Summary

  • In 2011, two aircraft had to land unassisted at Washington's Reagan Airport when an air traffic controller fell asleep during his shift.
  • The incident highlighted a wider trend of insufficient rest periods for air traffic controllers.
  • The incident prompted an upheaval in staffing protocols and the implementation of a second controller on overnight shifts at the airport.

The job of Air Traffic Controller (ATC) is one of the most high-pressure jobs in the world. In a safety-driven environment, ATCs must always be vigilant during their shift. When managing several aircraft at the same time, and the safety and security of those onboard is on the line, controllers ensure they give nothing less than 100% attention to their work.

Despite the vigilance, in March 2011, two aircraft had to land unassisted at Washington's Ronald Reagon Airport (DCA) when the controller fell asleep during his shift.

Unassisted landings

The incident took place in the early hours of the morning on Wednesday, March 23rd, 2011. According to NBC, the first flight that encountered a lack of response from the tower at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA) was American Airlines flight 1012. This was followed shortly afterward by United flight 628T.

Upon realizing there was no reply from the tower, the two flights initially circled near the airport, using this time to try and elicit some form of response. However, with the controller on duty having fallen asleep, their only point of contact was with a regional ATC facility in Warrenton, Virginia. This facility also tried to contact the tower by phone, but to no avail. As such, the aircraft had to land unassisted.

With aviation being a safety-driven industry, some failsafe elements were in place. For example, FAA Administrator Randy Babbitt explained that "at no point was either plane out of radar contact, and our backup system kicked in to ensure the safe landing of both airplanes." Nonetheless, it was an alarming situation.

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A matter of fatigue

While the aircraft in question landed safely, a lack of ATC support at such a busy airport could have proved very dangerous. Fatigue clearly played a role in what happened, with NBC noting that it was the controller's fourth consecutive overnight shift. It wasn't the case of a rookie mistake, as he had worked in the domain of air traffic control for 20 years, with 17 of these being at Washington National.

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In any case, he was suspended pending an investigation, which prompted an upheaval in staffing protocols. Indeed, the reason for the radio silence was the fact that the sleeping controller was the only person present in the tower at the time. As such, Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood mandated a second controller when it came to overnight shifts at the US capital's secondary airport.

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Similar incidents

The incident highlighted a worrying wider trend concerning incidents involving air traffic controllers who hadn't had sufficient rest between shifts. While a controller falling asleep on the job was more or less unheard of, eTurboNews notes that a 2007 letter from then-NTSB Chairman Mark Rosenker to the FAA highlighted four near misses involving underslept air traffic controllers.

These occurred between July 2001 and March 2006, with certain aircraft having been as little as 12 seconds away from a collision. In these instances, the controllers on duty had between two and six hours of sleep between shifts, with one having worked three times in two days. These underline the importance of sufficient rest periods in safety-critical roles, of which the airline industry has many.

What do you make of this incident? Have you ever heard of such a situation arising? Let us know your thoughts in the comments.

  • Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport
    IATA/ICAO Code:
    DCA/KDCA
    Country:
    United States
    Passenger Count :
    23,961,442 - 2022
    Runways :
    01/19 - 7,169ft (2,185m) | 04/22 - 5,000ft (1,524m) | 15/33 - 5,204ft (1,586m)
    Airlines:
    American Airlines
    Terminals:
    Terminal 1 / Terminal 2