Crew ignored 2 warnings before crashing with another jet at Hobby Airport, NTSB report finds

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Thursday, November 9, 2023
Crew ignored warnings before jet collision at Hobby: NTSB
An investigation into two small planes crashing at Hobby found that one crew ignored two warning signs to stop.

HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) -- A report by the National Transportation Safety Board revealed that a private jet that crashed into another small plane at William P. Hobby Airport ignored not one but two warnings to stop moving.

On Wednesday, the NTSB released a report of the Oct. 24 crash. In it, there are up-close photos of the private jet that was damaged when it was hit upon landing. The pilot said he did not see the plane that hit him, and all he heard was what sounded like a tire blowout on the freeway.

SEE ALSO: NTSB sending 6 investigators to look into plane collision that sparked ground stop at Hobby Airport

Pictures of the jet at fault show a damaged wing. According to the report, the crew told investigators they believed they heard they were cleared for takeoff. In reality, the air traffic controller told them to wait.

Once the tower noticed the plane was moving, the crew was told to stop moving but never responded. The plane took off but returned to Hobby about a minute later.

Crew members of the jet said they did not see the other plane until about one second before the collision and described the feeling of the impact as a "thud," the report states.

The NTSB said it is still going through the black box recording of that plane.

No one was hurt in the crash, but the chaos impacted nearly 150 departing and arriving flights at Hobby Airport that day.