Two Air Canada planes came close to crashing into each other at Toronto Pearson International Airport after the flight crew of a Boeing 777 and air traffic control did not respond to a call about another plane remaining on the runway, according to a Tuesday report from the Transportation Safety Board of Canada (TSBC). .The report said an Air Canada Embraer 190 was taking off from Runway 06L before 9:50 a.m. in March 2020. The plane was travelling to Denver, and it was carrying 83 passengers and four crew members. .As the plane was preparing to take off, the report said an Air Canada Boeing 777 was directed to go to the same runway. This plane was travelling to Halifax, and it had 345 passengers and 14 crew members. ."As the Embraer 190 was accelerating on its take-off roll, it struck a bird," the TSBC said. ."The flight crew initiated a rejected takeoff and made a radio call to report that they were rejecting the takeoff.".The Boeing 777 and air traffic control did not hear this call because they were reciting a take-off clearance on the same frequency. .“As the Boeing 777 was accelerating on its take-off roll, the flight crew observed that the Embraer 190 was still on the runway and initiated a rejected takeoff,” said the TSBC. .“Both aircraft eventually exited the runway and returned to the terminal.” .The TSBC said there were not any injuries or damage to the aircrafts. .Plane accidents and near collisions are reported to the TSBC if they happen in Canada or outside of the country if they are registered planes. .In 2020, a total of 170 plane mishaps were reported to the TSBC, 25% lower than the previous year’s amount of 227 incidents. .Most of these mishaps in 2020 occurred in Canada and involved registered planes.
