TSB investigates close call at Sudbury airport

The Transportation Safety Board is investigating an incident in Sudbury after two planes flew less than a kilometer away from one another.

The TSB said on Oct. 14 a Porter Dash8 Q-400 that was arriving from Billy Bishop airport in Toronto, and an outgoing Jazz Aviation flight en route to Toronto, "flew close to each other."

Planes should be flying about 8 kilometres (5 miles) from one another, said Ken Webster, a senior investigator with the TSB.

"We've interviewed flight crew members from both aircrafts," Webster said, "we've obtained the flight data recorder information from both aircrafts and we've interviewed the air traffic controllers involved at Toronto Centre and also at the Sudbury Flight Service station."

According to Webster, the Porter flight had Instrument Flight Rule (IFR) clearance, and was cleared for its approach to land at the Sudbury airport.

The Jazz flight used visual flight rules and was expecting to pick up clearance in the air, Webster said.