Date: 202105
Local time of day: 1201-1800
Location: BUR.Airport, CA
Aircraft: Commercial Fixed Wing
Operator: Air Carrier
Operating under: Part 121
Flight plan: IFR
Mission: Passenger
Flight phase: Taxi; Takeoff / Launch
ATC / advisory: Tower BUR
Second aircraft: Commercial Fixed Wing
Reporter organization: Government
Reporter function: Supervisor / CIC
Reporter qualification: Air Traffic Control Fully Certified
Human factors: Distraction; Situational Awareness
Anomaly: ATC Issue All Types; Conflict Ground Conflict; Critical; Deviation / Discrepancy - Procedural Published Material / Policy; Ground Incursion Runway
Detector: Person Air Traffic Control
When detected: In-flight
Result: Air Traffic Control Issued Advisory / Alert; Air Traffic Control Issued New Clearance; Air Traffic Control Separated Traffic; Air Traffic Control Provided Assistance
Contributing factors: Human Factors; Procedure
Primary problem: Procedure

Narrative: Runways 8/15 in use. Arriving Runway 8 and departing Runway 15.I was on CIC at the time of this event. I was monitoring the LC (Local Control) frequency as required; but there are often times when I'm monitoring the frequency and not hearing everything since I am performing other CIC duties such as phone calls; sector assignments; coordination with the airport authority about NOTAMs; weather briefings; facility log updates; etc.At the time this situation started; I was talking to the training team on GC (Ground Control) so I did not hear the clearance given to Aircraft X; who was taxiing up Taxiway A and had been given an IFR release off Runway 15 from TRACON. After I finished talking with GC; I sat back down at the CIC position. Aircraft Y was on about a 1.5 mile final to Runway 8 as I saw Aircraft X taxiing onto Runway 15. This is completely normal to see; as we often LUAW (Line Up and Wait) our Runway 15 departures so that we can clear them for takeoff as soon as the Runway 8 landers roll through the intersection.When Aircraft Y was just about to flare for Runway 8; I noticed that Aircraft X appeared to be starting his roll. I asked LC; 'Is Aircraft X rolling? Did you LUAW him or clear him for takeoff?' LC said he didn't think he had cleared him for takeoff. I told him to cancel Aircraft X's takeoff clearance immediately; which he did. The aircraft had rolled about 1;000 to 1;500 feet by the time they aborted.After this incident; a supervisor listened to the tapes and confirmed that LC had indeed cleared Aircraft X for takeoff. I'm not sure whether it was inadvertent and he meant to give him a LUAW clearance or whether he just forgot about Aircraft Y on final.Don't fall into a sense of complacency.Don't allow distractions to take your focus away from your primary duties. I am often teased about it; but when we are busy with many critical situations happening at once; and especially when we have CIC combined with GC; I will not answer the outside phone line until our traffic isn't as busy. I don't want to take my eyes off the busy operation in order to get a phone call from the airport authority about a NOTAM for a taxiway light bulb that's going to be OTS (Out of Service) during the mid-two weeks from now. (CIC was not combined in this situation)LC's scan should have been focused more heavily on making sure that Runway 15 traffic was not moving when Runway 8 traffic was on short final. When I brought it to his attention seemed to be the first he noticed the situation.




Synopsis: BUR Tower CIC reported an unsafe situation when the Local Controller mistakenly cleared an aircraft for takeoff with an aircraft on final to a crossing runway.