Event Details
On 27 July 2024 at 16:16 UTC, an incident occurred near Faro, Portugal (37°01'02"N 7°58'12"W) involving a loss of separation between two commercial air transport aircraft. The event was classified as an AIRPROX/TCAS alert/loss of separation/near midair collision. Three aircraft types were involved: an Embraer E190LR (registration CS-TPR), a Boeing 737-82R (PH-HBK), and a Boeing 737-8JP (SE-RRP). The operator was listed as "Several". The flight phases were maneuvering under daylight conditions. No injuries or aircraft damage were reported.
Background
At 16:04, an Airbus A319 (EZY8538, registration G-EZBT) departing for London Gatwick from runway 28 declared a Mayday after a birdstrike in engine #1. This led to a suspension of runway operations at Faro. Air traffic control services were provided by the tower (TWR) and approach (APP) controllers, each with one controller and a supervisor.
Traffic Reorganization
The traffic under TWR included Ryanair flight RYR3BF and Iberia flight IBE32PP. Under APP were flights NSZ2TC (descending to FL080), TRA505E (descending to FL080), and TAP1905 (descending to FL070). Following the emergency, the APP controller placed arrival traffic in holds. RYR3BF diverted to Seville. IBE32PP held at GEBTI at FL060. NSZ2TC held at GENRO at FL080. TRA505E was instructed to stop descent at FL090 and hold at GENRO. TAP1905 was instructed to hold at GENRO, but the controller did not instruct the crew to stop descent at FL100, although the aircraft label was changed to FL100.
Discrepancy and Alerts
The automated ATS system detected a discrepancy between the cleared flight level (CFL) of FL100 and the downlink aircraft parameters (DAP) of FL070 for TAP1905. This triggered a yellow alert that remained active. The Short Term Conflict Alert (STCA) activated twice: first at 16:14:05 for 40 seconds when TAP1905 crossed FL125 and TRA505E was in the hold at FL090; second at 16:15:54 when TAP1905 was at FL110 entering the hold at GENRO, in possible conflict with TRA505E at FL090.
Loss of Separation
At 16:17:10, the vertical separation between the two aircraft fell to 600 feet, below the required 1000 feet in the hold. TRA505E transmitted: "TRA505E, we have traffic at 2 miles ahead same altitude, how is it possible?" TAP1905 had approached the hold from above, 2 nautical miles ahead of TRA505E at the same flight level. The controller then instructed TAP1905 to climb to FL100 and issued diverging headings to both aircraft. At 16:18:51, the minimum applicable vertical separation was restored.
Conclusion
The incident involved a loss of separation following a birdstrike emergency that required traffic reorganisation. No probable cause was stated in the evaluation report.