FAA is Laying Out Steps for Air Traffic Controllers To Avoid More Close Calls (cnn.com) 21
The head of the nation's air traffic controllers said there have been too many near collisions at airports and laid out steps to avoid more -- including more supervisor oversight in control towers and extra controller training for "unusual circumstances." From a report: "Even though we all know that multiple levels of safety are built into our system, there is no question that we are seeing too many close calls," said Tim Arel, chief operating officer of the Federal Aviation Administration's Air Traffic Organization. The five steps laid out Thursday by Arel in an agency-wide memo follow last week's FAA safety summit focusing on the recent series of near collisions involving commercial airliners on or near the runways of US airports. The National Transportation Safety Board is investigating six incidents this year alone. "Our dedication to continuous improvement demands that we dig deep to identify the underlying factors and address them," Arel said. "With the summer travel season just around the corner, airlines and the traveling public have high expectations."
The steps laid out in the memo direct supervisors to "devote their full attention to the operation and airfield during peak traffic periods at each facility" and instruct improvements to training. The memo notes simulator training for controllers was "last updated in 2016." Additional safety steps include working with the National Air Traffic Controllers Association to reinforce existing safety protocols and reexamining runway incursion data "to identify underlying factors that led to these close calls and identify remedies." The most serious types of near-collisions on US runways this year are about double the rate seen in the past, Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said Thursday. "In past years, they've occurred at roughly a rate of once per month," he told a Senate committee. "Right now, they are this year occurring at a rate that is double that. "Buttigieg spoke specifically about the two most serious categories of runway incursions and said there's a "definite increase."
The steps laid out in the memo direct supervisors to "devote their full attention to the operation and airfield during peak traffic periods at each facility" and instruct improvements to training. The memo notes simulator training for controllers was "last updated in 2016." Additional safety steps include working with the National Air Traffic Controllers Association to reinforce existing safety protocols and reexamining runway incursion data "to identify underlying factors that led to these close calls and identify remedies." The most serious types of near-collisions on US runways this year are about double the rate seen in the past, Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said Thursday. "In past years, they've occurred at roughly a rate of once per month," he told a Senate committee. "Right now, they are this year occurring at a rate that is double that. "Buttigieg spoke specifically about the two most serious categories of runway incursions and said there's a "definite increase."
And these are professionals (Score:2)
Anyone sane will know a future where everyone has a flying car is impossible.
Re: (Score:2)
"Flying cars" would be done with more modern technology. Aircraft today have technology for guidance that was created over the last 50 years (some older), and which is expensive to modify/replace.
A vehicle that can vary its speed AND vertical position in smaller increments could be a great advantage. Modern aircraft... not so much.
We have much tech available to us, but there is much old tech that needs to be handled, too. If there were a real push to update tech and remove the old stuff, most of the current
Are they going to hire more of them? (Score:5, Insightful)
ATC work is a lot more frantic and stressful than a pilot's. They too should have strict limits to make sure they are not fatigued.
We have NIMBYs and BANANAs who have curtailed air port construction and expansions. We have over crowded airports.
There should be strict limits on how many runways/taxiways/plane are controlled / tracked by one controller. Without addressing the root cause, calling for more training is just CMA response from FAA.
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As for NIMBY, well I am a NIMAS (..air space). Just had three planes fly overhead basically one right after another. Get those muffler rules tightened up too. You are right, I don't fly and have no need to do so.
-Get off my lawn
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No, what we need is more efficient and faster air traffic control. Get those jets moving around the runways and taxiways as fast as we can, so we can get more planes in the air faster and cut people's travel times. What's the worst that can happen?
(BRB, have to answer a call -- does anybody know where Tenerife [wikipedia.org] is or why they would be calling me?)
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"ATC work is a lot more frantic and stressful than a pilot's. They too should have strict limits to make sure they are not fatigued."
The FAA already has limits on ATC hours, such as not shift longer than 10 hours, minimum 9 hours between shifts, etc.: https://www.bls.gov/ooh/transp... [bls.gov]
Once again, we have people with no idea what the rules are but who are absolutely sure the rules are wrong.
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Step One (Score:4, Insightful)
Fire Pete Buttigieg and replace him with someone that knows what he is doing.
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Pete Buttigieg is not directing traffic an any airport.
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Pete Buttigieg is not directing traffic an any airport.
Well, at least we have something to be thankful for.
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Meir Pete knows what he is doing: grooming his image for future runs for office. You didn't seriously think he was put in that position to actually do something relative to aviation, or any other form of transportation, did you?
His expertise, as far as transportation is concerned, as he has demonstrated repeatedly, is applying the dogma of equity and diversity and inclusion to transportation.
Howsabout... (Score:1)
PAY FUCKING ATTENTION!
Control by fuzzy radio (Score:3)
In the episodes of near misses I have come across, it seems that they are directing planes by radio voice commands and the radio messages are very fuzzy. I don't see how anyone can reliably understand the voice commands.
ProTip: They have this new fangled technology which includes GPS and digital messaging which it seems would give clear instructions as well as immediate feedback on plane positions. They could even put together some software which would alert people when a plane was doing something stupid.
- just a suggestion
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Re: Control by fuzzy radio (Score:2)
It seems that FlightRadar and FlightTrack show ground positions but ATC doesn't use these.
Man, what reason could there POSSIBLY be? (Score:2)
I mean, it's not like ATCs work 10-hour days, or that the job requires actually paying attention for *all* of that time.
And it's definitely not that the FAA decided to cut costs after Covid hit and stopped training ATCs, so that staffing levels are at the bare minimum everywhere and there isn't even the *option* of sane schedules.
Yeah, I see no connection between those things and an increase in near-collisions. Definitely not. Guess this post should be modded Off-Topic...
too busy (Score:2)
Listen to all the ATC tapes. The root problem is that there is too much going on at once, and ATC operates just like it did in 1950: voice communications over noisy radio channels. Even the best human is going to make mistakes under these conditions.
There are just too many planes operating at the same time at these airports. This is the fault of the FAA, who has awarded too many slots at these busy airports.