Wait Times Down To Near-Normal By Midday

With any new software, comes a few bugs to be ironed out. No one knows this better than Lockheed Martin, which tells ANN the company's Automated Flight Service Station (AFSS) system ran a bit slower than usual Thursday morning.

"The AFSS system is experiencing technical issues resulting in longer wait times for pilots this morning. A problem associated with implementing a new software package is causing the delays," said the notice on the L-M website. "We hope to have the problem solved shortly and we apologize for the inconvenience this is causing."

Keith Mordoff, Director of External and Business Area Communications for Lockheed Martin IS&GS, said wait times had returned to normal levels by around midday. Call times averaged about six-to-seven minutes during the delay, Mordoff added.

Lockheed has come under fire from a variety of general aviation organizations -- most notably the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association -- for increasing delays for pilots since the company took over the FSS network in October 2005. As ANN reported, AOPA took the complaints of pilots straight to the DOT in June.

For their part, Lockheed says it takes its responsibility to pilots very seriously... and the company is trying to make the changeover process as seamless as possible.

As ANN reported, during last month's AirVenture celebration in Oshkosh, AFSS workers handled over 8,800 pilot briefings. AFSS program manager Dan Courain also spoke with ANN Editor-In-Chief Jim Campbell at AirVenture, in a candid interview regarding issues the company still faces, and what Lockheed is doing to solve them.

That Aero-TV segment is available here.

FMI: www.afss.com