Duffy is in over his head. Mayor Pete was no better. The folks who “appoint” these empty suits have no concept or respect for the position of Secretary of Transportation. Vance won’t go to Ukraine and Duffy probably would decline an invite to work a full shift in the ORD Ground position yet they form hardened opinions which risk becoming policy.
Pilots have schedules that are just as erratic. And yet we are allowed to work until 65.
Speaking of age, NASA astronaut Don Petit is about to return from the ISS after six months in space. This is his fourth space flight. He turns 70 tomorrow.
Why is he allowed to fly into space and work on the space station when so many others are forced to retire from less strenuous work?
Some people are capable of working longer than others, and so there should not be any mandatory retirement age. Instead, it should be based on capability and health.
I’m sure NASA puts their astronauts through some grueling physical and mental tests, especially right before they launch. Right?? It’s not really fair to say, “hey, this one old dude can work, so 10,000 others who aren’t nearly as fit can also do it.” How about this : warren Buffett is 93 or something…why not tell everyone they need to work til 93. You see the issue??
Airline pilots do have some tough schedules. But they are working significantly fewer hours overall. A good chunk of that time is at cruise just watching the instruments occasionally and reading a magazine. Right now, most pilots are off between 9-15 days a month. Controllers are off between 4 and 8 days a month.
Again, I would welcome anyone to work our schedule. It’s the actual job that takes a toll and the stress of missing so many other life events because our job is a 24/7 operation.
My opinion, the staffing crisis is getting worse. The next year will see a 10% decrease in controllers going to other careers. The airlines will have to cut flights and ticket cost will go up a lot. I don’t know the exact solution, but hopefully the government and union and find common ground.
Perhaps it wasn’t well characterized. 33 years ATC here. I currently work at a low volume contract tower but spent 23 years at a busy NY metro airport where I would work 100 operations an hour with some frequency. You have to speak clearly & concisely so that you don’t have to repeat yourself but there are times when you talk virtually nonstop for 2 hours until you are relieved from position. It isn’t a job that requires you to do physical things but I could still work up a good sweat from the level of concentration required.
33 years ATC. 23 at ISP, a NY Metro airport with irregular traffic. A lot of student pilots, some of them ESL. A complex mix of high & low performance aircraft with (when I did it) 4 runways in a triangle configuration. There were days when I’d work over 100 operations in an hour & if I made a serious mistake, it would have been national news in a matter of hours.
I once did the math, if I had allowed 2 B737’s to come together, the immediate economic impact would have been on the order of a Billion $s. $200 million for the two planes & $1-10 million each for 200 passengers. This doesn’t account for damage on the ground. Nor does it account for the potentially billions of $s of impact on the larger economy. I can work for decades without a significant error but my whole life will become associated with that one mistake.
I like to think I could have worked past 56 but to require it would be unwise.
I said exactly the opposite of “everyone must work until 93.”
I said if someone is capable of doing the job, then let then continue doing it. A mandatory retirement is arbitrary and doesn’t contribute to safety. Why would we force our most experienced controllers to stop working? As you said, the staffing crisis is getting worse. Making people retire exacerbates that. We should be hiring everyone who applies and passes training for ATC. And increasing pay and benefits to encourage more to join.
If you want to retire at 56, then do so. Get out of ATC at 45 and switch careers or retire early if you so desire and can afford to. I don’t care. I just think mandatory retirement is stupid.
If you want to work less mandatory overtime, then tell your union reps to stop opposing this.
One thing that seems to be missing from this discussion (or I just missed it), is that the retirement age applies to FAA controllers. It does not (as far as I’m aware) apply to contract controllers. Sure, the contract controllers don’t earn the same pay, but it’s still a way for aged-out controllers to continue working.
The stakes are high in air traffic. Lots of lives are potentially in your hands. You have to be sharp and be quick to adapt. So, what’s better in this scenario of 100 controllers. Allow the 5 that want to keep working past 56 but who are a hot mess and likely to kill someone. Or force everyone to retire at 56 and ensure a higher level of safety. I think the answer is obvious. Another way to frame it, should we allow people who statistically are less safe to work just for more money but also potentially kill people. Seems we’re gambling with people’s lives just to allow others to be greedy.
Retirement was an unnecessary concept in ye olde timees because most folks had to work until death relieved them. Is that what you want us to revert to, Kent?
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I think it is a bit different than flying. I am not 100% sure I could still get myself out of some of the messes I got myself into when I was 20-somthing. I am 100% sure I have learned a lot about not getting myself into such predicaments in the first place.
As a controller, I am dealing with EVERYONE, so there is no using the wisdom of age to make them all fly better and not need my quick thinking.
It would be nice for the FAA to have a path to ease into retirement, say move over from DCA to ESN or something, but allowing older controllers to work out on the Eastern Shore or some other not real busy place isn’t going to help them keep Washington Center running.
This is true, but I really feel Mayor Pete actually gave a shit about Air Traffic. He visited different facilities, met the people who run air traffic, visited Oklahoma to watch a class graduate, and was generally present and encouraging. No one I have spoken to gets these vibes off of Duffy, other than he’s just another yes man.
Jealous much? Don’t be mad because you couldn’t hack it, but these Air Traffic Controllers could. My husband does more in one day than you’ve done your entire career. Kent, you need to sit down too- you both chose your lot in life, no one told you not to go into a highly specialized career. Your personal failures you made as an employed man does not nor should it extend to those who are successful. They work harder with no downtime and more stress than you ever did.
Retirement was actually a creation of Germany in the late 19th century as a means to force older, experienced people out of the workforce to provide jobs to younger people. FDR used the same tactics during the Great Depression, which only made matters worse. For Christians, work is how we bring Glory to God, and there is no expiration date on that. But I suggest you ask a few people whose work is of great importance to aviation, despite their being way beyond retirement age. For instance, Hal Shevers, founder of Sportys, or Jack Pelton, CEO of the EAA. The EAA’s founder, Paul Poberezny, never slowed down as the spiritual leader of the organization he created until the day he died, and thank God for that.
What?? Couldn’t hack what exactly? I’m an airline Captain and have both more responsibility and a higher income than your husband will ever have. Stick to baking cookies because you haven’t a clue what the hell you are talking about here!
LOL, Mayor Pete is incompetent but he showed up for graduation, isn’t that special?
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Stressful, hmmmmm. What is more stressful, flying at night into an airport with low visibility, high winds, snow or thunderstorms with a new First Officer and a plane full of passengers OR watching me do it on a screen in a dark room on the ground?
BTW, the other reason my job is more stressful is your husband’s mistakes could get me killed.
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First- He doesn’t make mistakes. Second- you’re trained for a (few) thousand hours to fly, but the plane could auto pilot if necessary, you’re a bus driver in the sky. ATC’s spend YEARS training and certifying before they are put on the floor to tell you what to do. You’re responsible for your team and crew, my husband and his team are responsible for THOUSANDS of you each day. Thanks for the laugh.
Doesn’t make mistakes, LOL, you really believe his training is harder than mine. As we say in the South, Bless your Heart!
And again not a clue. Look up pilot in command, I can tell your husband to pound sand anytime I feel it necessary for the safety of my passengers.
Once again, BLESS YOUR HEART!
If you have some religious belief that makes you think you have to work until you die, please by all means do so and be happy.
This is pretty unique to you, so please don’t be surprised some of want to live in the 1st World where “Arbeit Macht Frei” is a horrible history lesson and not words to live by.