A New York Times investigation reveals a worrying trend for the nation's airports.
It’s not just airlines that are having a hard time recruiting pilots and flight attendants. The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is also facing a massive air traffic controller (ATC) shortage. And now it has become a safety issue in the U.S.
According to a damning New York Times report, there have been at least 46 near-miss collisions in the U.S. in the last month alone. Most of these are not reported publicly, but the Times investigation reveals that close calls are happening every week due to human error.
Worrying Incidents
There were news reports of back-to-back incidents earlier this year. Among these were a Delta and American near-collision at JFK; a United and a cargo flight runway incursion at Honolulu; and a FedEx plane and Southwest flight in Austin. Although no one was injured, these incidents were serious enough to open investigations.
In March, the agency issued a safety alert to airlines and pilots, referencing six incidents that could have ended in tragedies. It also organized a safety summit in March, and the chief operating officer of the FAA Air Traffic Organization, Tim Arel, admitted in a message to employees that there have been too many close calls.
Four months later, the problem hasn’t been resolved. This August, a private jet and a Southwest flight had a near-miss in San Diego when the jet was given the go to land on the runway where Southwest was taxiing to takeoff. They came within 100 feet of each other before the jet pilot aborted landing—the incident is being investigated. A few days earlier in Phoenix, an American flight and a Southwest plane also came dangerously close to each other, but this one didn’t make headlines.
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In July, an Allegiant plane swerved upward 20 minutes into its journey to avoid collision with a private jet after it was alerted of its presence by the surveillance system. The sudden maneuver injured a flight attendant and the plane returned to Fort Lauderdale.
The myriad incidents are sounding the alarm in the industry that something needs to be fixed. The ATC is understaffed and resources are stretched thin. The New York Times analysis shows that 99% of ATC facilities don’t meet targets—that’s 310 out of 313 running with fewer controllers than required.
Related: Please, No: FAA Staff Shortage May Lead to More Delays This Summer
FAA Responds
The FAA has highlighted the commitment to safety in its response statement, saying one close call is too many. It has multiple ways to protect the skies, including Traffic Collision Avoidance Systems on commercial aircraft and surface safety technology at big airports. “The FAA maintains extremely conservative standards for keeping aircraft safely separated. Safety experts follow up on all events—even those in which no collision was imminent or even possible—and evaluate them for safety risks.”
The agency has hired 1,500 ATCs this year, while more than 2,600 are under training. It is also hosting runway safety meetings at 90 U.S. airports through September for airlines, pilots, representatives from air traffic organizations, and vehicle drivers, among others.
Articles like this one sound like Fake News to me. It states 46 near collisions; it might as well state 97 or 1730. For this to sound believable is should at least state what, where, when.