Driver in Logan incursion cites communication problem

The driver of a construction vehicle that crossed a Logan International Airport runway as a jet took off last week has said he did not know the runway was open, federal transportation investigators said.

The National Transportation Safety Board, which is looking into the June 18 runway incursion, said in a preliminary report that the runway, 15R, is occasionally closed due to airfield construction. When the runway is closed, signs indicate that it is closed, the NTSB said. No signs were posted that day. Airport officials also said that all personnel had been briefed that the runway was active.

But the vehicle’s driver, who was working for HNTB on an airport project, “indicated that he had not been briefed to that fact,’’ the NTSB said in a one-page report posted Friday on its website.

NTSB spokesman Peter Knudson said the agency would, as part of its investigation, look into how people on the airfield are notified whether runways are closed.

“Part of our investigation is the extent and the circumstances of the communication,’’ he said.

He said a report by his agency, determining the probable cause of the incident and any factors that may have played into it, will be finished in six to 12 months.

The NTSB report also said there was a 500-foot separation between the airplane and the vehicle.

But officials said that with the Airbus A320 hurtling down the runway, only seconds separated the plane and the truck. An A320 jet can take off at speeds ranging from 170 to 250 miles per hour.

“It’s very serious,’’ said Phil Orlandella, a spokesman for the airport, which is run by the Massachusetts Port Authority. “That’s why [Massport officials] decided that safety’s first and we’re going to cease construction until we figure out what happened.’’

All airfield construction has been suspended since the incident, while officials review procedures.

A spokeswoman for HNTB, which has offices in Boston and Chelmsford, said the company had no comment.

The incident happened about 6:36 a.m. The construction crew, riding in a Ford Explorer on Taxiway M, crossed the runway as the plane, US Airways Flight 27, bound for Phoenix, was rolling toward takeoff. There were no injuries to the 84 passengers and five crew.

The NTSB is investigating the incident with assistance from Massport and the Federal Aviation Administration.

Posted by Martin Finucane, Globe staff