air traffic controllers

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Air Traffic Control Slip-Up Almost Caused Disaster

Paris controller cleared planes to take off, land on same runway

(Newser) - Air safety investigators in France say a number of factors almost caused a disaster at the country's biggest airport last year—including the fact that an air traffic controller was out of practice due to reduced flights during the pandemic. According to a report released Tuesday, a United Airlines...

Air Traffic Controllers Hear Threat to Fly Plane Into US Capitol

Message alleges that attack will come Wednesday to avenge assassinated Iranian general Soleimani

(Newser) - A year after a US drone strike killed Iranian general Qasem Soleimani , air traffic controllers in New York heard a chilling threat to Washington, DC. "We are flying a plane into the Capitol Wednesday. Soleimani will be avenged," said the digitized voice recording , obtained by CBS News . It...

All Flights to Belgium Canceled for 24 Hours

Strike shuts down country's airspace

(Newser) - Nobody is going to be flying in or out of Belgium on Wednesday—at least not on commercial aircraft. All flights have been canceled for 24 hours amid a general strike by public transport workers, whose unions are calling for wage increases and have rejected a proposal of a 0....

Aviation Unions on Shutdown: We Can't Calculate the Risk

Reps for air traffic controllers, pilots, flight attendants say air safety system 'deteriorating'

(Newser) - Is it still safe to fly during the government shutdown? That's a question with a potentially uncomfortable answer, at least according to the unions representing more than 130,000 pilots, flight attendants, and air traffic controllers, per the New York Times . In a statement , the presidents of the three...

Canadians Send Pizza to Air Traffic Controllers Hit by Shutdown

They've treated at least 49 units

(Newser) - Air traffic controllers in the US are working without pay because of the government shutdown—but thanks to their counterparts north of the border, many of them aren't working without pizza. Canadian air traffic controllers, who regularly communicate with American controllers in neighboring sectors, have been organizing the delivery...

FAA: Air Traffic Controller Slurred Words, Went Dark

Officials are trying to figure out what went wrong at McCarran International Airport

(Newser) - Federal and airport authorities said Friday they're investigating why an air traffic controller became incapacitated and went silent while working a night shift alone in the tower at the busy McCarran International Airport in Las Vegas. "No safety events occurred during this incident," the FAA said in...

Air Traffic Controller Dies Helping Plane Take Off
Air Traffic
Controller
Dies a Hero

Air Traffic Controller Dies a Hero

Anthonius Gunawan Agung stayed in the tower despite Indonesian earthquake

(Newser) - After Indonesia's Friday earthquake , an air traffic controller sacrificed his life to help get an airplane off the ground. Anthonius Gunawan Agung, 21, was alone in the control tower at Mutiara Sis Al Jufri Airport in the coastal city of Palu after the 7.5-magnitude temblor sent his colleagues...

Air Traffic Controller Accused of Having Weapon of Mass Destruction

North Carolina man faces multiple charges

(Newser) - An air traffic controller accused of possessing a weapon of mass destruction has lost his airport access and could lose his freedom as well. George Dandan, who worked at Charlotte Douglas International Airport in North Carolina, was arrested Friday and charged with possession of a weapon of mass destruction, acquiring...

Trump Has Plan for Big Changes to Air Traffic Control

He wants privatization, separation from FAA

(Newser) - President Trump plans to lay out his vision for overhauling the nation's air traffic control system on Monday, outlining his goals to privatize the system in a White House speech. Trump will push for the separation of air traffic control operations from the Federal Aviation Administration, embracing an approach...

Air Traffic Controller to Cops: I Stay Awake On Meth

Breen Peck gets arrested on Long Island

(Newser) - "That’s meth, I smoke it to stay awake, I’m an air traffic controller." That's what cops say 52-year-old Breen Peck told them when he was pulled over Wednesday night on Long Island for failure to signal and having illegally tinted windows, Newsday reports. Peck—who...

