Southwest Boeing 737 Takes Off From Closed Runway

Southwest Boeing 737 Takes Off From Closed Runway

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Southwest Airlines can’t seem to stay out of the news when it comes to concerning incidents lately, from a scary go around in Hawaii, to a dangerously low approach in Oklahoma City, to an inflight Dutch roll. Well, we can now add yet another incident to the list, as flagged by @xJonNYC.

Southwest 737 uses closed runway in Portland, Maine

This incident happened on Tuesday, June 25, 2024, and involves Southwest flight WN4805, scheduled to operate at 5:40AM from Portland, Maine (PWM), to Baltimore, Maryland (BWI). The flight was operated by a 19-year-old Boeing 737-700 with the registration code N7861J.

The air traffic control tower at the airport doesn’t open until 5:45AM. However, planes can still take off before then, just by stating their intentions on the CTAF (Common Traffic Advisory Frequency). So pilots are supposed to report that they’re taxiing, entering the runway, etc., so that other pilots can plan accordingly.

There are two major issues with this incident. First of all, the Southwest jet wasn’t on the CTAF when it departed, so it wasn’t communicating with other aircraft at the airport. This is of course a serious safety issue.

It appears that the pilots were talking to Boston center, which provides clearance and instructions for once the plane takes off. However, they weren’t on the CTAF, despite the fact that this is the standard procedure, not to mention that there were other aircraft movements on the ground at the same time.

But here’s the much bigger issue. The jet took off at 5:42AM from runway 29, even though the runway was closed at the time. There was a ground services vehicle on the runway, which even advised on the CTAF that the runway was closed, and told planes to stay clear. Since the Southwest 737 jet wasn’t on the frequency, it didn’t hear this, so took off despite that warning.

Prior to flying, pilots are supposed to review the NOTAMs (Notice to Airmen, or Notice to Air Mission) for an airport, and the NOTAMs for the airport made it clear that that runway 11/29 was closed until 5:45AM, except for taxiing and crossing the runway.

Some might not think that it’s a big deal to take off from a closed runway just a few minutes early, but precision matters. And in this case it also mattered because there was a vehicle on the runway at the time performing work.

Below you can see the excellent VASAviation recreation of what happened.

I wanted to specifically highlight how once the plane was airborne, Boston center confronted Southwest about departing without clearance:

Air traffic controller: “Southwest 4805, Boston.”
Southwest pilot: “Yes, go ahead.”
Air traffic controller: “Just trying to check, did you depart runway 29?”
Southwest pilot: “We did depart on 29.”
Air traffic controller: “Okay, that runway was closed.”
Southwest pilot: “I thought it opened at :45. There’s no markings there anywhere.”
Air traffic controller: “Right, it did open at :45, but you departed at :42.”
Southwest pilot: “That’s not what we were showing, but okay.”

The pilot comes across as a completely dismissive jerk, in my opinion. And I also highly doubt that the pilots specifically thought they were taking off at 5:45AM, since pilots track time very closely.

What a confusing, reckless incident

As of now, there are more questions than answers. What we do know with certainty is that the plane took off on a closed runway, and the pilots weren’t following NOTAMs. That’s a big no-no. Then the pilots also didn’t communicate on the frequency, which is yet another major problem.

We also know that a plane was on the runway when the jet was preparing to depart, but fortunately the driver noticed the plane, and immediately vacated the runway.

Taking off on a closed runway, all while not being on the correct frequency, is simply reckless. Obviously mistakes happen, but the rate of incidents we’ve seen lately at Southwest raises some questions as to what’s going on.

It’s one thing if the pilots had “just” ignored the NOTAM, or if they had “just” not communicated on the common frequency. But to take off on a closed runway while not communicating with others at the airport? That’s a big problem…

This is now being investigated by the FAA, and I’m curious to see what comes of this.

What was going on with the Southwest pilots here?

Bottom line

A Southwest Airlines Boeing 737 took off from a closed runway in Portland, Maine, while not even communicating on the traffic frequency. The plane took off a few minutes before the tower opened for the morning, which there’s nothing wrong with. The issue is the lack of communication from pilots, plus their sloppiness with not reviewing the NOTAMs prior to departing.

For the increased scrutiny we’ve seen at the FAA regarding United Airlines, it seems like maybe Southwest Airlines needs a little more oversight as well…

What do you make of this Southwest Boeing 737 incident in Portland, Maine?

