A Boeing 777 plane was seen taking a very low pass over Central Texas as it approached the Horseshoe Bay Resort Jet Center airport this week, video shows.
Data from flight tracking service FlightRadar24 showed the plane was no more than 25 feet above the ground during the low pass on Wednesday.
Pilots had alerted the air traffic control tower to the maneuver, according to audio from LiveATC.net: «We are turning final runway 17 for a low approach, 5DN heavy.»
The Federal Aviation Administration says it’s investigating.
The plane is owned by Jetran, a company based in Horseshoe Bay.
In a statement, Jetran said that the plane «was undergoing a final pre‑delivery test flight prior to its planned entry into the Qatar Airways Cargo fleet.»
«While the aircraft is painted in Qatar Airways livery, it was not owned or operated by Qatar Airways, did not carry a Qatar Airways registration, and the pilots on board were not Qatar Airways pilots,» Jetran said.
«We expect the relevant parties and authorities to investigate this matter thoroughly and take appropriate action,» the company added.
Qatar Airways deferred CBS News to Jetran.
Former National Transportation Safety Board Chair Robert Sumwalt told CBS News the pilots could face having their credentials suspended over the move, calling it «another example of stupid pilot tricks.»
«I see no legitimate reason at all to perform this maneuver the way that it was done,» Sumwalt said. «They clearly had planned it, they had an audience standing by to watch it and to video it, so there’s no real reason why they should have been doing this.»
