An amateur-built aircraft incident near Tampa, Florida, February 19, 2009
On February 19, 2009 at about 7:40 pm local time, a an amateur-built aircraft was involved in an incident during approach (IFR final approach) near Tampa, Florida. It was flown under scheduled airline rules (Part 121). The NTSB record does not give the injuries.
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The controller's issuance of an improper climb clearance to the pilot of Berry Aviation flight 510. Contributing to the incident was the controller's distraction while he searched for a misplaced flight progress strip.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- February 19, 2009 · about 7:40 pm local time
- Place
- Tampa, Florida · map
- Type
- Incident
- Injuries
- The NTSB record does not give the injuries.
- Weather
- not recorded
- Aircraft
- An amateur-built aircraft
- Registration
- not recorded
- Damage
- Not recorded
- Flight
- Flight · scheduled airline rules (Part 121)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
An operational error occurred at Tampa Terminal Radar Approach Control that resulted in a loss of required separation between AirTran Airways flight 808 (TRS808) and Berry Aviation flight 510 (BYA510). TRS808 was operating as a scheduled 14 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) Part 121 passenger flight between Pittsburgh International Airport, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and Tampa International Airport, Tampa Florida (TPA). BYA510 was operating as a 14 CFR Part 135 air taxi flight from MacDill Air Force Base (MCF), Tampa, Florida, to Jacksonville Naval Air Station (NIP), Jacksonville, Florida. BYA510 departed southbound from MCF beneath the final approach course for runway 36 at TPA. The pilot was erroneously cleared to climb to 5,000 feet in an area where local procedures required that aircraft level at 1,600 feet in order to avoid conflicts with aircraft landing at TPA. The controller stated that he was searching for BYA510's flight progress strip immediately before the flight passed about 200-250 feet below TRS808, after the pilot of TRS808 responded to a Traffic Collision Alerting System resolution advisory directing a climb to resolve the conflict. There were no injuries or damage reported to either aircraft. Following the incident, TRS808 landed uneventfully at TPA and BYA510 continued its flight to NIP.
The complete narrative as the NTSB published it. The NTSB's docket holds the report as a PDF and any photographs, statements and other documents from the investigation.
The factual record from the NTSB's investigation tables, in plain English
What happened, in order
- Air traffic event during approach (IFR final approach) defining event
The NTSB's findings
- cause Personnel issues › Task performance › Communication (personnel) › Issuing instructions › ATC personnel
- cause Personnel issues › Task performance › Communication (personnel) › Accuracy of communication › ATC personnel
- cause Personnel issues › Psychological › Attention/monitoring › Attention › ATC personnel
Crew member
No details recorded.
The aircraft
- Landing gear: fixed
- Operator: Airtran Airways INC
The flight
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Temperature: 0°F (-18°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
Documents from the investigation the NTSB's docket: the evidence folder behind the report
The docket, the folder of records gathered during an investigation (maintenance records, photographs, witness statements, examinations), has not been read from the NTSB for this case yet; the list appears here once it has. Open the docket at the NTSB.
Everything on this page comes from the NTSB's public records. The narrative, probable cause and findings are the NTSB's own words; the coded tables behind the report are written out in plain English, with pilots' ages, home towns and medical details left out. The documents and photographs are the NTSB's docket, shown as the NTSB released them. This site's own text never names anyone involved. A preliminary report can change; the final report usually follows one to two years later, and the page is refreshed when it does.