# Whoops! Plane lands at wrong airport. **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [July 9, 2016, 11:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whoops-plane-lands-at-wrong-airport/759464 "2016-07-09T11:19:30Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Quartz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quartz/32/267_2.png) [@Quartz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quartz)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2016, 11:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whoops-plane-lands-at-wrong-airport/759464/1 "2016-07-09T11:19:30Z")
> **[Delta passenger plane mistakenly lands in US air force base](https://www.theguardian.com/world/2016/jul/09/delta-passenger-plane-mistakenly-lands-in-us-air-force-base)** > > Military search A320 with 130 passengers on board after it lands at the wrong airport in South Dakota > [@](#): > > The Delta A320 landed at Ellsworth air force base at 8.42pm Central Time on Thursday, when its scheduled destination was a nearby airport in Rapid City, NTSB spokesman Peter Knudson said on Friday. Whoops! šŸ™‚ ---
**Author:** ![Spiderman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spiderman/32/230_2.png) [@Spiderman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spiderman)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2016, 11:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whoops-plane-lands-at-wrong-airport/759464/2 "2016-07-09T11:45:59Z")
> [@article](#): > > Landings at wrong airports by commercial pilots, while unusual, are still more common than many passengers may realize or airlines would like to acknowledge. > > An Associated Press search two years ago of government safety data and news reports since the early 1990s found at least 150 flights in which US commercial passenger and cargo planes have either landed at the wrong airport or started to land and realized their mistake in time. Not the first time. ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2016, 12:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whoops-plane-lands-at-wrong-airport/759464/3 "2016-07-09T12:05:06Z")
I was on a friendā€™s Cessna, flying from Pittsburgh to Hershey. At one point he asked what highway I thought was below us. I thought he was quizzing me, but it turned out he needed to know to aid his navigation. Shocked me a bit. ---
**Author:** ![panache45](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/panache45/32/64_2.png) [@panache45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panache45)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2016, 12:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whoops-plane-lands-at-wrong-airport/759464/4 "2016-07-09T12:11:57Z")
And one time, to the [wrong continent](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Douglas_Corrigan) (though it may have been deliberate). ---
**Author:** ![Shoeless](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/shoeless/32/7099_2.png) [@Shoeless](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shoeless)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2016, 1:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whoops-plane-lands-at-wrong-airport/759464/5 "2016-07-09T13:14:39Z")
Hereā€™s an incident from a few years ago where a Boeing Dreamlifter cargo plane was supposed to land at McConnell AFB in Wichita but landed at a small local airport north of town. Even though the runway was only about 2/3 what the plane would need for takeoff, they managed to get it in the air and land it across town. > **[Cargo jet takes off from Wichita on short runway | CNN](https://www.cnn.com/2013/11/21/travel/kansas-cargo-plane-wrong-airport/)** > > A huge cargo plane that landed Wednesday at the wrong airport in Wichita, Kansas, took off without incident Thursday afternoon on a shorter runway than normal. ---
**Author:** ![enipla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/54ee81/32.png) [@enipla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/enipla)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2016, 2:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whoops-plane-lands-at-wrong-airport/759464/6 "2016-07-09T14:02:05Z")
> [@kayaker](#): > > I was on a friendā€™s Cessna, flying from Pittsburgh to Hershey. At one point he asked what highway I thought was below us. I thought he was quizzing me, but it turned out he needed to know to aid his navigation. Shocked me a bit. IFR - ā€œI fly roadsā€ ---
**Author:** ![GusNSpot](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gusnspot/32/436_2.png) [@GusNSpot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GusNSpot)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2016, 6:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whoops-plane-lands-at-wrong-airport/759464/7 "2016-07-09T18:43:54Z")
When the folks that were going with me got out of their car and asked where we were going, I would point and say, ā€œThat-a-way.ā€ Sometimes I did not even take a map. Bawahahahaha ---
**Author:** ![GusNSpot](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gusnspot/32/436_2.png) [@GusNSpot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GusNSpot)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2016, 6:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whoops-plane-lands-at-wrong-airport/759464/8 "2016-07-09T18:52:38Z")
Oh, as to the OP), I have landed in the wrong place, wrong airport, used the wrong frequency and I used to land real regular at TUL in heavy traffic times without ever doing anything but click my mic button. Been into some really big airports while IFR that were swamped with arrivals and never said another word after my ā€˜Thank you, 42Qā€™ to my last center controller. Approach control, and Tower only ever said, ā€œIdent to reply.ā€ ---
**Author:** ![Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/qadgop_the_mercotan/32/83_2.png) [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qadgop_the_Mercotan)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2016, 7:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whoops-plane-lands-at-wrong-airport/759464/9 "2016-07-09T19:00:37Z")
> [@Quartz](#): > > [Delta passenger plane mistakenly lands in US air force base | Air transport | The Guardian](https://www.theguardian.com/world/2016/jul/09/delta-passenger-plane-mistakenly-lands-in-us-air-force-base) > Whoops! šŸ™‚ Thatā€™s one way to end oneā€™s aviation career quickly, but without fatalities. ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2016, 7:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whoops-plane-lands-at-wrong-airport/759464/10 "2016-07-09T19:53:02Z")
