Spirit Airlines A319 Took Emergency Evasive Action To Avoid The Smaller Plane

The owner of the skydiving company that owns the plane that was involved in a near collision incident with a Spirit Airlines A319 over Michigan Wednesday says that his pilot did nothing wrong, and is not responsible for the incident.

Franz Gerschwiler operates Skydive Tecumseh. He told the Associated Press that the FAA "took great pains" to tell him that his pilot is "not under investigation."

But FAA spokeswoman Elizabeth Cory said that the operation of both aircraft remains under review, along with the actions of air traffic controllers and their equipment. She said that the pilot's performance and qualifications will be looked into, whether non-FAA facilities were involved, and if all FARs were properly followed.

The pilot of the A319 received a warning from the TCAS installed on board the airplane that it was about to collide with the skydiving plane. The Spirit pilot pushed the airliner into a steep dive, avoiding the collision but causing some minor injuries to flight attendants in the main cabin. Luggage reportedly fell from the overhead bins and at least some of the FAs working in the cabin bumped their heads on the ceiling. A Spirit spokeswoman said that the pilot flying the Spirit jet "followed appropriate procedures and adjusted their flight path" after receiving the collision warning from the TCAS.

FMI: www.faa.gov