Making flying safer

Saturday, Sept. 27, 2008 | 2:08 a.m.

The Federal Aviation Administration has been placing a higher priority on airport runway safety by deploying and testing new technology to prevent collisions; promoting improvements in airport layout, signs and lighting; and updating air traffic procedures. But congestion is still a concern and the agency needs to do even more to remove the potential for accidents.

That was the conclusion of Gerald Dillingham, the top aviation safety expert for the Government Accountability Office, the investigative arm of Congress. In testimony Thursday before a House transportation subcommittee, Dillingham said that although air travel has been decreasing, the rate of serious “runway incursions” or near collisions per takeoff and landing increased by 5 percent over the past year. There has also been an increase in the rate of runway incursions overall, including hazards that could create a collision. Examples of those hazards include other airplanes, vehicles and people.

North Las Vegas Airport tied for third-highest number of runway incursions in the nation with 61 from 2001 through August, trailing only Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport with 66 and Los Angeles International Airport with 64. Of the North Las Vegas incursions, five were serious, also ranking third behind Los Angeles and Chicago.

McCarran International Airport ranked 10th with 39 incursions, one of which was serious.

Those numbers, which were included in Dillingham’s report, suggest that both Southern Nevada airports have room for improvement.

He believes the FAA could improve runway safety by addressing fatigue, distraction and other factors that affect human performance and have been cited by other aviation experts as the leading causes of runway incursions. We also agree with his assessment that the agency should deploy modern safety technology as soon as possible and encourage increased training for pilots and air traffic controllers.

Although the nation’s airports are relatively safe, the fact that the rate of near collisions and overall runway hazards per flight has been increasing is a matter the FAA and Congress should promptly address.