Conversations (49)
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  1. Dan Guest

    CTAF and Unicom are different at PWN. So, I'm not sure if the vehicle on the runway tried to reach them on Unicom. Maybe the WN crew were on CTAF, but not Unicom.

    Was the closure info on the ATIS frequency? Do airline pilots even use ATIS anymore?

  2. Billy Guest

    The SW pilot's dismissive attitude when confronted with his error is also a BIG problem - as the story notes - pilots are always keeping close tabs on time - so that flight crew knew exactly when they started their takeoff roll - and BOTH pilots share the blame here ..

  3. Maddog driver Guest

    Your point about every person with a private pilots license should know this. You are correct. But here’s the rub. Not all airline pilots came up through the civilian ranks, and with over 40 years in the “business”, I came across a number of pilots who had no clue regarding closed tower ops. Were they good pilots, of course, but their exposure to what would be considered normal ops for a civilian pilot just wasn’t...

    Your point about every person with a private pilots license should know this. You are correct. But here’s the rub. Not all airline pilots came up through the civilian ranks, and with over 40 years in the “business”, I came across a number of pilots who had no clue regarding closed tower ops. Were they good pilots, of course, but their exposure to what would be considered normal ops for a civilian pilot just wasn’t there. Again, I’m not disparaging the “route” anyone took to make it to the airlines.

  4. Win Whitmire Guest

    Where was LUV's dispatcher in this mix? If the runway was closed, dispatch wouldn't be able to generate the numbers for a takeoff. I'm assuming that, like most of the majors, the flight would receive the numbers via ACARS. If the request was made before official opening of the runway, the software wouldn't generate numbers. When ATC asks, they will usually say, "...possible pilot deviation". ATC will give a phone number when the pilots are...

    Where was LUV's dispatcher in this mix? If the runway was closed, dispatch wouldn't be able to generate the numbers for a takeoff. I'm assuming that, like most of the majors, the flight would receive the numbers via ACARS. If the request was made before official opening of the runway, the software wouldn't generate numbers. When ATC asks, they will usually say, "...possible pilot deviation". ATC will give a phone number when the pilots are ready. Unless these pilots have filed an ASAP report recently, then there will be retraining, etc. The good news is...no one was hurt. That's the main thing. Secondly, this is a warning to other pilots and Part 121 carriers, operating from a non-controlled airport can be dangerous.

    1. NedsKid Diamond

      That has been my question.... dispatcher's name and signature is on the bottom line of that flight too. Unless they planned the flight for that runway.... which would be logical. 0540 push time, by the time they taxi would expect a 0545 takeoff and runway would be open. Maybe it didn't come up in the flight planning because they departed early? Very real possibility and could be another hole in the system.

    2. Jim Baround Guest

      Possible pilot deviations are deviations from ATC instructions. That did not happen in this case.

  5. JoePro Guest

    All else aside, I disagree with your assessment that the pilot came across as a dismissive jerk.
    1. If he knew he screwed up, he wasn't bound to admit it on frequency.
    2. There was nothing more for him to say, lest he wanted to argue with the controller.

    Seemed like a routine exchange, to me. That's about what I would expect if I were handling it.

  6. Paper Boarding Pass Guest

    Has a somewhat similar situation happen to me at MSY.
    It appears the Southwest jet taxied on to a closed taxiway. We came to a sudden stop, then did a 180 turnaround. Out the window, I could see a flashing X at the far end of the closed taxiway that connected to the main runway. The flight deck must of been irritated, for we made very quick time to the alter taxiway and rolled...

    Has a somewhat similar situation happen to me at MSY.
    It appears the Southwest jet taxied on to a closed taxiway. We came to a sudden stop, then did a 180 turnaround. Out the window, I could see a flashing X at the far end of the closed taxiway that connected to the main runway. The flight deck must of been irritated, for we made very quick time to the alter taxiway and rolled on to the runway without a moment of hesitation with the engine gunned to full throttle as we made the turn to align for takeoff.

  7. simmonad Guest

    I see that there are five departures between 0530 and 0545 from PWM and no arrivals. So why doesn't ATC start operating just a little bit earlier, rather than at 0545?

    1. Tim Dunn Diamond

      departing an airport w/o a tower is not a difficult procedure for an experienced pilot that is paying attention.

      Starting earlier just means the tower then has to close earlier. The US is short of controllers. Having more at busy airports is far more important than babysitting pilots

  8. Fordamist LeDearn Guest

    I've been close to SW (it's about two miles to the West here in Dallas) since it started in the early 70's. Things like this absolutely didn't happen. They'd had no fatalities till the plane skidding off the runway in Chicago. Gary Kelly worked with Herb, Colleen, knew how to run the airline, and did, for almost two decades. It's quickly gone to Hell after Bob Jordan took over from him Feb '22. Gary is...

