No injuries were reported, and passengers departing Orlando International Airport were accommodated on another aircraft heading to their destination of Albany, New York, the airline said in a statement. The aircraft was switched to help facilitate an investigation.
Southwest Flight 3278 had been cleared for takeoff and initiated a takeoff roll on a taxiway after the crew mistook the surface for the nearby runway, officials said. But air traffic controllers canceled the clearance before the plane could take off.
A simulator is a great way to live out the perfectly normal and not at all niche dream of taking off from a taxiway rather than a runway.