# Incident 20011118032459I: Boeing 747200, Oceanic, FR, November 18, 2001

- Type: FAA incident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: November 18, 2001, 13:20 local time
- Place: Oceanic, FR
- Phase of flight: Normal Cruise
- Operating rules: Foreign air carrier (Part 129)
- Operator: CNFF
- Aircraft: UNKNOWN (not matched to a registry record)
- Reported make and model: BOEING 747200
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/20011118032459I

## Narrative

As the FAA filed it, in capitals; the FAA replaces private details with ^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^.

(-23) ON 11/18/2001, AIR FRANCE FLT 3531 (AFR3531) HAD BEEN CLEARED INTO THE NEW YORK OCEANIC CTA AT 18N60W AT FL330. SUBSEQUENT FLIGHT PLAN ROUTE POINTS WERE 32N50W, 30N40W, & 43N50W. AT 1325 UTC ARINC SENT A TELETYPE MESSAGE TO ARTCC INDICATING THE FLIGHT PROGRESSED POSITION 30N40W AT FL320. UPON RECEIPT OF THIS MESSAGE THE ARTCC CONTROLLER CONTACTED ARINC AND REQUESTED AFR3531 TO VERIFY ALTITUDE. AT 1327 UTC, ARINC AGAIN SENT A TELETYPE MESSAGE CONFIRMING THAT AFR3531 WAS MAINTAINING FL320. THE ARTCC CONTROLLER IMMEDIATELY CONTACTED SANTA MARIA, WHO WAS EXPECTING THE A/C AT FL330 ARTCC ADVISED THAT AFR3531 REPORTED MAINTAINING FL320 AND RELINQUISHED CONTROL FOR A CLIMB. ARINC, MGR LISTENED TO THE VOICE RECORDING OF THE OPERATORS INVOLVED AND DETERMINED THAT AFR3531 ACTUALLY REPORTED LEVEL AT FL320 SEVERAL TIMES, BUT THE ARINC OPERATORS COPIED AND READBACK FL330. WHEN THIS READ BACK WAS NOT CORRECTED BY AFR3531 PILOTS, THE TELETYPE MESSAGE WAS SENT TO ARTCC WITH INACCURATE ALTITUDE INFO.

From the FAA Accident/Incident Data System. Reports are matched to registry aircraft by N-number and event date, checked against the reported make and model; the registry's history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model. For accidents, the NTSB's own investigation is the fuller record.

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