    I've been close to SW (it's about two miles to the West here in Dallas) since it started in the early 70's. Things like this absolutely didn't happen. They'd had no fatalities till the plane skidding off the runway in Chicago. Gary Kelly worked with Herb, Colleen, knew how to run the airline, and did, for almost two decades. It's quickly gone to Hell after Bob Jordan took over from him Feb '22. Gary is still upstairs, I'm wondering why he hasn't fired Jordan and moved back in. Herb would have done it during the Holiday meltdown of '22.

  9. Tim Z Guest

    Move the departure time from 5:40 to 5:45 when the tower is open. This is a no-brainer. That way you have the added safety of a controller on duty in case you have an accident or problem.

    1. michael Guest

      I try to give airlines the benefit of the doubt on a lot of things that dont make sense because I dont run an airline - I just fly on them and read blogs - but scratching my head wondering why no one at SW thought waiting 5 more minutes for the Tower to open was not a good idea?

      I know airlines run on tight schedules with crews, gates, etc - but 5 minutes?

    2. Jim Baround Guest

      Because operating at a non-controlled airport is a standard procedure.

  10. Wolfgang Guest

    Can we get the experience of all these pilots? Are they new with limited experience? Would help to understand why there are such issues.

  11. Dave Guest

    Pilots: "We need 2 pilots in the cockpit for safety, there's no way a machine could be more safe than us"
    Also pilots: "Yeah lets just not use the correct radio frequency, not check which runways are open and just YOLO it..."

    Getting pilots out of cockpits seems like the safer choice nowadays...

    1. Eskimo Guest

      Can't say enough of that and all I get is hate from stupid humans.

      Remove humans from the cockpit and ATC. It's safer that way.

      You mess up so often, there is an official term for this. Its called "human" error.

    2. JoePro Guest

      You get hate for it because it's ill informed and it's pointless to repeat. It will not happen in the next 15-20 years... it may not happen for 50.
      You previously pointed to Flight Sim traffic as an example of A.I perfection, and it is FAARRRRR from. That tells me all I need to know about your knowledge of aviation and A.I.
      We can't get vehicles on the ground to get it right... and you somehow think it's go time for aircraft.

    3. Eskimo Guest

      @JoePro

      I get hate because people like you are clueless.
      On the contrary, your response tells me all I need to know about your knowledge of aviation and A.I., or for your other response about pilot being a dismissive jerk.
      Throwing in trending words like AI doesn't always work either.
      Why do you think vehicles on the ground can't it right. You probably think it's technology but it's humans like you.

      But...

      @JoePro

      I get hate because people like you are clueless.
      On the contrary, your response tells me all I need to know about your knowledge of aviation and A.I., or for your other response about pilot being a dismissive jerk.
      Throwing in trending words like AI doesn't always work either.
      Why do you think vehicles on the ground can't it right. You probably think it's technology but it's humans like you.

      But you are probably right about one thing, it will not happen anytime soon. But not because of technology, but because of clueless people like you.

      Or you're mad because you can't accept the fact that computers do a much better job than you, faster and cheaper.

    4. Don Guest

      Getting pilots out of the cockpit will happen..... someday, just not in the near future. The flying public will need confidence this will work and building that trust will take time. It may start with reducing to one pilot. Keeping a pilot in the cockpit so they can take over if needed.

      Dangers of an all AI system could include hackers, software or hardware failures related to the AI, etc. Back up safety features need to be engineered.

    5. Eskimo Guest

      @Don

      You just emphasize the biggest human error. Being human and to have lack of confidence from the public.
      Reducing one pilot would already prevent human error in the cockpit by more than 50%.

      Here's the thing of being human. Your concerns are the example of those fallacies.
      "Dangers of an all AI system could include hackers, software or hardware failures"
      All of those already exist today even with human pilots in...

      @Don

      You just emphasize the biggest human error. Being human and to have lack of confidence from the public.
      Reducing one pilot would already prevent human error in the cockpit by more than 50%.

      Here's the thing of being human. Your concerns are the example of those fallacies.
      "Dangers of an all AI system could include hackers, software or hardware failures"
      All of those already exist today even with human pilots in addition to human error.
      So removing humans actually remove a risk factor.

      Fallacies are examples of human error.

