JetBlue flight near Venezuela avoids ‘midair collision’ with US Air Force tanker

WASHINGTON– A JetBlue flight from the small Caribbean nation of Curacao halted its climb Friday to avoid colliding with a U.S. Air Force tanker, and the pilot blamed the military plane for crossing his path.

“We almost had a mid-air collision here,” the JetBlue pilot said, according to a recording of his conversation with air traffic control. “They passed directly into our flight path. (…) They don’t have their transponder on, it’s scandalous.”

The incident involved JetBlue Flight 1112 from Curacao, just off the coast of Venezuela, en route to New York’s JFK Airport. This comes as the US military has stepped up its counter-drug activities in the Caribbean and also seeks to increase pressure on the Venezuelan government.

“We just had traffic passing right in front of us within 5 miles of us — maybe 2 or 3 miles — but it was a U.S. Air Force air-to-air tanker and it was at our altitude,” the pilot said. “We had to stop our climb.” The pilot said the air force plane then headed toward Venezuelan airspace.

Derek Dombrowski, a JetBlue spokesman, said Sunday: “We have reported this incident to federal authorities and will assist in any investigation.” ” He added, “Our crew members are trained in proper procedures for various flight situations, and we appreciate our crew for quickly reporting this situation to our management team. »

The Pentagon referred The Associated Press to the Air Force for comment. The Air Force did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

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Associated Press writer Ben Finley contributed to this report.