flightradar24 at roughly 300 feet (approximately 90 meters). The Delta Airbus A319 was carrying 129 passengers and six crew members at the time. No injuries were reported among those on board either aircraft, and both flights completed their journeys safely.

"This is a significant incident," 

Curtis said, adding that it was particularly concerning because it involved two professional airline crews.

A Pattern of Close Calls

The Boston Logan incident adds to a growing list of runway incursions and near misses at major U.S. airports in recent years. In January 2025, a Bombardier CRJ700 regional jet operating as American Airlines Flight 5342 collided mid-air with a US Army Black Hawk helicopter over the Potomac River, approximately half a mile short of the runway threshold at Reagan National Airport, killing all 67 people aboard both aircraft. On the night of March 22, 2026, an Air Canada Express CRJ-900 collided with a Port Authority fire truck on Runway 4 at LaGuardia Airport, killing both pilots.

Aviation safety experts have repeatedly warned that the combination of heavy traffic, staffing shortages in air traffic control, and aging infrastructure has created conditions where small errors can quickly escalate into dangerous situations. As of March 2026, the FAA identified more than 150 US airports as runway incursion hot spots, with 453 individual flagged locations across those facilities.

The FAA has rolled out surface detection systems designed to alert controllers when aircraft are in conflict on or near runways. However, the warning in this case came from the flight deck rather than from ground systems.

What Comes Next

The FAA has opened a high-priority formal investigation into the incident. Both Delta Air Lines and American Airlines are expected to cooperate with the review. For travelers, the incident is a reminder that go-arounds, while sometimes startling for passengers, represent the system working as designed. 

Pilots are trained to abandon a landing the moment they identify any risk, and the willingness to do so is widely credited with preventing accidents. The investigation into how the situation developed in the first place is only just beginning.