ABC News Online
Wednesday, December 3, 2003. 10:36pm (AEDT)
Virgin confirms mid-air scare
A report has been prepared for the Australian Transport Safety Bureau about an apparent near miss involving up to three aircraft, north-west of Melbourne this morning.
There are claims the planes were about to share the same airspace before air traffic controllers stepped in.
Virgin Blue's head of strategy David Huttner has confirmed a Virgin 737 with 104 passengers on board from the Gold Coast was involved in what he calls an "occurrence".
"There was an occurrence this morning and we immediately filed a report with the Australian Transport Safety Board," he said.
Air Traffic Control Association president Ted Lang says a medical flight and twin engine Cessna aircraft were about to share air space with the 737, when the Virgin plane's collision warning system activated with a full alarm
"My understanding is that without the air traffic controllers' intervention, the light aircraft or the private aircraft and the 737 would have been occupying the same air space at around about the same time," he said.
Mr Lang says the situation is the result of Australia's controversial new air space regulations which came into effect a week ago.
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