Fergie's Tech Blog

GAO: U.S. Airports Face Risk of 'Catastrophic Runway Collision'

Alan Levin writes on USA Today:

The nation faces "a high risk of a catastrophic runway collision" and efforts to improve the problem have stumbled due to lackluster federal leadership, technology glitches and poor data collection, according to a congressional report released Wednesday.

The Federal Aviation Administration has failed to update its runway safety plan in five years, cut funding to its runway safety office and did not appoint a permanent head of the office for two years, the Government Accountability Office said. The GAO is the watchdog arm of Congress.

While the most serious incidents reported on the nation's runways fell to 24 in fiscal 2007 from 31 the previous year, the overall total of so-called "runway incursions" has gone up. The total number of incursions hit 370 in fiscal 2007, the highest since 2001.

The National Transportation Safety Board, which investigates aviation disasters, has declared runway safety a top national concern and has repeatedly called on the FAA to make safety improvements.

posted by Fergie @ 12/05/2007 05:29:00 PM