The crowded air corridors

Press, 17 September 1976, Page 12

The crowded air corridors

The mid-air collision between a Yugoslav DC9 and a British Airways Trident near Zagreb last Friday is a tragic reminder that even the sky is becoming a crowded place. Every year more aircraft are carrying greater loads at faster speeds. They are creating congestion not only within the control zones of the world’s busiest airports but also along the principal corridors along which commercial air traffic is channelled. The congestion is particularly bad over the United States and across the lower half of Europe from the Middle East to England. Although aircraft are separated by Internationally accepted safety margins, the high speeds at which they cruise — about a mile every six seconds — afford little room for error. Jet aircraft approaching head-on can close a gap of 10 miles in half a minute. A Boeing 737

flying south over Ashburton and another passing north over Timaru at the same time would meet 112 seconds later over the Rangitata River.

Fortunately there is little likelihood of a mid-air collision occurring in New Zealand, mainly because of the high standards demanded of — and met by — our pilots and air traffic controllers. The sky above New Zealand is not as congested as that above some countries. And there is not the problem of understanding English that pilots experience when trying to communicate with ground controllers in certain areas overseas. But these factors should leave no room for complacency and the Government must ensure that the latest and most sophisticated electronic aids are always available to the men who have contributed to this country’s record of air safety.