Radar System at Bush Worries Air Traffic Officials
Posted on: Thursday, 3 November 2005, 15:00 CST
By Robert Crowe, Houston Chronicle
Nov. 3--The federal government is putting passengers in taxiing airplanes at risk because it has not upgraded a ground-radar system at Houston's largest airport, some air traffic controllers said Wednesday.
An air traffic controllers' union called for the Federal Aviation Administration to purchase an $8.5 million radar system that keeps track of aircraft going to and from runways.
Mike Gateley, local chapter president of the National Air Traffic Controllers Association, said there have been no accidents under the current system at Bush Intercontinental Airport.
"We've been doing it this way for years and years, but it slows things down," he said.
He said the current system makes it difficult for controllers to monitor aircraft during foggy or inclement weather.
"On a beautiful day like today, we can look out the windows of the control tower and confirm where aircraft are," Gateley said.
"When it rains, we have to go the old way of getting reports from pilots to tell us where they're located."
For now, the radar system at Bush does not place passengers at a greater risk for accidents, FAA spokesman Roland Herwig said.
Gateley called for the FAA to make it a priority to install a new system -- Airport Surface Detection Equipment Model X -- at Bush because it is one of the largest airports in the country.
The system, already in place at Hobby Airport, tracks potential collisions by integrating data from radars and airplane transponders to create a map of all airport-surface operations.
It will be installed in other airports beginning with Seattle in January. Bush is one of 15 airports the FAA says will eventually receive the new system.
"It's on the list, but the date and funding has not been cleared," Herwig said.
-----
To see more of the Houston Chronicle, or to subscribe to the newspaper, go to http://www.HoustonChronicle.com
Copyright (c) 2005, Houston Chronicle
Distributed by Knight Ridder/Tribune Business News.
For information on republishing this content, contact us at (800) 661-2511 (U.S.), (213) 237-4914 (worldwide), fax (213) 237-6515, or e-mail reprints@krtinfo.com.
Source: Houston Chronicle
Related Articles
- System Planning Corporation Announces MkVe Instrumentation Radar Contract Award
- IBM, Orion Energy Systems, Site Controls, Eka Systems, Direct Energy, Tendril and Ziphany Join Demand Response Industry Effort
- Missile System Sends Statement, Bush Says
- AirTran Airways to Build Systems Operations Control Center in Orlando
- PuriCore Receives Additional U.S. Patent on Sterilox Systems to Control the Spread of Infectious Pathogens
- Steering Aircraft Clear of Choppy Air
- Hospitals, Healthcare Providers to Save With Premier Total Building Environment Systems and Controls Agreements
- Sensis Corporation Surface Movement Radar to Enhance Air Traffic Controller Situational Awareness at Vienna International Airport
- Israeli aircraft hit Gaza with air strike
- Airport Bustles With Private-Aircraft Activity Prior to Air Show
 |
 |
User Comments (0)
RSS Feeds