In 2020, in Montenegro, there were no accidents in commercial and non-commercial operations of civil aircraft, paragliding operations, victims in the field of air traffic, and no events classified as serious accidents. This is stated in the "Annual Report on Events for 2020", adopted by the Civil Aviation Agency (CAA).
The goal of this report, as stated, is to improve air traffic safety, determine the circumstances and causes of extraordinary events, as well as promote measures to prevent the recurrence of such events.
In the last year, which was marked by the COVID-19 pandemic, air traffic over the territories of Montenegro and Serbia, i.e. in the airspace under the jurisdiction of the Air Traffic Control of Serbia and Montenegro - SMATSA, was at a level of 40% compared to 2019 . The decrease in the number of aircraft operations also affected the decrease in the number of reported events of interest to flight safety.
"The total number of events of importance for air traffic safety, reported to the Agency in 2020 on the territory of Montenegro and abroad, in which aircraft registered in Montenegro took part, is 129. For a total of four reported events, an additional analysis of the Agency for Civil aviation", says the Report.
The most reported events are from three categories: the so-called WSTRW (Wind shear or thunderstorm) - events where there was "wind shear" - characteristic of Tivat Airport when the weather conditions are complex, and in this category there are also events related to the so-called unstable approaches; BIRD (Birdstrikes) - bird-aircraft collision events that occasionally occur due to the increased presence of birds, which is, among other things, conditioned by the peculiarities of the locality near international airports (nature, reserves, river canyons, a large area under vineyards), but also by the fact that Crna Mountain on the north-south migration corridor of birds, as well as the problem of wild landfills and uncontrolled disposal of garbage, which is a source of food for birds; and A/C TECH (Aircraft technical failure or malfunction) - events related to the correctness of the aircraft.
"Analyzing other categories in the reported events, a relatively stable trend of events related to the technical correctness of the aircraft, aircraft maintenance, use of unmanned aircraft (drones), events caused by the transport of dangerous goods, the presence of foreign objects on the runways and maneuvering areas of the airport was identified. , laser jamming and unauthorized entry into controlled airspace (mostly by paraglider pilots, drones and general aviation pilots)", ACV announced. From that agency, which is the supreme civil aviation authority in the country, they point out that in the extraordinary circumstances introduced due to the coronavirus pandemic, the focus of CAA's activities was "on constant communication with representatives of international aviation organizations and aviation entities in Montenegro, in order to create the prerequisites for safe the continuation of flying and in order to prepare the aviation entities so that the continuation of operations takes place with safety at the given level." Due to the measures introduced by the former NKT, there was no regular air traffic in Montenegro Gora for almost three months last year, and the planes of the former national airline Montenegro Airlines were forcibly grounded from mid-March to mid-June. In the Annual Report for 2020, CAA states that air traffic safety in Montenegro "is at an acceptable level, where it is necessary for aviation entities to realistically look at the trends of their own operations, identify dangers, analyze risks and propose measures to reduce them."
"This approach of aviation entities enables the creation of an efficient safety management system, management of all analyzed risks and effective monitoring of the trend of air traffic operations in Montenegro. Through regular supervision and inspections, the Agency will check and determine the degree of implementation of the above, as well as the actions of aviation entities in accordance with the positive trend of their own operations and identified dangers", the CAA statement concludes.
One case categorized as "serious accident"
And while the ACV claims that there were no "events classified as serious accidents" last year, according to the data of the "National Commission for the Investigation of Accidents and Serious Aircraft Accidents, Extraordinary Events Threatening the Safety of Railway Traffic and Maritime Accidents and Accidents" (KINNS), last year they were reported a total of 130 extraordinary events in aviation. Of those reported events, KINNS opened an investigation in only one case because it was classified as a “serious accident” according to the current national regulation harmonized with ICAO standards.
It is about the incident that happened on November 22 last year, when the Air Tractor AT-802A fire-fighting aircraft of the Air Helicopter Unit of the Ministry of Internal Affairs on the flight Podgorica - Sutomore to extinguish a fire in the town of Brca near Sutomore, had "contact with an obstacle". According to unofficial information, the plane then hit trees with its wing, and the plane suffered serious damage that has not been repaired to this day, but its pilot was not injured.
According to current international regulations, KINNS, which investigates this incident, when it makes a final report, is obliged to inform the International Organization for Civil Aviation ICAO with its findings, because it is a threat to the safety of aircraft with a maximum take-off weight of more than 2.250 kilograms.
Bonus video:
