Southwest plane hits, kills person on runway at Austin-Bergstrom International Airport

FAA now conducting investigation

AUSTIN, Texas – A man was struck and killed by a commercial jet landing on a runaway at an Austin, Texas, airport Thursday night, authorities said.

The pilot of Southwest Airlines Flight 1392, a Boeing 737 arriving from Dallas, reported seeing a person on Runway 17R at Austin-Bergstrom International Airport, shortly after the jet touched down at 8:12 p.m., according to a statement from the Federal Aviation Administration. The FAA said the driver of an airport operations vehicle later found the body on the runway.

Recommended Videos



Airport spokesman Bryce Dubee said officials do not believe the man was supposed to be on the runway at the time, but they’re working to confirm that and determine the events leading up to his death.

The airport said in posts on Twitter that it is working with the Austin Police Department on the investigation and that maintenance crews worked early Friday preparing to reopen the runway.

No further information, including the identity of the man who died, was immediately available.