Save the Date Inaugural International Aviation <strong>Safety</strong> Management InfoShare August 29–30, 2013 Singapore Approved by Signature/Company Stamp 27 May 2009 CAAS brandmark with descriptor lock Full Colour Positive PANTONE COATED 540 C PANTONE UNCOATED 541 U CMYK C:100.0 M:80.0 Y:20.0 K:30.0 PANTONE COATED 2925 C PANTONE UNCOATED 2925 U CMYK C:85.0 M:25.0 Y:0.0 K:0.0
‘Hazardous Proximity’ An airliner on go-around and a business jet on departure came close together in an airport hot spot. BY MARK LACAGNINA FLIGHTSAFETY.ORG | AEROSAFETYWORLD | MAY 2013 ONRECORD The following information provides an awareness of problems that might be avoided in the future. The information is based on final reports by official investigative authorities on aircraft accidents and incidents. JETS Late Go-Around Cited Airbus A320, Bombardier Learjet 60. No damage. No injuries. The absence of air traffic control (ATC) procedures ensuring separation between aircraft going around from one runway and entering the flight path of aircraft departing from a different runway contributed to an incident that placed the A320 and the Learjet in “hazardous proximity” at Las Vegas McCarran International Airport in Nevada, said the U.S. National Transportation <strong>Safety</strong> Board (NTSB). “The closest proximity of the two aircraft was approximately 0.3 nm [0.6 km] laterally and 100 ft [30 m] vertically,” said the NTSB’s final report on the near midair collision, which occurred at 1225 local time on April 26, 2012. The A320 was inbound to Las Vegas on a scheduled passenger flight from Boston, Massachusetts, and the Learjet, of Mexican registration, was departing from McCarran. The report did not specify the Learjet’s destination or how many people were aboard either of the two aircraft. Day visual meteorological conditions (VMC) prevailed, with winds from the south at 19 kt, gusting to 26 kt. McCarran has two sets of parallel runways. Aircraft operations on Runways 25L and 25R, located on the south side of the airport, were being coordinated by a controller at the “local control 1” (LC1) position; operations on Runways 19L and 19R, on the west side of the field, were being coordinated by a different controller at the “local control 2” (LC2) position. The A320 crew was conducting a visual approach to Runway 25L and had been cleared to land by the LC1 controller. Shortly thereafter, the Learjet crew was cleared for takeoff from Runway 19L by the LC2 controller. The departure thresholds of the runways are about 1,600 ft (488 m) apart. “The two runways do not physically intersect,” the report said. “However, the flight paths of the runways intersect approximately 0.32 nautical miles [0.59 km] past the departure end of Runway 19L.” Runway 25L is 10,526 ft (3,208 m) long, and Runway 19L is 9,775 ft (2,979 m) long. The A320 was about one-third of the way down Runway 25L when the crew reported that they were going around. The LC1 controller acknowledged, saying in part: “Roger, on the go, and traffic will be at your two o’clock and one mile, a Learjet.” The controller also shouted “go around,” a normal practice to alert the other controllers on duty in the tower cab that a goaround was in progress. | 53