FAA buying runway warning system

The Federal Aviation Administration will purchase a ground radar system

in September that will alert controllers to impending collisions on or near

runways at 25 airports, the agency announced Monday.

ASDE-X will be designed for 25 airports that are not among the busiest

or most complex in the country, FAA said. The new system will provide data

similar to the ASDE-3 ground radar system that is installed at 34 of the

nation's busiest airports.

FAA Administrator Jane Garvey announced the upcoming contract for ASDE-X

at Monday's opening of the agency's Runway Safety National Summit in Washington,

D.C.

The announcement comes on the heels of a recent near-collision of a

U.S. Airways shuttle and a corporate turboprop this month at La Guardia

Airport in New York.

The 25 airports that will get ASDE-X were selected through a rigorous

safety risk assessment conducted by the FAA and Massachusetts Institute

of Technology, an FAA statement said. Garvey placed new emphasis on the

runway safety program last fall by elevating it to a higher level, providing

more resources and appointing a director of runway safety.