FAA admits near-collision of two jets

by Katie Hammel on

Early in the morning on November 23, two jets coming in for landing at Denver International Airport had a near-miss, as one plane tried to make a U-turn into the path of the other, causing the jets to come within 200 feet of one another.

According to ABC News, one jet was in a line of planes coming in for landing. The other was on a parallel path, and needed to be guided in to the line. Air traffic controllers gave the second plane incorrect instructions though, requiring it to turn around to right in the path of the other plane. The plane’s collision avoidance system sounded an alarm, and the pilots were able to avoid the other plane.

ABC News quoted a source as saying that the two planes merged on the radar screen and came with “a blink of an eye” of each other. As is always the case with incidents like these, the FAA is investigating.

Odds are, you’ll be on a smaller plane

by Tom Johansmeyer on

Airlines are using the little planes for longer runs, these days. According to the Las Vegas Sun, the average regional airline flight hit 461 miles in 2008, up profoundly from 274 miles in 2009. That’s an increase of 41 percent! This is an industry-wide trend, so shopping around isn’t likely to help you get a larger jet. The major carriers are relying on regional affiliates, so you’ll probably be out of luck. The regionals fly more than half the flights from some pretty hefty airports, including LaGuardia, O’Hare, Milwaukee, Raleigh and Memphis. And, these airlines account for 45% of the traffic at Atlanta’s Hartsfield International, the busiest airport in the United States.

American Airlines and United announced that they were adopting this approach back in September, particularly at airports such as Chicago and Denver. Delta has moved its Washington-to-New York shuttle to one of its regional carriers, as well.

[Via USA Today]

Washington Dulles finally gets its underground train system working

by Scott Carmichael on

Ever flown through Washington Dulles airport? Well, then you’ve probably spent some time being shuttled between terminals on their horrible “mobile lounges”.

These people movers really are a pain in the backside – they are slow, uncomfortable and a really good way to show just how backwards US airports are, especially to international passengers. And I’m not even the first person here on Gadling to write about how much I hate them.

Next month the damn things may finally be put to rest, as the Dulles AeroTrain is expected to enter service. Like many infrastructure projects, the AeroTrain has been plagued by delays, mainly because of safety requirements.

The automated trains had to operate (without passengers) for 30 days, without any accidents or other “mishaps”. Sadly, the first attempt at a 30 day trial run only lasted 18 days. But now it finally cleared its final hurdle, and may actually be ready for business in January. Fingers crossed!

Stop the plane! Coyote crossing

by Annie Scott on

Raleigh-Durham International Airport in North Carolina is having an unusual problem which is increasing in frequency: Coyotes, one of our Top Ten Most Badass Animals Native to the USA, won’t stay out of the runways.

You’d think the noise, the frequent airplanes zooming by, and the lack of much flora or fauna in the area would deter them, but no. “The critters can wreak havoc, causing delays in takeoffs and landings. In September, an American Eagle jet struck a coyote on a runway,” reports the LA Times.

Apparently, airport and federal wildlife employees have been attempting to scare off the coyotes using cap guns and bottle rockets, but they’ve taken things a step further — or should we say “taken things a step out of their backyards from the 1950s” — and drafted up a wildlife management plan for the Federal Aviation Administration to review. The proposed solution is age-old: Build a better fence. (And keep the grass cut.)

[via LA Times]

The unsure future of in-flight wifi

by Grant Martin on

Remember when Clear Security started giving away discounted and free memberships earlier this year? At the time, the company marketed the effort as a means to increase membership and awareness, but in hindsight we now see that it was also a death rattle. Only weeks after announcing a host of specials, Clear unexpectedly terminated its service, stranding tons of passengers with costly expired memberships.

Could that same demise prove possible for in-flight wireless? 2009’s holiday season has brought numerous deals for free onboard internet, and this could very well be a last ditch effort to drum up support. As Mary Kirby at Flightglobal highlights, an average of six users per flight are using internet, which surely can’t be enough to pay for operating costs. How long can this sustain?

Some could also argue that wireless has greater value than the niche service that Clear offered. But think back to the time when seat-back phones were installed on airplanes — that seemed like a good idea too, right?

For what it’s worth, I hope that the airlines stick with their wi-fi plans. As the population of passengers continues to age, the technology generation is quickly forcing out the less tech-savvy baby boomers and wireless usage is surely going to pick up. As an industry, we just need to wait for the boom.

[Via Brett Snyder at BNET]