CJIA air traffic controller blamed for near mishap

Last Updated on Wednesday, 2 April 2025, 21:30 by Writer

Fresh evidence has surfaced that disputes earlier claims that a Roraima Airways plane was responsible for a near-miss accident with a Caribbean Airlines passenger jet at the Cheddi Jagan International Airport, according to a well-placed source.

Instead, the source laid the blame squarely at the feet of an air traffic controller (ATC) who instructed the CAL Boeing 737 Max to land while the Roraima Airways’ Britten Norman Islander was still on the runway moving at possibly 15 knots per hour.

The ATC and the Roraima Airways pilots have been suspended pending the outcome of an investigation.

The passenger jet possibly touched down at a speed of approximately 500 knots per hour, a source said.

Backed up by a reading from a Garmin GPS in the cockpit of the Islander, the source said that plane never turned off the main runway to an unused runway. The image according to the source, shows a slight curve in the line indicating an attempt to turn off the main runway but the area was very dark that the unused runway was not seen.

The source said that account of what transpired could be backed up not only by the Garmin GPS data but by the Air Traffic Control Tower recordings of radio communications between the tower and both aircraft because they were on the same frequency.

Based on the braking speed to avoid a collision with the Islander plane, the source the CAL passengers most likely had a very bad experience.

Director General of the Guyana Civil Aviation Authority, Egbert Field said an investigation has been launched into the incident.