Runway Incursions, the Three Mistakes That Happen Before the Wheels Ever Leave the Ground, and What the FAA's Latest Surface Safety Push Means for Every Pilot

The FAA has reported an uptick in runway incursion events across both towered and non-towered airports in its most recent reporting cycles - reversing years of gradual improvement. Runway incursions have appeared on the NTSB’s most wanted safety list in various forms for decades, and the gap between a near-miss and a catastrophe is typically measured in seconds and feet. Understanding where incursions actually originate is the most direct path to preventing them.

Why Runway Incursions Are Getting Attention Again

After sustained improvement at towered fields, the FAA’s surface safety data now shows incursion events trending upward again. The overwhelming majority do not end in accidents - but the ones that do tend to be catastrophic. The FAA’s active Runway Safety Program is responding with a campaign targeting the three root causes most commonly behind these events.

The Three Places Incursions Actually Start

1. Loss of situational awareness during taxi

The mechanism is subtle. A pilot correctly reads back a taxi clearance to runway 28 left, knows the airport well, and then gets a one-second distraction - a buzzing phone, a passenger question, a glance at the avionics. That single redirect of attention is where hold short instructions get missed, or a runway that “felt already past” turns out not to be.

FAA surface safety analysis identifies familiarity as a contributing factor, not a protection. Familiar environments reduce vigilance. Repetition without incident gradually lowers the brain’s threat threshold. This is a documented human factors effect, not a personal failing - but it requires active countermeasures.

2. Ambiguous or misheard ATC clearances

Ground frequency is one of the most demanding radio environments in aviation, particularly at busy airports. Multiple aircraft, overlapping readbacks, and frequency congestion create the conditions for the readback-hearback problem: a pilot catches part of a transmission, the brain fills in what seems logical, and the pilot believes they hold a clearance they do not actually have.

The fix is mechanical and non-negotiable. If there is any uncertainty about whether a clearance was yours and was complete, ask. Every time. The few seconds that takes are not worth the alternative.

3. Non-towered airport procedure breakdown

At a towered field, a second set of eyes is actively sequencing surface traffic. At a non-towered airport, pilots rely on the CTAF and the assumption that everyone is doing their job. When that breaks down - no position calls, an aircraft missed on scan, a runway crossing that seemed logical because the pilot heard no traffic - it tends to break down quietly, with no radio warning and very little reaction time.

General aviation pilots represent the majority of traffic at non-towered fields, which makes honest self-assessment here especially important.

What the FAA’s Current Surface Safety Campaign Recommends

The FAA’s active campaign identifies three primary defense layers:

Airport diagrams. Pull the current diagram before you start moving, not after confusion sets in. ForeFlight, Garmin Pilot, and the chart supplement all carry them. Treat the diagram as a pre-taxi checklist item, not a reference you reach for when already uncertain.

Sterile cockpit discipline during taxi. Borrowed from Part 121 airline operations, where non-essential conversation and task switching are prohibited below 10,000 feet, the GA equivalent is straightforward: once you acknowledge a taxi clearance, your full attention goes to the taxi. Not the avionics. Not the passenger. Not the run-up items waiting at the hold short line.

Progressive taxi requests. This option is significantly underutilized. At an unfamiliar airport, at night, or any time the routing feels complex, pilots can ask ground control to walk them through each turn. There is no professional penalty for requesting this. ATC is equipped to provide it, and the only pilots who hesitate are those who haven’t yet had a confusing taxi experience at a complex airport after dark.

Hot Spots: A Pre-Flight Step Worth Five Minutes

The FAA’s Runway Safety Program at faa.gov publishes airport hot spot information - specific surface locations where incursion risk is elevated due to confusing taxiway geometry, restricted sightlines, or historical incident patterns. Major airports have these mapped and labeled directly on FAA diagrams.

Before flying into a new Class B or Class C airport with complex surface geometry, reviewing the hot spot overlay is a short pre-flight action with outsized safety value.

Why This Matters for Every Pilot

Runway incursions happen to experienced pilots as often as to students - not because experienced pilots are careless, but because experience creates the repetition that erodes vigilance. Any pilot operating at an airport with a paved surface and other aircraft in the area is in scope for this risk.

Key Takeaways

• The FAA has reported an uptick in runway incursions at both towered and non-towered airports in recent reporting cycles, reversing prior improvements.
• The three primary causes are distraction during taxi, misheard or ambiguous ATC clearances, and non-towered airport procedure failures.
• Familiarity with an airport increases incursion risk rather than reducing it, due to reduced vigilance - a documented human factors effect.
• The FAA recommends pre-taxi airport diagram review, sterile cockpit discipline during ground operations, and progressive taxi requests at complex or unfamiliar fields.
• Hot spot overlays at faa.gov identify specific high-risk surface locations at major airports and should be part of any pre-flight review before entering unfamiliar complex airspace.