Breaking news- FAA knew 2007 delays would be titanic, months before they happened!
Posted by Blue Eyed Buddhist on November 7th, 2007
Man, sometimes this blog writes itself. Scope out this article on the FAA’s web site:
In the virtual world of airplanes and airports that exists—much like Second Life or The Sims—only in computers, the record delays of this past summer happened years ago.
The 12 members of the FAA’s Capacity Modeling and Analysis Group saw it coming. The team, based at the William J. Hughes Technical Center in Atlantic City, N.J., has studied every large and medium-sized airport in the United States, using numerical models that simulate the movement of aircraft from the air onto taxiways and runways. Their job is to provide the information necessary to recognize what procedures and characteristics (e.g. gates) cause congestion and delays in the nation’s airspace and airports. Just what to do with that information is up to the airports.
Years ago, the Analysis Group foresaw the record delays that would occur in summer 2007…
That’s pretty remarkable. The only thing I can figure is that the internal PR flacks who did up the story didn’t really realize that they are essentially admitting a few important things with this story.
First, that the FAA knew ahead of time that the delays were going to skyrocket this summer.
Second, that they didn’t do anything to take action to prevent it.
Third, that the delays don’t come from the AIR. They come from the movement of the aircraft FROM the air onto the runways and taxiways. (For example, RVSM doubled the useable enroute altitudes and airspace for the vast majority of commercial airliners, yet did nothing to help delays. The problem isn’t enroute, folks.)
The FAA and Marion Blakey (and now Bobby Sturgell) and the big equipment manufacturers have been running around selling everyone- Congress, the users, the contractors, you name it- on the idea that we desperately need “NextGen” to fix the delay problems of the future. The air traffic controllers that hear about this say to themselves “sure, okay, airspace improvements are great, but the REAL delays are at the airports, aren’t they? Why aren’t we paying any attention to that?”
Well, folks, the reality is this: The FAA DOES have good employees who are freakin geniuses with computers. They can and have modeled not just airspace, but also airports, runway and taxiway configurations, and so forth. These simulations predicted this year’s delays LONG in advance.
It’s just that the FAA didn’t do anything about it. Why not?
Well, that would screw up the whole NextGen push, wouldn’t it? Along with the push the ATA and Marion made to shift the costs of the system off of the airlines (as if they’re going to lower costs to passengers!) and onto private and business aviation users that don’t clog up the monster-delayed airports?
That stuff wouldn’t sell NEARLY as well if the FAA had said “hey, we’re going to do something about these delays, so JFK and EWR and LGA and the other overscheduled airports, here’s your new slot numbers, no more than this per hour” and the delays had never happened.
Ladies and gentlemen, we’re talking an ultimate con game. They create the problem, then pitch the “solution” to the artificially created problem, then agree to spend billions of taxpayer dollars on that “solution”, then run off and get cushy high-paying jobs with the very contractors that are selling the not-yet-invented equipment that’s supposedly going to solve the artificially created problem.
Oh, and if they can contract out as many government jobs to for-profit companies, break the labor unions, and screw thousands out of their pensions while scoring great jobs for themselves, and implement an Ayn Randian nightmare of “every man for him/herself, no governmental interference or safety standards type of policy at the same time, and direct tens of thousands of FAA dollars to their wives and friends, why not go for that, too?
And then after the problem appears, hold a press conference where the Decider Guy acts like he’s all concerned about it, announce how the problem is going to be fixed, and everyone laughs all the way to the bank.
The agency’s employees see all this, and we here at the Follies shake our heads at the audacity of the people who are running this con job on the American people.
Wake up, folks. We’re not making this stuff up; and the scumbags are getting away with it, and they’re doing press releases to announce what they’re doing!
I don’t much care where you stand on the whole NATCA/FAA problems. This is beyond that, although it’s brought to you by the same people, so that should give you a clue who’s telling the truth and who’s playing games there.
This is about billions of taxpayer dollars. This is about ethics violations. This is about intentional lessening of safety standards, about graft and corruption that’s become so institutionalized, nobody pays much attention to it. It’s just business as usual.
Well, we need to change that. Get fired up. Write or call your Congressman and Senators. Tell them you don’t give a damn about party affiliation or political ideology; you just want to know why the FAA knew about the 2007 delays ahead of time and didn’t do anything. Tell them you know the delays aren’t in the air and instead of spending billions on equipment that isn’t even developed yet, it’d be much wiser to go to the true experts on aviation- the FAA’s employees- and deal with THEM fairly and get THEM to come up with the solutions we need.
Do something. Don’t just sit there, okay?
November 7th, 2007 at 7:30 am
Why do we continue to expose and try to fix this?? Its over. We are better off posting retirement information and other non faa jobs. Explain the RIF and the loopholes to get your retirement(s). No democrat in the white house or congress is going to fix this. The old screen ended around 1993 and its been a slow boil since then. You get 70,000 views a month and manage a handful of postings…Why???? Natca’s asleep. White Book or Green Book….Neither one was/is followed. In fact my pay was never higher and if “we” stay low the weakstick suckups get all the heat. Play along and wait to strike and retire. Dont get me wrong I hate the FAA. Can I rebaseline my retirement too??
