History of Flight
On December 16, 2016, about 0125 Pacific Standard Time, Eva Air Flight 015, a Boeing 777-300 (registration B-16726), conducted a flight below the minimum vectoring altitude near Mt. Wilson, California, while receiving vectors from Southern California Terminal Radar Approach Control (SCT TRACON). The flight had departed from Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) and was operating under Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 129 as a regularly scheduled flight to Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport, Taipei, Taiwan. Night instrument meteorological conditions prevailed.
After takeoff from runway 07R, the pilot contacted the SCT Manhattan sector controller and reported climbing through 1,900 feet for 5,000 feet. The controller issued a heading of 090 degrees and a climb to 7,000 feet. Subsequently, the pilot was given a left turn to heading 180, then a right turn back to 180, with instructions to expedite. The controller vectored the aircraft through various headings and altitude assignments, including a left turn to 270 degrees. About 0123, the controller asked the pilot "what are you doing, turn southbound now," and instructed to stop the climb. The Los Angeles arrivals sector controller cautioned about minimum vectoring altitudes due to rising terrain.
At 0124:22, the Low Altitude Alert began flashing on the controller's radar display and continued until 0125:37. At 0125:31, the controller again instructed LAX Tower to stop departures. The pilot eventually reported heading 180 at 7,000 feet at 0126:25.
Air Traffic Control Procedures
According to FAA Joint Order 7110.65, the primary purpose of the ATC system is to prevent collisions between aircraft and with terrain or obstructions. The first duty priority for a controller is to separate aircraft and issue safety alerts. A safety alert must be issued if an aircraft is in unsafe proximity to terrain, obstructions, or other aircraft. Separation from obstructions in terminal areas requires at least 3 miles laterally when less than 40 miles from the radar antenna, and vertical separation may be discontinued after an aircraft has passed the obstruction.
The SCT Manhattan sector controller had not completed required annual refresher training simulations for LAX East Operations, which were due between July and December 2016. According to SCT order 7232.2C, when LAX was operating in an east flow, aircraft on the Ventura Seven Departure were required to be vectored to a heading of 250 degrees.
Reporting and Quality Assurance
The incident was reported via a Mandatory Occurrence Report (MOR) completed on December 16, 2016, by the SCT Operations Manager. The FAA Western Service Area Quality Control staff contacted the Compliance Services Group (CSG) specialist, who initially determined the incident was not serious enough to warrant a Services Rendered Telcon (SRT). However, on December 19, 2017, the FAA's National Quality Assurance Group Manager reviewed the data and recognized the severity, leading to an SRT that confirmed EVA015 flew within 0.5 nautical miles laterally and below the published altitude of a displayed obstruction.
The incident controller submitted an Air Traffic Safety Action Program (ATSAP) report on December 17, 2016, more than 24 hours after being notified of the incident. The FAA declined to provide information on whether the ATSAP report was accepted by the Event Review Committee.
Enhanced Ground Proximity Warning System
Data from the Enhanced Ground Proximity Warning System, obtained through the Taiwanese Aviation Safety Council, indicated that at 0924:30 UTC, the system generated four "caution terrain" alerts, followed by four more alerts at 0924:41.