An American Airlines flight nearly crashed into a mountain range in Hawaii — but escaped tragedy when it was ordered to rapidly gain altitude, officials said Friday.
Los Angeles-bound Flight 298 had just taken off from Honolulu at 12:30 a.m. Wednesday when the air traffic controller ordered the crew to “expedite your climb” — meaning quickly ascend to avoid danger, according to audio broadcast by the website LiveATC.
“Number 298 turn right, expedite your climb through terrain and then turn right,” the traffic controller said, according to the audio cited by hawaiinewsnow.com.
The dramatic elevation gain — which came after the pilot failed to make a turn following takeoff — likely prevented the plane from slamming into the Koʻolau mountain range on the island of Oʻahu, according to officials.
The rapid altitude gain came after the crew “did not make the assigned turn while departing from Honolulu International Airport,” an FAA official told NBC News.
An American Airlines statement said the “crew of American Airlines flight 298 requested and received right-turn clearance and complied with controller instructions.”
“There were no issues with terrain clearance based on the trajectory of the aircraft,” the airline said.
