Reagan National Airport is just across the Potomac River from the White House and the US Capitol US aviation officials are boosting air traffic control staffing at a busy Washington DC airport after two jets were unable to make contact with the control tower early on Wednesday.
The lone nighttime controller at Reagan National Airport had fallen asleep, the Associated Press reported.
The jets carrying a total of 165 people landed safely without tower help.
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has launched a national inquiry into tower staffing, officials said.
Aviation officials told US media the overnight shift at the airport was typically manned by a single controller.
The jet pilots were unable to raise the airport control tower on the radio as they approached to land. The efforts of other controllers elsewhere to reach the tower by telephone failed as well.
US Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood said that in response he had directed the FAA to put two controllers on the midnight shift at Reagan National.
Former National Transportation Safety Board member John Goglia told the Associated Press the incident raised troubling concerns about air traffic controller fatigue.
"It's worse when nothing is going on," he said.
"When it's busy, you have to stay engaged. When it's quiet, all they have to be is a little bit tired and they'll fall asleep."
This article is from the BBC News website. � British Broadcasting Corporation, The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites.
Source: http://www.bbc.co.uk/go/rss/int/news/-/news/world-us-canada-12850844
No comments:
Post a Comment