JetBlue flight near Venezuela avoids midair collision with U.S. Air Force tanker

JetBlue Flight 1112 from Curacao halted its ascent Friday to avoid colliding with a U.S. Air Force refueling tanker flying at the same altitude near Venezuela.

The Air Force plane’s transponder was turned off, the JetBlue pilot said, leaving the commercial aircraft’s crew unaware of the military plane’s presence until dangerously close.

The near-miss comes as U.S. military activity intensifies in the Caribbean and pressures the Venezuelan government.

WASHINGTON — A JetBlue flight from the small Caribbean nation of Curacao halted its ascent to avoid colliding with a U.S. Air Force refueling tanker, and the pilot blamed the military plane for crossing his path.

“We almost had a midair collision up here,” the JetBlue pilot said, according to a recording of his conversation with air traf