Chris Sununu, chief executive officer of Airlines for America, said to Congress that hundreds of close-call incidents occur every day in U.S. aviation [1].

These warnings highlight a potential systemic failure in air traffic safety and pressure lawmakers to fund urgent infrastructure and technology upgrades. The testimony follows a series of recent aviation incidents that have raised public concern over flight security.

Sununu testified before the U.S. Congress to urge the approval of additional safety measures. He said there are "hundreds" of close calls every day [1]. These near-miss incidents involve aircraft coming dangerously close to one another in the air or on runways.

According to Sununu, the reported numbers only scratch the surface of the problem. He said there are "thousands" more near-misses in the United States than are ever widely reported [2]. This gap in reporting suggests that the actual frequency of dangerous encounters is significantly higher than official records indicate.

Sununu's testimony emphasizes the need for immediate intervention to prevent these close calls from becoming fatal accidents. The call for safety upgrades comes as the industry seeks to modernize aging systems to handle current traffic volumes, a necessity for maintaining passenger trust.

While the industry has established protocols for reporting incidents, the volume of unreported near-misses indicates a need for more robust monitoring. Sununu said the current situation requires a coordinated effort between the airline industry and federal regulators to implement new safety standards [1].

“There are "hundreds" of close calls every day.”

The admission from a top industry leader that thousands of aviation near-misses go unreported suggests a critical transparency gap in U.S. airspace safety. If the volume of close calls is significantly higher than official data suggests, it indicates that current safety margins are thinner than previously understood, shifting the conversation from occasional anomalies to a systemic risk requiring legislative funding.