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THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

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WASHINGTON - American authorities say two airliners were a minute away from colliding when they turned away from each other over the Caribbean this week.

The National Transportation Safety Board says the Delta Air Lines flight and a Russian-registered passenger jet were heading toward each other north of Puerto Rico on Thursday when cockpit alarms went off, warning the plane's pilots.

In a statement Friday, the NTSB says the pilot of the Russian plane a Transaero Boeing 737 descended 60 to 90 metres to avoid Delta Flight 485.

The planes were 10,000 metres over the water and about 290 kilometres north of San Juan.

The Delta aircraft was headed from New York's Kennedy International Airport to Port of Spain, Trinidad.