How Airplane Collisions Are Avoided at the World’s Busiest Airport | WSJ Booked

Aircraft close calls have been rising, prompting safety concerns. The FAA has confirmed six serious runway incursions just this year, including one at JFK Airport in New York and another in Austin, Texas.

WSJ got an inside look at the air traffic control tower at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport to see how controllers avoid collisions while juggling around 2,100 flights every day.

0:00 Uptick in aircraft near collisions this year
0:31 How two planes nearly collided in Austin, Texas
1:36 Inside the air traffic control tower at the world’s busiest airport
3:01 How air traffic control works
3:53 Inside an air traffic control simulator
4:46 Why communication between pilots and air traffic controllers is vital
6:00 FAA issued a safety alert to airlines, pilots and controllers

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Your trip may be booked, but there are hundreds of people and processes that help you travel to where you need to go. From airport logistics to cruise ship procedures, WSJ’s Booked peels back the curtain on the travel industry, guiding viewers behind-the-scenes through the lens of industry experts.

#Airport #FAA #WSJ

[rovermiles]

Everytime I see a depiction of ATC and ground control - my mind gets blown. The choreography is amazing and it looks like an insanely stressful job. I'm amazed that this is how we control out air travel.

[krishp]

I once got a private tour of the IAD airport near Washington DC and going into the ATC tower was definitely one of the highlights

I can’t believe that they slide those bars across the desk by hand.

[cyndymalouf]

Some of the controllers talk so fast I don't know how pilots understand them..

[somaghosh]

Very much complicated but very nice. Thank you WSJ.

[airbornefoxx]

I am training to become a pilot and the worst part about communication is how bad the audio quality is. I can barely understand what people are saying sometimes. I am not sure if it is due to poor equipment or lack of experience identifying the phrasing but it can be tough to hear people.

[singhcertain]

this is such an informative video..cheers

[Flyerman]

Wish you went to an airport like SFO or Boston.. where the runaways crossover and communication is that much more important rather than parallel runways like ATL or LAX or instance

[BabyBangdatruth]

Atlanta has parallel runways which makes it easier to do simultaneous takeoffs and landings.

[kisaragi-hiu]

Was expecting the TCAS to get a mention. It's certainly saved many lives.

[sweetnaomi]

There's also a shortage of Air Traffic Controllers, lol

[lawrence]

Giannis controlling air traffic in Atlanta? What can’t this man do ?

[truebluereef]

I have a headache just watching this. Hats off.

[wp]

2:21 Wow where did you find this monstrosity?

[peterkcanada]

Did I miss something - I thought they said Southwest abort and from the animation it looks like it still took off?

[liveandletflyatc]

Cool video! Interesting to see that an airport as busy as Hartsfield-Jackson is using paper strips in the tower!

[PhyzinicStudios]

After the first 3 months, there was only one more near-miss incident the rest of the year. Either the first three months were a statistical anomaly, or everyone involved took these incidents seriously and took action to prevent any further incidents.

[TomCook]

We’re just coming out of a pandemic where everything shut down. Including pilot/controller proficiency and training. As the traffic volume comes back up to pre pandemic levels we’re going to have these hiccups from a work force who lost some of their edge during the pandemic and all of a sudden have to perform to 100% levels again. Just give them some time. Don’t understaff them. Make sure they get the training they need and all will be ok. This ain’t brain science!

[paradx]

Im curious to hear about how things work with foreign airlines at ATL. Are those pilots required to study the FAA english manuals? Are american pilots required to study french landing procedures at CDG? Are things universal around the world?

[MeITellYou]

The other issue is the airports. Stop using the same runway for take off and landing for the major ones