Originally Posted by
West Coast
Save me sifting through the thread, where is it said the local controller was also working ground, CD, etc?
From the 'Airplanes on taxiway C' attachment:
While the Air Canada 759 crew made a serious mistake that went unchecked for way too long. I believe that it is important to note that the tower controller was performing way too many functions, IE Ramp, Ground, Tower and at times ops vehicles. I believe that the audio from the 45-55 minutes prior to this event will support this belief. Sincerely, Robert S. Wallace United Airlines 737 Captain
It was clear from tower's comment to someone else on frequency seconds after this incident that there was only one controller working the tower and ground control functions. Greg L Sembower UAL 863 First Officer
Second, I feel the tower controller should not have been the only controller working the entire airport. He was working multiple frequencies, controlling tower duties for Take offs on 1L and 28R, and Landings 28R. He was also performing all ground control duties. I feel when Air Canada called with questions about the runway, this should have been the cue he needed to closely pay attention to that flight. That apparently did not happen. You can tell from the reaction time between when United 1 called "Where is this guy going? He is lined up on the taxiway" to when he told Air Canada to go around. It took a few seconds for him to evaluate the situation. Those few seconds were several more feet that Air Canada continued his approach down to around 100' Sincerely, First Officer Steve Shoquist United Airlines