Air France A350 Pilots Make Unauthorized Turn After LAX Takeoff

Federal aviation regulators and airline safety officials have opened reviews following a departure incident at Los Angeles International Airport involving an Air France Airbus A350-900 and an American Airlines Airbus A321. The occurrence took place in the early hours of 7 November 2026 and prompted an urgent intervention by air traffic controllers to restore safe separation between the two departing commercial transports.

The widebody aircraft was operating Air France Flight AF28, a scheduled long-haul passenger service from Los Angeles International Airport to Tahiti Faa'a International Airport in Papeete, French Polynesia. The flight was operated by an Airbus A350-941 bearing French registration F-HUVK. Flight AF28 departed westbound from Runway 24L shortly after midnight at approximately 00:15 local time under clear night conditions.

Departure Heading Deviation over Santa Monica Bay

Runway 24L is part of the north airfield complex at Los Angeles International Airport. Standard instrument departure procedures from Runway 24L, including the SUMMR Two departure assigned to oceanic departures, require flights to climb straight ahead along the extended runway centerline over the coastline and into the airspace above Santa Monica Bay before initiating assigned directional turns.

Radar tracking records and air traffic communications show that shortly after liftoff, as the twin-aisle Airbus climbed through approximately 1,800 feet above mean sea level, the aircraft began an unassigned left turn toward the southwest. The heading deviation directed the widebody across the departure corridor of Runway 25R, located on the airport's southern runway complex.

Traffic Conflict and Immediate Air Traffic Control Intervention

At the time Flight AF28 turned south of its cleared corridor, American Airlines Flight AA1660 was climbing out from parallel Runway 25R on a scheduled domestic service bound for Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport. The flight was operated by a narrowbody Airbus A321. Because both aircraft were climbing out simultaneously into Southern California airspace, the unauthorized left bank placed the two airliners on a converging profile.

Monitoring departure radar displays, an air traffic controller observed the loss of prescribed standard lateral separation and issued urgent instructions over the tower frequency. The controller directed American Airlines Flight 1660 to level off temporarily at 2,000 feet and alerted the crew to traffic in their twelve o'clock position. Simultaneously, controllers instructed the Air France flight crew to halt their left turn immediately and fly a westerly heading of 270 degrees to diverge from the American Airlines jet.

Flight tracking data indicated that lateral separation narrowed to less than one nautical mile, while vertical separation reduced to approximately 400 feet before the corrective vectors took effect. Both flight crews complied with controller directives, enabling positive radar separation to be re-established. Flight AF28 resumed its climb to cruising altitude and completed its oceanic crossing to Papeete without further disruption, while Flight AA1660 proceeded to Dallas/Fort Worth for an uneventful arrival.

Regulatory and Flight Operations Safety Inquiries

The Federal Aviation Administration confirmed that it is conducting a pilot deviation review to determine the factors that led to the unexpected turn during initial climb. Modern commercial flight decks utilize automated flight management guidance systems and flight director cues to execute assigned standard instrument departure profiles, and investigators will evaluate mode selections, autopilot engagement timing, and flight crew communication leading up to the heading change.

Air France confirmed that its corporate flight operations safety department is reviewing the flight data recorder logs and conducting interviews with the operating crew. The French flag carrier emphasized that flight safety remains its paramount priority and that findings will be integrated into line training modules for complex multi-runway departure operations.