Dallas - Fort Worth ATC covered up errors

[Eboy]

"Air traffic controllers in the Dallas-Fort Worth area routinely covered up errors and their supervisors failed to investigate cases that included airplanes flying too close to each other, federal officials said. The incidents date back seven years at D-FW Terminal Radar Approach Control, which oversees air traffic at all of the area's airports, including Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport."


http://news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/ap/20050624/ap_on_re_us/airport_investigation_2

[atcea.com]

Error reporting is something of a "Catch-22". Management wants accurate figures for purposes of evaluation and correction, but individual managers are charged with keeping the numbers low. Today's "revelations" are the result.

[PPRuNe Radar]

Sounds like bull**** ..... but Scott Voigt ... come on down and set us at peace ;)

[Jerricho]

Betchya qcode could tell us a thing or two about it :rolleyes:

[Scott Voigt]

Hi all;

All I know is that a controller who had issues at the facility with people made a call about harrasment and made accusations about running things tight. <shrug> I don't know what the truth is, but it is interesting where in New York the controllers report errors and the FAA said that safety was never an issue and it is just a bunch of radical controllers, but then at another airport some of the same types of problems and it's a HUGE safety issue, which is it???? It will be interesting to see how it all plays out...

regards

Scott

[stillin1]

J

You naughty man!
"Let us not encourage them, for they may type once more"

;)

Launch the rumour-mongers:yuk:

[AA SLF]

Scott Voigt -

I am more than a little angered by your "<shrug>" posting above regards the "local" situation at DFW. As a high-milage slf on AA out of DFW (an average of more than 100 t/o's - landings per year at DFW) I am intensely concerned about "close calls" on "flight operations" at DFW!!!

Here are a couple of "links" LINK HERE (http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/dn/latestnews/stories/062505dnbusairtrafffic.410d366e.html) and another LINK HERE (http://www.dfw.com/mld/dfw/news/local/states/texas/northeast/11974646.htm) to this story from the local newspapers.

PPRuNe Radar - I am also a little miffed about your comment that it ----
Sounds like bull**** ....

I expect a better response than that from a "super moderator" here at PPRuNe!!!

The story notes that the "local" (DFW TRACON) office has been "censured" over events that happened. Sure seems to me to be more than just "bull****"

Calling on "Scott" for a comment is fine (as he is an ATC here at DFW regional control, but he is not a LOCAL "Sector" controller which is where the incidents are alledged to have happened!!!

Scott calls it correctly when he says ---

I don't know what the truth is
and we should wait to see the outcome of the investigation.

[Jerricho]

AA, while I can understand your interest in something like this, it does have the usual whiff of sensationalist bull**** from the media.

It's a catch 22 situation. The media belive they have latched onto a prospective story that will sell their papers/increase their viewers, and will milk it for what they think they can, often (NOTE!! I'm using the word often, not always) using poorly researched information, and relying on socalled "experts" or "eyewitnesses" who couldn't collaborate to get the story of "Goldilocks and the Three Bears" straight. The other side is that ATCOs aren't in a position to approach the media straight out and say "What you have printed is wrong, and here is why".

[Scott Voigt]

AA

The shrug comes from not knowing what is really happening. I don't take ANYTHING that comes from the media or even the IG for gospel fact. The IG came into DFW once before and reinterpreted our rule book to call deals on things that the FAA said was fine... So, please don't get in a huff about my wait and see attitude. I would like the facts to come out before I get all worked up over it.

If something unsafe is going on then fine it needs to be fixed. But if not, then let's not jump to conclusions. New York just went through a witch hunt over things similar due to people being told that they would be fired if they didn't report problems, so they reported infractions by the letter of the law, they were then ridiculed for it as well as threatened. The FAA is doing things that seem to be posturing for the upcoming contract negotiations. It will indeed be interesting to see how this all plays out...

regards

Scott H. Voigt
NATCA Southwest Region
Safety and Technology Chairman

(not afraid to use my name <G>)

[Avman]

Caught the tail end of something to do with this (I think) on an Oprah W show (the wife was watching - not my scene) aired on Dutch TV last night (how recent the show actually was, I don't know), which featured a lady DFW controller who, having reported questionable practices by some of her colleagues, alleged she was threatened, mentally and physically intimidated by them at and outside the workplace. Has this been aired in the UK?