I'm starting to think that it's going to take a mid-air or runway collision for critical upgrades to be made to LAX runways and Southern California's overburdened air traffic control system.

The string of near misses grew longer this week, with an air traffic controller error that brought two planes dangerously close together (love how the National Air Traffic Controllers Association representative shrugged the incident off with a dismissive "Hey, everybody makes mistakes!"), all at or near an airport which "enjoyed" a 4-year streak as the near-miss capital of the world.

Now, of course, the incident has become fodder for a dispute between the air traffic controllers and the FAA over staffing levels. Finger pointing, however, will not solve the problem, and I certainly hope air traffic controllers realize that sympathy for them in the event of a fatal accident will be minimal, at best.

Regardless, we can't continue to rely on luck to prevent loss of life. Let's not forget, a runway collision has happened at LAX once before.

For a grim reminder of the stakes involved click here.  ¶ 9:41 AM