LOCAL : FAA Investigating Near Collision of 2 Jetliners Over Orange County

A federal air safety investigation was under way today into why two jetliners were on a collision course over Orange County Monday night after one of the planes was diverted from John Wayne Airport because of a runway light electrical failure. FAA officials said they could not confirm reports that a British Airways 747 and an American Airlines MD-80 came within 1 1/2 miles of each other over Westminster, but said air traffic controllers at the Los Angeles Terminal Radar Facility felt it necessary to warn the British Airways pilot to take evasive action.

Neither pilot filed a near-miss report. FAA officials said they do not know yet whether the collision course was the result of human or mechanical error. The American Airlines flight from San Jose was being diverted to Ontario International Airport and was under the guidance of air traffic controllers at El Toro. The British Airways flight, en route from Los Angeles to London, was in contact with Los Angeles controllers.

“Air traffic control personnel detected the fact that these aircraft had lost the required (3-mile) separation and subsequently redirected the British aircraft,” said Fred O’Donnell, an FAA spokesman based in Los Angeles. “The investigation by our personnel and the National Transportation Safety Board will determine if in fact there was an operational error.”