FAA Administrator Randy Babbitt announced Thursday that serious
runway incursions were down 50 percent for the most recent 12-month
period compared to the previous year.
There were 12 serious incursions in fiscal year 2009 which ended
Sept. 30, with only two involving commercial carriers, compared to
25 such events in fiscal year 2008, with nine involving commercial
carriers. A runway incursion occurs when something or someone
intrudes on a runway without authorization. A serious incursion is
one in which a collision was narrowly avoided, or there was a
significant potential for collision that resulted in the need to
take quick corrective action.
"The aviation community agreed two years ago at FAA's Runway Safety
'Call to Action' meeting to implement safety improvements at U.S.
airports," said Administrator Babbitt. "Teamwork helped get us to
where we are today. But while the 50 percent reduction is
remarkable, there is still much work to be done to continue to
reduce the potential risk."
Close calls in 2007 at some of the busiest U.S. airports prompted
the FAA to take immediate action to reduce the risk of runway
incursions and wrong runway departures. There were 24 serious
runway incursions that year, eight of them involving commercial
carriers. FAA management met with aviation leaders from airlines,
airports, air traffic control and pilot unions, and aerospace
manufacturers to encourage them to take action in areas that would
result in safety improvements. As a result, an intense effort was
launched to expedite the installation of new technology at
airports, complete proper signage and markings at airports and
conduct outreach and re-train pilots.
Randy Babbitt
Continuing its efforts to improve runway safety at airports, the
FAA is hosting an international runway safety meeting on Dec. 1-3
at the Omni Shoreham Hotel in Washington, D.C. Safety experts from
the aviation industry and labor are expected to leave the meeting
with ideas and plans on how to eventually eliminate runway
incursions worldwide. The event, the FAA's first international
gathering of the runway safety community, will be co-sponsored by
the American Association of Airport Executives and MITRE Corp.
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