The Professional Airways Systems Specialists tells ANN that they have called on FAA management to end the staffing shortages that contributed to an equipment outage at Jacksonville International Airport on Thursday. The outage lasted approximately 45 minutes and caused more than 200 delays during the busy morning rush.

According to PASS President Tom Brantley, the FAA has been trying for over a year to fill multiple systems specialist positions at Jacksonville's Hilliard Air Traffic Control Center. The FAA's delay in filling the positions finally resulted in a disruption to air traffic Thursday, when a systems specialist called in sick that morning. Unfortunately, FAA management did not call in another systems specialist to fill the shift, exacerbating an already dangerous understaffing problem.

"The air traffic control center in Jacksonville is no doubt understaffed," Brantley said. "Management should have recognized their staffing needs on that morning and called somebody in to fill the shift."

Brantley explained that this problem is not unique to Jacksonville - the FAA's systems specialist workforce is suffering from severe understaffing nationwide. In fact, an arbitrator in March found the agency in violation of the PASS/ FAA agreement to maintain a staffing level of at least 6,100 systems specialists.

"The staffing level PASS agreed to with the FAA is the absolute minimum number necessary to maintain a safe and efficient air traffic control system," Brantley said. "The agency has no immediate plans to hire the additional systems specialists needed, which we find completely irresponsible.

"The flying public in Jacksonville deserve better from the FAA than unnecessary delays because of staffing problems," Brantley concluded. "I fear that the delays in Jacksonville are just the beginning of potential problems with a busy traveling summer ahead of us."

PASS represents more than 11,000 employees of the FAA and DoD who install, maintain, support and certify air traffic control and national defense equipment, inspect and oversee the commercial and general aviation industries, develop flight procedures and perform quality analyses of the aviation systems.

FMI: www.passnational.org