Originally Posted by
le Pingouin
The controller who said "clearance not available" was the "C" controller - it's a totally separate issue to what the "D" controller did.
That is true. "Clearance not available" was a minor issue, but it seems to have touched a nerve as it frustrates a lot of people.
I think the confusion with the Class D controller was the worse problem. The efforts in the report to deflect attention away from the controllers and the lack of a transcript make me wonder whether there was a much more serious problem with the controllers than we are aware of.