There is a quote that says (with different variations) that “flying is hours of boredom punctuated by seconds of sheer terror” and that is what this Delta Air Lines pilot must have felt this past weekend when an aggressive maneuver was required to avoid a B-52 bomber.
Delta Pilot Made “Aggressive Maneuver” to Avoid a B-52 Bomber
It was the pilot of SkyWest flight 3788 (a Delta Connection flight) which was flying from Minneapolis to Minot, North Dakota on July 18th. Minot is an Air Force Base and one of two homes to the B-52 Stratofortress.
The video below was posted by a passenger as the pilot gave an explanation for the maneuver they had just made. The pilot was quite up front in his explanation which, my guess, was partially done to help calm his own nerves over the incident. The plane landed fine and all passengers were fine. There is an investigation into what had allowed this to get so close.
The pilot said that no one told them about the plane and the pilot looked out and saw the B-52 on the right hand side. The controller told him to turn right and the pilot said “there is a plane there” and then the controller said turn left. That had to be very unnerving, as the pilot said “not a fun day at the office”, to have to make this decision about an aircraft that he was not told about and coming near them at a much faster speed than they were flying.
The video has audio of the passengers all clapping for the captain after his explanation. Good for him explaining it as he did and for his fast thinking.
NEW: Delta pilot makes an “aggressive maneuver” to avoid colliding with a B-52 bomber above Minot, North Dakota.
New audio footage captured by a passenger onboard the plane reveals what exactly happened, according to the pilot.
“Given his speed … I don’t know how fast they… pic.twitter.com/Hos687fZRm
— Collin Rugg (@CollinRugg) July 20, 2025
Featured image is a stock photo of a B-52
