An exclusive report by the New York Post claims that on Monday evening between 18:30 to 21:30, flights out of Newark Liberty International Airport (EWR) were handled by just one air traffic controller and a trainee. The report quotes a New York-based controller describing the situation as “pure insanity.” It also noted that an FAA spokesperson said that there were at least three controllers scheduled for each hour on Monday night but did not clarify how many of them were fully certified personnel.
The New York Times reported something similar, adding that four people familiar with the situation said that the number of fully certified controllers on duty to manage Newark’s air traffic was sometimes one or two. These figures are shocking because the target number of controllers for Newark to manage traffic in those hours is around 14-15.
They are federal employees. Federal employees can’t go on strike. Shit is fucked up. The US hates it’s labor force and that’s by design.
I keep seeing people say that… But what are they going to do? Fire them?! They have a fucking moral obligation to those flying under their watch, and if they are unable to do that for whatever reason, everything needs to stop until the issues are resolved. Not continuously hoping that crash won’t happen. It’s a matter of when not if.
All of your questions can literally be answered with history, as this type of stuff has already happened. Long story short, since others have typed it here as well, Reagan as president fired all 11k ATC workers and forced the Air Force to help pick up the slack while they looked for more workers. Some of those ATC workers got rehired, but it essentially prevents ATC from having any control of their careers.
Kindly, do you have a primary source for this? I would like to learn more.
Not OP but “Collision Course: Ronald Reagan, the Air Traffic Controllers, and the Strike That Changed America” by Joseph A. McCartin. This book provides an in-depth analysis of the events surrounding the strike, including the role of military personnel in air traffic control during the crisis.
https://www.politico.com/story/2008/08/reagan-fires-11-000-striking-air-traffic-controllers-aug-5-1981-012292
Here is a politico article. About 900 Air Force Controllers were put to work in civilian towers, along with the 3000 supervisors around the country and 2000 non-striking controllers. The article fails to mention Reagan reversed his lifetime ban a few months later and began rehiring controllers.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/1981_Professional_Air_Traffic_Controllers_Organization_strike