Near-Miss Incident at Reagan National Airport Raises Safety Concerns

On Thursday morning, April 18, 2024, a near-miss incident occurred at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA) in Arlington County, Virginia. According to the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), an air traffic controller instructed the pilot of Southwest Airlines Flight 2937 to cross Runway 4 at the same time that the pilot of JetBlue Flight 1554 was starting their takeoff roll on the same runway.

The two planes came dangerously close to colliding, with the Southwest flight coming within about 300 feet of the JetBlue plane. Air traffic control recordings captured the frantic instructions from the tower telling both planes to stop. The JetBlue flight reached a top speed of 34 miles per hour before aborting the takeoff and returning to the gate. The Southwest flight was able to safely depart for Orlando shortly after, while the JetBlue flight was delayed by several hours before taking off for Boston.

Why this matters: This incident highlights an alarming pattern of safety lapses and near-misses at airports across the United States in recent months. While no major crashes have occurred, such close calls raise serious concerns about the potential for catastrophic accidents and the need for improved safety measures and oversight.

The FAA has launched an investigation into the incident to determine the exact cause and circumstances. In a statement, the agency said it takes such incidents very seriously and will take appropriate action to address any safety issues that may have contributed to the near-miss.

Virginia Senators Mark R.Warner and Tim Kaine criticized the incident, calling the runway at DCA "overburdened" and "the busiest in the country." The senators have repeatedly opposed changes to slot and perimeter rules, which they say govern the number of flights safely allowed to operate out of the airport. " Passenger safety should be a the top priority, and even near-misses are unacceptable and must be prevented in future," they stated.

Aviation safety analyst described the incident as "unacceptably close" and a result of a "dichotomy between two controllers who did not have situational awareness." He emphasized that while the system worked in preventing a collision, there were several breakdowns in communication and coordination that need to be addressed.

This near-miss follows another recent runway incursion at the same airport in March 2023. The FAA has taken some measures to address air traffic control understaffing, such as moving college and university air traffic control graduates straight to on-the-job training and increasing classroom size at the FAA Academy. However, with the agency hiring only 1,500 controllers in 2023, it may not be enough to curb the frequency of such incidents at airports nationwide.

Key Takeaways

• Near-miss incident at Reagan National Airport on April 18, 2024.
• Two planes came dangerously close to colliding on the same runway.
• FAA investigating the incident, citing safety lapses and near-misses.
• Senators criticize the airport as "overburdened" and call for improved safety.
• FAA hiring more air traffic controllers, but may not be enough to curb incidents.