2005 Logan Airport runway incursion

2005 Logan Airport near runway incursion

Incident
Date	June 9, 2005 (2005-06-09)
Summary	ATC error, near miss
Site	Logan International Airport Boston, Massachusetts, United States 42°21′31″N 70°59′49″W
Total fatalities	0
Total injuries	0
Total survivors	381
First aircraft
The Aer Lingus Airbus A330 involved in the incident.
Type	Airbus A330-301
Name	St Maeve
Operator	Aer Lingus
IATA flight No.	EI132
ICAO flight No.	EIN132
Call sign	SHAMROCK132
Registration	EI-ORD
Flight origin	Logan International Airport Boston, Massachusetts
Destination	Shannon Airport Shannon, Ireland
Occupants	272
Passengers	260
Crew	12
Fatalities	0
Injuries	0
Survivors	272
Second aircraft
A US Airways Boeing 737-300 similar to the aircraft involved.
Type	Boeing 737-3B7
Operator	US Airways
IATA flight No.	US1170
ICAO flight No.	USA1170
Call sign	USAIR1170
Registration	N394US
Flight origin	Logan International Airport Boston, Massachusetts
Destination	Philadelphia Int'l Airport Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Occupants	109
Passengers	103
Crew	6
Fatalities	0
Injuries	0
Survivors	109

The 2005 Logan Airport runway incursion was a near-collision that occurred at approximately 7:40 p.m. EDT on June 9, 2005, between Aer Lingus Flight 132 and US Airways Flight 1170. EI132 was an Airbus A330-300 aircraft, owned and operated by the Irish airline Aer Lingus, destined for Shannon, Ireland, and carrying 12 crew members and 260 passengers. US Airways Flight 1170 was a Boeing 737-300 flight destined for Philadelphia and carrying 6 crew members and 103 passengers. The near-collision took place on the runway at Logan International Airport in Boston, Massachusetts.

Incident

Runway layout at Logan Airport at the time of the incident. Runway 15R runs from top left to bottom right, while runway 9 runs from lower center to mid-right

To reduce radio congestion and consequences resulting from pilot or controller error, airports with a large number of operations will typically split the tower (local) controller into two or more positions. This was the case on the evening of June 9, 2005, when the two incident flights were handled by different controllers. The local control west controller was responsible for Aer Lingus Flight 132 and the local control east controller was responsible for US Airways Flight 1170.

At 19:39:10, Aer Lingus Flight 132 was cleared for takeoff from Runway 15R by local control west. Five seconds later, local control east cleared US Airways Flight 1170 for takeoff from Runway 9, which intersects with Runway 15R; the aircraft had essentially been sent on a collision course. With the airport terminals between the two aircraft as the takeoffs began, the flight crews could not initially see each other.

During the takeoff roll, the US Airways first officer noticed the other plane and realized that they could collide. He realized that at the runway intersection both aircraft would be slightly airborne. Telling the captain to "keep it down," he pushed the control column forward. He was able to keep the aircraft from lifting off the runway, allowing it to reach the intersection and pass under the other aircraft as it took off. Both aircraft passed within an estimated 70 feet (21 m) of one another, with the Aer Lingus aircraft flying over the US Airways aircraft. According to the NTSB report, the US Airways flight had already achieved its V₁ speed and could no longer safely abort takeoff. Therefore, the flight crew continued down the runway and lifted off after passing through the intersection.

Superior Airmanship Award

US Airways Captain Henry Jones and First Officer Jim Dannahower were later awarded a Superior Airmanship Award from the Air Line Pilots Association (ALPA) for their quick reactions and expert adjustment of their takeoff maneuver.

Probable cause

The NTSB completed its investigation and found that the east tower controller had given the west tower controller permission for the Aer Lingus to depart on 15R. While coordinating other traffic, he forgot about releasing that aircraft and cleared the US Airways flight for takeoff. Local procedures required the east controller to wait until the departure on 15R had passed through the intersection before clearing the aircraft on Runway 9 for takeoff. The NTSB reported that the probable cause of the incident was that the east local controller failed to follow FAA Order 7110.65 and local procedures, which resulted in a runway incursion.

After the incident, the Boston tower changed its procedures so that only the west local controller may initiate a departure on the crossing Runway 15R, and that once the east controller accepts the release, the aircraft must be cleared for takeoff within five seconds. Further, to reduce the chance of this type of incident happening again, aircraft must not be held on Runway 9 waiting for their takeoff clearance while there is a departure on 15R. Once the departure has cleared the intersection, local west must inform the east controller that the intersection has been cleared.

See also

• List of accidents and incidents involving commercial aircraft
• 2001 Japan Airlines mid-air incident, a near miss of two Japan Airlines aircraft caused by ATC error
• 2007 San Francisco International Airport runway incursion, a narrowly avoided runway incursion in San Francisco caused by ATC error
• Air Canada Flight 759

External links

• Photos of the US Airways jet
• Photos of the Aer Lingus jet
• CGI rendering of the incident as prepared by the NTSB on YouTube
• National Transportation Safety Board
  • Aer Lingus jet Flight Data Recorder readout
  • US Airways jet Flight Data Recorder readout