MIL Y SAME ALT ASSIGNED HAD LTSS FROM ACFT X. SYS ERROR.

Narrative

2 ACFT ON IFR CLRNCS UNDER RADAR CONTACT CAME WITHIN 1.7 NM WHILE BOTH WERE AT 4000 FT. THE CIVIL ACFT; X; A PA28 CHKED IN WITH CRP APCH AT XA08Z. THE ZHU NTAP CONFIRMED THE ALT OF X TO BE 4000 FT FROM WELL BEFORE POINT OF CLOSEST PROX. CRP DID NOT ASSIGN A DIFFERENT ALT OR ANY CTL INSTRUCTIONS -- HE JUST ISSUED THE CRP ALTIMETER WHICH THE PLT READ BACK. AT XX09Z; MIL Y; A T34 ON AN ASSIGNED IFR MISSED APCH WAS RADAR IDENTED; INSTRUCTED TO CLB TO 4000 FT AND TO PROCEED DIRECT TO A FIX THE PLT HAD REQUESTED TO PROCEED TO. WHILE CONDUCTING A POS RELIEF BRIEFING THE CTLR BEING RELIEVED APPARENTLY SAW THE SIT AND ISSUED EVASIVE TURNS TO BOTH ACFT. TA'S OR SAFETY ALERTS WEREN'T ISSUED UNTIL THE T34 RPTED 9 O'CLOCK TFC IN SIGHT. THE ARTS CONFLICT ALERT SOUNDED IN THE SAME GENERAL TIME FRAME AND PRINTED A TELETYPE MESSAGE. THIS CONFLICT ALERT AND THE CTR NTAP AGREE THE PA28 WAS AT 4000 FT AND THE T34 WAS AT 4200 FT. THE CONFLICT ALERT PRINTOUT SHOWED CLOSEST PROX WAS 1.684042 MI. THE RELIEVING CRP CTLR RPTED THE INCIDENT AS AN OPERROR TO THE TRACON SUPVR. THE SUPVR SAID HE LATER CHKED AND FOUND NO CONFLICT ALERT PRINTOUT SO HE ASKED THE RELIEVED ATC SPECIALIST WHAT HAD HAPPENED. THE AIR TFC CTLRS SAID IT WAS NO ERROR SINCE HE WAS USING DIVERGING COURSES AND VISUAL SEPARATION. A LATER CONFRONTATION BTWN THE 2 ATC SPECIALISTS FORCED A NEXT DAY REVIEW OF VOICE TAPES WHICH REVEALED VISUAL SEPARATION HAD NOT BEEN USED. THE CONFLICT ALERT PRINTOUT WAS FOUND THE NEXT DAY IN CLR SIGHT. THE CONFLICT ALERT AND NTAP WERE DISCARDED AS INCONCLUSIVE BECAUSE THE CTLR SAID HE HAD DIVERGING COURSES. THE RESPONSIBLE CTLR HAD BEEN RECERTIFIED ONLY 1 DAY BEFORE AFTER A 4 MONTH SUSPENSION FOR ILLEGAL DRUGS DETECTED IN A SPOT URINALYSIS. THE EMPLOYEE WAS RECERTIFIED FOR ALL 7 RADAR POS AFTER A SINGLE 1 HR EVALUATION ON A SINGLE RADAR POS WITH MINIMAL TFC. HE WAS VERY BUSY IN THE 15 MINS BEFORE THE ERROR THEN TFC DIED DOWN TO 5 ACFT OF WHICH ONLY 2 REQUIRED ATTN. HE ALLOWED HIS ATTN TO TAKE A BREAK AFTER THE TFC DIED DOWN. HE WAS SIMPLY NOT PAYING ATTN UNTIL IT WAS TOO LATE.