What happened
On September 3, 2023, two separate loss of separation incidents occurred in the approach sector for Málaga Costa del Sol Airport. The first incident involved a Cessna 680A, registration EC-NKH, and an EasyJet aircraft. While the controller attempted to sequence the Cessna 680A behind existing traffic, the aircraft's lateral separation from the preceding aircraft was lost, reaching a minimum of 1.7 NM and 9 and 900 ft.
Shortly after, a second loss of separation occurred between the Cessna 680A and a Boeing 787-900, registration A6BLT. The controller had cleared the Cessna 680A to perform a rapid 360-degree right turn to avoid convective cloud cover. This maneuver placed the aircraft on a convergent course with the Boeing 787-900. The conflict triggered a TCAS RA (Resolution Advisory) on both aircraft, with the Boeing 787-900 performing a climb and the Cessna 680A performing a descent. At the closest point of approach, the aircraft were separated by only 1.5 NM and 400 ft.
Following these conflicts, the crew of the Cessna 680A deviated from the published instrument procedure. The pilots attempted to intercept the runway 12 localizer directly rather than following the prescribed radial, resulting in the aircraft flying parallel to the radial and descending to 4400 ft, which was below the minimum surveillance altitudes.
The investigation
The investigation examined the air traffic control (ATC) sequence planning, the maneuvers executed by both flight crews, and the effectiveness of the surveillance tools. The investigation reviewed the controller's communications, noting that the controller used Spanish with the Cessna 680A crew and English with the other aircraft, which may have impacted situational awareness. The investigation also analyzed the controller's failure to provide timely heading instructions and the failure to alert the Cessna 680A when it descended below the minimum vectoring altitude (MVA).