Critical Incident at La Aurora Airport: Copa Boeing and Avianca Airbus Too Close
A Copa Airlines Boeing 737 and an Avianca Airbus A320neo were involved in a dangerous close call at La Aurora International Airport in Guatemala. The near-miss occurred during takeoff and landing on the same runway, reducing their separation to just 500 meters, prompting an investigation by the Guatemalan Civil Aviation Authority (DGAC)
A Copa Airlines aircraft and an Avianca aircraft nearly collided mid-flight at La Aurora International Airport in Guatemala City. The incident occurred when an ascending Airbus passed dangerously close to a Boeing, directly in front of it.
The event, as reported by The Aviation Herald and published by our associate outlet Aeroin, involved a Copa Airlines Boeing 737-800, registered as HP-1712CMP, operating flight CM-391 from San José, Costa Rica, to Guatemala City. The aircraft was on final approach to runway 02 at the Guatemalan capital's airport.
At nearly the same time, an Avianca Airbus A320neo, registered as N904AV, operating flight AV-651 from Guatemala City to San José, was aligned and in the process of taking off on the same runway. This situation forced the Boeing to execute a missed approach maneuver to maintain safety.
According to ADS-B data from the Airbus, the horizontal separation between the two aircraft reduced to 0.27 nautical miles (approximately 500 meters) as the A320neo crossed directly in front of the B737. The near-miss occurred when the Airbus climbed through an altitude of 6,000 feet (1,800 meters), passing directly in front of the Boeing, which was also at that altitude but ascending more slowly.
After this close encounter, the Airbus turned right while the Boeing turned left, resulting in divergent flight paths. By this time, the A320neo was already above the B737.
The General Directorate of Civil Aviation of Guatemala (DGAC) has initiated an investigation to determine the causes of this critical situation. Both Copa Airlines and Avianca stated they only became aware of the incident through posts on social media.
AUTOR
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