Sleeping' US air traffic controller suspended

By: Hand87_5 - 25th March 2011 at 12:44 Permalink - Edited 1st January 1970 at 01:00

I just can't believe that only one controller was on duty!!!!
Greed....... as usual.

By: nJayM - 16th April 2011 at 00:40 Permalink - Edited 1st January 1970 at 01:00

This may shed some light on the fact that this isn't an isolated incident

This may shed some light on the fact that this isn't an isolated incident
FAA chief resigns over controllers sleeping on job
http://www.cbc.ca/news/world/story/2011/04/14/aviation-resign.:mad:

By: ST-21 - 22nd April 2011 at 02:24 Permalink - Edited 1st January 1970 at 01:00

I just can't believe that only one controller was on duty!!!!
Greed....... as usual.

As there have been more incidents, let me throw this in:

One of those things that isn't often discussed is that if the traffic is so low that one controller in the tower is sufficient, in reality it's so low that no controller is needed. However, the major airlines insist that there be a controller present when their planes come in, and the FAA generally does what they want. That's why you see towers open even if there are only three flights in six hours. A 2nd factor is it's more prestigious for a tower to be open 24 hours, so the locals push to have 24 hour towers at their airport. It's the FAA, though, not local authorities, that ultimately decides the hours of operation.

It's not just the late night shifts and the quick turnaround (note that one of the FAA's fixes is that instead of bringing a controller back after eight hours, they'll make the dramatic change of bringing one back after nine hours). It's also that the shifts rotate within the same workweek, the days off also rotate --and there can be a good deal of mandatory overtime. Now mix this with a situation where there is absolutely nothing happening for hours. It's night, there's no one else there and you're not allowed to listen to the radio or anything like that to help stay awake. This still does not excuse falling asleep, but it does help to identify causal factors.

The FAA is saying that one of their solutions is to have Management on during parts of those shifts, but don't forget that in at least one case the somnolent controller was a supervisor. Additionally, while they are saying they will have more people on that shift now, they're also saying they won't increase staffing. This probably means one thing-- more mandatory overtime.