A Thursday night flight from New York JFK Airport
to London Gatwick Airport
saw the captain required to slam the brakes, narrowly avoiding a mid-takeoff catastrophe, after it had to avoid another aircraft on the runway.

‘Potential obstruction on the runway’

Z0702, operated by Norse Atlantic
Airways, departed shortly after 18:00 local time on October 4. As the aircraft thundered down the Queens airport runway, it noted a ‘potential obstruction on the runway,’ according to the airline.

Norse Atlantic Airways Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner flying

Photo: Vincenzo Pace | Simple Flying

Using data from Flightradar24, Simple Flying can see the flight destined for London Gatwick. The flight reached 87 knots (100 miles per hour) as it was traveling down the runway at JFK before abruptly slowing down and exiting back onto the taxiway. The flight then taxied again, but it was able to depart successfully.

An intersecting aircraft

According to the NY Post, a Norse steward who remained anonymous said the London-bound flight was expected to depart at the same time as another flight using an intersecting runway. However, the other aircraft was at the crossing runway’s far end.

Passengers onboard were startled by the incident; however, according to Angela Blevins, the stop was unexpected, but everyone remained calm:

“No one really screamed, except maybe a few sudden utterances because we stopped so quickly. It didn’t feel like a crash or that we were in danger.”

Norse Atlantic Airways Boeing 787

Photo: Photofex_AUT | Shutterstock

Norse Airlines noted that the incident was minor, and no passengers or crew were in immediate danger. Releasing this statement:

“Norse Atlantic Airways flight Z0 702 from New York JFK to London Gatwick performed a rejected take off due to a potential obstruction on the runway. The safety and security of our customers and crew is always our top priority and our pilots are highly trained for such events. The flight departed shortly afterwards with only a minor delay.”

Daily flights to the Big Apple

Norse Atlantic
is a Norweigan, low-cost, long-haul carrier that commenced operations in June 2022. Today, the airline operates 12 Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner in its fleet and connects New York year-round to Berlin, London–Gatwick, and Paris–Charles de Gaulle. Seasonal links also kick in over the summer, serving Athens, Oslo, and Rome–Fiumicino.

Between New York and London, the airline facilitates daily flights that operate to the below schedule:

  • Z0702 – Departing New York JFK at 18:20, arriving in London Gatwick at 06:20 the next day (flight time of around six hours, ten minutes)
  • Z0701 – Departing London Gatwick at 10:45, traveling through the day, and arriving at New York JFK at 15:55 (flight time of around six hours, 50 minutes)
A Norse Atlantic Boeing 787 landing

Photo: Norse Atlantic Airways

The airline maintains operating bases in London, Miami, New York, Oslo, and Paris and has continued to grow its network across the Atlantic since its inception. This September, it commenced flights between London and Las Vegas, its fifth US gateway.

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