A Spirit Airlines flight received repeated warnings from air traffic controllers to pay attention and turn away after it came too close to President Donald Trump's aircraft as he flew to the United Kingdom for a state visit.
Pay attention. Get off the iPad, was the stern message issued to the Spirit pilot as the aircraft flew eight miles (12.8km) parallel to Air Force One, the US president's official plane, over New York on Tuesday.
The planes were never within a distance that the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) would classify as unsafe, but it was close enough to alarm officials.
Safety is always our top priority, a Spirit spokesman told CBS.
Spirit Flight 1300 followed procedures and Air Traffic Control instructions and landed uneventfully as planned in Boston, the airline stated.
The Spirit flight was travelling from Florida to Massachusetts. According to flight tracking site Flightradar24, the two planes were flying parallel to each other eight miles apart, which posed no immediate threat, although there was a potential for convergence within a distance of 11 miles.
The FAA confirmed that a preliminary investigation showed the aircraft maintained the required separation.
Air traffic control audio obtained revealed controllers urgently telling the Spirit Airbus A321 to keep its distance.
Spirit 1300 turn 20 degrees right, an air traffic controller communicated as urgency increased. Pay attention, Spirit 1300 turn 20 degrees right. Spirit wings 1300 turn 20 degrees right, immediately.\
The budget airline's pilots acknowledged the transmissions, though their replies were mostly inaudible due to static.
The controller then added: Pay attention. Spirit 1300 traffic off your left wing by six mi—or eight miles, 747. I'm sure you can see who it is. ... Keep an eye out for him — he's white and blue. The description referred to the exterior colors of the president's aircraft.
President Trump and First Lady Melania Trump arrived in the UK on Tuesday evening.
