While high-tech solutions now being tested around the country promise to put runway incursions into the same category as Controlled Flight Into Terrain, Wind Shear and Mid-Air Collisions as solved, it was the low-tech solutions that speakers at last week’s runway safety forum said offers more immediate results, not the least of which was NOTAM reform. In addition, while last week’s FAA promise to streamline certification of a moving map technology that displays a captains “own ship” position would help, all agreed that what is needed is a direct cockpit conflict alert of impending disaster since the majority of conflicts have been resolved by sheer luck, rather than the slow and antiquated controller alert.
Speakers also criticized the late deployment of AMASS and ASDE-X and said they did not go far enough in providing protection at all scheduled service airports. While the meeting centered on runway incursions, Flight Safety Foundation said Runway Excursions – crashes when aircraft left runways – were far deadlier and should receive more focus. For a complete analysis see the April 2 edition of Regional Aviation News.