Air Traffic Controllers Suffer Scary Sleep Deprivation

The AP has results of a study faulting grueling schedules

(Newser) - An FAA study about the nation's air traffic controllers suggests two big takeaways: They need more sleep and saner schedules. The AP obtained a draft report of a study that the agency has been keeping secret for about four years, perhaps so passengers wouldn't be worrying about stats...

Congress OKs Bill to Fix Air Travel Delays
Congress OKs Bill
to Fix Air Travel Delays
UPDATED

Congress OKs Bill to Fix Air Travel Delays

Measure will stop furloughs of air traffic controllers

(Newser) - Congress today easily approved legislation ending furloughs of air traffic controllers that have delayed hundreds of flights daily. The House approved the measure on a 361-41 vote, one day after the Senate unanimously agreed to the bill. The measure doesn't give the FAA more money, but allows it to...

Senate Backs Measure to Halt FAA Furloughs
 Senate OKs Airport-Delay Fix 

Senate OKs Airport-Delay Fix

Bill scores unanimous support

(Newser) - The Senate has come together to battle the flight delays plaguing the nation. All 100 senators signed off on legislation letting the Transportation Department transfer $253 million to the FAA operations account, in an effort to end air traffic controller furloughs, Politico reports. "Tonight we worked together in the...

And the Airport Delays Begin...
 And the Airport Delays Begin... 
thanks, sequester

And the Airport Delays Begin...

Air traffic controllers, TSA workers, customs workers go on furlough

(Newser) - Here we go: Those promised airport delays , the result of furloughs caused by the sequester, have arrived. All three major NYC-area airports saw flights falling behind schedule yesterday and, as the Washington Post puts it, air traffic controllers "never caught up," with delays clocking in at between one...

Sequester's Bite: 173 Air Traffic Control Towers to Close

Despite efficiency, contract towers bear brunt of cuts

(Newser) - OK, maybe the sequester hasn't hit the airline industry just yet, but wait until April 7. That's when 173 air traffic control towers at small- and medium-sized airports around the nation will close; 16 more will be shuttered on Sept. 30. As CNN explains, the affected towers are...

Details Revealed of Near-Collision Close to JFK

Controller error almost caused catastrophe

(Newser) - Investigators have released chilling details of a near-catastrophe close to New York City's JFK airport early last year . An American Airlines Boeing 777 came within seconds of crashing into an Air Force C-17 cargo plane because of mistakes and miscommunications by air traffic controllers, the report found. The cargo...

Triple Plane Crash Averted at Last Minute in DC

FAA investigating

(Newser) - Federal investigators are probing a near-midair collision of three commuter jets at Washington's Reagan National Airport that was averted at the last minute. The jets were seconds away from crashing after air traffic controllers launched two outbound flights directly into the path of a third plane coming in to...

Oops: Tokyo Blogger Posts Flight Plan of Air Force One

Air traffic controller apparently just wanted to impress friends

(Newser) - An air traffic controller in Tokyo is in hot water after posting secret information on his blog, including the flight plan of Air Force One when President Obama visited last year. The controller apparently wasn't looking to cause trouble but to impress his friends with all the cool stuff...

Michelle Obama Plane Has Close Call After Gaffe

Runway mistake blamed on air traffic controller

(Newser) - The latest air traffic controller's gaffe is sure to get the attention of the White House. A plane carrying Michelle Obama and Jill Biden had to abort its landing at Andrews Air Force Base at the last minute yesterday because it would have been way too close to a...

Air Traffic Controller Caught Watching Movie on the Job

For three minutes, planes heard Samuel L. Jackson instead of instructions

(Newser) - Note to air traffic controllers: Watching a DVD at work may help to keep you awake, but ultimately it's not much better than napping. A controller in Oberlin, Ohio, learned that lesson the hard way early Sunday, when his microphone was accidentally activated and began transmitting the audio from...

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