A pilot flying a Delta Air Lines regional connection and was about to land in Minot, North Dakota, had to do what he considered an “aggressive maneuver” to avoid crashing into an Air Force B-52.
The passenger jet’s pilot “performed a go-around when another aircraft became visible in their flight path,” after SkyWest Flight 3788 had already been cleared to land, SkyWest said, according to The Washington Post.
The incident occurred on July 18, Fox Business reported.
The Air Force said a B-52 bomber was taking part in a flyover at the North Dakota State Fair in Minot. The town is home to not only an airport, but also an Air Force Base.
The SkyWest pilot went on the overhead speakers to tell passengers that he apologized for the “aggressive maneuver” to avoid the collision, adding that “nobody told us” about the B-52, the Post reported.
He said that he “saw the airplane that was kind of coming on a converging course with us,” CBS News reported.
It is not known how far the two planes were from each other and if a collision warning system was activated, ABC News reported.
A video of the pilot addressing the passengers was shared on TikTok.
@azamora616 #plane#nearmiss#flight3788 @delta *sent to me by my sister . She was on the flight and made this recording *UPDATE* this was flight 3788 on 07/18/2025
♬ original sound - Andrea
“This is not normal at all,” the pilot told passengers. “Long story short, it was not fun, but I do apologize for it.”
Flight 3788, which had 76 passengers and four crew members on board, landed safely, CBS News reported.
Air Force officials released a statement that read, “We are aware of the recent reporting regarding commercial and Air Force aircraft operating in airspace around Minot International Airport. We are currently looking into the matter,” the newspaper reported.
A contractor operates the air traffic control tower in Minot, so the Federal Aviation Administration does not have a report on the near miss, CNN reported. The FAA, however, is gathering information on the incident.
There are 265 contract towers in the U.S., according to the FAA.
The Air Force base does have radar, but it is not uncommon that smaller airports like Minot’s don’t have the technology.
“There are many small airports across the country that have commercial service that don’t have radar. Instead, they’ll have some sort of coordinating communication with another radar facility several miles away, perhaps with a military base,” aviation analyst Jeff Guzzetti told NBC News.
SkyWest Airlines is investigating the incident, CNN reported.
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