Milan planes avoid 'carbon-copy' crash

A collision at Milan in 2001 claimed 118 lives

Two planes at Milan's Linate airport had to take emergency avoiding action on Tuesday, only hours ahead of a pilots' strike on safety issues.

The same airport was the scene of Italy's worst civil aviation disaster, when 118 people died in a runway collision between an SAS passenger plane and a Cessna light aircraft in 2001.

There was no panic, no-one screamed, but everyone thought, and asked themselves 'What did we hit?

Nando Dalla Chiesa
Italian Senator

Tuesday's near-miss also involved a Cessna and a passenger plane speeding down the runway towards take-off, an Alitalia spokesman confirmed.

The passenger plane, an Alitalia Airbus carrying 168 passengers, was travelling at 160 km/h (100 mph) when it was ordered to abort take-off.

The Cessna, which was coming in to land, was also ordered to abort.

Passengers' reaction

Airbus passengers described feeling the plane brake sharply, as if it was trying to avoid something.

"There was no panic, no-one screamed, but everyone thought, and asked themselves, 'What did we hit?'" Italian Senator Nando Dalla Chiesa told the Ansa news agency.

No-one was hurt, and the plane later took off successfully for Rome.

Italy's air traffic control agency, Enav, said the incident occurred because the Airbus had taken too long to begin its take-off after being given the all-clear.

'Truancy' report

It said the instructions to both crew to abort were in line with normal procedures.

The strike affected an estimated 14,000 passengers

An official Swedish report last summer warned that similar accidents could happen again at the Milan airport, and last December an investigation by Italian police revealed that the Linate control tower was beset by truancy.

Tuesday's near-miss, at about 0800 (0700GMT), came before Alitalia pilots and flight crews walked out at noon (1100GMT) for a four-hour strike on safety issues.

Nearly 140 services were cancelled, hitting an estimated 14,000 passengers.

The staff were protesting against having to work shifts up to 17 hours long.

Pilot fatigue

The pilots' union, Anpac, is demanding shifts of no longer than 12 hours, which it says is normal in many other countries.

Anybody who has been in a cabin for 15 hours with reduced oxygen levels will not be at their best with regards to reaction time

Erica Young
Italian Federation of Transport Workers

The staff say their case has been strengthened by recent research in US, which showed that 20% of air accidents were due to pilot fatigue.

The employers have offered only a one-hour cut, to 16 hours.

Cabin crews can work even longer, for up to 24 hours, Erica Young of the Italian Federation of Transport Workers told the BBC's World Business Report.

"Anybody who has been in a cabin for 15 hours with reduced oxygen levels will not be at their best with regards to reaction time," she said.

Italian air travellers have faced repeated disruption over the past year - by a series of disputes involving pilots, ground workers and air traffic controllers.

The Italian action came as airline pilots across Europe campaign against proposals which they say could mean them working 14-hour shifts.