A330 Almost Takes Off From Newark Taxiway

The agencies are undoubtedly looking into the case of a wayward Turkish Airlines Airbus A330 crew that nearly took off from a taxiway at Newark Liberty Airport Aug. 7. According to the Aviation Herald, the crew was cleared to take off on Runway 22R but overshot that mark and lined up on Taxiway P, which is between 22R and its parallel partner, 22L. With the clearance granted, the big Airbus spooled up and headed for Istanbul. About two-thirds of the way through the takeoff run, a controller noticed.

The crew was ordered to abort the takeoff when they were going about 90 knots so they screeched to a halt and then asked for further instructions, noting they’d need some time to cool their brakes. They were sent to the end of an inactive runway and after about 45 minutes returned to 22R to resume the trip home. According to a passenger onboard, the captain made a PA announcement saying the aborted takeoff was due to a mechanical issue.