Report: Lufthansa B735 near Stuttgart on Apr 10th 2010, near collision
By Simon Hradecky, d Friday, Jun 18th 2010 10:03Z, last d Friday, Jun 18th 2010 10:06Z
A Lufthansa Boeing 737-500, flight LH-1356 from Frankfurt/Main to Stuttgart (Germany) with 89 passengers, was about to intercept the ILS runway 07 at Stuttgart, when air traffic control issued a traffic advisory: «… watch out to VFR traffic one to two o’clock position, range two miles, four thousand seven hundred indicated, not confirmed, right wing now, one mile, tree hundred feet above, do you see anything?”. At the same time the Lufthansa crew received a TCAS resolution advisory («adjust vertical speed»). When clear of conflict the Lufthansa crew reported that they had gone under the other traffic that was about 500 feet above them. The airplane continued for a safe landing.
The German BFU released their final report in German ending the investigation after collecting evidence but without analysis or conclusions.
The BFU reported, that according to radar data the separation reduced to 300 feet vertical and 1nm lateral.
The conflicting traffic was an ultralight private Comco Ikarus C42 (maximum takeoff weight 450kg/990lbs) equipped with a Mode-S transponder on a VFR flight Friedrichshafen-Pforzheim-Worms (Germany), the pilot and his guest, holding a private pilot’s and instructor’s license, were checking a GPS, planned altitude for the flight was 3500 feet. According to radar the airplane was enroute in Stuttgart’s controlled airspace, which spanned between 3500 and 5500 feet in that area, instead of staying below that airspace as planned, the pilot (holding a license to fly ultralight aircraft with passengers) being unaware that the airplane had climbed. When the pilot noticed the 737 approaching them, both he and his flight guest pushed the yoke forward, the airplane turned left and departed the controlled airspace at 3500 feet. The pilot had an experience of 76 flying hours, his flight guest a flying experience of 487 hours (100 thereof on ultralights).
Avherald.
