The International Air Transport Association (IATA) warned Víctor Hernández, director of Navigation Services in the Mexican Air Space, about his concern and that of his members (airlines operating in Mexico) due to risks in Operational Safety, due to due to a lack of communication between the air traffic controllers of that unit and the pilots of different companies that have sent their reports on the incidence of ground impact alarms.
The group, in which 290 airlines from around the world participate, requested an urgent meeting with the participation of experts, to outline as soon as possible a short, medium and long-term work plan to prevent potential accidents due to impact against the ground on approach to the International Airport. of Mexico City (AICM).
The Federation of Airline Pilots Associations (IFALPA), an organization that has worldwide representation of crews in organizations such as ICAO, also expressed its concern in a letter sent to its members where it explains the vicissitudes that pilots have experienced in their approach to the AICM and the security flaws that the operations in Mexico suffer from.
In a letter sent on May 3 of the present, of which A21 has a copy, IATA indicated that its international members have shared information dating back to April 2021, where there were at least 17 proximity alarm events against terrain ( GPWS) both on approaches to runways 05 and runways 23 of the capital airport.
“These alarms, without the prompt action of the flight crew, can lead to a controlled impact scenario against the ground without loss of control (CFIT), considered by the industry one of the highest risk indicators in Operational Safety, and with a higher rate of accidents, as well as fatalities”, describes the document.
The IATA abounds in that the foregoing has forced several of the operators to carry out urgent actions to reinforce their mitigation barriers, reporting the increase in this risk to their flight crews, and informing the competent authorities, for which it warns to Seneam that this “undoubtedly does not help in the process in which Mexico is immersed, to try to recover category 1 (IASA), which was withdrawn by the FAA last year.”
He points out that these events have been happening since the implementation of the first phase of the airspace redesign in the Valley of Mexico in March of last year.
Signed by the Regional Director of Operations, Security and Protection, José Ruiz Llorente, the letter clarifies that the main contributing factor has been the lack of adherence to the standard phraseology recommended by the International Civil Aviation Organization, through Document 4444 – Management of Air Traffic, Procedures for air navigation services that must be maintained between flight crews and air traffic control services personnel.
The same document was sent to the Undersecretary of Transportation; the Director of the Federal Civil Aviation Agency, and the Director of IATA in Mexico.