Delta Pilot’s Quick Thinking Prevents Collision with B-52 Bomber 

Last Friday (July 18), a SkyWest Airlines flight operating as Delta Connection Flight 3788 narrowly escaped a midair collision with a U.S. Air Force B-52 Stratofortress while approaching Minot International Airport in North Dakota. The Embraer E175 regional jet, traveling from Minneapolis-Saint Paul (MSP) to Minot (MOT) on a routine 90-minute flight, was on its final approach when the pilot executed a sharp go-around maneuver to avoid the military bomber, which was conducting a flyover for the North Dakota State Fair.

The pilot’s quick thinking ensured the safe landing of the aircraft, carrying 76 passengers and four crew members, but raised serious questions about airspace coordination near military bases.

The incident occurred around 8:00 PM local time, shortly after the B-52’s scheduled 7:40 PM flyover for the state fair, held in Minot, a city hosting both a commercial airport and Minot Air Force Base, home to the 5th Bomb Wing and 26 B-52 bombers. The Delta pilot, who remains unidentified, noticed the B-52 on a converging course with no prior warning from air traffic control. In a candid announcement recorded by passenger Monica Green and shared on social media, the pilot explained, “Given his speed … they were a lot faster than us, I felt it was the safest thing to do to turn behind it. So sorry about the aggressive maneuver, it caught me by surprise, this is not normal at all. I don’t know why they didn’t give us a heads-up, because the Air Force base does have radar.”

Passenger Monica Green, seated in the front row, described the jet tilting sharply to the right, with grass visible through the window instead of the skyline, creating a “weirdly calm” yet tense atmosphere onboard. “I felt like I was gaslighting myself, like maybe I was being crazy, because no one else was reacting,” Green told KFYR-TV. The plane circled Minot International Airport several times before landing safely, with passengers applauding the pilot’s transparency (KFYR-TV, July 20, 2025; Star Tribune, July 21, 2025). Flight tracking data from FlightAware confirmed the jet’s abrupt right turn and climb in altitude during the go-around, while the B-52 was performing ellipses in the area.

Minot International Airport, a small facility, operates as a “contract tower” staffed by FAA-hired contractors, often retired air traffic controllers, and lacks its own radar, relying on visual separation of aircraft. In contrast, Minot Air Force Base has radar capabilities, which the pilot noted should have facilitated better coordination.

The Air Force acknowledged the incident, stating, “We are aware of the recent reporting regarding commercial and Air Force aircraft operating in airspace around Minot International Airport. We can confirm that a B-52 aircraft conducted a flyover of the North Dakota State Fair Friday evening." Both SkyWest Airlines and the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) are investigating, with SkyWest confirming the flight “performed a go-around when another aircraft became visible in their flight path”

The near-miss has heightened concerns about airspace management, especially given a January 2025 collision near Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, where an Army Black Hawk helicopter struck an American Eagle jet, killing 67 people Aviation A2Z.

It remains unclear how close the Delta jet and B-52 came to colliding or whether the jet’s Traffic Alert and Collision Avoidance System (TCAS) was activated, as neither SkyWest nor the Air Force has released those details. Aviation expert Jeff Guzzetti noted that small airports like Minot often lack radar, relying on coordination with nearby military facilities, which highlights systemic challenges in shared airspace.

The pilot’s openness earned praise, with X users calling it a “commendable example of transparency". However, the incident calls for improved communication between civilian and military air traffic control to prevent future close calls. The FAA and Air Force investigations are ongoing, with findings expected to address coordination failures and enhance safety protocols in regions with mixed aviation traffic.