RADAR OUTAGE AT GRAND RAPIDS AIRPORT HIGHLIGHTS “FIX ON FAIL” APPROACH DEFICIENCIES
- Details
- Published: July 18, 2013
Older Radar System Called Into Service After Failure of Primary Backup Units
WASHINGTON, DC—At approximately 10:00 AM on Thursday, June 16, the failure of an air conditioning unit forced the closure of a facility that houses a radar system at Grand Rapids’ Gerald R. Ford International Airport. The loss of the primary radar system forced the use of a backup radar system, which reduced functionality and slowed down air traffic. The incident has highlighted concerns about both the causes and impact of such a serious problem.
Most radar systems rely heavily on external environmental equipment such as air conditioning systems to keep radar systems operating properly. The primary air conditioning unit broke on May 18, yet management decided to rely solely on the backup rather than fix the main unit. This total reliance on the backup unit may actually have contributed to its failure. In this case, Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) management decided to shut down the facility rather than work to rectify the situation immediately.
“It is clear that the FAA does not have enough technicians to respond to situations such as this. This is yet another example of how FAA technical staffing shortages impact the flying public.” said Mike Perrone, national vice president of Professional Airways Systems Specialists (PASS), the union that represents FAA systems specialists, technicians and safety inspectors. “FAA technicians, like those in Grand Rapids, are simply stretched too thin.”
Currently, Grand Rapids is operating with one environmental technician. A second environmental technician retired almost two years ago, and the FAA has made no moves to fill the position. “This is clearly a case of mismanagement of the National Airspace System,” said Perrone. “Waiting a month to fix an air conditioning unit and then shutting down an entire facility instead of assigning more technicians to work on repairing problems to get the radar back up and running is unacceptable.”
The FAA’s overall change in its approach to maintenance of critical aviation systems adds to the gravity of the shortage. The FAA plans to move from a preventive maintenance model, where technicians regularly inspect equipment, to a “fix on fail” approach to critical air traffic control systems. This creates unnecessary crises that further stretch the technician workforce, leading to a slow down in air traffic and the increased possibility of flight delays and risks to the flying public.
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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.