Mid-Air Near-Collisions Are a New Worry for FAA, Travelers

Today's New York Post reports the Department of Transportation has launched an investigation into a spike of near-collisions in the air over JFK, Newark and La Guardia airports.Those incidents have generated alarm as airlines predict a record summer for travel.Planes are supposed to be three miles from each other, but aircraft got as close as 500 feet on five occasions just in the month of May.Air-traffic controllers say they are understaffed and overworked all over the country.In the age of global positioning satellites, they have World War II-era radar to keep track of planes in the air. How much change is needed? How soon?Would moving too fast endanger a system that still boasts a remarkable record for safety?