An amateur-built aircraft incident near Las Vegas, Nevada, April 27, 2012
On April 27, 2012 at about 6:25 pm local time, a an amateur-built aircraft was involved in an incident during initial climb near Las Vegas, Nevada. It was flown under scheduled airline rules (Part 121). The NTSB record does not give the injuries. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
Federal Aviation Administration procedures that do not ensure separation in the event of a go-around during simultaneous independent runway operations on runways that do not physically intersect but whose flight paths intersect.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- April 27, 2012 · about 6:25 pm local time
- Place
- Las Vegas, Nevada · map
- Type
- Incident
- Injuries
- The NTSB record does not give the injuries.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- 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
The flight crew of an Airbus A320, operated by an air carrier, was conducting a visual approach to runway 25L while a Learjet 60 (LR60) was simultaneously cleared for takeoff from runway 19L. The pilot of the A320 elected to execute a go-around and came into hazardous proximity with the LR60 as it departed runway 19L. After the pilot of the A320 executed the go-around, neither local controller was able to provide control instructions to separate the two aircraft. The closest proximity of the two aircraft was approximately 0.3 nautical miles laterally and 100 feet vertically. The two aircraft were being controlled by different tower controllers, who were simultaneously routing aircraft to land on runway 25L and to depart from runway 19L--nonintersecting, converging runways whose flight paths intersect. This procedure was not prohibited by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), and there were no FAA-prescribed separation minima or procedures for air traffic controllers to follow when conducting simultaneous independent converging runway operations in the event a pilot elected to execute a go-around. This resulted in the aircraft going around coming into close proximity with the departure aircraft where the flight paths intersected.
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 landing (aborted after touchdown)
- Near midair/TCAS alert/loss of separation during initial climb defining event
The NTSB's findings
- cause Organizational issues › Management › Policy/procedure › (general) › Airport
- cause Organizational issues › Management › Policy/procedure › Adequacy of policy/proc › ATC
Crew member
No details recorded.
The aircraft
- Landing gear: fixed
The flight
- Departed from: BOS Boston MA
- Destination: Las Vegas NV
- Flight plan: IFR
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 180° at 19 knots, gusting 26
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 9,500 ft; scat at 7,000 ft
- Temperature: 68°F (20°C), dew point 46°F (8°C)
- Altimeter: 29.77 inHg
- Observation at 5:56 pm from KLAS
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.