November 7th, 2007 at 7:56 am
The real problem is that government sucks and everyone knows it. Don’t get me wrong, I’ve worked for the government for over 25 years and I know there are many great workers. Our troops are government! During times of military stress it is good pr to praise the troops. However in peace it is not as important and reducing the military is more acceptable and cost effective.
Look at all the people who think it is a good idea to abolish the IRS. Look at all the money we would save in just managing the program! I was one of those as well…untill the thought of privatization struck my home. What about my family? I wasen’t thinking about that person working for the IRS but I “knew” the government sucks and it would be a good thing to reduce government.
Look at the approval rating of this administration. Look at the approval rating of congress. Everyone knows how dysfunctional the government is. As employees we however see the importance of the work we do but the bottom line for many is that government sucks so bad it if there are a “few” casualties in the downsizing of it, that the price we pay.
I think people are behind and support “air traffic controllers” they just don’t support our employer.
November 7th, 2007 at 8:09 am
I love you guys! Another great post.
November 7th, 2007 at 8:25 am
Me…where are you ?
November 7th, 2007 at 8:34 am
This really shouldn’t surprise us coming from the “regime of doom” currently in power. They are masters of creating and exploiting any situation, or crisis, for personal gain.
The jack booted thugs that enforce this garbage and look the other way for “bonus bucks” are the most despicable and heinous of the bunch. They took an oath, they are now liars and thieves…
The American public is entitled to much more than being used by a bunch of arrogant, self-righteous, and fill in the blank……
By the way, ME is probably getting some type of indoctrination training booster for degrading himself by talking to a controller…
November 7th, 2007 at 9:35 am
Steve Says:
November 7th, 2007 at 8:25 am
Me…where are you ?
Probably on leave. After all, it is that time of year for manager and HQ types.
November 7th, 2007 at 11:28 am
Nice blog. Spot on.
Now go back and everywhere you reference NextGen, think about the war in Iraq.
1. Tell the American public that Iraq poses an immediate threat with weapons of mass destruction that can only be solved with military action.
2. Start a war as a solution to deal with the imagined threat.
3. Create a financial goldmine for companies that support our troops and move and manage the stolen oil. (i.e. Haliburton, Blackwater, plus a long list of secret, defense related, food supply and oil well management and oil transportation companies.)
4. Convince Congress and the American to repeatedly pour TENS OF BILLIONS of unaccounted-for dollars into the black hole; at the risk of being called “UnAmerican” if they don’t “support our troops”.
5. Enjoy the ride to the bank.
It worked for Bush and the boys in Iraq. It’ll work for ATC too.
Enjoy the ride.
November 7th, 2007 at 11:45 am
So now you want access to area51 and the spy satellites to prove Bush right?? You know we have the information, but its about security clearance and need to know.
November 7th, 2007 at 7:44 pm
Does anything that the FAA hides and then comes to light surprise you? It shouldn’t. This is status quo for this finely run outfit.
November 7th, 2007 at 9:28 pm
Perhaps all of you who read this article might ask your congressman/Senator to come and visit your facility and arrange a meeting with your ATC union rep to discuss your work etc.Perhaps they could also meet with Pass/ATO tech reps and find out overall just how certain policies have impacted the FAA in a very negative way. I think if Congress were to ask for all minutes/copies of e-mails/and question employees at FAA headquarters for activity of the last 4 years , they could quite possibly find a deliberate plan to cause the FAA to fail so that certain companies could profit. I also believe it possible (if congress works quickly) that they could find a bribe trail leading to people such as Blakely, Sturgell, and others. They might also find a significant loss information during the times they could have been meeting to plan the failure of the FAA and supposed taking of bribes. But if this is’nt the case..if it is found that they were’nt taking bribes and planning for the FAA to fail, well…Then it is worse than can be imagined. It would mean that we have Leaders with no fore-thought, fore-sight, essentially ; we have for Leaders a group of people who are severely mentally challenged !!
November 8th, 2007 at 8:43 am
Cover Up. Cant release information because of National Security. Natca rep….YOUR FIRED!
November 8th, 2007 at 5:14 pm
Loved this quote:
“Ladies and gentlemen, we’re talking an ultimate con game. They create the problem, then pitch the “solution” to the artificially created problem, then agree to spend billions of taxpayer dollars on that “solution”, then run off and get cushy high-paying jobs with the very contractors that are selling the not-yet-invented equipment that’s supposedly going to solve the artificially created problem.”
Sounds like unsubstantiated rhetoric from a recently bygone union administration. Don’t they take cushy contract jobs too?
November 8th, 2007 at 8:59 pm
War Profits,
I agree with you 100%…and before Iraq, it was Homeland Security and constant and chronic Orange alerts leading up to the Patriot Act. Fearmongering at its best. It’s too bad people couldn’t (WOULDN’T) see what Bush was up to from the beginning. And even now when it’s been shown how many times Bush lied to our faces, it is beyond me how he still has ANY support. A president gets impeached for oral sex but one that has lied repeatedly (and caused the death of HOW MANY soldiers!?!) just sits there as pretty as you please on his throne answering to no one but his god. It makes me sick.