Australian Transport Safety Bureau releases report into near-miss between Virgin jet and Cessna at Ballina Airport

An investigation into a near-collision between a Virgin jet and a Cessna Caravan at Ballina has again raised concerns about safety at one of NSW’s busiest regional airports. Here’s what happened.

An investigation into a near-collision between a Virgin jet and a Cessna Caravan at Ballina has again raised concerns about safety at one of NSW’s busiest regional airports.

The Australian Transport Safety Bureau (ATSB) has released a report which criticises a pilot’s mental aptitude after they flew the Cessna “directly towards” the Boeing approaching to land at Ballina Airport on September 16, 2021.

The Virgin passenger-carrier was flying from Sydney while the Cessna Caravan, often used for FedEx and humanitarian missions, was heading from Ballina to the Sunshine Coast.

A Virgin Australia flight. File image.

The Cessna’s pilot called to Ballina’s traffic radio, announcing they were entering the runway and taking off. The Virgin crew caught wind of a near collision, but were not subsequently notified by traffic control.

The aircraft nearly bumped noses on the landing strip.

Neither the Cessna nor the flight controller heard that the Virgin’s aircraft was about to set down.

A Cessna Caravan aircraft often used for pilot training, FedEx and humanitarian missions. File image.

The two crews established a dialogue over their radios, with the Virgin carrier begging the Cessna to make a quick turn before it set down.

The Cessna swerved just after becoming airborne and the Virgin flight aborted landing altogether.

In the air, the two aircraft nearly collided again, with a radio communication finally alerting the Virgin aircraft it was too close to the Cessna.

The near-miss highlights the importance of communications between aircraft. Picture: ATSB

The Virgin plane finally set down to land on a different strip.

The ATSB found the air controller was partly to blame because they did not specify the landing strip of the Virgin aircraft, while the pilot of the Caravan with “surveillance coverage limitations” simultaneously did not ask.

It was found the flight crew of the Virgin plane did not hear the Cessna’s initial communications and the controller did not issue a safety alert because they did not want to interrupt the radio transmittance between the two aircraft.

ATSB Director Transport Safety Stuart Macleod said: “This incident serves as a reminder of the importance of communicating with other aircraft.”

Virgin Australia said in a statement that “the safety of our guests and crew is our number one priority”.

“Our pilots took the appropriate steps by conducting a go-around and the flight landed safely,” a spokesperson said.

It comes after an ATSB report released last year detailed a similar near collision between a Jetstar flight and a light plane over Ballina Airport.

An investigation revealed “chance alone” saved 172 occupants of the two aircraft as they flew in uncontrolled airspace.