A JetBlue flight departing from Curaçao, Brazil, was forced to pause its climb on December 12 after coming dangerously close to a US Air Force refueling tanker. The pilot later said the military aircraft crossed directly into the jet’s flight path.
Audio of the pilot’s exchange with air traffic control captured his alarm. “We nearly had a midair collision,” he said, adding that the tanker appeared to have its transponder turned off, calling the situation “outrageous.”
The near miss involved JetBlue Flight 1112, which had taken off from the Caribbean island, located off the coast of Venezuela, and was bound for New York City’s John F. Kennedy International Airport.
While modern planes are safer than ever thanks to advanced technology and stricter regulations, flight-related incidents are once again making headlines. Experts point to factors like pilot and air traffic controller fatigue, maintenance issues, and staffing shortages as growing concerns. On top of that, climate change is introducing more unpredictable and hazardous flying conditions, from extreme turbulence to sudden weather shifts.
Click through this gallery to see how the world’s changing weather, combined with human and technical factors, are making flying riskier than before.