Airports And Controllers Are On Guard
The FAA is reportedly considering
shutting down 48 control towers during overnight hours as a way to
cut the cost of labor.
The Washington Times reports the airports wouldn't be closed,
but the towers would go dark -- a proposition that concerns more
than a few airport officials and pilots.
"It's a safety issue. This is a list I don't want to be on,"
said Jacqueline executive director of Roanoke Regional Airport in
Virginia.
The FAA isn't talking much about the proposal, except to say
that the list of airports that might be affected will change. And
we haven't yet found a way to get our hands on the list.
But the Times reports some cities on
the list include Buffalo, NY; Des Moines, IA; and Boise, ID.
Why shut down overnight operations at all these towers? One
word: Money. Specifically, the Times reports it intercepted an
email being distributed around the FAA that said the nighttime
closures were being contemplated "in order to try and offset some
[of] the $100 million [operations] budget shortfall."
Toledo Express in Ohio is on the list as well. For now. Shutting
down the tower after hours would be a big problem for one of the
airport's newest tenants -- BAX Global Freight. In luring the
company, Toledo city officials promised the tower would remain open
24/7. With that in mind, BAX Global now flies 18 sorties a night
from Toledo Express.
Brian Schwartz, spokesman for the Toledo-Lucas County Port
Authority, which operates the airport, told the Washington Times,
"A lot of cargo carriers want [a control tower manned at all
times]. It's a liability issue. It's also a marketing issue. Losing
24-hour coverage would make it much harder to compete with airports
that have one."
"I think it's a horrible precedent to set to sacrifice safety
because they have not been able to anticipate their staffing
needs," said Rick Atkinson, director of Yeager Airport in
Charleston, WV. Yup, Yeager is on the list.
And, of course, you know the controllers' union, NATCA, is
already gearing up for a fight on this issue. "Can a plane still
use the airport [if a tower is unmanned]? Yes," said NATCA
President John Carr. "But if an aircraft is in distress ... and
there's nobody in the tower to help, you've reduced the margin of
safety. This is a reckless policy decision being driven by
finances," he said.