After Many Close Calls Between Planes, Experts Say the FAA Needs Better Staffing and Technology – Life Changer

After Many Close Calls Between Planes, Experts Say the FAA Needs Better Staffing and Technology

58

[ad_1]

Aviation experts who examined the Federal Aviation Administration’s safety record say the agency needs better staffing, equipment and technology to cope with a surge in the most serious close calls between planes.

The group said Wednesday that the margin of safety in the nation’s airspace is eroding and will get worse if nothing is done.

The outside experts tied most of the FAA’s challenges to inadequate and inconsistent funding. They issued a 52-page report — while Congress raced to avoid a partial government shutdown — and said that the FAA should be insulated from annual funding battles in Washington.

The six-member group was headed by former FAA administrator Michael Huerta and included the most recent past chairman of the National Transportation Safety Board, which investigates accidents and makes safety recommendations.

“The challenges facing the FAA developed over many years,” Huerta told reporters. “There are no easy, short-term fixes for many of these challenges.”

Political Cartoons

New FAA Administrator Mike Whitaker said the agency will review the panel’s recommendations “to help us pursue our goal of zero serious close calls.”

Whitaker was confirmed last month, ending a 19-month run during which the FAA lacked a Senate-approved leader.

The FAA has about 1,000 fewer fully certified controllers than it had 11 years ago, according to the report. Hiring fell by nearly half during the pandemic, and the agency’s training center in Oklahoma City is a “bottleneck,” the group concluded.

“The FAA has made limited efforts to ensure adequate air traffic controller staffing at critical air traffic control facilities,” the experts added. The worst shortages are at key facilities in New York and Florida, which led the FAA to pressure airlines to reduce flights in the New York City area this summer and fall.

Controllers are also working more overtime, which “introduces risk” into the nation’s airspace and leads to more absenteeism, lower productivity and fatigue, the panel said. Sometimes supervisors fill in when they should be supervising instead, the group wrote.

The FAA’s aging technology led to an outage in January that briefly caused flights to be grounded nationwide.

“The age and condition of FAA facilities and equipment are elevating system risk to unsustainable levels, even before considering losses in efficiency from outdated technology,” the panel wrote.

The FAA announced the panel after several close calls including one in February in which a FedEx cargo plane cleared to land flew about 100 feet (30 meters) over a Southwest Airlines jet that was cleared to take off from the same runway in Austin, Texas. In August, a private plane and a Southwest jet narrowly avoided colliding in San Diego.

Copyright 2023 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

[ad_2]

Source link

Loading

Post Views: 538

58 thoughts on “After Many Close Calls Between Planes, Experts Say the FAA Needs Better Staffing and Technology”

  107. Heya i am for the first time here. I came across this board and I find It
    truly useful & it helped me out much. I hope to give something back and
    aid others like you aided me.

    Reply

  111. What makes Sumatra Slim Belly Tonic even more unique is its inspiration from the beautiful Indonesian island of Sumatra. This supplement incorporates ingredients that are indigenous to this stunning island, including the exotic blue spirulina. How amazing is that? By harnessing the power of these rare and natural ingredients, Sumatra Slim Belly Tonic provides you with a weight loss solution that is both effective and enchanting.

    Reply

  115. Sugar Defender transcends symptom-focused interventions, delving into the root causes of glucose imbalance. It stands as a dynamic formula that seamlessly aligns with the body’s intrinsic mechanisms, presenting a distinctive and holistic approach to enhancing overall well-being. Beyond a mere supplement, Sugar Defender emerges as a strategic ally in the pursuit of balanced health.

    Reply

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Related Articles

From Omnichannel POS Systems to AI-Powered Chatbots, Technology is the Future of the Restaurant Industry |
From Omnichannel POS Systems to AI-Powered Chatbots, Technology is the Future of the Restaurant Industry |
[ad_1] The adoption of omnichannel POS platforms has transformed how restaurants operate. Instead of just…
Read More
Writers Guild of Canada Overwhelmingly Votes to Authorize Strike Over AI, Fair Pay
Writers Guild of Canada Overwhelmingly Votes to Authorize Strike Over AI, Fair Pay
[ad_1] THR Illustration / Adobe Stock Canadian writers appear ready to strike as they hold…
Read More
Congo questions Apple over knowledge of conflict minerals in its supply chain | WGN Radio 720
Congo questions Apple over knowledge of conflict minerals in its supply chain | WGN Radio 720
[ad_1] By GERALD IMRAY, Associated Press 42 mins ago FILE – A Congolese miner sifts…
Read More