Throat Punch Thursday ~Sleep Deprived Friendly Skies Edition

The midnight landings of two jets at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, after the control tower mysteriously fell silent this week, raises serious national security concerns, security experts and former air-traffic controllers say. I’d say a resounding YES that is a problem when the control tower has fallen silent.Should we be putting out an amber alert for the missing air traffic controller?

The two jets landed within a few miles of the White House, the Capitol, the Pentagon and other sensitive government buildings without clearance from the tower because the air-traffic controller on duty did not respond on the radio or telephone.Hello, haven’t we made up our minds..I don’t know about 11 years ago to tighten security for these purposes? Why the hell are we all getting felt up by TSA if the damn air space is not being adequately monitored.

The lone  supervisor on duty in Reagan National’s tower told investigators Thursday that he had fallen asleep while working his fourth consecutive overnight shift, the National Transportation Safety Board said. There is so much wrong with this sentence that I can’t even touch it. All I can say on the subject is that there apparently needs to be more than 1 person on the night shift, especially since this is the air space over our nation’s capital. Perhaps the over night shift controllers should be issued an intravenous espresso drip? Maybe a little government issued crack..Charlie Sheen grade.That should keep some folks awake for a 4 day shift.

The two jets, which were carrying 165 people, landed after pilots were advised by a controller at a regional facility in nearby Warrenton, Va., that it would be OK to do so. WTF? So it was literally phoned in? I so don’t want my flight landed remotely. If you don’t have eyes on the air space aren’t you basically making an educated guess? This could have ended in catastrophe on several levels.

“That’s just not a good idea, especially with the White House right there,” Luckey says. NO shit! Is this the brains of this outfit. Thank you very much Captain Obvious for your astute observation. Any other bright ideas?

 
So it is my mandatory civic duty to issue the  Throat Punch to Sleeping Beauty of the Friendly skies. I understand he is pleading the whole, I was tired defense. FAA, as standard protocol, has issued a drug test. I’d say that is a good idea. Just say NO , my good sir. Drugs or no drugs, it’s a little frightening to think that someone in such a crucial position can nod off due to fatigue. To me that is a certain sign that perhaps the over night shift should be broken down into smaller increments. Perhaps, no more than 2 consecutive days of the overnight shift in the control box…anywhere really but especially in the DC area.This story has me a bit frightened to fly. If I would have been one of the 165, I’m not sure you could ever get me onto another plane knowing that the person on duty, whose position is to be awake and control traffic is indulging in impromptu naps. To you my narcoleptic friend, I give you a hefty Throat Punch, perhaps it will help keep you awake. Sweet dreams!..on your own time that is, not when I’m flying into DC.