Rep. Doggett's Statement on Ongoing Investigation of February Near-Collision at ABIA

Since October, the Congressman has urged the Federal Aviation Administration to address ongoing issues at Austin’s airport with more air traffic control staff and updated safety equipment.

Austin, TX—Today, U.S. Representative Lloyd Doggett (D-Austin) released the following statement regarding the release of a public docket of material generated in the investigation being conducted by the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), an independent federal investigative agency, on the February 2023 incident involving a near-collision between a FedEx and Southwest plane at Austin-Bergstrom International Airport (ABIA):

“This NTSB investigative file shows how very close we came to an alarming catastrophe with more than a hundred deaths. It shows our air traffic controllers are overworked, overwhelmed, and understaffed.”

“While encouraged in my recent meeting with the new Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Administrator Mike Whitaker by his willingness to prioritize ABIA for new safety equipment and controller training, much more is needed. To assure our airport is safe we need more air traffic controllers sooner to relieve those currently subject to mandatory, unsustainable six-day work weeks. Trainees are not a substitute for facility-certified controllers to work the ABIA tower. I am pleased that Administrator Whitaker will be personally visiting ABIA in a few weeks and will continue working with the FAA to ensure we have the proper training, resources, and staffing to strengthen public safety at our international gateway for people and businesses.”

Background:

• On October 16, following concerning reports of near misses threatening passenger and staff safety, Rep. Doggett urged the FAA to take a number of steps to address air traffic safety at ABIA. The full text of the letter can be found here.
• During an Austin City Council meeting on November 9, local officials passed a resolution joining Rep. Doggett’s call for FAA action to improve safety.
• On November 15, Rep. Doggett met with FAA Administrator Mike Whitaker to reiterate his concerns and call for action.
• On November 17, the FAA announced actions to enhance air traffic controller training and safety, including the deployment of tower simulator systems with Austin receiving the first simulator in January 2024. The FAA also committed to deploying a surface surveillance system to ABIA by June 2024 as part of its Surface Awareness Initiative.

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