PASS Outlines Sequestration Concerns at DCA

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, Professional Aviation Safety Specialists, AFL-CIO (PASS) Vice President Rich Casey joined members of Congress and aviation industry groups at National Airport to urge Congress to find a solution to avoid sequestration. Below is the statement from PASS Vice President Rich Casey.

"PASS represents over 11,000 employees at the Federal Aviation Administration. These employees work tirelessly every day to ensure the safety and reliability of the National Airspace System by maintaining, certifying and inspecting every aspect of the NAS.

"Sequestration would force the FAA to cut over $600 million from its budget this fiscal year, resulting in hiring freezes and furloughs for every single FAA employee - with additional cost-cutting measures likely to take place in the near future. These indiscriminate, across-the-board cuts will reduce the capacity and efficiency of the aviation system and seriously impact every FAA employee and their families.

"PASS members are dedicated. They're dedicated to preserving the safety of the aviation system above all else. Whether it's major storms like Hurricane Sandy, blizzard conditions or earthquakes such as the one that happened in Haiti, these dedicated professionals are there to restore critical aviation systems and keep the NAS functioning safely and efficiently. These men and women also have families and financial responsibilities and are already working under a two-and-a-half year pay freeze. The uncertainty that sequestration brings to them personally is distressing to say the least.

"The looming sequestration will cause major operational changes, including facility closures, elimination of shifts, reduced maintenance and fewer aviation safety inspectors working in the field. This will lead to delays in the restoration of equipment and slow the certification and approval process for airlines, aviation manufacturers and pilots. All segments of the aviation industry will be impacted by sequestration. The aviation system is a network of balanced components, with PASS members making up the human component of the system. A change to one component will be felt throughout.

"For example, reduced inspections will result in fewer new certifications, which will result in less aviation services. Some of the critical preventative maintenance performed by Technical Operations systems specialists would be eliminated, increasing the potential for outages. With limited staff due to furloughs, equipment issues that could have been prevented or corrected in very short time will take hours to remedy, leading to major air traffic delays. Facility closures will impact the number of flights, potentially forcing airlines to change their schedules and truly inconvenience travelers. These are only a few of the negative effects sequestration will have on the system. And, with aviation playing such a pivotal role in our economy, the impact will not stop at the airport.

"We all fly. We all rely on flights to be available when we need them, and for the system to function as promised. Sequestration will tie the hands of the safest and most efficient aviation system in the world.

"I want to thank Representatives Moran and Connolly and Senator Kaine for their leadership and recognition of the serious impacts sequestration could have on this country's aviation system and passengers who rely daily on our system. I urge all lawmakers to work together to find a solution that avoids sequestration."

For more information or questions, please contact Kori Blalock Keller at (202) 293-7277 x110.

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For 36 years, PASS has represented 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.

FAA Inspectors, Systems Specialists Regarding Furloughs

Today, Mike Perrone, president of the Professional Aviation Safety Specialists, released the following statement regarding furloughs set to begin Sunday as a result of sequestration.

"On Sunday, the furloughing of nearly 47,000 FAA employees, including aviation safety inspectors and systems specialists, will begin. We are extremely disappointed that this is the chosen route of budget savings for the agency."

"The cuts will result in one less day for aviation safety inspectors to conduct inspections as well as restrictions on travel to perform surveillance, resulting in less oversight of air carriers and operators. Certifications of new technologies will be halted, with manufacturing inspectors focusing entirely on existing certifications, leading to the industry suffering economic losses. In addition, systems specialists, who ensure the safety, reliability and integrity of every single piece of equipment that pilots and controllers depend on to safely navigate the airspace, will not be able to perform some critical maintenance on systems, which will no doubt result in longer and more frequent outages. An increase in outages coupled with limited staffing of systems specialists and more open watches at facilities will all translate to considerable delays to the flying public.

"Employees at the FAA are already doing more with less. The agency cannot, and its employees will not, lose focus on its commitment to safety. However, there is no question that these indiscriminate, across-the-board cuts will reduce the capacity and efficiency of the aviation system and will be felt by all segments of the aviation industry. PASS urges members of Congress and the administration to find a way to avoid these furloughs before the impact is felt this summer."

For more information or questions, please contact Kori Blalock Keller at (202) 293-7277 x110.


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For 36 years, PASS has represented 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.

PASS Statement On FAA Furloughs

Mike Perrone, national president of the Professional Aviation Safety Specialists released the following statement regarding the continued furloughing of FAA employees:

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Impact Of FAA Furloughs Felt Nationwide

At airports and air traffic control facilities across the country, work is being deferred, equipment is not getting fixed, and flights are being delayed or diverted as a result of the sequestration budget cuts and the furloughing of the FAA workforce. Just last night:

  • At Cleveland Burke Lakefront Airport, radio and telephone communication capability was lost due to routine battery discharge tests. The systems specialist with the most experience was on furlough at the time of the incident. Systems specialists on site attempted to contact him but, even though he is geographically located near the facility, he was prevented from responding due to restrictions placed on furloughed employees. Had the systems specialist not been on furlough, the outage could have been minimized and delays reduced.

  • When the glide slope at the Long Island Mac Arthur Airport failed, a Southwest Airlines flight was diverted to Baltimore-Washington International Airport. While the policy for this equipment is immediate restoral, due to sequestration and furloughs, it was changed to next-day restoral. When inclement weather developed last night and the glide slope was out of service, flights had to be diverted. At press, the glide slope remains out of service.

PASS is learning of additional impacts nationwide, including open watches, increased restoration times, delays resulting from insufficient funding for parts and equipment, modernization delays, missed or deferred preventative maintenance, and reduced redundancy. For example:

  • In Indiana, at the Columbus Municipal Airport, equipment used to indicate approach paths was out an additional five days due to lack of available resources.

  • In Maryland, at Andrews Air Force Base, a lack of resources resulting from sequestration is preventing the completion of a project related to the air conditioning unit responsible for cooling the radar. The lack of optimal conditions could result in the loss of primary radar.

  • Due to FAA employees on furlough days in Southern Michigan, there have been issues with equipment, remotely controlling systems and contractors performing work without adequate supervision.

  • As a result of the budget cuts, a broken gate cannot be fixed at the Battle Creek Flight Inspection Office in Michigan, causing security issues. The facility houses airplanes and other systems and equipment that should be appropriately monitored and secured.

  • In addition, there have been open watches on radars and weather equipment in the Philadelphia/New Jersey area; delays due to insufficient funding for parts or equipment in the New York/New Jersey area, Texas, Indiana, Michigan and Iowa; and missed or deferred preventative maintenance in Texas, Washington State, California, Wyoming and Alaska.

"The furloughs at the FAA must end now," said PASS National President Mike Perrone. "Lawmakers must stop the furloughs immediately and work to develop a plan that repeals sequestration. The furloughs are not yet a week old and we are learning of more problems every day. Without a solution that stops these needless furloughs, this will only be the beginning."

For more information or questions, please contact Kori Blalock Keller at (202) 293-7277 x110.

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For 36 years, PASS has represented 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.

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