Canada transport safety agency flags concerns over record cases of runway incursions

CTV News chopper captures an upside down Delta Air Lines plane at Toronto Pearson airport, Tuesday, Feb. 18, 2025.

MONTREAL — Canada’s Transportation Safety Board on Wednesday flagged fresh concerns over near-misses between aircraft after cases of runway incursions in the country hit a record high last year, despite no recent cases of actual collisions.

The TSB called in its annual watch list for improved use of technology and infrastructure, after data from air traffic service provider NAV Canada showed runway incursions jumped to 639 last year from 566 in 2023, the largest number on record in the 15 years for which data are available.

A runway incursion is when an aircraft or vehicle is incorrectly present on a runway designated for the landing or take off of aircraft.

Over the last few years, a series of near-miss incidents has raised broader concerns over aviation safety in multiple countries, including the U.S., where there are also worries about the strain on understaffed air traffic control operations.

In February, a Southwest Airlines flight was less than 200 feet behind a business jet when the commercial airline pilot aborted the landing and made an emergency maneuver to narrowly avoid a collision at Chicago Midway Airport.

In early September, an Air Canada A220 jet taking off at Pearson International Airport had a near miss with a Bombardier business jet that was taxiing on the runway.

TSB Chair Yoan Marier said incursions are difficult to prevent because actions require multiple stakeholders such as airports and airlines.

“It’s a very complex issue to resolve,” he said in an interview.

Recent incidents are building pressure on aviation authorities to encourage the use of cockpit alert systems designed to prevent such incursionsas air traffic grows.

In the U.S., the National Transportation Safety Board has called for mandating surface alert technology that would prevent such incidents.

While Canada’s TSB has not made a formal recommendation, the agency has proposed actions like the use of cockpit alert systems and other technology, in addition to improved signage and lighting at airports.

“Cockpit alerting technologies, they’re one of the key components. And it’s something that we’d like to see implemented on a wider basis in Canada for sure. But it’s certainly not the only item.”

While the vast majority of runway incursions are not considered high risk, such incidents can turn deadly.

Last year, a Japan Airlines A350 jetliner collided with a Coast Guard turboprop aircraft at Tokyo’s Haneda airport, killing most of the crew on the smaller aircraft.

(Reporting by Allison Lampert in Montreal; Editing by Nia Williams and Nick Zieminski)