    6. JoePro Guest

      LMAO: my response to Ben disagreeing with his assessment is based on my LITERAL EXPERIENCE of being ATC.

      A computer has never done my job. There is no AI ATC operating anywhere in the real world. Claiming that computers do it better and faster is the PROOF that you know less than me when it comes to aviation.

      Computers are programmed by humans, which are subject to error. People are likely die in the course...

      LMAO: my response to Ben disagreeing with his assessment is based on my LITERAL EXPERIENCE of being ATC.

      A computer has never done my job. There is no AI ATC operating anywhere in the real world. Claiming that computers do it better and faster is the PROOF that you know less than me when it comes to aviation.

      Computers are programmed by humans, which are subject to error. People are likely die in the course of implementation of your proposal. Not to say people won't die if we keep humans in the picture, but the most irritating part of your claims is that you're rallying against hypothetical future deaths and insisting we put tens of thousands of people out of a job because of them, while completely ignoring the hypothetical (and likely) deaths that will happen in a rollout of such massive proportions.

      TL:DR, I do the job. You think flight simulator AI is adequate.

  12. Bill Martin Guest

    DEI complaints...? Well, I'd guess the Captain - in - Command was NOT a DEI hire....seeing as he's been there probably more than 5 years..??? Where was HE/SHE/IT while this decision was being made....? And how much specific training are these pilots getting when they are doing 'irregular' (but still legal) operations like this one?

    1. Pilot Guest

      The correct procedure is known by every pilot who has a private pilots license . In this case there’s a short window where the jet would have announced its intentions on CTAF before taxiing, and then again just b4 takeoff. As soon as the aircraft is following the departure procedure in its clearance, the pilots would be talking to either a departure controller or ARTCC controller.

  13. D. A. Guest

    Annnnnd on cue, the racists bring up DEI. Even if that were the issue, it wouldn’t explain incidents in the more distant past. DEI, CRT…racist alphabet soup, as they can’t really comprehend much of anything else. Probably a real aviation expert as well.

  14. Etta Guest

    If this is DEI in our world, then somebody needs to realize that many people are prone to die from inept pilots. This isn't how to run an airport that is already a high-stress level job. It seems that even though these people are present on their jobs, there is no "real" presence that puts confidence in any of us... SMH

  15. Alex Guest

    We need to establish the Southwest Airlines Center for Pilots who Can't Pilot Good and Wanna Learn to Do Other Stuff Good Too

  16. Jeff D Guest

    3 minutes early? it is possible they checked their watch and it was running 3 minutes faster than the actual local time. Now did the pilot check the FMS to get the GMT time and do the math to local time or did they just check their watch? Nobody will know that real answer because by the time they arrive at their destination the CVR has recorded over the takeoff audio. Not being on the...

    3 minutes early? it is possible they checked their watch and it was running 3 minutes faster than the actual local time. Now did the pilot check the FMS to get the GMT time and do the math to local time or did they just check their watch? Nobody will know that real answer because by the time they arrive at their destination the CVR has recorded over the takeoff audio. Not being on the CTAF for the departure, I will give you that one, that was a mistake. That airport should cleared that runway 30 minutes prior to the "opening" time to have a safety margin. Doing it at the last minute and having the tower open after the runway is "cleared" for operaton is a recipe for disaster. How exactly is the pilot supposed to know the runway is operational other than checking their watch? Was the ops vehicile going to make an announcement on the CTAF that the runway was operational? That isn't a requirement either. I'm not giving the pilot a pass or Southwest for that matter, but I think we have to consider all of the possibilities.

    1. NedsKid Diamond

      GMT time difference is just in hours, not minutes. So unless they made an error and thought they were departing at 645am local (during which case the tower would be open) that's not something that happens.

      The tower being closed is noted on the ATIS for the airport.

    2. NedsKid Diamond

      And believe me every airline pilot is very much in tune with the official time... their pay is based on it.

  17. Robert Fahr Guest

    Any other US airports that have commercial passenger jets the size of a 737 which permit this?

    1. David Guest

      There are, SJC the tower is closed from 2330-0600. I sure there are others as well. As long as procedures are followed and CTAF is used should not be a problem.

    2. Josh Guest

      PSE (Ponce, PR) doesn’t have a manned control tower last I checked.

    3. NICK Guest

      There are probably a dozen airports that have commercial airline operations without tower ATC services. That is just the airports serving 737 or larger. The regional carriers probably serve a couple dozen or more without service at the time of the flight.

