American Airlines Fuel Saving Method Raises Concerns
May 15, 2008
Some air traffic controllers say they believe American Airlines is attempting to
save fuel at the expense of safety, and risking the possibility of a runway
collision, NBC 5 reported.
The concerns stem from a near miss on a runway at Dallas-Fort Worth
International Airport in early April that is under investigation by the Federal
Aviation Administration.
It happened as American Airlines mechanics were towing a Boeing 777 to a
maintenance hangar using a high-speed tug. Air traffic controllers told the
mechanics to stop short of a runway, but they did not stop in time and pulled
the jumbo jet into the path of another plane coming in for landing, NBC 5
reported.
The pilot pulled up narrowly and avoided a collision, said
Ric Loewen of The National
Air Traffic Controllers Association.
"It was extremely close. I've heard reports of anything from 9 feet to 25 feet
apart and either way that's too close for two planes to be under those
circumstances," Loewen said.
If the incident had happened at night controllers said the pilot may not have
seen the other plane until it was too late. That is because at night American
Airlines had been towing planes across runways without turning on any of the
plane's lights that are designed to avoid a collision, NBC 5 reported.
"So essentially it's just a big black hole out there at night -- we can't see
them -- you have to remember where they are," Loewen said.
Running the lights would burn fuel and when American Airlines bought the
high-speed tugs last year the goal was saving fuel by moving planes without
turning on the engines or the generator that power the lights, NBC 5 reported.
The Allied Pilots
Association, the union that represents the airline's pilots, questioned the
decision.
"This is certainly an area where we shouldn't be taking shortcuts," said Scott
Shankland of the Allied Pilots Association. "All the money you save in
shortcutting procedures will be wiped out if you have an incident."
The pilots union said moving planes in the dark without lights appears to be a
violation of FAA regulations. American Airlines and the FAA had not responded to
NBC 5's questions about the issue.
"These big planes can be hard to see at night and that could pose a problem,"
said DFW airport spokesman Ken Capps.
NBC 5 also learned that officials at DFW Airport sent a letter to American
Airlines in March asking the airline to get the planes lit. An airport official
wrote: "While we have had many meetings and e-mail discussions on this item
since last fall -- we have not had any substantial progress in meeting this
goal."
American Airlines declined an on-camera interview, but released a statement
saying: "American is working with the DFW airport and the FAA to ensure that the
tug and aircraft being towed are visible at night. How we will accomplish that
is being discussed."
After the near miss incident in April, DFW Airport officials ordered American
Airlines to park the tugs while the FAA investigates. The airline is still using
the tugs to pull planes at airports in Los Angeles, New York, San Francisco and
Miami.
"I'd like to see the aircraft lit. I want to be able to see it," Loewen said.
"That's how I do my job."
Source: NBC 5 DFW
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