Recent Clips

In case you missed these, here are a few more proof-points concerning the collasal failure that is the Blakey-Sturgell years at FAA.  In this piece it is revealed that the FAA at virtually all levels approved a nice little extortion-blackmail scheme whereby the fox guarding the henhouse was given free clucking lessons.

This story, originally appearing in the New York Times and now propagating all over the country, pretty much confirms the death of Bobby Sturgells' nomination as FAA Administrator. 

And in another discovered blog is even more proof that the FAA is playing "Three Card Monte" with the American public when it comes to staffing our nation's air traffic control system. 

Those inside the system know it's only a matter of time, folks.  And they wonder:  Why don't those outside the system (but inside the flying Pringles-tubes full of jet fuel) give a damn?

Comments

[michael]

Short of a major disaster, the only way those outside the system will give a damn is if those inside stand up collectively. This is not 1981. It is an ideal time to act because we have the weakest president in history and a public desparate for change. It is a complete failure of union leadership on this. If the focus had been on safety and not trying to get the congress to overturn Blakey's IWRs, things would be different. I am tired of hearing how controllers are afraid for their jobs while continuing to do nothing is thinning the ranks and putting the flying public at risk. Stop mourning and organize. If NATCA won't do it, find new leadership.

[NotFlyingAnytimeSoon]

What a nightmare.

[palmer]

Thank you, Michael. Finally, some words of wisdom.

What a horrible time we live in when men await a "pink mist" to relieve them of their problems. Do you want dead grandmother's and babies' blood on your restored paycheck? Why should innocent people pay so you can wear blue jeans to work?

What good does retiring do? The problem is just passed down to another controller who is, possibly, just starting out. What kind of legacy is that? You’re hurting him and the flying public. The FAA goes on.

Politicians Avenue doesn’t appear to be the right direction.

Here’s a concept: DO IT YOURSELF. The bank of air traffic controllers is tapped out. Fill in the blank: __________ while the iron is hot.

Again, thank you, Michael

[tiredofthisBS]

I am a controller at a atc12 center who was caught up in the new three tier pay band change. I call it three tier for this reason the cpc who checked out 4 months before me makes 120,000+, I make 101+ (Tier two) and the controller who has arjust checkout last week makes 82K+(38K diference between the three tiers). Hell there's controllers at ATC 7-9's that make more than us.How can this be fair. We are doing the same job as the Dside sitting next to me but theres a 38K deference in pay, with only a year seperating us in experience.
I have lost all confidence in Natca. Truthfully i lost it a year ago, but everyone deserves the benefit of the doubt. I don't understand how the faa gets to continue to say how many controllers they have hired and everything is going according to plan. When the truth of the matter is they have only hired 1200 trainees not controllers, and further more with the ERAMS training thats about to take place in our center these trainees will not see a radar class until June of 09. Which means in all likelihood they wont be controllers until, at best February 2011, and thats best case scenario. In the meantime these D3 guys will be on hold for and ungodly amount of time with no raise coming until sometime in the winter of 09. And the nut cracker for me is the stupervisors kept their pay with raises and every other bennie, including unlimited credit hrs, and all they had to do was don a tie and drink the kool aid(were we not hired by the same agency?). I have waited on Natca long enough and I'm wondering can and should we file our own class action laws suit against these bastards, and let a judge decide our fate rather than wait another year for Natca to drop another ball. If the answer is yes to a class action suit then could someone point me in the right direction to get the ball rolling.

Sincerly,
TiredofthisBS

[safetygrump]

Go on strike and play into the FAA's hands?

You'd see this contracted to Lockheed Martin inside of a week with the FAA citing the high costs of restaffing.

If you go on strike they'll consolidate a bunch of TRACONS, move the remaining personnel from the closed TRACONS to staff the new larger TRACONS, hand off the towers, the tower flowers and any developmentals to LockMart, and you've just done the dirty work for them. I'm not about to do that.

Finish out your 25 years and leave. Make them pay you for your service. If you can't make it to 25 years, or you're trapped under the onerous pay scales, you have the right to *strike* by resigning.

I'm not one bit happy with the direction the national office has taken this, but the finish line is in sight. I'll not give the FAA one more day than my 25 years.

I will take the retirement, go to a second career, and hope to live ten years longer than I ever worked for the bastards.

Grump

[ivan]

I'm not inside the system, and I give a damn.. How many letters can I write? How many stories can I forward to the media? There isn't a whole hell of a lot I can do that I have not already done,{and continue to do} is there? Don't ask me why ATC people wont just walk the fuck away from this mess tomorrow morning. I can't answer that question. I really can't..

I have to sit in these damn Tubes and hope that the utter stupidity of the people who ARE in the system doesn't get me killed.

The fact that this mess is not completely overwhelming the Media is not my fault.. I strongly believe that NATCA should be actively telling the American people the truth. Now, unless everything I've been reading on these Blogs is total Bull Shit, it is not NEARLY safe enough to continue using the system. Period. If the near hit numbers that I've been reading are correct, then people are going to be killed. The way things are now, I don't see how the NAS will get through summer without putting a couple Aircraft together.

ATC people will either decide they can live with this fact, or they will stop the system before it happens..

I can't drive to all these damn rock shows. I wish I could..

"Gee Mom, why did dad die?"--"Because sick, sick piggish people run the Government and not enough people cared to do something about it, that's why Son."

Harsh words? You bet your ass they are. It's true to.. It WILL happen.

Ivan...............

[SOS]

In the eyes of FAA management egomaniacs NATCA and the media
heat is just background noise. Most FAA Managers don't give a shit what the backbone workforce of controllers and technicians have to say. They care even less about the media most of them would not know bad PR if it bit them in the ass.

Now, if we turn on CNN one day soon and see two black plumes a few miles apart with body parts and smoking wreckage from the midair at FL12 outside some major hub during tstorms and IFR and those horrible pictures flash from gizmo to gizmo at the speed of light GUESS WHAT!!

Somebody will give a shit
The question is do we wait or make them give a shit now?
The clock is ticking

[wish you were here..........]

What would you folks do if John didn't provide you with this blog for venting? Yell at your spouse; kick the dog, do some 'road rage?'. Talk, gripe, complain, gripe, talk, etc.

You continue to get EXACTLY what you will put up with.

One day this may 'sink in'.

[brokedev]

To the comment about waiting for a tragedy. No one here wants to see two get together, and we are all trying to do what we can to salvage the system. Will quitting salvage the system, no! it might spur change, but no matter what that change is, if too many quit it will be too little too late. I for one don't ever want to see it get that bad and I hope none of you do either. We need to come up with a better plan, maybe something along the lines of NATCA getting signatures from as many eligable retirees that they will stay until 56 if we go back to greenbook nothing less, or they'll walk at 50. It may sound like a stupid idea, but let this become an open forum for ideas instead of a graveyard for rants.