[AERO AFR] JAZENEUIL (86) 14.07.2007

On 14 July 2007 at 14:35 UTC near Jazeneuil, the captain of an Air France flight reported a TCAS alert indicating traffic very close to the aircraft. The pilots saw a red target on their displays at a reported range of 30 nautical miles, given as 55 km, and 300 ft, given as 100 m, above them. Despite exceptional visibility, they saw no object. Air traffic control detected no unidentified traffic on its radar. A preliminary investigation by the Bureau of Investigation and Analysis at Le Bourget for the French civil aviation authority, DGAC, concluded that false returns caused the phenomenon. An expert assessment for GEIPAN identified a probable malfunction of the onboard traffic alert and collision avoidance system, TCAS.