A Southwest Airlines jet attempted to take off from a taxiway yesterday, somehow mistaking it for a runway… in broad daylight. We’ve seen a lot of concerning close calls lately, though this is easily one of the most puzzling.
Southwest jet accelerates to 70 knots on taxiway
This incident happened on Thursday, March 20, 2025, and involves Southwest flight WN3278, scheduled to operate from Orlando (MCO) to Albany (ALB), with a 9:25AM departure. The flight was operated by a Boeing 737-800 with the registration code N8315C.
The incident happened at around 9:30AM. The flight was supposed to have a super straightforward departure. At Orlando Airport, Southwest departs from airside 2, and the plane was supposed to take off from runway 17R, a very short distance away.
However, rather than taking off from runway 17R, the aircraft began its takeoff roll on taxiway H, which is parallel to the runway, just one turn too early. Below is a map that can help you visualize this, with my very low tech boxes and arrows (the left arrow is where the plane tried to take off, the right arrow is where it was supposed to take off). 😉
According to ADS-B data, the aircraft made it all the way to 70 knots before it rejected its takeoff, after an air traffic controller warned them of what was going on. The plane ended up returning to the gate. Then there was a crew change and an aircraft swap. The flight eventually operated around four hours behind schedule, with a Boeing 737 MAX 8 that had the registration code N8802Q.
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has released the following statement:
“An air traffic controller at Orlando International Airport canceled the takeoff clearance for Southwest Airlines Flight 3278 around 9:30 a.m. local time on Thursday, March 20, after the aircraft began its takeoff roll on a taxiway. The taxiway runs parallel to the runway. The flight was headed to Albany International Airport in New York. No other aircraft were involved. The FAA is investigating.”
Meanwhile Southwest has released the following statement:
“Southwest Airlines Flight 3278 stopped safely on a taxiway at Orlando International Airport this morning after the Crew mistook the surface for the nearby runway. No injuries were reported. Southwest is engaged with the NTSB and FAA to understand circumstances of the event. The airline accommodated Customers on another aircraft to their intended destination of Albany. Nothing is more important to Southwest than the Safety of our Customers and Employees.”
How is such a mistake possible?!
With how many planes are in service at any given point, there are bound to be some issues, including some involving pilot error. However, of all the strange scenarios we’ve seen in recent times, this has to be one of the more unusual.
The concept of an aircraft trying to land or take off on a taxiway, or on the wrong runway, isn’t totally unheard of. What’s shocking to me here is the details. This was in broad daylight. On top of that, the pilots had one of the easiest and shortest taxi routes imaginable.
At most airlines, the captain is the one taxiing the plane, even if it’s the first officer flying the segment (I believe it’s the same at Southwest, but someone correct me if I’m wrong). So the captain accidentally turned the jet onto a taxiway that’s parallel to the runway… and then they just started their takeoff roll?
It’s one thing for one pilot to mistake a taxiway for a runway, but the other pilot didn’t notice it either? Runways look completely different than taxiways, from the lights, to the markings, to the width. It’s just hard to imagine the breakdown in crew resource management that could cause something like this. How distracted were the pilots?
Interestingly, up until recently, Southwest was being audited by the FAA due to its repeated close calls related to pilot error. The FAA ultimately determined that nothing was wrong at the airline. This came after a number of incidents, including a scary go around in Hawaii, a dangerously low approach in Oklahoma City, an inflight Dutch roll, taking off from a closed runway, and a terrifyingly low approach in Tampa.
Bottom line
Southwest is being investigated, after a 737 attempted to take off from a taxiway at Orlando Airport. While mistakes happen and pilots are only human, it’s incredibly strange to see something like this happen in daylight, with such an easy taxi. Runways look completely different than taxiways, so the fact that neither pilot seemingly knew what was going on is concerning, to put it mildly.
What do you make of this Southwest incident at Orlando Airport?
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