FAA investigating United Express flight landing at wrong airport

The Federal Aviation Administration is investigating why a regional commuter plane landed at the wrong West Virginia airport Tuesday night.

The Federal Aviation Administration is investigating why a regional commuter plane landed at the wrong West Virginia airport Tuesday night.

United Express Flight 4049 operated by Silver Airways was supposed to fly from Morgantown to Clarksburg but landed instead at Fairmont Municipal Airport about 10 miles away.

The Saab 340B plus aircraft can seat up to 34 people, but had 11 passengers and three crew members on board at the time, according to Silver Airways spokesman Scott Bennett.

“All passengers were re-accommodated to North Central West Virginia Airport … in Clarksburg in a timely fashion,” Silver Airways said in a statement.

“Safety is our top priority, and we have launched an internal review to determine what led to the flight diversion,” David Querio, chief operating officer of Silver Airways said in the statement e-mailed to CNN. “We sincerely apologize for the inconvenience to passengers aboard flight 4049 last evening.”

Pending the investigation, the flight crew has been removed from service, Bennett said.

Silver Airways, based in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida, started operations in last year and currently operates 120 flights a day on its 31 aircraft, according to the company’s website.

The Morgantown to Clarksburg route is new for the airline, which took over those flights August 1.

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Linda Hohnholz

Editor in chief for eTurboNews based in the eTN HQ.

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