Cessna 425/441 Conquest I/Conquest II
Flight Crew Air Transport Pilot (ATP); Flight Crew Multiengine; Flight Crew Instrument; Flight Crew Commercial
Flight Crew Last 90 Days 39; Flight Crew Total 4244; Flight Crew Type 1546
Communication Breakdown; Confusion; Situational Awareness; Workload
ATC Issue All Types; Conflict Airborne Conflict; Deviation / Discrepancy - Procedural Other / Unknown
Air Traffic Control Issued New Clearance; Flight Crew Became Reoriented; Flight Crew FLC Overrode Automation; Flight Crew Requested ATC Assistance / Clarification
Procedure; Airspace Structure; Company Policy; Human Factors
It was an uneventful take off. I was handed off to approach by tower. A controller vectored me left. The airplane was on autopilot and I dialed in a left heading. The plane started turning to the commanded heading. Moment[s] later; a different controller came on frequency and told me to disregard and turn right to an assigned heading. This was dialed into the autopilot. About four minutes later; the first controller came back on frequency and abruptly tells me to turn left to an assigned heading. This is programmed into the autopilot. The plane starts turning. Immediately thereafter the different controller comes on and says to disregard instructions and turn right to an assigned heading. This is put into the autopilot; the plane starts turning.Moment[s] later the second controller came back on frequency and said to immediately turn right with urgency in his voice. Simultaneously I got an audible and visual traffic alert on my Garmin 600 EFIS. Since the plane was already in a standard bank turn. I had to disengage the autopilot and manually steepen the turn in IMC and turbulent conditions. The remainder of the flight was uneventful. The first controller never came back on frequency. When I landed; I called the watch commander of the TRACON. He apologized for the incident and confirmed that the first controller was a trainee. I asked him why they would be training somebody in the busiest airspace on earth at night in IMC. He informed me that this is standard. In terms of preventing this in the future; I think the only solution I have is to avoid New York at night with IMC. I obviously have no control over the vectors I am given by ATC or the experience of the assigned controllers.
C441 pilot reported a TRACON Controller in training issued several turns in the wrong direction; which had to be corrected by an instructor. The incorrect vectors caused a traffic conflict.