Air Traffic Control Mishap

-

 

Air Traffic Control Mishap

 


The FAA and NTSB are currently investigating a runway incursion that happened at Austin-Bergstrom International Airport on February 4th in an apparent air traffic control error. A FedEx cargo plane was given clearance to land moments before a Southwest jet was cleared for takeoff on the same runway. As the FedEx plane descended, the pilot noticed it was overflying the Southwest jet and aborted their landing by conducting a go-around. The near miss came within approximately 150 feet. (Bodell, 2023)

 

I chose this event because it comes on the heels of the runway incident at JFK back in January when air traffic control prevented a collision from occurring, and the software outage just prior to that. All these events are safety issues the FAA is dealing with and at a time when it claims this is the safest in aviation history. The FAA is doing a sweeping safety review of the agency and has requested additional funding to modernize the national airspace’s infrastructure to NextGen standards. (Cudahy, 2023) I firmly believe the FAA should be allocated the appropriate funds to allow the changes to happen in a timely manner, from the update on the air traffic system, to more air traffic controllers since the demand is there.

 

References

Bodell, L. (2023, February 5). Investigation launched into close call between Southwest Airlines & Fedex Planes. Simple Flying. https://simpleflying.com/close-call-southwest-airlines-fedex/

CBS Evening News. (2023, February 6). FAA investigating near collision on Austin runway. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VlAuteLjnm0&feature=youtu.be

Cudahy, S. (2023, February 25). From shutdowns to near-misses, the FAA is ready for a refresh. New York Post. https://nypost.com/2023/02/25/the-faa-is-ready-for-a-refresh/

Klisauskaite, V. (2023, January 15). Near miss: American Airlines Boeing 777 reportedly almost collides with Delta 737 at New York JFK. Simple Flying. https://simpleflying.com/american-airlines-boeing-777-delta-737/

Sangal, B. <. H. (2023, January 12). Flights delayed across the US after FAA system outage. CNN. https://edition.cnn.com/us/live-news/faa-system-outage-us-flight-disruptions/h_cb1146707048d0e0763296b8ada56fb1

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Human Factors Challenge

-
Image
  Team-Based Human Factors Challenges        As we read from the FAA’s website about Human Factors in Aviation Maintenance, the FAA states, “Our research combines scientific understanding of human performance with applied studies conducted with industry partners. The results are solid science, psychology, and engineering delivered in plans, procedures, and software that can be immediately implemented to improve safety.” (Human Factors in Aviation Maintenance, n.d.) The last line about the software that can be implemented to improve safety brings up the Maneuvering Characteristics Augmentation System (MCAS) tragedies that caused two catastrophic crashes, killing 346 people, and grounding Boeing’s 737 MAX 8 in the process.        In short, the MCAS was designed and released by Boeing for the new MAX 8. Due to the larger engines on the MAX 8, the engines were installed forward and higher than the previous positions. The engine housings create more lift, especially at high pitch
Read more

The End of Spirit

-
Image
  The End of Spirit      Spirit Airlines is expected to have a deal completed in the first half of 2024 with JetBlue Airways, in an attempt to compete with larger U.S. carriers with low fares. (Sampson, 2022)  Spirit has been one of the leaders of low budget flights for some time now, but after what seems to be poorly applied ethics in reference to their business decisions, this will no longer be the case. Examples range from distasteful promotions , to taking away previous liberties from their customers, all for the attention and free press.   I chose this article because I see it is a direct reflection on bad ethics. Bad business practices over the course of Spirit’s history seem to be their curtain call. They changed leadership in 2016 in an attempt to overcome their troubled history, and that did vastly improve their ranking as far as on-time from dead last, all the way to fourth within two years. (Sampson, 2022)  That trajectory did not last, however. They’re not the only ai
Read more

Aviation Flu

-
Image
  Aviation Flu   Most of us understand how aircraft fly. Thrust, drag, lift, and weight. The engines must create enough force to move the aircraft against the opposing drag force, and enough lift must be generated to overcome the mass of the vehicle and achieve liftoff. (Neistein, M. 2022). There is however, one variable that can’t be controlled: air density. In hotter temperatures, air is less dense, making it more difficult for aircraft to takeoff.   The issue at hand is the overall climate and the temperatures becoming hotter. There have been a few instances in recent years where airliners had to alter the weight of the aircraft by decreasing the amount of passengers on certain flights. Alternate methods have been outright canceling flights in Las Vegas last year, and Phoenix in 2017 because the temperatures have been too hot. Let’s also be aware of the impact it has on the runways when temperatures basically cause
Read more