American Airlines faced a brief air-traffic-control conflict near Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport after two Boeing 737-800s operated with the same callsign, AA2482, on the same frequency late on Thursday night. One flight was arriving from Chicago while another was departing Phoenix, prompting the controller to separate the aircraft safely and distinguish them as the arrival and the departure.
The overlap developed because the Chicago-to-Phoenix service was delayed while the Phoenix-to-Chicago rotation continued on schedule, leaving two different aircraft on the same route number at the same time. The controller quickly recognised the duplication and used explicit phraseology to avoid confusion as the aircraft converged in the Phoenix airspace.
American Airlines and the FAA were reviewing the incident. The event highlights the operational risks that can arise when swapped aircraft or delays lead to duplicate callsigns on busy domestic routes, even when separation is maintained and no damage or injury occurs.