Incident Overview
On 10 March 2020, at approximately 10:39 local time, an air traffic controller at Rzeszów-Jasionka tower observed an aircraft entering the controlled zone (CTR EPRZ) on radar without establishing radio communication. The aircraft, an Aero AT-3 R100 registered as SP-CLG, was approaching from the direction of Mielec. The Kraków Flight Information Service (FIS) had not notified the controller of the flight.
Controller Actions
The tower controller contacted the Mielec Aerodrome Flight Information Service (AFIS) by telephone and was informed that SP-CLG had been handed off to Kraków FIS. Kraków FIS initially could not confirm communication with the pilot but subsequently established contact and instructed him to switch to the Rzeszów tower frequency.
Pilot Communication
At 10:41 local time, the pilot of SP-CLG contacted Rzeszów tower, reporting that he was approaching the VFR waypoint "W". The controller informed the pilot that radar showed him circling south of waypoint "K". After the pilot confirmed his position, he continued the flight in accordance with instructions issued by the controller.
Probable Cause
The incident was attributed to the pilot's failure to report on the Rzeszów-Jasionka tower frequency, resulting in a violation of the airport's controlled zone (CTR EPRZ). A contributing circumstance was the pilot's failure to report on the Kraków FIS frequency after leaving the Mielec Aerodrome Traffic Zone (ATZ).