Washington, April 15: The head of the air traffic organization of the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has resigned amid growing controversy over air traffic controllers falling asleep on duty.
In the wake of six reported cases of dereliction of duty by air traffic controllers in the US, the FAA announced on Thursday that Hank Krakowski, the chief operating officer of the organization’s Air Traffic Operations has submitted his resignation, which was accepted by FAA Chief Randy Babbitt, AFP reported.
On Tuesday, an air traffic controller at Reno-Tahoe International Airport in the US state of Nevada fell asleep while a medical plane carrying a sick patient was trying to land.
“Over the last few weeks we have seen examples of unprofessional conduct on the part of a few individuals that have rightly caused the traveling public to question our ability to ensure their safety,” the FAA chief said in a statement.
According to an FAA report in February, the number of air traffic errors picked up between 2007 and 2010 from 1,040 to 1,887, marking an 81 percent increase in air traffic mistakes.
The spates of alarming incidents have prompted grave concerns among many Americans about the FAA’s ability to ensure their safety while flying. The head of the FAA has vowed a major shake-up of the system to regain public trust in its safety.
Last month, two planes carrying a total of 165 people were forced to land without any guidance at Washington’s Reagan National Airport, because the lone controller on the night shift had fallen asleep.
On March 29, another similar incident took place in Lubbock, Texas, where two controllers failed to properly hand over control of a departing aircraft to a nearby center at Fort Worth. The FAA suspended the two workers after admittedly falling asleep on the job.
According to the FAA, another controller at a major airport in Seattle has been found napping at work on multiple occasions, most recently during a morning shift on Monday.
——-Agencies