In a harrowing incident above Portland International Airport, two airliners narrowly avoided a catastrophic collision amid stormy weather, according to a report by the New York Post. The incident, which occurred last week, has prompted a federal investigation into the near-miss.

The close call took place on Monday around 4:15 p.m. when an Alaska Airlines flight departing from Southern California was attempting to land on a runway alongside a SkyWest plane that had just taken off, as reported by the Oregonian. The Alaska plane was forced to abort its landing after receiving urgent instructions from an air traffic controller.

A publicly available recording and visual simulation released by VASAviation revealed that the two aircraft were approximately 1,800 feet apart horizontally and had 250 feet of vertical space between them. While the planes narrowly avoided a midair collision, their proximity was still alarming, as a near midair collision is defined as when planes are less than 500 feet from each other, according to the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), which is currently conducting an investigation into the incident.

The hazardous weather conditions compounded the risk factor, with visibility at the time reportedly reduced to less than a mile due to heavy rain and mist. Strong winds initially prevented the Alaska flight (Flight 1299) from landing, causing it to drop to an elevation of 100 feet before ascending for a "go-around," or a second landing attempt.

Meanwhile, SkyWest Airlines flight 3978 took off on a parallel runway. The air traffic controller instructed the Alaska flight to maintain its "runway heading," while directing the SkyWest plane to make a right turn. However, the pilot of Flight 1299 apparently became confused and repeated the instructions to the other plane, causing further confusion. As a result, both planes appeared to be on a potential collision course for approximately 40 seconds, leaving the air traffic controller increasingly flustered.

Following the incident, the Alaska flight was rerouted to an airport 150 miles away and was unable to land in Portland until 11:45 p.m., causing significant delays for passengers. Both Alaska Airlines and SkyWest Airlines downplayed the severity of the incident in their statements to the newspaper.

An Alaska Airlines spokesperson stated, "The crew of Flight 1299 followed cockpit indications and reacted immediately to increase separation from the other aircraft. The aircraft maintained a safe amount of lateral separation throughout the entire event." Similarly, SkyWest Airlines reportedly commented, "At no point was the safety of the flight compromised."

The exact number of passengers on board the two aircraft remains unclear. The investigation by the FAA will delve into the details surrounding the incident to determine any lapses in protocol and ensure such a close call does not happen again in the future.