A close call occurred at LaGuardia airport when two planes had a recent near-miss following an apparent miscommunication between controllers.On May 6 at 12:35 am, American Eagle flight AA4736, operated by Republic Airways, had to halt its takeoff procedure to prevent a possible collision.The incident unfolded when an air traffic controller initially cleared the American Eagle flight for takeoff while United Airlines flight UA2657 was still on the same runway, ABC News reported.The two aircraft came within 0.27 miles of each other before the Republic Airways flight successfully decelerated, according to Flight Radar 24 data.The controller acknowledged the error, stating: “Brickyard 4736 sorry about that, I thought United had cleared well before that,” and instructed the flight to hold position whilst resolving the situation with the United aircraft.This event follows a previous incident in February when a Southwest aircraft at Chicago’s Midway airport performed a go-around after a business jet crossed the active runway during their landing approach.In response to these recurring incidents, the FAA is implementing enhanced runway safety systems across various airports nationwide.During takeoff preparations for a Republic Airways aircraft, a ground controller on a separate radio frequency was instructing a United aircraft to navigate to a different taxiway after missing its initial exit, according to AP.On Monday, investigations were launched by both the Federal Aviation Administration and National Transportation Safety Board.LaGuardia Airport is among 35 US facilities equipped with ASDS-X, an advanced FAA radar system designed for preventing runway incidents. Despite this technology, the frequency of runway incursions remains constant at 30 per 1 million airport operations over the past decade.The other 490 US airports operate with basic control towers, where staff still rely on basic equipment, including binoculars, for ground aircraft monitoring.Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy seeks Congressional approval for his multibillion-dollar modernisation plan for air traffic control infrastructure. In his recent statement, Duffy criticised the current technology, describing it as dependent on “copper wire and floppy disks.”LaGuardia has indicated plans to implement additional safety measures to prevent similar near-collision incidents.This incident adds to a series of aviation-related problems at major US airports.
