NTSB Report: Distracted Controllers Caused San Diego Runway Near-Miss
A 2023 near-collision between a private jet and a Southwest Airlines plane on a San Diego runway was caused by air traffic controllers distracted by a jammed printer and poor judgment, according to a new NTSB report.
Overview
The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) released its final report on a 2023 incident involving a near-collision between a private jet and a Southwest Airlines plane on a San Diego runway.
Supervisors in the San Diego control tower were distracted by troubleshooting a jammed printer, diverting their critical attention from the developing dangerous runway situation.
A controller also made a poor judgment call, contacting the FAA radar facility about an unrelated plane's altitude while a business jet was approaching for landing.
These combined distractions and errors allowed the two aircraft to come dangerously close on the San Diego runway, creating a significant safety hazard.
Controllers acknowledged their mistake in interviews, and the NTSB's report criticized their actions, emphasizing the need for undivided attention in air traffic control operations.
Analysis
Center-leaning sources frame this story by emphasizing the severity of the near-miss and directly attributing it to human error and distraction. They use evaluative language like "dangerously close" and "bad choices," and connect the incident to broader "worries about aviation safety" by referencing other unrelated crashes, collectively highlighting potential catastrophe due to human fallibility.
Sources (3)
FAQ
The distractions included the air traffic controllers troubleshooting a jammed printer and a local controller making a poor judgment call by contacting the FAA radar facility about an unrelated plane’s altitude while a business jet was approaching to land.
The private jet and Southwest Airlines plane came within 100 feet of each other on the runway before the near collision was averted.
The airport’s automated surface surveillance system (ASDE-X) triggered visual and aural alerts warning of the conflict, which allowed the controller to act and the private jet to abort its landing and perform a go-around, preventing the collision.
The NTSB criticized the air traffic controllers for poor judgment, including the local controller’s inappropriate prioritization of tasks and the supervisor’s focus on fixing a printer instead of supervising active operations, emphasizing the need for undivided attention in air traffic control.
No injuries or aircraft damage occurred during the incident; the near-miss was safely resolved without harm.
History
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