History of the Flight
On Sunday, 16 October 2005, at approximately 13:15 UTC, a Boeing 737-800 operated by Malév Hungarian Airlines (flight MAH 581) was en route from Madrid to Budapest at flight level (FL) 280. In the opposite direction, an Airbus A320-214 operated by Iberia (flight IBE 3523) was descending from Düsseldorf to Madrid. Both aircraft were under the control of the Zaragoza sector of Madrid Area Control Center (LECM).
At 13:14:24, the controller detected a potential conflict and instructed both aircraft to alter course 20° to the left. The crew of IBE 3523 initially acknowledged a turn to the right, but corrected to the left after the controller reiterated the instruction. MAH 581 began the evasive maneuver and reported receiving a TCAS resolution advisory (RA) to descend. According to radar data, the minimum distances between the aircraft during the TCAS RA were 400 ft vertically and 6 NM horizontally. No damage or injuries were recorded on either aircraft or their occupants.
Personnel Information
The captain of MAH 581 was a 43-year-old male with an ATPL and 9,813:49 total flight hours, including 3,066:09 on type. The copilot was 54 years old, also ATPL, with 10,018:49 total hours and 4,725:47 on type.
The captain of IBE 3523 was a 39-year-old male with an ATPL and 9,693 total flight hours (1,388 on type). The copilot was 33 years old with 6,943 total hours (135 on type).
The controller at LECM had 29 years of experience as an air traffic controller and had been certified as an airway controller at LECM since 4 February 1992. He was also an instructor at Madrid ACC and had a trainee under his responsibility during the incident.
Communications and Conflict Alerts
At 12:54:46, LECM established radar contact with IBE 3523 and provided runway and STAR information. At 13:07:32, IBE 3523 was cleared to FL 250. At 13:08:15, MAH 581 was cleared to climb to FL 280 and requested FL 380; the controller instructed it to maintain FL 280 initially.
At 13:14:24, the controller contacted IBE 3523 to confirm clearance to FL 290 and instructed a left turn of 20° for separation. IBE 3523 initially acknowledged a right turn, but was corrected to a left turn of 15°. At 13:14:43, the controller instructed MAH 581 to turn left 20°. As MAH 581 began acknowledging, it reported a TCAS RA to descend.
The first conflict prediction alert (CPA) appeared on the radar at 13:14:25. The first conflict violation alert (CVA) occurred at 13:14:53, when separation reached a minimum of 400 ft vertically and 6 NM horizontally.
In post-incident reports, the captain of MAH 581 noted that all communications with IBE 3523 were in Spanish, preventing his crew from understanding the other aircraft's situation. The captain of IBE 3523 stated that the assigned FL was 250, not 290 as later instructed by the controller. The controller filed an ACAS report confirming the instructions given.