LOS ANGELES : 2 Planes Leaving LAX Have Close Encounter

A United Airlines Boeing 727 and an American Eagle commuter plane apparently passed within a quarter-mile of each other--well below the approved minimum separation--as they climbed out of Los Angeles International Airport and headed north on Sunday, the Federal Aviation Administration said Monday.

UAL’s Flight 1270 was bound for Oakland and American Eagle’s Flight 5072 was heading for Bakersfield, the FAA said. Neither aircraft took evasive action and both completed their flights without incident.

The air traffic controller handling the airspace where the incident took place--about 8,000 feet over the mountains eight miles northwest of Van Nuys--has been assigned to other duties until an investigation of the incident has been completed, the FAA said.