While carrying U.S. President Trump to London, Air Force One passed through New York’s famously crowded airspace on the 16th and had a close encounter with a Spirit Airlines passenger jet, coming alarmingly close.
According to Bloomberg, as Air Force One and Spirit Airlines Inc. Flight 1300 (an Airbus A321 traveling from Fort Lauderdale to Boston) flew over Long Island, air traffic controllers noticed the two planes were at similar altitudes and on potentially converging paths. The controller tried to alert the Spirit Airlines pilot to change course.
Although the two planes always remained several miles apart, never exceeding safety thresholds, the encounter sparked heated discussion on social media due to the high-profile nature of the presidential plane and the increasingly impatient scolding of the New York controller over the radio.
The “encounter” with the Spirit Airlines plane was first posted by the @JonNYC account on the Bluesky social app. The relevant audio was shared on the X platform by @thenewarea51.
Bloomberg was unable to verify the audio against the original air traffic control recordings.
The audio reveals the controller giving directions to the Spirit Airlines pilot: “Attention, Spirit 1300, turn right 20 degrees,” and, after the crew failed to respond to the initial instruction, repeating, “Spirit 1300, turn 20 degrees immediately.”
The controller then raised his voice with the command: “Spirit 1300, turn right 20 degrees immediately.”
Eventually, the Spirit Airlines pilot acknowledged the course change.
The controller said: “Spirit 1300, about 6 miles—or maybe 8 miles—to your left, there’s a 747. I’m sure you can see who it is.”
The New York controller finished with a warning to the Spirit Airlines crew: “Pay attention! Stop playing with the iPad!”