Delta pilot applauded for making ‘aggressive maneuver’ to evade harrowing mid-air collision with B-52 bomber

There have been an alarming number of plane crashes in the first half of 2025, with 122 incidents and 360 deaths reported as of June 12. Thankfully, another potentially harrowing accident was averted thanks to the quick thinking of a Delta Airlines pilot.

Alongside the Potomac River collision, which killed 67 people in January 2025, the deadliest accident is June's Air India Flight 171 that claimed the lives of all but one of the 242 people on board, as well as 19 people on the ground.

While one former flight attendant explained how likely you are to survive a crash, and that statistics claim US residents are 1,753 times more likely to die in a car than on a plane, that doesn't make it any easier for those who are afraid of flying in those giant metal birds.

As reported by The Washington Post, the pilot of SkyWest Flight 3788 "performed a go-around when another aircraft became visible in their flight path," while acting as a Delta connection between Minneapolis to Minot in North Dakota.

SkyWest is investigating the incident, and although exact details are unclear, it's said that a B-52 bomber was performing a flyover at Minot's North Dakota State Fair. With this being home to a commercial airport and an Air Force base, it's said there was unexpected traffic in the skies.

The commercial pilot says he had to explain to passengers that the B-52 was on a 'converging course', apologizing for making an 'aggressive maneuver' and adding that 'nobody told us' about the bomber being in the air.

Flight tracking data shows SkyWest Flight 3788 taking a sharp right-hand turn at the airport and then quickly climbing before it circled to land. At the same time, the B-52 is shown doing ellipses in the area.

In footage recorded by a passenger, the pilot concludes, "This is not normal at all. Long story short, it was not fun, but I do apologize for it," followed by applause from those onboard.

The US Air Force didn't immediately respond to questions about the incident and whether the B-52 bomber had approved its movements with the airport. A statement reads: "We are aware of the recent reporting regarding commercial and Air Force aircraft operating in airspace around Minot International Airport. We are currently looking into the matter."

Speaking to NBC News, passenger Monica Green claims the whole ordeal left her shaken: "I just remember the plane going, like, sideways … and just looking straight out the window and just seeing grass, like you weren’t seeing the skyline anymore."

In the aftermath of an Army Black Hawk helicopter colliding with a passenger jet in January, lawmakers and federal agencies have been attempting to review guidelines on how the military and civilian airlines communicate with each other over shared airspace. As the Potomac River disaster shows, the North Dakota near miss could've been a very different story.