Boeing forces aborted landing

Press, 30 May 1985, Page 1

Boeing forces aborted landing

PA Invercargill A light plane was forced to abandon its landing approach at Invercargill Airport yesterday when an Air New Zealand jet approached without air traffic control clearance.

A flying instructor, Mr Darryl Payne, was supervising a pupil flying a "touch and go” training circuit. The plane has been cleared for a touch and go landing at 9.39 a m.

Checking behind them, pilot and pupil saw a Boeing 737 on its final approach. “I suppose I was frightened, but the first thing I wanted to do was get out of its way,” Mr Payne said later.

He took over control and made a hasty overshoot. An unscheduled Air New Zealand flight had been diverted to Invercargill from Dunedin, which was closed because of fog. It was carrying 83 passengers. Mr Payne said he would have expected to hear the Boeing calling the control tower 10 minutes before it reached Invercargill. A spokesman for the control tower said the Boeing had not made its call. The aircraft had been cleared to fly to 1600 ft and was five minutes out of its expected time of arrival, the “Southland Times" reported. Mr Payne said the Boeing pilot later apologised for the mistake which he acknowledged he had made. An Air New Zealand spokesman said from Auckland that the airline was aware of the incident. It was not known if a report would be made bv the Dilot.