What happened
On Saturday, June 20, 2026, around 11:34 AM local time, an American Airlines flight (AA3161, Boeing 737-800) and a Delta Air Lines flight (DL2351, Airbus A319) experienced a close call at Boston Logan Airport (BOS). American flight AA3161 was cleared to line up and wait on runway 27 and subsequently cleared for takeoff. Delta flight DL2351 was cleared to land on intersecting runway 33L. The Delta pilot observed the American plane accelerating on the intersecting runway and initiated a go-around, avoiding a collision. The article critiques the US air traffic control system's use of provisional landing clearances, where a plane can be cleared to land even if other traffic is on the runway, contrasting it with systems where clearance implies the runway is clear