FAA says it will take steps to avoid near-collisions
The Federal Aviation Administration announced on Monday that it has initiated steps to create more space between planes on intersecting runways after a report on five near-collisions, including three involving airliners at McCarran International Airport.
According to a statement, the agency has stationed more supervisors in control towers to focus on crossing flight paths. In each of the five incidents, according to the review by the National Transportation Safety Board, separate controllers handled the two planes involved.
The training simulator in Las Vegas has been programmed with new scenarios to re-create the incidents and planes in the air will be metered to create more separation.
However, an FAA official said that the number of problems that occurred at McCarran did not point to an outsized safety risk, even though two happened within weeks of each other last year.
All of the incidents involved one plane executing a go-around, where the pilot aborted a landing to fly a big loop and try again. At the same time, another plane used a cross runway.
At McCarran the runways form about a 60-degree angle, looking similar to the Lexus car logo.
The local three incidents in the report included:
— On Jan. 27, 2006, a United Airlines Airbus A320 attempted to land to the southwest but was ordered by controllers to go around to avoid hitting a plane on the ground. In doing so, it nearly hit an American Airlines Boeing 757 taking off to the west. The United plane made a steep turn to the right while the American plane went left, coming within 1,400 feet of each other laterally and 300 feet vertically.
— On April 27, 2012, a JetBlue A320 did a go-around while landing to the west just as a Learjet took off to the southwest. The Learjet climbed so steeply that a stall warning went off while JetBlue veered left. They came within 1,800 feet of each other laterally and just 100 feet vertically.
— On July 30, 2012, a Spirit A319 did a go-around as it was landing to the southwest just as a Cessna Citation private jet was landing to the east. The Cessna swerved left, then right to miss the Spirit plane and then land. They planes came within 1,300 feet of each other laterally and 100 vertically.
None of the incidents resulted in damage or injuries.
The other two mishaps cited in the report took place in Charlotte, N.C., on July 14, 2012, and New York’s John F. Kennedy International Airport on July 30, 2012.
The report recommended applying separation rules similar to the ones now in effect for normal operations to go-arounds. In the incidents, according to the report, “separation was established by resorting to impromptu evasive maneuvers by pilots.”
Contact reporter Tim O’Reiley at
toreiley@reviewjournal.com or 702-387-5290.
