First Lady's Jet, Cargo Plane Fly Too Close .
A White House jet with first lady Michelle Obama aboard flew closer than permitted to an Air Force cargo plane due to an air-traffic control slip-up Monday afternoon and had to break off its approach to land at Andrews Air Force Base outside Washington, according to people familiar with the details. The incident didn't pose an imminent hazard, these people said, because the aircraft remained roughly three miles apart and Federal Aviation Administration controllers in the airport tower recognized the developing air yeezy problem and took action to alleviate it. The distance between the two planes was less than required when the first lady's jet contacted the Andrews tower, according to these people. When it appeared that the C-17 cargo jet landing in front of the White House aircraft wouldn't depart the runway in time to maintain "the required amount of separation," according to the FAA, the tower instructed the pilots of the first lady's Boeing 737 jet to abandon their approach. They then circled the field and landed safely. An FAA statement said the "aircraft were never in any danger" and the agency was investigating the incident. Most planes must keep extra distance when landing beyond a particularly heavy plane such as the C-17, which produces more turbulence than smaller jets. The incident came as the FAA faced heightened public and congressional criticism over a recent spate of controllers nodding off at their radar screens. FAA chief Randy Babbitt has revamped controller schedules to alleviate fatigue and increased overnight staffing at 26 airport towers, including the one at Andrews. The jet carrying Mrs. Obama is part of a Air Force-managed and flown fleet at Andrews that flies government officials.