The air traffic controller involved in the radio silence incident at Reagan National Airport fell asleep as planes approached the airport for landing, the National Transportation Safety Board says.
The controller, who had 20 years experience, 17 of those at Reagan, told officials he had fallen asleep for a period of time while on duty, according to an NTSB statement. The controller was working his fourth consecutive overnight shift (10p-6a.) The NTSB says it has opened an investigation.
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You have to realize, these guys are only supposed to work a certain amount of time. Its one of the most involving and hard jobs on the planet..... these guys are only supposed to work 3-4 hours a day
Wow! What ever happened to accountability?All of you who say it's not his fault – if the planes had crashed and one of your loved ones was on one, would you still feel that way?
Working nights or days are fine as long as it is consistently one or the other. The body adapts. Being alone with know contingent employee...well that sounds like a recipe for disaster.
Too bad he didn't of the only excuse that helped me retake a missed college final: "I had severe runs and couldn't leave the bathroom." His honesty will of course go punished, but at the same time, the former excuse is a real possibility. But ultimately, the system is faulty: There should ALWAYS be at least 2 people on duty covering any equipment necessary to ensure safety of people's lives.
"Wow! What ever happened to accountability?All of you who say it's not his fault – if the planes had crashed and one of your loved ones was on one, would you still feel that way?"
No. Well, maybe at first. But honestly, if the job is that "life and death", why was only one person in there? What happens if he had a heart attack? Who would be at fault then? The fact is that the job must require more than one person on shift at all times, I can't imagine it any other way. So if someone has to go to the bathroom, gets sick, falls asleep, etc, etc, etc, there is backup. Not to mention the hinted at scheduling issues.
One air traffic controller on duty? Are you kidding? Does that mean this air traffic controller was the only person in the tower? Aside from falling asleep, a person can collapse or die at any given moment. The lack of redundancy should be paid for by management not this person.
There's LOTS of redundancy in ATC, and controller failure, radio failure, radar failure, everything is expected and planned for.
These comments make me realize how many crazy morons read CNN. Think before you post. Idiots.
Millions of Americans work at night. They are able to get there jobs done. This person had a enornous responsibility. He had 17 yrs. He understood his role. He is to BLAME plain and simple.
Apples oranges. ANYONE who does a routine for 17 years is not going to adjust to a completely different sleep cycle in 4 days and be on top of their game.
"controller was working his fourth consecutive overnight shift". Heads up: Working a different shift for 4 days consecutive suggests the controller had time to adjust to the sked change and be fit for duty. Thankfully, pilots work uncontrolled towers and more important...no one decided to breach that special airspace. Bet the bad guys are saying "Darn, we could have hit a target". Worse news...someone broadcast that this has happened before in the past and it is on YouTube. Tighten this up people. Tthe world is watching.
LOL... Let's see if you can adjust to night shift in four days from working days hift for 17 YEARS. You're lying to yourself if you think its easy.
The body naturally wants to be awake during the day, so I see 4 night shifts in a row tough. Not to mention an Aircontroller is one of the most stressful jobs out there. Luckily the planes made it safely to the landing strip.
Of COURSE the planes made it safely. its not like every plane that tries to lands on a runway automatically crashes if someone isnt in the tower talking to them. There are many small, unmonitored airports where planes use basic visual and radar procedures to land safely by themselves.
At first my response was can the guy, then I started thinking. Not that I wasn't thinking before, but just a bit more logically. After 20 years at this job, he likely is very good at what he does. I believe his experience and wisdom at controlling the sky's is not up for argument. Now for the infraction; falling asleep on the job isn't a good thing period, especially when lives depend on your functioning mind. However I see a much more serious problem with someone deciding having only one controller in the tower was acceptable. Hell the guy could have died with the same potential result. The ones ultimately responsible should be those who make the rules, not so much the one who's now becoming a victim of poor planning.
He wasn't working alone,was he? Where was everyone else? Were they asleep too?
Yes, everyone else was asleep too. And they still are.
Now, go back and re-read the whole story.
I worked night shift for a number of years. I am thankful i know longer have to do that. My favorite were the people who would always seem to call or show up at my house around noon (the middle of my night) and ask in dismay " you're still sleeping?' Yeah, just got to bed about 3 hours ago. I finally remedied the situation by calling those people around 3 or 4 in the morning from work, and asking if they were still sleeping. They finally got it then.
Lisa, been there done that.
If this guy was working as a controller for 20 years I would think he'd have seniority. If not, they have to rotate shifts and that's harder than working the same shift.
They should have two people on duty.
In a tea-bag run American, expect to see more incidents like this. This type of incident makes one think about the repercussions of budget austerity and union-busting.
Thank-you, I'll be glad to expect more incidents like this. Mistake made. No safety threat whatsoever. Backup systems (appch controllers and pilots) worked perfectly. No money wasted on multiple controllers to control 2 aircraft every 15 mins. (none required at all, actually, if it weren't downtown DC). Libtards screaming their heads off at nothing: annoying, but completely expected.
When I was in navy, we work like 100 days straight night shift from 7a to like 8:30pm, do we complain? NO.
And? Do a day shift for 17 years straight then move to night shift and see how you adjust.
@GT In the military? Gee what are the chances of that happening...