What else not to do as an Air atraffic Controller in USA

[Adrian B]

We all know about the alleged ATC sleeping issues thaqt have been discovered in the US of A, The latest just reported on NBC is that a controller in Clevelend and his supervisor have been suspended after the controller allegedly watched a DVD at the console, and somehow broadcast 7 minutes of the soundtrack over the air.

Now for the DVD suggestions?

Pushing Tin
Fyling High

[Peter Agatsiotis]

Shirley you jest

Both top films!

[Michael Cleary]

And it gets worse (at least in the eyes of the US media) for the ATC's.

An aircraft carrying Michelle Obama had to "go around" due to a separation issue and the FAA says that "it is believed to be an Air Traffic Controller mistake".

Link here : http://edition.cnn.com/2011/US/04/19...ex.html?hpt=T2

[Andrew M]

This is another problem with all these smartphones/iphones etc.

For the first poster, I read that the Air Traffic Controller was watching a movie on his smartphone/device.

iPhones and everything else make it easy to play a game, watch a movie etc etc.

Prior to this you might read a book, which is less easy to get fully involved in and ignore the calls coming in.

[Philip Argy]

Originally Posted by Michael Cleary

An aircraft carrying Michelle Obama had to "go around" due to a separation issue and the FAA says that "it is believed to be an Air Traffic Controller mistake"

There are suggestions that the controller should have slowed Obama's plane earlier to avoid the separation failure.

************************************************** **********

NTSB OPENING INVESTIGATION INTO AIR TRAFFIC CONTROL INCIDENT
INVOLVING AIRCRAFT CARRYING MICHELLE OBAMA

************************************************** **********

The National Transportation Safety Board has opened an
investigation into an air traffic control incident on Monday
in which the airplane carrying First Lady Michelle Obama
aborted a landing attempt at Andrews Air Force Base after an
air traffic controller had sequenced it too close to another
military plane.

At about 5 pm ET on April 18, the military version of a B-
737 that Mrs. Obama was traveling in was directed to abort
its landing attempt after the required minimum separation
between it and a C-17 military aircraft that was landing
ahead of it was compromised.

The incident involved Federal Aviation Administration (FAA)
air traffic controllers at the Potomac TRACON facility in
Virginia and at the Andrews tower in Maryland.

NTSB Air Traffic Control specialist Dan Bartlett is the
investigator-in-charge. Parties to the investigation
are the FAA and the National Air Traffic Controllers union.

[David Ramsay]

Go arounds happen every day.

QF49 went around at NZAA last night ... I'm surprised the media aren't beating QF up over that one.

[Matt_L]

David it was Jetconnect not Qf you know it

Andrew- I'n regards to the smartphone issue , I tend to disagree.. In Sydney anyways I'n the TCU for eg phones must be off when inside, not even on silent and I believe atc can only access them on breaks- someone correct me if this is wrong ? Either way though with such a huge system as the us has- circa 650 manned airports? + enroute units etc there's bound to be issues creeping up although not acceptable ..