      Even others, some of the major cities, don't have 24 hour ATC service and flights can be delayed and arrive with no service. A couple airports have curfews that don't allow runway...

      There are probably a dozen airports that have commercial airline operations without tower ATC services. That is just the airports serving 737 or larger. The regional carriers probably serve a couple dozen or more without service at the time of the flight.

      Even others, some of the major cities, don't have 24 hour ATC service and flights can be delayed and arrive with no service. A couple airports have curfews that don't allow runway activity during prohibited hours. Aircraft have to divert or wait.

  18. Bonnie Guest

    Why is Boeing even part of this headline?? This should simply say Southwest jet takes off from a closed runway. The type of plane did not cause this BAD decision. Lack of training and poor hiring practice should be under review with so many close calls and dangerous decisions being made at Southwest.

    1. JoePro Guest

      Well we need to make sure it wasn't a Southwest Airbus 320. That's be a REAL interesting story!

  19. Tim Dunn Diamond

    It's not just the business plan at Southwest that is broken. There are way too many safety related issues going on.
    It was United's time in the ringer and the FAA acted. Seems like it more than time for the FAA to take a much closer look at WN.

    1. NedsKid Diamond

      It's indicative of a broader corporate culture issue. After an Air Virginia crash at RDU back in 1994 (American Eagle 3378) the FAA was named as a contributing factor for failure to properly monitor the health of flight operations at a company undergoing turmoil or stress.

  20. UncleRonnie Diamond

    "Hey guys, just shout over the radio if you want to use a runway before anything is open. I'm sure it'll be fine...." FAA needs an uppercut for allowing this situation to happen anywhere.

    1. RCB Guest

      100% my thought too! How in 2024 do we just allow the honor system for air traffic control when hundreds of lives are at risk, especially at an hour when people are groggy and much more prone to mistakes.

    2. Timtamtrak Diamond

      It’s not super common in the US, but there are airports with commercial service and no ATC at all. Yampa Valley airport in CO (HDN), Quincy Airport in IL (UIN), and others. For smaller airports, a delayed flight may also arrive after the ATC tower has shut down for the night.

      Communicating on CTAF is something pilots are very familiar with from their training as most general aviation airports do not have towers. Even some...

      It’s not super common in the US, but there are airports with commercial service and no ATC at all. Yampa Valley airport in CO (HDN), Quincy Airport in IL (UIN), and others. For smaller airports, a delayed flight may also arrive after the ATC tower has shut down for the night.

      Communicating on CTAF is something pilots are very familiar with from their training as most general aviation airports do not have towers. Even some “large” airports like San Jose (SJC) don’t have ATC at certain hours.

  21. betterbub Diamond

    Can’t wait to see the clickbait headlines implying Boeing is at fault

  22. Jake Guest

    Why do many US airlines operate flights this early in the morning? Which crew can be fully alert when they have to unnaturally rise at 3 am???

    No wonder the tower was closed.

    Crazy.

    1. stogieguy7 Diamond

      If you think that's bad, you should see the horrible flight times that are common in the Middle East, Africa and south Asia. Departures at 1 or 2 am to arrive somewhere at 4:30 or 5 am. That is insane and it's common over there. Several crashes have involved such flights that were airborne at ungodly hours.

    2. betterbub Diamond

      It can nice to get somewhere and have the entire day to do something at your destination

    3. Redacted Guest

      Yep. Early morning flights are great. Your day isn’t as disrupted by transit time.

    4. Isaac Abel Guest

      I agree. Sun has not risen yet.
      The good book says, It is vain for you to rise up early or stay up late.

    5. simmonad Guest

      You think that's early!!?? There are many flights between Germany and the Canary Islands which depart between 0330 and 0400hrs.

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D. A. Guest

Annnnnd on cue, the racists bring up DEI. Even if that were the issue, it wouldn’t explain incidents in the more distant past. DEI, CRT…racist alphabet soup, as they can’t really comprehend much of anything else. Probably a real aviation expert as well.

5
Bonnie Guest

Why is Boeing even part of this headline?? This should simply say Southwest jet takes off from a closed runway. The type of plane did not cause this BAD decision. Lack of training and poor hiring practice should be under review with so many close calls and dangerous decisions being made at Southwest.

3
Pilot Guest

The correct procedure is known by every pilot who has a private pilots license . In this case there’s a short window where the jet would have announced its intentions on CTAF before taxiing, and then again just b4 takeoff. As soon as the aircraft is following the departure procedure in its clearance, the pilots would be talking to either a departure controller or ARTCC controller.

2
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