bASHINGTON (Reuters) - A jet carrying first lady Michelle Obama abandoned a landing approach outside Washington to avoid another plane in an apparent mistake by air traffic controllers, U.S. aviation officials said on Tuesday.
The Federal Aviation Administration said in a statement her government-owned Boeing 737 was approaching Andrews Air Force Base in Maryland when it was told to "go around," or to climb and attempt another approach, shortly after 5 p.m. EDT Monday.
The agency said Mrs. Obama's plane was about three miles behind an Air Force C-17 that was landing, rather than the five-mile spacing required when trailing in the wake of a much larger aircraft like the military cargo plane.
Andrews is a military facility where Air Force One -- the presidential aircraft -- and other top level government planes are based. But the air space around it is handled by the civilian FAA, which is under fire over disclosures in recent weeks that a
handful of controllers had fallen asleep on the job while working overnight shifts.
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