First lady closer to jet than reported

WASHINGTON -- A plane carrying first lady Michelle Obama this week came closer to a big military cargo jet than previously reported, the National Transportation Safety Board said Friday.

The distance between the two planes closed to 2.94 miles before air traffic controllers at Andrews Air Force Base outside Washington directed the first lady's plane to abort a landing, the board said in a statement.

The Federal Aviation Administration said previously that more than three miles separated the planes, and had ordered controllers' supervisors to oversee flights carrying the first lady and the vice president. A supervisor already was required to monitor flights with President Barack Obama on board.

Michelle Obama's plane, a Boeing 737, was considerably smaller than the 200-ton C17 ahead of it. Federal regulations require five miles between planes to avoid dangerous wake turbulence when the plane in the lead is significantly larger than the one trailing.

The planes were lined up for their landing approach into Andrews by a controller at a regional radar facility in Warrenton, Va., the board said. The planes were already too close when controllers at Andrews took over.

The Andrews controllers immediately ordered the 737 pilot to execute a series of turns to increase its distance from the cargo plane. When the distance continued to narrow, the controllers directed the 737 pilot to abort the landing and circle the airport until the cargo jet cleared the runway.

The board also said a Southwest Airlines jet with 142 people aboard came perilously close to a small plane over Central Florida last month. The planes, traveling at hundreds of miles per hour, could have closed the short distance within seconds.

Both planes landed safely. The controller has been suspended pending an investigation.