Contradicts NTSB Assertion Student Pilot Caused Collision
A California judge
ruled this week air traffic controllers at Torrance Municipal
Airport/Zamperini Field (TOA) were primarily responsible for the
November 2003 midair collision of two helicopters in front of the
airport's control tower -- and not one of the pilots, as the
National Transportation Safety Board determined.
The Los Angeles Times reports US District Judge Florence-Marie
Cooper ruled Monday TOA tower controllers Edward Weber and Cynthia
Issa made a series of incorrect and negligent decisions that led to
the crash, which killed pilots Robert Bailey and Brett Boyd onboard
a Robinson R-44.
Student Gavin Heyworth, who was making a solo instructional
flight in a Robinson R-22 at the time of the accident, survived the
crash... but suffered severe injuries, requiring doctors to put him
into an induced coma for six weeks while they operated to repair
numerous broken bones.
Here's the NTSB's summation of the accident, according to the
Board's Probable Cause report issued in May 2007:
"The R22 pilot had been
practicing at a helipad north of runway 29R, and was returning to
his parking area on the ramp south of runway 29L. The R44 pilot was
departing from runway 29L on a touch-and-go. The R22 was above the
R44, and descending to the southwest while the R44 was climbing
straight ahead on runway 29L at the time of the collision. A tower
controller instructed the R22 pilot to hold when he requested to go
from the helipad to parking. After traffic passed, the controller
advised him that he could proceed in right traffic flying a
downwind traffic pattern for runway 29R to the helipad. The R22
pilot requested takeoff to land at his parking area. The controller
instructed him to fly westbound. A few seconds later, the
controller cleared the R44 pilot for the touch-and-go option on
runway 29L, and in the same transmission cleared the R22 pilot to
make a right turn to the downwind on runway 29R. About 45 seconds
later, the controller informed the R22 pilot that he could expect a
clearance to cross midfield when the controller got a chance. About
20 seconds later, the controller instructed the R22 pilot to turn
right. About 30 seconds after that, he cleared the R22 pilot to
land on runway 29R; the R22 pilot acknowledged about 5 seconds
later with his call sign. The controller immediately transmitted
for him to turn right, and cleared him to land on runway 29R. There
was no further communication from the R22 pilot. The R22 was still
in a position to turn and land on runway 29R. It began a right
turn, but then instead of landing on the runway, it crossed 29R and
continued descending toward 29L at a continuously reducing
angle.
"The controller had looked away to work other traffic. As he
turned to inform the R44 of the R22 landing on the parallel runway,
he observed the collision. Reconstruction of the collision geometry
placed the R22 above and slightly forward of the R44, and on a
similar track. Based on a visibility study, once the R22 pilot
turned toward his pad while he was north of runway 29R, he was not
in a position to see the R44. During the takeoff, the R44 pilot was
not in a position to see the R22 prior to impact."
The NTSB determined Heyworth was at fault -- saying the student
did not comply with tower instructions in the pattern, and did not
notify controllers he was a student pilot. (The latter is not
legally required; the NTSB report infers had Heyworth told
controllers of his limited flight experience, they would have
vectored him in order to keep him farther away from other
aircraft.)
In her ruling, however, Judge Cooper ruled the pilots in each
helicopter had, in fact, "properly relied upon and complied with
the control instruction they were given by" controller Weber, who
briefly was the sole controller on duty watching both runways at
TOA, as well as monitoring traffic around the field.
When traffic at the busy field started to increase, a supervisor
called Issa back from her break to help out. Cooper determined the
two controllers spoke briefly about the locations of the aircraft
in the pattern, but did not speak about Heyworth's position. At
that time, the student was flying back from a practice area on the
field, to land on runway 29R.
When Heyworth entered
the pattern, Cooper ruled, he followed all ATC instructions --
including a sudden instruction to turn right onto final for runway
29R, which given the helicopter's speed of around 65 knots, still
took the aircraft over runway 29L... where the R-44 was ascending
on tower instructions, below and slightly behind Heyworth's R-22.
Due to the positions of both helicopters, the pilots could not see
each other's aircraft.
Despite the NTSB's ruling of pilot error, Cooper determined the
two controllers acted "negligently and carelessly" in failing to
keep "adequate vigilance and positional/situational awareness of
the air traffic at and around Torrance Airport." She also ruled
Weber, who was giving instructions to other aircraft in a rushed
manner, "failed to issue clear and concise instructions" to the
student.
Heyworth filed his lawsuit against the FAA last
year, disputing the NTSB report.
"I hope this case is a wake-up call for the FAA," said his
attorney, James L. Pocrass. "In this case, the recording of the
taped instructions clearly shows two confused traffic controllers
not communicating with each other and giving inaccurate
instructions to the pilots that culminated in the death of two
people and in the third receiving severe life-long injuries."
Cooper has not decided whether Heyworth, or families of the two
deceased men, are entitled to damages from the FAA.