Transponders that may have helped locate the fire truck that collided with an Air Canada plane as it landed in New York will soon be installed on ground vehicles at the region’s three major airports.
The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey said Tuesday that tracking devices will be placed on fire trucks and other rescue vehicles. Transponders can provide air traffic controllers with more accurate information about vehicles and their locations by constantly sending signals to the control tower.
The National Transportation Safety Board noted the lack of transponders in a preliminary report it issued last week on March 22 accident At LaGuardia Airport. An Air Canada plane collided with a fire truck on the runway, killing two pilots and injuring several other people.
The air traffic controller allowed the vehicle to cross the runway. According to the report, The truck ran in front of red warning lights. There was also very heavy air traffic and an emergency involving another aircraft at the time.
LaGuardia Airport is one of 35 airports that have airport surface detection systems, known as ASDE-X. It combines radar data with information from transponders inside aircraft and ground vehicles with other data to create a display in the tower that shows controllers where each aircraft and vehicle is located. The system will also sound an alarm in the tower when it anticipates a potential collision.
The FAA recommended major airports across the country install the transponders and offered to help pay for them. Many airports have followed the directives.
James Allen, the Port Authority’s chief communications officer, said the agency has made “targeted investments in safety technology” for airport vehicles, including systems designed to track vehicle movements and support operator awareness across the airport. In addition to LaGuardia, the authority operates Kennedy Airport in New York and Newark Liberty Airport in northern New Jersey.
“We realize that transceiver technology can provide an additional layer of visibility on top of existing surface monitoring systems that already track ground movements,” Allen said. “We will continue to work closely with the NTSB as its investigation continues and will remain focused on working with the FAA to enhance safety across our airport operations.”