Runway Incursions Can Ruin Your Day

There is no doubt in anyone\'s mind that the air traffic control system is overwhelm with a shortage in controllers & talent. There has been a steady increase in passengers traveling since the year 2000. But, with the collapse of several airlines early this year it may help to reduce some saturation of traffic. The main problem is a shortage of skilled air traffic controllers combined with a rise of air traffic. This has been a problem ever since President Ronald Regan fired 13,000 striking controllers back in 1981. Just when controllers were starting to meet the demands of staffing, they then all of a certain started to get a high percentage of retirements. It also takes years in training to become an air traffic controller. For instance, once you graduate from the FAA academy you have the skills for only basic level developmental controllers. This is sort of like an apprentice. You may assist controllers with paperwork, but will have little real time hands on working with actual aircraft. It takes about 2-4 years of additional on the job training to be fully certified as a air traffic controller. With more people retiring then are becoming fully certified you could see how easy it is to be short of staff.

The results of the air traffic controller shortage is an increase in runway incursions. A runway incursion is when an aircraft, or vehicle crosses the boundary of the runway of another aircraft without permission. These types of mishaps caused by a number of factors from overworked controllers, pilot errors, or airport operations errors. In fact, two years ago a Comair commuter flight departing from Lexington ,Kentucky crashed after taking off from the wrong runway. Everyone on flight 5191 died except for several people. The NTSB ruled multiple causes for the crash. Most notable was that only one air traffic controller was on duty that morning . This has been a trend I myself notice at certain airports. They have one controller working multiple frequencies such as ground controller, tower control, & clearance combined by one person. This accident in Kentucky was the last accident in recent history that the NTSB said air traffic control contributed to the accident. There\'s no doubt in my mind that had another controller been on duty that day, that there may have been a different outcome. Two heads are better then one. When one pilot makes a mistake in the cockpit ninety percent of the time the second pilot catches it. However, one of the most famous runway incursions & worst accident in aviation history occurred in 1977 in Tenerife, Canary Islands. Two B-747\'s crashed on the runway. The Pan Am plane flight 1736 had permission to taxi on the runway. The other aircraft was a KLM Dutch flight 4805 that was told to line up & wait which means to hold into position & wait for clearance for takeoff. The KLM flight led by Captain Jacob Van Zanten mistook the clearance for cleared for takeoff. Both aircraft collided at a high rate of speed with a full load of fuel. Over 500 people died in this one accident.

Today, there had been many new innovations to help prevent another Tenerife. One of the latest is ground radar that allows air traffic controllers to see aircraft taxing on the ground. This will help them to catch pilot mistakes early. Another invention is the Tcas system. Tcas stands for traffic collision avoidance system. This came about in the early 1990\'s. The way Tcas works is in flight a transponder signal is send to any aircraft that comes to close to another aircraft. The two aircraft Tcas computers communicate through signal to warn each other which way to deviate to avoid collision. The system works really well & reduces the workload on both pilots & controllers. Since the 1990\'s, the FAA has been changing airport signs to make them easier for pilots to understand. All of these efforts including better situational awareness has created a safer environment. However, make no mistake about it runway incursions still remain a perilous situation & more must be done to keep aviation safe.

Captain Simmons is a MD-80 pilot for a major air carrier with over 20 years experience. To learn more please visit our site at http://www.flyinganxiety.com

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