Neha Jain: http://newzealandaviationnews.blogspot.com/ 24

The air traffic control tower was unmanned at Reagan National Airport as an American Airlines pilot approached for a landing. (March 23)

1. Tower at Reagan National goes silent as planes attempt to land

The control tower at Reagan National Airport went silent early Wednesday, forcing the pilots of two airliners carrying a total of 165 passengers and crew members to land on their own.

Tower at Reagan National goes silent as planes attempt to land
Audio: Radio transmissions with American Flight No. 1900
Dec, 31, 2010: Errors by air traffic controllers set record
Aug. 30, 2010: Mistakes rise for Washington region’s air traffic controllers
The tower, which normally is staffed by one air-traffic controller from midnight to 6 a.m., did not respond to pilot requests for landing assistance or to phone calls from controllers elsewhere in the region, who also used a “shout line,” which pipes into a loudspeaker in the tower, internal records show.

An American Airlines Boeing 737 flying in from Miami with 97 people on board circled the airport after receiving no response from the tower at midnight. Minutes later, a United Airlines Airbus 320 flying in from Chicago with 68 people on board also got no answer from the tower.

Both planes landed safely after their pilots took matters into their own hands, broadcasting their progress as they approached and landed. They also were communicating with controllers at a separate facility in the region that does not handle landings.

The Federal Aviation Administration is investigating the incident.

Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood said late Wednesday he is instructing the agency to increase controller staffing at the airport during the late shift.

“Today I directed the FAA to place two air traffic controllers at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport’s control tower on the midnight shift,” he said in a statement. “It is not acceptable to have just one controller in the tower managing air traffic in this critical air space. I have also asked FAA Administrator Randy Babbitt to study staffing levels at other airports around the country.”

The incident, which the National Transportation Safety Board also is reviewing, is the second time in as many years that the tower at National has gone silent, said a source familiar with tower operations who spoke on the condition of anonymity because he is not authorized to speak for the FAA. The previous time, the lone controller on duty left his swipe-card pass key behind when he stepped outside the tower’s secure door and was unable to get back in, the source said.

A controller at another facility mentioned that incident as the pilots were trying to land Wednesday morning.

A missed handoff

The nation’s air traffic control system has many layers, with a network of en-route controllers directing planes when they are at or near cruising altitude. The airspace beneath that is controlled by Terminal Radar Approach Control facilities known as TRACONs. Takeoffs and the final miles of runway approach are handled by controllers in airport towers.

After midnight, when traffic slows, one person is on duty at the National Airport tower, a shift reserved for a supervisor rather than a regular controller. The planes that landed without tower help were two of the last three inbound commercial flights until 5 a.m., the source said.

A few minutes after midnight on Wednesday, radio recordings show, the TRACON controller handling the flight from Miami made a routine verbal handoff, telling the pilot to contact the tower.

Unable to reach anyone at National, the pilot aborted the approach, circled the airport and radioed the Potomac TRACON controller for help in aligning the plane for landing. A few minutes later, when the United plane approached for landing, the TRACON controller told him that the tower was unmanned.

The TRACON controller had a similar conversation with a second American plane.

“So you’re aware,” the controller said, “the tower is apparently not manned. We’ve made a few phone calls. Two airplanes went in the past 10-15 minutes, so you can expect to go into an uncontrolled airport.”

“Is there a reason it’s not manned?” the American pilot asked.

“Well, I’m going to take a guess,” the controller replied, “and say that the controller got locked out. I’ve heard of it happening before.”

2. Faked Airline-Pilot Records Prompt India to Review All Licenses

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- India is reviewing all airline pilots’ licenses nationwide as police investigate at least 18 people suspected of using forged documents to win promotions or certification.

Every captain is being “systematically” verified, followed by co-pilots and other license-holders, Director General of Civil Aviation E.K. Bharat Bhushan said today by phone from New Delhi. The industry regulator is also planning to announce improvements in its policies and procedures in about 10 days’ time, he said without elaborating.

New Delhi Police have also started investigating government officials to determine whether they helped pilots use faked records, Deputy Commissioner Ashok Chand said in an interview yesterday. The scandal highlights the competition for qualified staff among Indian carriers after domestic passenger numbers jumped 19 percent to 52 million last year.

In New Delhi, one pilot each from Air India Ltd. and IndiGo have been arrested for using forged paperwork to win promotions, Chand said. Another three, including one more from IndiGo, are being investigated, he said. All five were properly qualified co-pilots, he said. The pilots face up to seven years in jail on charges including forgery, Chand said.

Air India, IndiGo

State-owned Air India has grounded two pilots and is investigating “around a dozen,” it said in an e-mailed reply to Bloomberg News questions. IndiGo, the nation’s biggest discount carrier, has stopped two from flying, it said in an e- mailed statement.

3. Pilot Punished for Flying Too Low

Iowa City, IA (AP) - An Air Force pilot who led a group of jets on a spectacular flyover before an Iowa football game has been punished for flying too low and too fast, and is giving up his
right to fly military aircraft, the Air Force said Wednesday.

Major Christopher Kopacek was the flight leader when four Talon T-38 Trainer jets performed the flyover in front of 70,000 fans before Iowa hosted Ohio State at Kinnick Stadium on November 20. The jets were at an altitude 16 feet above the press box, the stadium's
highest point, and cleared the scoreboard by just 58 feet, an Air Force investigation found.

"While I understand that fans attending the game enjoyed the flyover, rules are in place to ensure everyone's safety," 71st Flying Training Wing Commander Colonel Russell Mack said in a
statement issued by Vance Air Force Base in Oklahoma. "We appreciate the opportunity to perform flyovers and thank the University of Iowa for the chance to showcase our abilities.
However, this was a serious breach of flight discipline and it was necessary to take administrative action against all of the members involved."

Mack called for the investigation days after the game as video of the flyover started circulating on the Internet. Spectators said they were amazed by the jets' speed and precision and how close they came to the top of the stadium. Fans erupted in cheers and later gave the pilots an ovation when they were introduced during the game.

The aircraft flew at about 176 feet above ground level, far below the 1,000-feet rule set for a flight over a congested area such as a stadium, the Air Force said. Spokeswoman Katie Roling
said their speed approached 400 knots, far above the limit of 300 knots for the flight.

The Air Force found Kopacek violated rules by flying too fast during three practice runs and the actual flyover, flying too close to ground level above a congested area, failing to report the
altitude and speed deviation from the flight plan to superiors and making a false statement during the investigation.

Kopacek has been punished under the code of military justice, the Air Force said. Roling said he has submitted a request to give up his aeronautical rating, or his "wings" that give him the
ability to fly military aircraft, and is in the process of leaving the Air Force.

Roling said three other pilots and two ground controllers involved in the flyover also were disciplined, but they all remain with the Air Force and able to fly.

4. Libya: US warplanes 'carried out strafing runs' to rescue downed pilot
The cannon fire could explain the fact that several civilians were injured by bullets fired during the mission near the opposition stronghold of Benghazi.
Four Harriers were sent from the USS Kearsarge in the early hours of Tuesday morning to provide cover for a pair of Osprey helicopters whose task was to pick up a pilot who ejected from his F-15E Strike Eagle because of a mechanical failure.
Two of the Harriers dropped two 500lb bombs on a convoy of Libyan vehicles that they judged were a threat to the downed pilot, who was hiding in farmland after landing by parachute.
But they also carried out "strafing runs", according to a US military source familiar with the operation.
That may explain accounts given by villagers that when they went to help the pilot they came under fire, with an estimated eight people injured, according to eye-witnesses and medical hospital staff.

NEHA JAIN

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