Qatar Airways Cargo Boeing 777 N705DN Performs Viral Texas Flyby as Experts Warn It Was ‘Inches From Disaster’

A Boeing 777 freighter painted in Qatar Airways Cargo livery performed a low-altitude flyby over Horseshoe Bay Resort Jet Center (DZB) in Texas on Wednesday, June 24, 2026, coming so close to the ground that aviation experts described the maneuver as “inches from disaster.” The aircraft, registered N705DN, was on a ferry flight ahead of its planned delivery to Qatar Airways Cargo (QR) and was not being operated by Qatar Airways pilots at the time.

Footage shows the widebody jet flying with its landing gear retracted along the runway before banking right, a move that brought its right wingtip dramatically close to the pavement. The aircraft’s actual owner, Texas-based leasing firm Jetran, has since admitted the flight “does not reflect operational standards.”

What Happened Over Horseshoe Bay

The Boeing 777-200LR was flying a ferry route from Grissom Aeroplex (GUS) in Indiana to Perot Field Fort Worth Alliance Airport (AFW) in Texas. Rather than taking the most direct path, the aircraft detoured to fly over Horseshoe Bay Resort Jet Center, the home base of Jetran, the company that owns the freighter.

According to Flightradar24 data cited by Simple Flying, the lowest ADS-B reading recorded during the flyover was 950 feet above mean sea level, but once adjusted for local barometric pressure and the airfield’s elevation, that figure works out to roughly zero feet above the ground. The aircraft then completed its journey, landing safely at Fort Worth Alliance just before 3:00 p.m. local time.

The Moment the Wing Nearly Struck the Ground

Visitors at Horseshoe Bay Resort captured the flyby on camera, and the video quickly spread on social media. As the 777 flew low along the runway with its gear up, the pilots initiated a right turn at the aircraft’s lowest point, a maneuver that pulled the right wingtip even closer to the surface.

Aerial photography shared by aviation account @EBaviation on X showed just how close the call really was. The 777-200LR has a wingspan of more than 212 feet, leaving almost no margin for error during a low banked turn so close to the ground.

The reaction from the aviation community was swift and largely unanimous in its alarm. Steve Giordano, an experienced pilot and co-founder of Nomadic Aviation Group, posted on X that the flyby was “really f’ing insanely bad,” adding: “Inches from disaster and for what? Stupid stupid stupid.”

Other commentators used similarly blunt language, describing the pass as “reckless” and “diabolical.” A safety-focused breakdown published by Aviation Shop explained why the banking maneuver compounded the danger: low-altitude flying already cuts a pilot’s reaction time, and a wing that strikes the ground at speed can trigger a loss of control or structural failure, which is why minimum safe altitudes exist in the first place.

Although the freighter was wearing full Qatar Airways Cargo colors, the airline has stressed that it had no operational role in the flight. In a statement, Qatar Airways said:

“While the aircraft is painted in Qatar Airways livery, it was not owned or operated by Qatar Airways, did not carry a Qatar Airways registration, and the pilots on board were not Qatar Airways pilots. The aircraft was undergoing a final pre-delivery test flight prior to its planned entry into the Qatar Airways Cargo fleet. We expect the relevant parties and authorities to investigate this matter thoroughly and take appropriate action.”

One commentator captured the reputational risk the stunt created for the airline regardless of who was flying the plane, noting: “If I wanted any further business from Qatar Airways, I wouldn’t have done it in their full livery.”

The Aircraft’s History of N705DN

N705DN is a 17-year-old Boeing 777-200LR that first entered service with Delta Air Lines (DL) in 2009, configured to carry up to 296 passengers across three cabin classes. Delta retired its entire 777 fleet in early 2020 at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, after which the aircraft was placed into storage at Victorville, California, before Jetran acquired it.

The airframe later became the prototype for Mammoth Freighters’ passenger-to-freighter conversion program, known as the 777-200LRMF, or Long Range Mammoth Freighter. Conversion work began in February 2022 and finished in 2025, after which the aircraft received its Qatar Airways Cargo livery ahead of delivery.

Qatar Airways is the launch customer for this conversion program and is set to take five airframes from Jetran in total, adding to a cargo fleet that, according to ch-aviation data, already includes 30 Boeing 777 freighters.

Jetran’s Response to the Near Disaster

Jetran, the Texas-based company that owns the freighter and is based at Horseshoe Bay Resort, confirmed to Simple Flying that the pilots on board were not employed by Qatar Airways and that the aircraft had not yet been formally registered to the Qatari carrier. The company’s statement struck a more apologetic tone than Qatar Airways’ own response:

“We are aware of a video circulating on social media showing a freighter aircraft conducting a low-pass flight in a manner that does not reflect operational standards.”

Jetran’s location at Horseshoe Bay Resort appears to explain why the flight detoured there in the first place. Aviation Shop’s reporting described the maneuver as a symbolic flyover of the company’s home base, intended as a send-off before the aircraft’s eventual handover to Qatar Airways, rather than as an authorized or sanctioned demonstration flight.

Regulatory and Safety Implications of the Low Flyby

No ground strike has been confirmed, and the aircraft landed safely shortly afterward, but the proximity of the wing to the runway has already drawn comparisons to past low-altitude flying accidents.

AeroHaber’s coverage pointed to Air France Flight 296 at the 1988 Habsheim Air Show, when an Airbus A320 crashed into a forest during a ceremonial flyover, killing three people on board, as a reminder of how quickly low passes can turn fatal.

Multiple outlets reported that the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is expected to investigate the incident, and that the pilot involved is likely to face disciplinary action. As of this writing, the FAA has not issued a public statement confirming whether a formal investigation has been opened, and the agency’s findings, if any, are not yet available.

Horseshoe Bay’s airport features a roughly 6,000-foot runway built mainly for private jets and smaller regional aircraft, and it sits next to a residential community, raising the stakes of any low-altitude maneuver performed there. Ferry flights like this one are non-revenue positioning flights, flown without cargo or passengers, but they remain governed by the same safety regulations as scheduled commercial flights.

All in All

This is not the only case this year of a pilot performing an unauthorized low-altitude maneuver involving passengers or a high-profile aircraft. Earlier in 2026, a veteran Icelandair pilot drew scrutiny after conducting an unauthorized flyover of his hometown during his final flight before retirement, flying a Boeing 757 loaded with passengers at an altitude of just over 300 feet over the Vestmannaeyjar islands.