KEY AVIATION SAFETY SYSTEM TURNED OFF IN ALASKA
- Details
- Published: July 18, 2013
WASHINGTON, DC – A vital piece of safety equipment that helps safely land flights has been turned off at two of Alaska’s major airports, according to Professional Airways Systems Specialists (PASS), the union representing systems specialists and technicians who repair and certify air traffic control equipment.
The Minimum Safe Altitude Warning (MSAW) system measures an approaching aircraft’s altitude against the minimum safe altitude and issues an alert if the aircraft falls below the safe level.
The FAA is testing a new surveillance system in Alaska that interferes with proper MSAW system operation. Instead of fixing the problem with the system, the FAA simply turned off the aural alarms, disabling alerts at Fairbanks International and Bethel Airports.
“Rather than taking the time to fix the problem, the developers of the new system just disabled the MSAW aural alarm,” explained Ray Baggett, PASS Region III vice president. “Operating positions at the air traffic control tower at Fairbanks are disabled and the alarm is completely disabled at Bethel. Full operation is required by the FAA’s own policy.”
In 1997, Korean Airlines Flight 801 on route to the island of Guam crashed into a hill just three miles from the runway, killing 228 passengers. It was later determined that the proper use of the MSAW system may have prevented this tragedy. This event, as well as other accidents in which low altitude was a factor, forced the FAA to take action. After inspecting MSAW systems across the country, the FAA issued a strict edict that the system must always be operating.
“They ran around fixing the MSAW software, but now they are making the same mistakes they did years ago,” said Baggett. “Fortunately, our field technicians are not willing to compromise the safety of the National Airspace System by letting the FAA ignore the past.”
FAA technicians are trained in certification procedures, part of which includes ensuring that the MSAW system is functioning properly. In Alaska, these technicians are being pressured to certify equipment with an inoperable MSAW system. While pressuring technicians to certify this equipment, the FAA refuses to give any official documentation to indicate that they are aware of the status of the MSAW system and that technicians should ignore the inoperable MSAW alarm when making a certification determination.
“It is ridiculous that the FAA would take this kind of gamble with the safety of the flying public,” said PASS National President Tom Brantley. “They are ignoring the tragic lessons of the past, and putting Alaskan travelers at risk.”
“If the FAA was serious six years ago after the Guam disaster,” asked Baggett, “shouldn’t they be just as serious when it comes to aviation safety today?”
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PASS represents more than 11,000 employees of the Federal Aviation Administration and the Department of Defense who install, maintain, support and certify air traffic control and national defense equipment, inspect and oversee the commercial and general aviation industries, develop flight procedures and perform quality analyses of the aviation systems. For more information, visit the PASS website at www.passnational.org.