WHO NEEDS CONTROL Too few air traffic controllers

Posted on 01/29/2016

Not the most upbeat news to absorb with your morning coffee, but here goes – a US government watchdog says there are too few fully qualified controllers at more than a dozen air traffic facilities stretching from Miami to Anchorage. And if you think they mean places like Boise or Duluth, guess again. 

A report released Tuesday by the Transportation Department's inspector general says the 13 airport towers, approach control facilities and en route centres have fewer fully trained controllers than the minimum number established by the Federal Aviation Administration. The FAA considers the facilities fully staffed because controllers still in training are used to fill in the gaps. But the report also says there is great variation among trainee skill levels and readiness to work on their own. Many trainees need fully qualified controllers to sit alongside and watch while they direct air traffic, ready to step in if there is a problem. It also questions the validity of the minimum staffing levels the FAA has assigned to the facilities, finding fault with the agency's methodology. It noted that some managers at the facilities cited a higher number of controllers are needed to fill all work shifts than the FAA's designated minimum number of personnel for that facility. Now, just in case you think the problem exists in just those small out-of-the-way facilities, sit down sip that coffee or perhaps something stronger (yes, even before noon) and then check the lucky 13 (alphabetically listed): 1. The Anchorage tower/approach control2. Atlanta approach control3. Chicago approach control4. Chicago's O'Hare tower5. Denver approach control6. Dallas approach control7. Houston approach control8. New York's John F. Kennedy tower9. New York's approach control10. New York's high altitude traffic center11. Las Vegas' approach control12. Miami's tower13. Albuquerque's high altitude traffic center. Doesn't that make you feel all safe and warm?