Safety board checks Reno air control complaint

RENO -- The National Transportation Safety Board is investigating a pilot's complaint that he received bad information about the wind from the control tower at Reno-Tahoe International Airport before damaging his plane in a landing in September.

But Ian Gregor, a spokesman for the Federal Aviation Administration, said Thursday his agency reviewed the incident and found "no issues of concern."

The safety board is expected to release its report next week on the complaint, filed by Leon Roberts of Noxon, Mont., according to the Reno Gazette-Journal, which reported the incident this week.

Roberts, 62, said he and the pilot of another single-engine plane almost crashed in the unexpected wind gusts in excess of 20 mph on Sept. 16. It was the same day 11 people were killed in a plane crash at the National Championship Air Races about 10 miles north at Reno-Stead Airport.

Roberts said he was landing his Cessna 180 to the south when he was hit by a strong gust that caused the plane to spin when it reached the ground, damaging the left wing.

"The actual winds were considerably higher than I was told," he said.

Roberts said he had been told through an automated report put out by the tower that the winds were at 250 degrees from the west at about 15 mph.

But after his near-crash, Roberts said he was told that the winds were coming from about 280 degrees, a sharper angle, at about 22 mph.

Roberts said in those conditions planes should have been directed to a different runway with an approach toward the north to avoid part of a tail wind.

"Something was wrong in that tower," he said. "This thing was not right. I hope the NTSB reaches that conclusion."

Gregor said that was not the conclusion his agency reached after an internal review shortly after the complaint was filed. He said the Federal Aviation Administration forwarded its review to the National Transportation Safety Board, which will make its own independent findings.

"Any time there is an aircraft incident or accident, the FAA reviews the performance of our air traffic control facilities," Gregor said. "In this instance, our review did not identify any issues of concern.

"That was our own internal conclusion at both the local level and at (FAA's) Western headquarters in Seattle, which reviewed it as well after the tower did its own investigation."

Gregor, who is based in Los Angeles, said he "strongly cautions anybody against drawing any conclusions until the NTSB issues their probable cause."

Brian Kulpin, spokesman for the airport, said he could not comment until the NTSB report was made public.

Kulpin said the FAA is responsible for the air traffic control tower.

Gregor said the staffing of the air traffic control tower at Reno-Stead Airport for the air races had no effect on Reno-Tahoe International, which was routinely staffed based on the amount of traffic that day.

"Any time we operate a satellite tower -- be it for an air race or a temporary tower for firefighting efforts -- we do it through overtime or moving schedules around. We don't reduce staffing."