APCH CTL RESPONSIBILITIES WERE BEING PERFORMED IN THE TWR CAB USING THE D-BRITE RADAR WHEN A NEAR CONFLICT OCCURRED BTWN 2 IFR ACFT. SEPARATION WAS MAINTAINED.

Date: 2006-08 · Aircraft: Regional Jet CL65; Undifferentiated or Other Model · Phase: descent

Anomalies: conflict-airborne-conflict|deviation-discrepancy-procedural-published-material-policy|other-combined-positions

Synopsis

APCH CTL RESPONSIBILITIES WERE BEING PERFORMED IN THE TWR CAB USING THE D-BRITE RADAR WHEN A NEAR CONFLICT OCCURRED BTWN 2 IFR ACFT. SEPARATION WAS MAINTAINED.

Narrative

THE OCCURRENCE HAPPENED SHORTLY AFTER A POS RELIEF BRIEFING WAS CONDUCTED FOR E RADAR AT THE LCL CTL POS. SHORTLY AFTER TAKING THE POS; A SCHEDULED COMMUTER ARR WAS OBSERVED ON THE NORTHERN FRINGES OF THE D-BRITE RADAR SCOPE IN HDOF STATUS. A TWIN TURBOPROP DEP APPROX 5 MI N OF THE CHATTANOOGA ARPT WAS CLBING NBOUND RWY HDG THROUGH 4500 FT TO AN ASSIGNED ALT OF 10000 FT. KNOWING THAT THE COMMUTER ARR WAS DSNDING TO 11000 FT; I AMENDED THE TWIN TURBOPROP'S ALT TO 6000 FT FOR TFC; SO THAT THE COMMUTER ARR COULD BE DSNDED SAFELY INTO MY AIRSPACE; WHICH IS 10000 FT AND BELOW; AND SUBSEQUENTLY VECTORED FOR A VISUAL APCH THE COMMUTER ARR WAS ISSUED A DSCNT TO WHAT I BELIEVED TO BE 7000 FT; AND WAS THEN ISSUED A VECTOR FOR A L DOWNWIND ARR AFTER OBSERVING THE ACFT LEAVING 10000 FT. BELIEVING THAT CONFLICT TO BE RESOLVED; MY PRIMARY FOCUS THEN SHIFTED TO OTHER ACFT; WHICH INCLUDED MORE ARRS TO CHATTANOOGA; MORE DEPS FROM CHATTANOOGA; PRACTICE APCHS; AND VFR POP-UPS REQUESTING SVC. WHEN I NEXT OBSERVED THE COMMUTER ARR; I NOTICED THAT THE ALT READOUT INDICATED 6900 FT. I QUICKLY GLANCED AT MY ACTIVE FLT PROGRESS STRIPS TO CONFIRM THE ALT I HAD ISSUED; AND MY STRIP MARKING INDICATED 7000 FT. WHEN I OBSERVED THE COMMUTER ARR DSNDING FURTHER; I INSTRUCTED THE ACFT TO MAINTAIN 7000 FT. THE COMMUTER ARR WAS INSTRUCTED AGAIN TO MAINTAIN 7000 FT; AND WAS ISSUED A TURN WBOUND FURTHER AWAY FROM THE DEP CORRIDOR. THE TWIN TURBOPROP RPTED THE COMMUTER ARR IN SIGHT; AND WAS INSTRUCTED TO MAINTAIN VISUAL SEPARATION. I JUDGED THE CLOSEST DISTANCE BTWN THE 2 ACFT TO BE 3 NM HORIZONTALLY; AND APPROX 500-700 FT VERTICALLY. NO AUTOMATED 'CONFLICT ALERT' WAS GENERATED; NOR DID EITHER ACFT RPT A TCAS CONFLICT/RESOLUTION. CONTRIBUTING FACTORS: HAVING TO WORK APCH AND DEP RADAR FROM THE TWR CAB D-BRITE SCOPE IS CUMBERSOME AT BEST. TYPICALLY; THE RADAR IS DECOMBINED TO THE TRACON DOWNSTAIRS; STAFFING PERMITTING; DURING NORMAL OPS; AND COMBINED UPSTAIRS DURING PERIODS OF LOW ACTIVITY; SUCH AS OPENING; AND JUST BEFORE CLOSING. ON THIS PARTICULAR DAY; THE RADAR WAS NOT DECOMBINED SO THAT EMPLOYEE BRIEFINGS COULD BE ACCOMMODATED. WHEN THE DECISION TO KEEP THE RADAR UPSTAIRS WAS MADE; TFC WAS LIGHT; AND THE SUPVR LEFT WORD TO CALL DOWN IF WE GOT BUSY. OUR IFR DEPS ARE ASSIGNED 5000 FT INITIALLY. IT IS COMMON PRACTICE TO RESTRICT ANY ACFT DSNDING THAT YOU FEEL MAY COME IN CLOSE PROX TO THE DEP CORRIDOR TO 6000 FT OR ABOVE. BECAUSE THE TWIN TURBOPROP DEP WAS PASSING 4500 FT; AND ALREADY CLBING TO 10000 FT AS ASSIGNED BY THE PREVIOUS CTLR; I DID NOT WANT TO ABRUPTLY STOP THE ACFT'S CLB AT 5000 FT; SO I ISSUED 6000 FT TO THE DEP. OUT OF HABIT; I BELIEVE I ISSUED 6000 FT TO THE COMMUTER ARR; ALTHOUGH I WAS THINKING 7000 FT THE WHOLE TIME. WHEN I TOOK THE HDOF ON THE COMMUTER ARR; I DID NOT PLACE THE FLT PROGRESS STRIP IN FRONT OF ME AS I NORMALLY DO WHEN I AM DOWNSTAIRS; NOR DID I WRITE DOWN THE ALT AS I WAS ISSUING IT TO THE ACFT.

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Source: NASA Aviation Safety Reporting System (public domain). Reports are voluntary submissions and are not verified by NASA.