Thread from a previous incident: [Oops. Dreamlifter lands at wrong airport. - Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share - Straight Dope Message Board](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=708370) ---
**Author:** ![jtur88](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e9c0ed/32.png) [@jtur88](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jtur88)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2016, 10:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whoops-plane-lands-at-wrong-airport/759464/11 "2016-07-09T22:27:52Z")
Bob Newhartā€™s routine about flying to Hawaii on the Grace L. Ferguson Airline and Storm Door Company. The pilot welcomes the passengers, and asks if anyone has ever been to Hawaii before. ā€œItā€™s sort of shaped like a liver, isnā€™t it?ā€ ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [July 10, 2016, 4:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whoops-plane-lands-at-wrong-airport/759464/12 "2016-07-10T04:10:10Z")
IFR - I Follow Railroads VFR - Visually Follow Railroads ---
**Author:** ![Runs\_With\_Scissors](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/278dde/32.png) [@Runs\_With\_Scissors](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Runs_With_Scissors)\ **Post date:** [July 10, 2016, 4:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whoops-plane-lands-at-wrong-airport/759464/13 "2016-07-10T04:12:16Z")
> [@jtur88](#): > > Bob Newhartā€™s routine about flying to Hawaii on the Grace L. Ferguson Airline and Storm Door Company. The pilot welcomes the passengers, and asks if anyone has ever been to Hawaii before. ā€œItā€™s sort of shaped like a liver, isnā€™t it?ā€ ā€œDid you ever have one that hangs on?ā€ ---
**Author:** ![Xema](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/x/9de053/32.png) [@Xema](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Xema)\ **Post date:** [July 10, 2016, 5:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whoops-plane-lands-at-wrong-airport/759464/14 "2016-07-10T05:25:17Z")
Hereā€™s a [YouTube video](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sHMhClzfoi8) about an Air Force C-17 that landed at the wrong airport near Tampa. The plane was able to fly out successfully (probably minus some equipment and most of its fuel). ---
**Author:** ![kferr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/71e660/32.png) [@kferr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kferr)\ **Post date:** [July 10, 2016, 3:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whoops-plane-lands-at-wrong-airport/759464/15 "2016-07-10T15:24:24Z")
Not as bad as landing at the wrong airport, but back in 2004 a B52 flew all the way from the US to do a fly past at the Farnborough Air Show (which starts tomorrow btw) and [missed](http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/1467470/US-bomber-misses-target-for-flypast-at-air-show.html) ---
**Author:** ![Hampshire](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hampshire/32/4887_2.png) [@Hampshire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hampshire)\ **Post date:** [July 10, 2016, 3:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whoops-plane-lands-at-wrong-airport/759464/16 "2016-07-10T15:53:08Z")
In 2009 a domestic flight from California to Minneapolis overshot itā€™s destination by 150 miles before turning back. Talks about missing your exit. ---
**Author:** ![racer72](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/racer72/32/3075_2.png) [@racer72](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/racer72)\ **Post date:** [July 10, 2016, 4:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whoops-plane-lands-at-wrong-airport/759464/17 "2016-07-10T16:22:26Z")
> [@kayaker](#): > > I was on a friendā€™s Cessna, flying from Pittsburgh to Hershey. At one point he asked what highway I thought was below us. I thought he was quizzing me, but it turned out he needed to know to aid his navigation. Shocked me a bit. My father learned to fly a plane from a friend that was a pilot. A few years later bought a plane with plans to fly to Hershey (from Tacoma, Washington) for a big car show. Made it as far as some place in Wyoming when he flew into restricted airspace and was escorted by a military airplane to a local airport. It was then discovered the flaw in his planning, road maps didnā€™t show restricted airspace near military facilities. The FAA didnā€™t take kindly to an unlicensed pilot using road maps to navigate. Received a steep fine and had to hire a guy to fly his plane back to Washington. Never made it to Hershey that year. ---
**Author:** ![Me\_Billy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e480ec/32.png) [@Me\_Billy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Me_Billy)\ **Post date:** [July 10, 2016, 5:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whoops-plane-lands-at-wrong-airport/759464/18 "2016-07-10T17:28:35Z")
Being as many pilots were once military pilots, I can see where they might fly into a city and out of habit head for the military airport they used to land at a zillion times. ---
**Author:** ![LouisB](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/dfb087/32.png) [@LouisB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LouisB)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2016, 6:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whoops-plane-lands-at-wrong-airport/759464/19 "2016-07-11T06:03:22Z")
> [@kayaker](#): > > I was on a friendā€™s Cessna, flying from Pittsburgh to Hershey. At one point he asked what highway I thought was below us. I thought he was quizzing me, but it turned out he needed to know to aid his navigation. Shocked me a bit. I was on a small commuter flight in Michigan when I noticed the co-pilot had a road map unfolded on her lap; turned out the flight was following a railroad trackā€”disconcerting to say the least. ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2016, 10:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whoops-plane-lands-at-wrong-airport/759464/20 "2016-07-11T10:46:41Z")
Do You Know The Way To San Jose? Well, , , umm. . . kinda-sorta. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whoops-plane-lands-at-wrong-airport/759464.md?page=2)