A landing Boeing 737 closed to within 875 m of a departing Airbus A320 when landing at Edinburgh airport. The airport air traffic control service provider defined this as a runway incursion as the 737 was over the runway surface when the A320 was still on its takeoff roll.
A combination of factors, including brief delays to the departure of the A320 and the speed of the Boeing 737 being higher than normal, led to the reduction in separation before the controllers became aware of the closeness of the aircraft. The trainee controller lacked the experience to resolve the situation in a timely manner and the supervising On-The-Job Training Instructor judged it safer to let the 737 land than to initiate a go-around in proximity to the departing aircraft.
The Air Navigation Service Provider has conducted a review of High Intensity Runway Operations at Edinburgh and taken a number of safety actions to improve procedures and on-the-job training for trainees.
