AN S80 PIC; CLRED TO CROSS RWY 17C; STOPS HIS ACFT AT THE EDGE OF THE RWY; NARROWLY MISSING AN SF340 ON ITS TKOF ROLL AT DFW; TX.

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WE STARTED AT TERMINAL X AND WERE GIVEN CLRNC TO TAXI RWY 17R VIA TXWY Y. I CONTACTED E GND AND INFORMED THEM WE HAD A 90 MIN ATC DELAY. HE TOLD US TO TAXI TXWY L AND HOLD SHORT RWY 17R AT EJ. WE DID. HIS INTENTIONS WERE TO CROSS US OVER TO TXWY M AND HOLD SHORT OF TXWY Z. HE CLRED US ACROSS RWY 17R/L ON TXWY M AND HOLD SHORT OF TXWY Z. AFTER WE STARTED ROLLING THE CAPT HITS THE BRAKES AND BRINGS US TO AN ABRUPT STOP. WE ARE AMAZED TO SEE A SAAB; COMMUTER ACFT; ROLL BY ON RWY 17R. THE ANGLES WERE PERFECT FOR A BROADSIDE COLLISION AND AS MANY AS 180 PEOPLE DEAD; IF MY CAPT WAS NOT ALERT. WE WERE KEPT ON GND CTL AND OBVIOUSLY THE SAAB; COMMUTER ACFT; WAS ON TWR. I MADE SEVERAL CALLS TO THE GND CTLR; WITH NO RESPONSE. FINALLY A SHAKEN VOICE SAID 'THANKS ACR X; YOU ARE CLRED TO CROSS RWY 17R.' AS WE WERE XING THE HOLD LINE; WE OBSERVED AN S80 POWERING UP FOR TKOF. WE ASKED WHAT THE STATUS OF RWY 17R WAS. IN A CONFUSED STATE; HE TOLD US TO 'HOLD SHORT.' I ADVISED HIM WE WERE WELL PAST THE HOLD LINE. HE TOLD US 'TO CONTINUE;' THEN 'HOLD SHORT;' THEN 'CONTINUE ACROSS RWY 17R.' THE S80 THAT WAS IN POS RWY 17R WAS HOLDING SO WE CROSSED. AT NO TIME WAS THERE A SUPVR ON THE RADIO. THE GND CTLR I SPOKE WITH; I HAVE NEVER HEARD BEFORE. I FEEL IT WAS A CTLR UNDER TRAINING WITHOUT SUPERVISION. I AM CERTAIN WITH HOW CLOSE THIS CAME TO DISASTER; DFW WILL EASILY RECALL THIS INCIDENT. I HAVE NOT HEARD HIS VOICE SINCE. THE NEXT DAY; DFW-ORD; WE WERE ON TXWYS Y; K; EG; AND RWY 17R. AS WE APCHED OUR TURN TO TXWY K; A SAAB CUT US OFF; AT A HIGH RATE OF SPD; HEADING FOR SPOT X. WHO IS IN CHARGE? WHEN DFW DOUBLES UP ON FREQS; THE DANGER BEGINS. THE CTLR KNEW NOTHING ABOUT THIS SAAB 340.