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Over 90% of U.S. airport towers are understaffed, data shows

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Re: Over 90% of U.S. airport towers are understaffed, data shows

#121

Post by ModernMech »

throw0101a wrote: post #102
Avicebron wrote: post #34

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Avoiding politics completely, so the FAA has been systematically understaffed for decades because of this current administration?

> Avoiding politics completely, so the FAA has been systematically understaffed for decades because of this current administration? The former FAA administrator was pushed out (by Musk) after one year of a five-year term. FAA employees were encouraged to resign ( https://www.opm.gov/fork ). The current (or previous) administration is not to blame for the current situation, but the current administration is certainly…

What kind of competent person would aspire to be FAA administrator when your career can be ruined by some butthurt CEO who just donated enough to a political campaign?

Re: Over 90% of U.S. airport towers are understaffed, data shows

#122

Post by russdill »

buckle8017 wrote: post #79

It would probably have helped if they didn't turn away thousands of qualified white male candidates. Instead of simply biasing their hiring based on race. The FAA brilliantly denied anybody who scored too low on their "compatibility" matrix, presumably as a legal dodge. https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/faa-embroiled-in-lawsuit-a...

What I get from this article is that becoming a flight controller is a very rigorous selective process.

Re: Over 90% of U.S. airport towers are understaffed, data shows

#123

Post by nyokodo »

throw0101a wrote: post #95
nyokodo wrote: post #41

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> the current administration is asking them to resign en masse, not hiring more While they did initially receive the resignation memo the Office of Personnel Management clarified that Air Traffic Controllers aren’t eligible for the resignation offer nor subject to the hiring freeze. [1] 1. https://apnews.com/article/jet-helicopter-crash-air-traffic-...

> Office of Personnel Management clarified that Air Traffic Controllers aren’t eligible I'm curious to know if this OPM policy was there was there from the beginning, or whether it's a backtrack after the 'bad optics' after the Washington, DC, crash.

> or whether it's a backtrack after the 'bad optics' after the Washington, DC, crash.

Either way you have a plan that wasn’t well thought through or thoughtfully executed. Having said that, at least they’re not (ultimately) directly tempting understaffed critical workers to quit although one wonders which functions haven’t had a plane crash moment.

Re: Over 90% of U.S. airport towers are understaffed, data shows

#124

Post by Levitz »

heraldgeezer wrote: post #114
duxup wrote: post #66

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I think “sense of urgency”, “trouble shooting”, “understanding what is influencing other people’s actions” and even the ability to run a sort of “run a mental simulation and anticipate second order effects” are uncommon skills. I worked with a good technical support team that worked on some high end equipment, and regardless of education the ability to troubleshoot could be found regardless and … in spite of educatio…

So if I struggled through education, got my degree, I have a few jobs, but I don't have IT , I'm screwed? No, I don't want to be management. No, I don't want to have a hard job. I want to be a NEET basically. If I work I just work and go home anyway and watch YouTube.

You are replying to a comment talking about how "having IT" is the exception rather than the rule. You'll be fine.

Re: Over 90% of U.S. airport towers are understaffed, data shows

#126

Post by gruez »

verzali wrote: post #97

The big question every one seems to be ignoring is whether air travel in the US should now be considered dangerous. If ATC is understaffed or filled with unqualified people, then how is any flight safe? Why would anyone get on a plane unless they really have to and have no other option?

>whether air travel in the US should now be considered dangerous

Air travel is orders of magnitude safer than the alternatives. According to the first result on google:

"In 2022, the fatality rate for people traveling by air was .003 deaths per 100 million miles traveled. The death rate people in passenger cars and trucks on US highways was 0.57 per 100 million miles"

Even if the current administration's cuts made planes several times dangerous, it'd still be preferable than the alternative. The same applies to the recent panic about 737 MAX.

Re: Over 90% of U.S. airport towers are understaffed, data shows

#127

Post by Levitz »

verzali wrote: post #97

The big question every one seems to be ignoring is whether air travel in the US should now be considered dangerous. If ATC is understaffed or filled with unqualified people, then how is any flight safe? Why would anyone get on a plane unless they really have to and have no other option?

Because air travel is ridiculously safe. The incident with the helicopter and the plane is making the rounds precisely because of how insanely improbable it is, and even then from what we know, chances are the error was in the helicopter, not the tower.

Re: Over 90% of U.S. airport towers are understaffed, data shows

#128

Post by gavinhoward »

onlyrealcuzzo wrote: post #18
jfengel wrote: post #7

Earlier quoted context omitted.

They won't cut traffic for the same reason they are understaffed: money. Raise pay until you have enough staff. It's not always that simple, but sometimes it is. Not everyone could do it, but a lot of people could. You just have to pay them to attract them from more lucrative jobs (which includes training them to do it). Instead they'll pay as little as they can, and occasionally pay to replace an aircraft.

> They won't cut traffic for the same reason they are understaffed: money. Raise pay until you have enough staff. It's really not that simple. It's a 3-year training process. There's really nothing that's going to get you adequately staffed in the short term. Sure, that could solve the problem medium term.

ATC-wannabe here.

I can't be ATC anymore because I'm too old. I can't even start. That age limit needs to change.

And yes, more pay.

Re: Over 90% of U.S. airport towers are understaffed, data shows

#129

Post by bobthepanda »

tayo42 wrote: post #125

Feel like I'm having deja vu in away. Didn't this exact problem blow up a couple years ago?

Air traffic controllers have basically been in shortage for the better part of two decades.

The current situation is also because a large clump of controllers were hired after the Reagan administration broke the ATC strike in 1981, and that giant clump of people is now reaching retirement age at the same time.

Re: Over 90% of U.S. airport towers are understaffed, data shows

#130

Post by nradov »

bryant wrote: post #77
RandomBacon wrote: post #50

Earlier quoted context omitted.

ATC here (opinions are my own, not of the FAA, etc) Pay is a huge part of it, so it really is that simple. Qualified people are choosing not to even apply anymore because the pay is no longer competitive with other high-paying jobs that don't destroy you mentally and physically, or have a complicated hiring process like ATC does.

Frankly the pay should be comparable to commercial pilots in the current market. Or more. Funding sadly is probably better handled as a tax on the people rather than the industry simply because ATCs protect more than just commercial crew and passengers, and more than just their home country.

Which pilots? Rookie controllers already get paid more per hour than most general aviation flight instructors, or first officers in regional airlines. Pay for captains at major airlines is quite good, but few pilots ever reach that level.
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