To much reliance on "gadgets and Gizmo's", lets get back to raw ATC and flight operations and also use some of the more basic, and yet effective ATC tools at hand. Radar is wonderful, but at the end of the day the triple redundant radars (as always so proudly advertised by manufacturers!!!) do fail, ours only 2 days ago..... my point is that it is still important not to forget the basics of our procedural standards and build a bit of "fat" into the program to allow for, poor comms, possible language problems, co-ordination failures, radar failures etc. It should be noted that quite a few of these issues are human factor related and on last check we are all human.
I am sure for the controllers that have been in the business long enough and have filled their "little bag of tricks", that one of the most dangerous times is when it is quiet. Having had a few good scares on these grounds, I ensure now that during these times I am proactive with conflict resolution because I have let myself down before through complacency. This point is made not necessarily to the actual case at hand, which investigation is still only in its infancy, but more as a wake up call to us all in every aspect of the industry to ensure we all maintain our highest possible standards and support each other to provide the best and safest service possible.
It goes without saying that regardless of who is responsible, the controllers and supervisors at this centre will be enduring the most horrific time of the lives and it is important we make sure that we give them the support they need.
