Qatar Airways Boeing 777 skims Texas runway in jaw-dropping maneuver

A Qatar Airways Boeing 777 cargo jet drew backlash from aviation experts after a video showed the aircraft performing a very low flyby over a runway in Central Texas. The Boeing 777 widebody was filmed during a detour from its route to Fort Worth, near Horseshoe Bay Resort, about 60 miles northwest of Austin. Footage captured the plane streaking just feet above the runway while its landing gear was not deployed, before banking sharply left; it then leveled and climbed back to continue to Fort Worth. Commentators on social media condemned the maneuver as unnecessarily close to the ground, including Steve Giordano of the Nomadic Aviation Group and Ben Schlappig of One Mile At A Time. As of Thursday, the pilot’s identity had not been publicly disclosed. The aircraft is described as a former Delta Airlines plane retired in 2020 and converted from passenger to freight service, and it was set to fly from Grissom Aeroplex in Indiana to Perot Field Fort Worth Alliance Airport. Experts noted the detour of nearly 200 miles south of Fort Worth to execute the maneuver at Horseshoe Bay.