What happened
Two distinct incidents occurred at Piotr/ków Trybunalski Airport (EPPT) involving aircraft performing circuit patterns.
On November 5, 2020, a high volume of traffic was present in the circuit, including three Tecnam P2008 aircraft flying at 215 km/h and three Tecnam P2006 aircraft flying at 250 km/h. Due to the intense radio communication required between the six aircraft, the air traffic controller limited communications to position reports only on the straight sections of the circuit. This reduction in communication frequency hindered the ability to maintain separation, resulting in a dangerous loss of separation between two aircraft during the approach to landing. The crew of one aircraft subsequently aborted the approach and entered a second circuit.
On November 10, 2020, a similar situation occurred while six aircraft were operating in the circuit. A separate aircraft was arriving at the airport from point ECHO (from the east) and was granted permission to join the circuit at the third turn. This entry into the pattern made it impossible to maintain proper separation between the aircraft already operating in the circuit. At this level of traffic density, the controller was unable to manage the radio correspondence necessary to ensure separation between all participating aircraft.
The investigation
The investigation examined the operational procedures and traffic management at the aerodrome during periods of high-density circuit traffic. The PKBWL analyzed the impact of radio communication limitations and the impact of aircraft entering the circuit at late stages of the pattern on the ability of the controller to maintain safe distances.
Findings
- The primary cause of both incidents was the inability to ensure aircraft separation due to the circuit size being inadequate for the volume of aircraft operating within it.
- The controller's ability to manage traffic was significantly hampered by the high volume of radio communication required by the aircraft in the circuit.
- The introduction of new aircraft into the pattern at late turns increased the complexity of maintaining separation.