Created Sunday, Feb 25th 2024 07:44Z, last updated Sunday, Feb 25th 2024 16:15Z
According to media reports (including some aviation reports) a Lufthansa B748 nearly collided with a South African Airways Airbus A320 on the runway in Johannesburg. The (known as highly inaccurate) replay-display by a certain radar website shows, that the B748 while accelerating for takeoff from Johannesburg's runway 03L had a South African Airways A320 cross the runway at the same time in short distance across the first taxiway ahead of the B748, the A320 made it across the runway before the B748 came to that point, the B748 continued takeoff. So this is the "story" of a "near collision on the runway" according to such media.
However, what really happened is this:
The B748 was cleared to line up runway 03L and lined up. The crew disliked the view on their weather radar and decided not to continue with their takeoff. They vacated the runway and returned to the holding point runway 03L. In the meantime, because the Lufthansa was now taxiing, tower cleared the A320 to cross the runway. After the B748 returned to the hold short line, the A320 had long crossed the runway, the B748 departed without further incident. All safe, all normal, end of real story. No near collision on the runway, no runway incursion occurred, no close proximity of aircraft occurred, no rejected takeoff occurred, ...
According to detailed raw ADS-B data the Boeing 747-8 lined up runway 03L between 18:15:00Z and 18:16:04Z, then waited in position until about 18:17:23Z then taxied, never exceeding 25 knots over ground, down the runway to vacate the runway and rejoin the hold short line before departing. During the actual takeoff run starting at about 18:42:00Z the aircraft had already accelerated to 41 knots over ground before the aiming markers (the aircraft had passed with 13 knots over ground on the first supposed/reported "takeoff run") and had further accelerated to 70 knots over ground just past the first fixed distance markers (which the aircraft had passed at 21 knots over ground during taxi, the first supposed/reported "takeoff run").
Map including trajectories (Graphics: AVH/Google Earth):
