 |
37000 Feet | Browse and search NASA's Aviation Safety Reporting System |
|
Tower controller reported inadvertently clearing an aircraft for takeoff while an airport operations vehicle was on the runway.
| Attributes | |
| ACN | 1748105 |
| Time | |
| Date | 202006 |
| Local Time Of Day | 0001-0600 |
| Place | |
| Locale Reference | ZZZ.Airport |
| State Reference | US |
| Aircraft 1 | |
| Make Model Name | Caravan Undifferentiated |
| Flight Phase | Initial Climb |
| Route In Use | Vectors |
| Flight Plan | IFR |
| Person 1 | |
| Function | Local |
| Qualification | Air Traffic Control Fully Certified |
| Experience | Air Traffic Control Time Certified In Pos 1 (yrs) 18.0 |
| Events | |
| Anomaly | ATC Issue All Types Conflict Ground Conflict Less Severe Deviation - Procedural Published Material / Policy Ground Incursion Runway |
Narrative:
[Ops vehicle] called with electricians to enter runway xx about 15 minutes prior to the event. When aircraft X called for taxi I was in the tower alone. I had the strip up that [ops vehicle] was on the runway but did not see it. I taxied aircraft X for an intersection departure on runway xy (reciprocal runway) and cleared them for takeoff. Ground control nids monitor and stars keyboard were blocking my view of [ops vehicle]. I saw [ops vehicle] just as aircraft X was rotating and asde (airport surface detection equipment) said something but did not hear what it said. [Aircraft X] did climb well and was offset to the right of [ops vehicle] it appeared. I really don't believe any changes need to be made. I did use the visual aid. It was slow and it is an experience that I will never forget. I spoke to ops on the phone and he said he heard me assign runway xy but it didn't register until he saw the plane.
Original NASA ASRS Text
Title: Tower Controller reported inadvertently clearing an aircraft for takeoff while an airport operations vehicle was on the runway.
Narrative: [Ops Vehicle] called with electricians to enter runway XX about 15 minutes prior to the event. When Aircraft X called for taxi I was in the tower alone. I had the strip up that [Ops Vehicle] was on the runway but did not see it. I taxied Aircraft X for an intersection departure on runway XY (reciprocal runway) and cleared them for takeoff. Ground control NIDS monitor and STARS keyboard were blocking my view of [Ops Vehicle]. I saw [Ops Vehicle] just as Aircraft X was rotating and ASDE (Airport Surface Detection Equipment) said something but did not hear what it said. [Aircraft X] did climb well and was offset to the right of [Ops Vehicle] it appeared. I really don't believe any changes need to be made. I did use the visual aid. It was slow and it is an experience that I will never forget. I spoke to Ops on the phone and he said he heard me assign runway XY but it didn't register until he saw the plane.
Data retrieved from NASA's ASRS site and automatically converted to unabbreviated mixed upper/lowercase text. This report is for informational purposes with no guarantee of accuracy. See NASA's ASRS site for official report.