For the air traveler, these have been worrying weeks.On Jan. 2, a Japan Airlines flight collided with a coast guard aircraft on the runway at Haneda Airport in Tokyo, killing five aboard the latter plane. Three days later, a fuselage panel blew off an Alaska Airlines flight from Oregon, causing a sudden cabin decompression and leading to a temporary grounding of some of Boeing Co.’s 737 Max 9 aircraft. The precise cause of that near-disaster is still to be determined. But following a spate of near-misses at US airports last year, both incidents underscore a sobering reality: The commercial aviation system is under growing stress.
One reason for the concern is that air traffic has soared in the aftermath of the pandemic. In the US, passenger volume likely exceeded all-time highs in 2023. An airline trade group expects 4.7 billion passengers worldwide next year, up from 4.5 billion pre-pandemic. Although air travel remains extremely safe, the added congestion has caused rising alarm among regulators. An independent review commissioned by the Federal Aviation Administration warned in November of an “erosion of safety margins that must be urgently addressed.”
Two worries stand out. One is staffing. Thanks partly to the pandemic — which prompted layoffs and retirements, disrupted on-the-job training, and delayed certifications — a shortage of air-traffic controllers has plagued airports globally. In the US, the problem is acute: The FAA faces a shortage of about 3,000 controllers, while staffers report extended mandatory overtime, six-day workweeks, and widespread stress and fatigue.
An inspector general’s report in June found that 77% of the agency’s critical facilities were understaffed. “FAA continues to face staffing challenges without a plan to address them,” the report said, “which in turn poses a risk to the continuity of air traffic operations.”
A lack of technology poses another challenge. Midair, planes have highly effective collision-avoidance systems. On the ground is a different story. Some airports have instituted surface surveillance equipment to detect runway incursions and prevent accidents. But these systems are expensive, hard to maintain and far from universal. An analysis last month from the Flight Safety Foundation found that “more than one-third of high-risk runway incursions could have been averted through better situational awareness technologies.
”Modernizing decades-old facilities and technical systems will require major investment. So will attracting and training much-needed staffers. But significant organization reforms should also be on the table. In the US, for instance, transferring management of the air-traffic-control system to a nonprofit or government corporation — while maintaining the FAA’s regulatory oversight — would shield it from Congress’s budgetary chaos, make it easier to hire competent staff and allow for long-term investments.
Similar arrangements in other countries, including much of Europe, have led to operational improvements without jeopardizing safety. The commercial aviation system is a wonder of the modern age. But as these recent incidents have shown, it can’t be taken for granted. Keeping the flying public safe will require funding, forethought and no small amount of vigilance.