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Controller asleep _ but how many did airport need?
WASHINGTON (AP) — Should jetliners be landing with only a single air traffic controller on duty — even if he's awake? Federal officials are grappling with that question following the safe landing of t . . . (flightaware.com) Daha Fazlası...Sort type: [Top] [Newest]
With two controllers at KDCA on the midnight shift they can take turns sleeping!
Fourth straight overnight shift!? No wonder he fell asleep!
Ronnie, I respectfully disagree. Working overnights is not nearly as hard as changing shifts. People have been doing shift work since the beginning of the Industrial Revolution...and for thousands of years if you include the night watchmen and soldiers. The problem comes if they work mixed shifts...day shift on Monday and Thursday but night on Tuesday. By the fourth night, the sleep schedule SHOULD have been adjusted. Something kept this controller awake the day before. The investigation will tell us what that was, and whether or not the controller should have called in sick as unable to perform the required duties with an adequate margin of safety.
I don't think the air traffic controller should lose his job because of this. He was clearly fatigued, and like Ronnie said, it was his 4th straight overnight shift. I think this is a learning experience for the ATC and aviation worlds. There are usually a lot of controllers in the tower during the daylight hours, due to high traffic, but at night, most airports don't get much action, if any. I do believe that there should be two or more controllers in the tower at night. It's all for pilots, passengers, and everyone’s safety.
Let me get this straight - 5 aircraft movements in 8 hours - I don't care what time of day it is, for a six figure salary, I'm your man!!
What a dream job this guy had, and now he blew it.
What a dream job this guy had, and now he blew it.
My understanding is that ATC “controls” flights to within plus/minus 10 miles of the airport. A tower controller is not necessary to further guide the flight to touchdown. A tower controller is necessary, however, to assure and proclaim to the flight’s crew that the active runway is free of obstruction (airport maintenance crews, tugs repositioning aircraft, company maintenance vehicles, cargo movement, and the like).
I may be naive, but *one* awake and alert tower controller should be able to ascertain and declare the runway to be clear, or not. If we’re looking for a “bad guy,” it seems to me staggered work shifts is a likely culprit. *Consistent* duty hours (e.g.,10pm - 6am) appears to be a good start to prevent recurring incidents. The unholy coupling of news outlets and politicians can only complicate an otherwise workable solution.
I may be naive, but *one* awake and alert tower controller should be able to ascertain and declare the runway to be clear, or not. If we’re looking for a “bad guy,” it seems to me staggered work shifts is a likely culprit. *Consistent* duty hours (e.g.,10pm - 6am) appears to be a good start to prevent recurring incidents. The unholy coupling of news outlets and politicians can only complicate an otherwise workable solution.