Report filed into exchange between BA pilot and Dublin air traffic controller

A report has been filed into an exchange between a British Airways pilot and an air traffic controller at Dublin Airport, the Irish Aviation Authority has said.

The incident was brought to the public’s attention after a recording of the conversation was posted on social media at the weekend.

The exchange is believed to have taken place on Sunday, June 19th, after a transatlantic jet was forced to make an emergency landing, delaying the departure of other flights.

In the recording, a Dublin Airport air traffic controller is heard giving instructions to a number of pilots, including the British Airways pilot in question.

The pilot, who was flying from Dublin to London Heathrow had been cleared to be pushed back from its stand, but the ground crew stopped during the procedure.

He took the issue up with the air traffic controller, who said she had been trying to call and inform him of the situation.

“You should have told us that before really,” the pilot said.

The air traffic controller replied, “I was trying to call you sir, you weren’t listening out but they (Aer Lingus) were also cautioned reference you, they were supposed to give way.”

The pilot said he was not “listening out” as he was talking to the ground crew. “They’re telling us the same thing, so you’re a bit late,” he said.

The air traffic controller said, “I was trying to call you to warn you... Everything’s clear now, continue push and start to point Charlie and I’m just too busy to continue any further conversation about this on frequency.”

As the pilot acknowledged his instructions he said, “We will be filing a safety report,” to which the controller replied, “Copied sir, thanks”.

Another pilot is then heard commenting “Oh my God”, while another is heard saying the word “tool”.

The incident is now the subject of a Mandatory Occurrence Report, which is confidential and subject to EU regulation.

Anybody, including airline and airport staff, ground control and members of the public are entitled to file a mandatory occurrence report, the objective of which is to improve air safety.

The recording was published on YouTube by an unofficial group called Dublin Aviation, who is described on their Twitter account as "#1 source for Irish aviation news. Want to know about your flight if there's an issue? Ask us! ??" .

They group have posted similar recordings before, along with various aviation related videos.