NAATS Press Release:

Post 9/11 - Still Standing

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Air Traffic Controllers, in towers and centers, continually monitor the skies for potential conflict. September 11th, 2001 a different type of conflict arose. The skies were the scene of the most horrendous acts this nation has experienced. We watched in horror as men, driven by fanatical zeal, used our own inventions against us.

Within seconds, the decision was made to clear the skies to prevent repetition. Within minutes hundreds of aircraft were instructed to �land immediately�, hundreds vectored to unintended airports, many were turned back at our nation�s borders. Within hours, the skies over the United States were empty of all but military aircraft �� but were they?

Thousands of pilots fly everyday without talking to the Air Traffic Controllers familiar to most -- flying from one uncontrolled airport to another. These are the private pilots who choose to fly on visual flight rules � some for business, some for pleasure. (The doctor visiting small communities; the rancher spraying his crops; or the helicopter rushing to the scene of an accident.)

When the command went out to shut down the skies, another group of controllers rose to the task. The 2800 �Other� Air Traffic Controllers in the Flight Service Stations (FSS) across this nation. Normally devoted to helping pilots avoid weather phenomena � more hazardous to aviation safety, than other traffic � the Flight Service controllers began to contact hundreds of airports and flight schools, advising them of the situation and soliciting their support in advising pilots. Broadcasts were made over aviation frequencies contacting pilots not normally talking to controllers. Hundreds of pilots were given the stunning command � �Proceed to the closest airport and land�.

With the military takeover of the skies, and all civilian aircraft grounded, the work of the tower and center controllers was limited. However, for the �other� controllers, the next few weeks and months became a nightmare. Across the country, thousands of pilots stranded in unfamiliar airports, far from home, looked to Flight Service for answers. With patience and dedication the already woefully understaffed FS Controllers scrambled for answers and tried to calm frustrated pilots.

In the words of one pilot:

�It had been a bad week for me, a far worse week for my country. After the holocaust that hit Manhattan and Washington Tuesday morning, I found myself, like countless Part 91 pilots grounded at Teterboro Airport. In an atmosphere where all negative rumors proved to be true and all hope of returning home vanished despair had settled over the forgotten.

It perhaps is not hard to understand, therefore, how much the professionalism and concern of the specialists at Millville Flight Service meant to the stranded flight crews at Teterboro and elsewhere. The simple fact that they listened sympathetically to our frustrations went a long way to relieving the anger that all of us began to feel about a seemingly uncaring and deaf bureaucracy. Throughout the ordeal the people of Millville FSS were friendly, helpful and caring. To all of us they were heroes.

Words are insufficient to express my gratitude to the many dedicated people that I spoke with at your organization this past week, but I did want to let them know that their many kindnesses were greatly appreciated.�

(Text of a letter sent to MIV FSS Manager, dated September 18, 2001.)

The answers changed hourly, while people, in agencies unfamiliar with the rugged individualism of the pilot community, struggled to reopen the skies yet maintain a firm grip on all activity. Plans were published, and then changed, often hours after FS controllers had already briefed hundreds of pilots. Still with solid determination, these controllers bore the brunt of the pilots� frustrations.

In the words of the FAA field managers:

�The events of September 11 have greatly increased the complexity of the national airspace system (NAS), significantly altering any evaluation of the services provided by the AFSS's. Although AFSS air traffic control specialists (ATCSs) have always provided safety critical services for NAS users, their services are currently even more essential for safe, secure, and efficient NAS operations in today's environment where new national aviation security measures are emerging.

General aviation pilots and airport operators were severely impacted by rapidly changing and often confusing airspace restrictions in the wake of September 11. The AFSS ATCS's were the FAA's primary communicators of this critical information to a stressed pilot community. The AFSS ATCS's familiarity with their flight plan areas enabled them to tailor the information for the individual pilots who called seeking assistance in understanding how the restrictions affected their specific location.�

(Quoted from the FAA Conference Managers Briefing Guide presented to Congress, March 2002.)

So how did FAA Administrator and Transportation Secretary show their appreciation for effort above? They doled out generic letters of appreciation, chintzy pins and meager time off awards. In some cases, thanks to bureaucratic snafus, many controllers didn�t even get those things until months later. It would be outrageous, were it not so pathetic.

In the months following the tragedy of September 11th misery piled up on overwork as budgets became strained to the breaking point by new security requirements. Yet FS controllers stayed the course and did their jobs, even with deteriorating equipment and conditions. How does the FAA show appreciation for their professionalism and dedication? Their lawyers did their best to belittle FS Controllers before the federal mediators and, to add insult to injury, FAA Headquarters insisted on sending A-76 evaluation teams into their facilities to determine how to most efficiently carve up their safety-related jobs for sale to the lowest bidder.

In the words of one proud Flight Service Controller, Elinormarie L. Morrissy:

Still here we stand. I said STAND. We haven�t laid down like whipped dogs and bared our throats in submission to the FAA. We�re still on the job, still working to ensure aviation safety, still explaining hazardous weather conditions, national security Notices to Airmen and myriad Temporary Flight Restrictions to the pilots we serve. We�re short-handed with fewer opportunities for breaks, but we�re still here in spite of the fact that FAA Headquarters personnel lack the management savvy to respect and appreciate valuable employees.

We too, are older and wiser, and if the FAA thinks we are going away without a fight, they are sorely mistaken.

(Eli Morrissy has been an air traffic control specialist for nearly 23 years, 17 of which were in the Flight Service option. She is also the editor of the NAATS News, the national newsletter for the National Association of Air Traffic Specialists (NAATS), the union which represents the flight service controllers serving pilots in the continental U.S., Alaska, Hawaii and Puerto Rico.)


For information on NAATS or to contact our Officers by email, visit https://www.naats.org

Contact:

Walter Pike, President (301) 933-6228
National Association of Air Traffic Specialists (NAATS)
11303 Amherst Avenue, Suite 4
Wheaton, MD 20902-3902

 

  1. TOGEL HONGKONG
  2. DATA SGP
  3. TOGEL SIDNEY
  4. DATA SGP
  5. TOGEL HK
  6. pengeluaran sdy