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Are pilots looking outside the cockpit windows anymore? After a recent trio of some very close calls at our nation's busiest airports, I'm starting to think they're not.

I'll never forget the words from my instructor: "Always look out on final approach before taking the runway. Always look both ways before crossing, even if you're cleared. Always."

Bottom line: trust only yourself.

Well, in three similar cases in recent months, the pilots of packed commercial jetliners apparently failed to do just that, and narrowly avoided disaster.

CASE #1: Honolulu International Airport, May 2007... A military C-130 transport missed a turn on a taxiway and ended-up on a collision course with a go! Airlines CRJ roaring down the runway for take-off. An on-the-ball controller caught the mistake and told the transport to stop. The planes missed each other by 150 feet.

Shouldn't one of those military pilots have had their head on a swivel? Regardless if they were headed in the wrong direction, I think it would be hard to miss a CRJ landing light headed your way in clear weather. Not looking outside.

CASE #2: San Francisco International Airport, May 2007... A Skywest Airlines turboprop was cleared to land on runway 28R. Moments later, the tower cleared a Republic Airlines regional jet to take-off on the crossing runway, 1R, sending the two planes on a collision course. A computer caught the conflict, and the controller told the landing turboprop to "HOLD, HOLD, HOLD!" It did, but it stopped just in the path of the RJ, whose pilot quickly rotated the jet, clearing the Skywest flight by as little as 30 feet. (Read more in the NTSB report)

So, it looks like the controller will officially be faulted in this case. But wait a minute. What about looking outside? If I'm cleared to take-off, you better believe I'm going to check for traffic on a crossing runway. Likewise, if I'm landing, I'll be watching the crossing runway for anything unusual - in case I need to go-around. Not looking outside.

CASE #3: Ft. Lauderdale-Hollywood Airport, July 2007... A United A320 strays onto a runway just in front of a landing Delta 757. The controller tells UAL pilot to "STOP, STOP, STOP" and the Delta pilot to go-around. The aircraft miss each other by 100 feet. (Read more in the NTSB report)

Again, what in the world is the crew of the United A320 doing? Even if they're lost, isn't one of the pilots looking for traffic? Again, not looking outside.

So where are these crews looking? The modern cockpit has so many new toys, buttons, knobs, dials, moving maps and flat-screens - with so much information about where they are, and where they're headed - why would you need to look anywhere else? And therein lies the problem.

Too much trust on the inside. Too few eyeballs on the outside.

Article by Chris Archer; Send him an email