sleeping addenda

Good Morning, I'm well rested and ready to go... Uhhhh. At least, as much as possible when my sleep schedule has been disrupted for 23 years...

I won't blather on about the current ATC crisis much more, but at least the news media is finally recognizing something I've said for five plus years, there's a shortage of conrollers now, and it's going to get worse. I did want to comment on sleep-gate one more time. Our fearless leaders continue to nod their heads at the media ("yes, yes, safety was never compromised, we're addressing the problems, don't worry, those lazy-ass controllers will be dealt with...") This in the face of more and more evidence showing up as to how fearless leaders have ignored the problem for 25 years+.

I recently read an opinion piece that seems to address the problem from a reasonable and intelligent point of view. Charles A. Czeisler, Ph.D., M.D., is Baldino Professor of Sleep Medicine and director of the Divisions of Sleep Medicine at Harvard Medical School and Brigham and Women's Hospital, he posted an opinion on CNN referring to his long history with the FAA and sleep studies. The full text of his article is ... http://edition.cnn.com/2011/OPINION/04/26/czeisler.sleep.air.traffic.controllers/

Some of the key points he addresses are that he advocated reforms to the FAA's controller schedules way back in 1983. Ignored by our administrators. In 1989, the NTSB (national transportation safety board) cited the FAA's response to air traffic controller fatigue as "unacceptable". In 2001, an advisory committee recommended schedule reform and fatigue management programs. Ignored. In 2007, the NTSB strongly recommended the FAA change it's scheduling practices and implement the fatigue management programs that had been recommended following a series of fatigue related air traffic control incidents. Ignored.

Now our FAA administrators are acting surprised at the revelation of tired air traffic controllers making mistakes.

I'm, sadly and cynically, not surprised.

Reading more on the sleep experts, I've come to realize that the fatigue that the article talks about seems to affects everything I do. My friends in the IFGS have often wondered why I poke my head up so rarely to join in on the fun and games, others observe that my schedule, though it gives me a full weekend off (except when I'm assigned mandatory overtime...), still seems to prevent me from socializing regularly. Irma's been a saint, more often than not we'll make plans and I'll back out at the last minute, mostly because of just a deep, probably subconscious, fatigue. I'm used to being tired at home, knowing that on my next shift, I've got to fire it up and be ready. It's been this way for 23 years. You get so used to it, you don't even notice it.

Announcement: Jim retires in 25 months. Mandatory. Even if the FAA changes the rules, I've decided. April 2013, I get my life back. Counting down.....

Who wants to help me plan the retirement party...

Here's to 2013...

TTFN
Jim

Time for a nap

Probably a few of you have noticed the recent firestorm surrounding the actions of a few air traffic controllers of late (or more appropriately, the non-actions). As is typical, our friends in the media tend to bloviate without any understanding on what is really going on, as well as tend to jump on the "lets find any dirt we can on them as long as we're looking" bandwagon. Keep in mind, there have always been a few who screw up, in this case 3 or 4 controllers out of some 7000 nationwide. Some of you probably wonder what I think of all of this...

I'll tell you after my nap... ;-)

Seriously, the media is turning this into a circus (but hey, that's their job). The fact is that on a midnight shift, there are long periods of extreme boredom. Because of our short staffing, many facility managers have made the choice to reduce staffing on the midnight shifts in order to have more controllers on duty during the busy day and evening shifts. That's fine, except if you're one of the mid shifters who is stuck in the control room alone. (Thankfully, I don't work many mids, since I've the seniority to pick a better schedule most of the time)

Here's the recipe for the scandal, though. A few years back, one administrator or another, (who likely never worked a minute past his 6:00 pm work-day end), decided that the control room was filled with too many distractions on the midnight shift. Yes, the lone controller often brought a radio into the control room, perhaps he brought a crossword puzzle book to work on between flights through his sectors, maybe there was a chess set set up on the supervisor's desk for an adjacent area controller to swap moves with. Said this administrator, "BAD DOG, No biscuit! Get all distractions out of the control room". Now, the lone controller gets to sit in a semi-dark room, staring at empty radar screens, for hours at a time. Nobody to talk to, because the facility manager stripped the mid crew of staffing to avoid paying overtime on the day shift. No planes for dozens of minutes at a time. Absolute. Utter. Boredom.

Now, you stay awake at 2:00 am, during your second shift of the day.
Really! I mean it. Stay awake!
NOW! Stay awake, dammit.
Okay, your turn for a break, here's your relief. You have one hour before your next turn in the control room. Go ahead, watch tv. Read. But, DONT take a NAP, the public will see you sleeping while you're on the job. That will make the administrator look bad!
Back into the control room. Still no traffic. Stay awake some more. WOnder how long the coffee will keep you alert.
Repeat all night until the morning crew shows up at 6:00 am.

And that's in the center, where we staff 2 controllers for the shift, allowing them to alternate breaks. The small towers often only schedule 1 person all by themselves for the entire night. No breaks. No allowed distractions in the control room. Did I mention no breaks?

A few years back, we had three controllers working the mid shift here each night. Two would be in the control room at all times. That extra person isn't so much to handle the busy workload, instead he was there to help you stay awake.

There are logical solutions out there. Sleep experts will tell you that a power nap would make all the difference, pilots are allowed to alternate short naps while they are flying, so long as one of the flight crew up front is in charge of the plane. Firefighters don't sit up all night playing cards while waiting for an alarm, they have beds and they use them. Returning to an extra person on the mid shift would do wonders as well, having a second person in the control room at all times would pretty much eliminate controllers falling asleep at the sector.

Shame the administrators put a higher value on saving money rather than flying safety.

Anyway... This firestorm of media attention is, as usual, annoying, but in the words of my louisiana born and raised supervisor, "It don't mean a thang..." We'll keep grinding through the heavy traffic during the day with 33 percent fewer controllers than we really need, and the mid shifters will grind away at the boredom as best they can.

Otherwise, the country will stop flying.

Clear skies,
Jim

Spring Break

Not the kind of spring break you may have been hoping for. I took a break from blogging in March. Work continues, writing continues, and soon we'll see how our government runs with all the non-essential personnel sent home because our leaders in Washington can't come up with a compromise. Cue the cynical boo's...

What comprises "non-essential" personnel? Among others, the folk who process the essential personnels paychecks. The ironic thing is, they'll go home for a week or two, and when they're called back in, they'll probably put in overtime to catch up. However, I'm willing to bet you they won't lose any pay for the time off, either. Just the way our govt works. Meanwhile, if this lasts more than one week, expect to see the "essential personnel" like the military or air traffic controllers face delayed paychecks. "No one to process them, sorry folks. Just keep showing up, and we'll pay you, eventually..."

Did I cue the cynical boo's yet?

Good thing our health care system isn't under this program. Oh... wait... More cynical boo's...

On the positive side, It's grillin season. Going to be doing some "Three Day, Margarita-chipotle ribs" soon. Mmmmmm.

TTFN,
Jim