Controller Reportedly Became Unresponsive While Working Alone At Night

The FAA has opened an investigation into an incident at McCarran International Airport Wednesday night in which a controller working alone at night became unresponsive while on duty.

The Las Vegas Review-Journal reports that the controller, who was not identified by name, began her shift at 10:00 p.m. local time. The FAA said her performance began to degrade at 11:09 p.m., and she became impaired about 15 minutes later. She appeared to unresponsive at 11:47 p.m. A second controller took over and began handling air traffic at 11:54 p.m.

In a statement, the FAA said the agency is "deeply concerned by the incident, is thoroughly investigating what occurred, and is taking immediate steps to modify its overnight shift staffing policies.”

There were several aircraft in the airspace during that time. The FAA said there was no loss of required separation between aircraft and no conflicts on the ground during the period. The would not comment on whether the controller had a medical condition, but medical personnel were sent to the tower when the incident was reported.

The second controller was on an allowed break when the incident occurred. Transcripts of radio traffic between pilots and approach control brought the incident to light, and an approach controller went up into the tower to alert the controller who was taking a break about the developments.

(Image from file)

FMI: Source report