Air Traffic Controller caught napping while on duty
April 8th, 2011 - 12:56 am ICT by Aishwarya BhattNew York, April 7 (THAINDIAN NEWS) A federal aviation officer has said that the air controller who slept for five hours while planes were landing at the McGhee Tyson Airport brought a blanket to make his sleep comfortable. The official who was speaking on condition of anonymity said the controller also made a comfortable bed from couch cushions.
The incident happened on the 19th of February and the controller is expected to be fired. Federal Aviation officials were alarmed when they leant that seven planes, including two planes containing a total of 165 passengers, landed on their own. When another aviation employee entered the radar controller’s room, he found him comfortably napping.
The Federal Aviation Authority issued a statement. The statement said that, “The FAA will not tolerate this type of unprofessional and inappropriate behavior. The agency is committed to ensuring the safety of the traveling public and is conducting a nationwide review of the air traffic control system, including overnight staffing at selected airports around the country.”
The controller has been suspended and the FAA is conducting investigation into the incident. The FAA is also considering reviewing the night shift system in the various airports in the country.
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Tags: air controller, air traffic control, air traffic control system, air traffic controller, airports, anonymity, couch cushions, faa, federal aviation authority, federal aviation officials, inappropriate behavior, mcghee tyson airport, night shift, radar, shift system, sleep, traffic control system, two planes