A landing Aeromexico Connect Embraer E190 overflew a Delta Air Lines 737 beginning its departure roll in Mexico City this week, recalling with eery similarity an incident that occurred at the same airport in 2022 and an incident in Austin in 2023.
Delta Air Lines flight 590 was scheduled to depart at 12:05 UTC (07:05 local time) from Mexico City bound for Atlanta. The flight pushed back at 13:02 and taxied to Runway 05R, entering the runway at 13:26:25. At this point Aeromexico Connect flight 1631 was on approach approximately 7 miles (11.5 km) from the airport.
The Delta flight held in position as aircraft crossed Runway 05R on the taxiway behind it and Aeromexico flight AM801, which had just landed, crossed 05R on taxiway E downfield. By the time Aeromexico 801 crossed 05R, Delta 590 had been positioned for take off for more than two minutes. At that point, Aeromexico Connect 1631 was .25 miles (.41 km) from the airport.
Mexico City’s Runway 05R has a displaced threshold of approximate 2,400 feet (720 meters), which means that the usable area for landing operations is shorter than the total length of the runway area available for departures. In practical terms, this means that aircraft departing on 05R are not lined up near the touchdown zone of the runway.
Overflight
Based on analysis of ADS-B data, the E190 passed over the 737 at an altitude above ground level of about 200 feet. This figure is based on the aircraft’s received GPS altitude at the time, and contains a margin of error based on the GPS antenna’s position on the aircraft. The actual distance between the lowest part of the Aeromexico Connect E190’s landing gear the tip of the Delta 737’s tail may be less than reported. The tail of a 737-800 is 41 feet, 2 inches tall (12.5 meters).
As the E190 passed, the 737 was beginning its take off roll. The Aeromexico Connect flight landed and exited the runway. The Delta flight reached a maximum speed of 64 knots before rejecting its take off. Delta 590 exited the runway and returned to the gate, eventually departing Mexico City three hours after its originally scheduled departure time.
Weather conditions
METAR show that the weather at the time was hazy with 3 miles of visibility.
MMMX 211244Z 07003KT 3SM HZ FEW020 BKN080 OVC220 13/11 A3044 NOSIG RMK 8/537 TWR VIS
MMMX 211341Z 36004KT 3SM HZ FEW020 SCT080 BKN220 15/11 A3045 NOSIG RMK 8/538 TWR VIS
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