Air Traffic Control Issues

[Groundfeeder]

I applied not long before Covid, got offered an interview but couldn’t make it. Didn’t actually fail the interview, just couldn’t take the day off work to attend. They operate a two strikes and you’re out policy in that if they then offer you a second interview and you can’t make that either you are banned from reapplying for life.

Maybe that is a reasonable policy, maybe it isn’t

(I didn’t bother asking for a second as work was being difficult and the lack of flexibility from Airservices combined with needing to travel from the NT and the need to avoid the blacklist made me not attempt to progress further)

Ditto Pancy, but a longer time ago, which would have required us leaving picturesque Whyalla.

 

[Quickstatus]

Seems AFF not only has armchair Airline CEOs but also armchair ATC managers.

The world would be a better place if they listened to us at AFF.

 

[jrfsp]

Not just Airservices Australia- there’s a global shortage after COVID - look at what’s happening in the US - they have a worse shortage than Australia

 

[Quickstatus]

Sunday 9August
Air Traffic Flow plan

MEL affected by Weather
GDP = Ground delay program = Holding aircraft at origin until an arrival slot appears.

 

[Dmac59]

Another near miss at SYD.

Another near-miss at Sydney Airport injures crew member

The Jetstar pilot told passengers it was ‘only by chance that at the last minute’ they were able to stop.

7news.com.au

(Edit: removed ATC comment)

Though the JQ pilot comments implied the QR did not follow instructions.
Maybe pilot error.

 

[Melburnian1]

My reading suggests that the problem is not ATC taking sickies, nor is ATC holding the travelling public hostage.

An Australian-domiciled pilot said to me a couple of weeks ago 'there's an element of CFMEU-style tactics in what the Sydney air traffic controllers are doing'.

Sickies appear to peak on Fridays and Saturdays, and during school holidays. Amazing.

No one denies controlling aircraft must be a very stressful, fast paced job. I once worked with a male who was bright, but had applied and been rejected because he couldn't get his head around the multiple types of separation he needed to be able to process.

However many other jobs are arguably equally stressful: paramedics, surgeons, emergency department nurses, train controllers, firemen at times, police, dangling 140 metres above sea level from the Bolte Bridge in Melbourne to remove graffiti painted by Pam The Bird, crane operators on building sites, heavy vehicle and freight train drivers to name a few.

These people signed up for very well remunerated positions in Sydney yet their taking sickies (of which they have an unlimited number available each year) is hugely disadvantaging passengers, some of whom miss international connections as a result, and causing airlines to waste fuel. On occasion, restricted numbers of movements beyond hourly and quarter hour movement limitations may see airline crews having to spend an overnight away from where their roster says they should be.

What justification is for these 'protected species' of ATCs to receive unlimited annual sick leave? I don't know of any other occupation at non-management level that allows this.

 

[Quickstatus]

An Australian-domiciled pilot said to me a couple of weeks ago 'there's an element of CFMEU-style tactics in what the Sydney air traffic controllers are doing'.

Perhaps but a well rostered ATC tower would significantly mitigate that.
It is difficult to cover for a sickie when the roster is already short
Inadequate rosters contribute to more overtime which then has a flow on effect into morale, burnout and stress

.......

Newer technologies such as the digital aerodrome service DASin operation at WSI would help.
WSI is being controlled via a DAS facility in Eastern Creek.

A digital aero drone aerodrome service with offsite operation, including full 360deg HD IR capable cameras which improve low light and night visibility and automated aircraft tracking. Additionally the video feed can be overlaid with other operational data such as aircraft call signs etc.

Eventually a DAS can be further automated to improve the functions of ATC....

Then for ground operations, some have suggested automated aircraft towing machines which automates ground movements (and pilots have control as well).

The future is bright

 

[justinbrett]

Though the JQ pilot comments implied the QR did not follow instructions.
Maybe pilot error.

QR was under tow so probably no pilots onboard.

As soon as I saw it involved a taxiing aircraft and an aircraft under tow, I was pretty sure it wasn’t an ATC issue.

 

[Must...Fly!]

Sickies appear to peak on Fridays and Saturdays, and during school holidays. Amazing.

Short staffed > leave routinely not approved, but people still have lives outside of work > why bother applying to be rejected > therefore your employer doesn't know the dates you want off > take sick leave.

It's not underhanded CFMEU enterprise bargaining tactics, it is just facts of life.

 

[Melburnian1]

Asia and Pacific to start with.
I am sure Australian Citizenship is something that most Asians admire and we should leverage the Australian Citizenship advantage to empty their air traffic control room so to fill ours.
I always believe that by hiring foreigners on visa, reliability of work output would significantly increase due to their fear of losing the Australian visa.
It will take time to train them, but we can also fast track training, so that even we are facing short term pain, we will ensure long term gain.

Despite what @markis10 claims is a '(high) rejection rate', this suggestion has merit.

The vast majority of northeast and southeast Asians have an excellent work ethic. It saddens me to say that often (note, I did not state 'always') they have a better work ethic than increasingly entitled Caucasian Australians, particularly if the latter are members of a militant union.

Maybe a 2026 equivalent of Chris Corrigan needs to emerge to stop this culture of taking sickies, just as he successfully reformed parts of the waterfront.

It's not good enough to have passengers (and hardworking airline crews) repeatedly held hostage by a small minority of employees in a related field.

Delays also mean urgent freight such as blood donations (required for transfusions) are slower to be delivered to hospitals or other settings where blood may be required. That could in a worst case scenario be life threatening.

 

[Must...Fly!]

It's not good enough to have passengers (and hardworking airline crews) held hostage by a small minority of employees in a related field.

You seem to be certain that the controllers themselves are deserving of the blame and the cause of the problems.

 

[Quickstatus]

It's not good enough to have passengers (and hardworking airline crews) repeatedly held hostage by a small minority of employees in a related field.

Holding hostage implies that someone is trying to leverage a negotiating position.
Unions who use the 'work to rule" could be seen to be doing just that, but are the AC trying to negotiate a position?

 

[Warragul]

What justification is for these 'protected species' of ATCs to receive unlimited annual sick leave? I don't know of any other occupation at non-management level that allows this.

Come to work with a cold/ headache or fatigued to 'save' the sick leave. One shouldn't do it but it happens. Just what you want in that workplace.

There may not be any other occupations with this provision, doesn't mean there shouldn't be

 

[Melburnian1]

Holding hostage implies that someone is trying to leverage a negotiating position.

In the general sense, not always: it's an expression that can just mean 'individuals are being disadvantaged by others' actions'.

That's what's occurring here.

I wasn't referring to any enterprise bargaining period.