Near-Collision in the Friendly Skies

Two jets nearly collided into each other over Indiana this week:

The Tuesday incident occurred at a time when the airplanes were being directed by the Chicago Center, a regional traffic control facility located in Aurora, Ill., that handles flights in an eight-state area when they are 14,000 feet and up. A collision between the flights at about 25,000 feet was avoided when a cockpit safety device in one of the planes alerted pilots, according to the FAA.

Officials said the controller directed the Midwest Airlines plane flying east from Milwaukee into the path of the United Express jet heading west out of Greensboro, N.C. The planes came as close as 1.3 miles apart horizontally and 600 feet apart vertically, according to the FAA. The mishap remains under investigation.

But, not to worry -- the FAA says flight control errors are more likely when air traffic controllers are not busy -- so the upcoming heavy holiday travel schedule can only make things safer.

Heckuva job, guys.