The woeful unpreparedness of Management

SugarFoot1 said:
We are having to open positions to make the crew art look good because there is no traffic and too many people here...governors shutting the whole state down though
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Our crew Art was mostly red in the break, no one had been on position more than 30 mins. They stripped caring about they at least

Justin said:
FRG just closed up shop ufn
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Will n90 be next? I hear the virus is running wild on Long Island
 
Bandit117 said:
Our crew Art was mostly red in the break, no one had been on position more than 30 mins. They stripped caring about they at least
Click to expand...
Yeah, we've been like this all week. 2 sectors open for the most part with people doing 45 minute breaks.

We're still training that D side though!
 
URL isn’t working... sorry

Airlines want to defer payments to Europe’s air traffic controllers, worth about €500m a month, as they battle a deepening cash crisis from a virtual shutdown of international travel amid the coronavirus pandemic.

Carriers are collectively pushing back on paying February’s charges that are due next month to Eurocontrol, according to people familiar with the situation.

Eurocontrol co-ordinates national air traffic management agencies and is responsible for collecting route charges from carriers to fund air navigation facilities and services in the EU.

It comes as the global airline industry faces a cash crunch. The International Air Transport Association on Tuesday said the sector will need up to $200bn in emergency support as the travel industry bleeds cash in the face of a global lockdown.

The airlines’ main trade body has warned that the majority of carriers face running out of money within two months because of the sudden halt in international flights by governments attempting to contain the coronavirus outbreak.

A spokeswoman for A4E, the European airline trade body, said it was asking governments in the region to defer the payment of air traffic control charges due as well as waiving aviation taxes at EU or national level to help the sector’s future recovery.

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“At this point, many of Europe’s airlines have made the difficult decision to ground all or a substantial part of their fleet for the coming weeks. Many carriers have also been forced to proceed with temporary staff cuts . . . Any fiscal burdens should be put aside until the industry is back on a sound operational and financial footing.”

The payment for February is due on April 13, according to Eurocontrol’s website. Eurocontrol works by collecting money from airlines that fly over European airspace and pays a proportion of that to national governments. In 2018, it collected over €9bn.

Based on figures for the month of January, Ryanair would have paid the most in air traffic charges to Eurocontrol at about €48m.

Eurocontrol declined to comment on the request to defer payments.

Andrew Charlton, a Swiss-based aviation consultant, said that if air traffic controllers — who are in charge of keeping the skies safe on a daily basis — are not paid by airlines, then the whole air travel system goes into even more of a “meltdown”.

He noted that most air traffic control groups typically only have about two or three months’ worth of cash, of which a large proportion goes on salaries.

On Tuesday, Canso, which represents global air traffic managers, warned that the coronavirus crisis was having a big impact on the sector, which is a critical part of national infrastructure.

It noted that air traffic controllers’ revenues are directly related to the volume of air traffic they control and so are “extremely vulnerable to the decreasing traffic”.

“Many are already deploying cost containment measures, but there’s no doubt that a decrease in revenue could significantly impair their ability to safely and seamlessly handle traffic when the volumes inevitably pick up again,” warned Canso.
 
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Brothers and Sisters,

In the last 48 hours, we have been notified of confirmed positive test results for air traffic controllers at LGA, ZNY, and FRG. NATCA has been engaged at the national, regional, and local levels to ensure the Agency’s response properly addresses the safety and health of all members at these locations. In each instance, we expected the local Public Health Authorities (PHA) to ensure the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) protocols were met for dealing with the risks of exposure to employees who had close contact with those who tested positive, providing guidance for those members, and ensuring the FAA properly cleaned disinfected work areas prior to requiring employees to return to them. Unfortunately, in these latest locations, the PHA only suggested wiping everything down and going back to work. This is not acceptable to NATCA. After hours of discussion, the FAA moved forward in NY in accordance with the protocols set forth in Indiana, the best guidance we have gotten to date.

As this virus continues to spread, PHAs are becoming more and more taxed. As a consequence, it is not always easy to get them to assess each situation thoroughly. Furthermore, their expertise and guidance varies from jurisdiction to jurisdiction. Knowing that we cannot count on the various PHAs, we are working on new protocols using CDC and OSHA guidelines, the FAA Flight Surgeons, NATCA’s Industrial Hygienist, and NATCA’s Aviation Medical Services. The protocols we develop will be designed to provide maximum protection for all affected employees and address standards for tracing the source of infection and properly disinfecting our facilities.

Disinfecting workspaces has been a tremendous challenge. Supplies are limited within the FAA because national supply chains are depleted. We have made appeals for assistance to Congressional representatives, Governors, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), and the White House Coronavirus Task Force.

We have also made our case that operational personnel should receive priority testing in order to maintain the operation of the National Airspace System. As many of you know, there is a nationwide testing kit shortage. It not only affects the ability to test those experiencing symptoms, it also creates problems for health care workers, first responders, and other essential personnel who remain on the job despite guidance to remain home during this crisis.

Throughout this crisis, we have been aggressively pursuing ways to reduce staffing, reduce the risk of exposure for our most at-risk members, and establish, to the maximum extent possible, a work environment that reflects sound social distancing practices. After significant NATCA effort, tomorrow the FAA and NATCA will disseminate new guidance that expands the number of employees deemed non-essential during this crisis to further reduce the risk of employee exposure. Additionally, in accordance with the CDC’s recommendations, excused absence for employees who are in certain high risk medical categories, including pregnant controllers, is still being worked and likely will be addressed tomorrow.

We continue to have discussion with the FAA to reduce essential, operational staffing to match reduced traffic through the NAS. Even if we cannot meet the CDC’s social distancing guidelines, we can do more to reduce risk to our members in the operational quarters. We are exploring creative ways to ensure that personnel are available to meet the traffic demands of the cargo haulers, the military, MedEvacs, local law enforcement, and the other safety critical operations that are sustaining our country through this pandemic, while at the same time reducing the risk of exposure in our facilities. NATCA will be on the front end of this planning. It may even result in lower traffic facilities closing for a period of time.

We have heard many questions from the field regarding the applicability of Article 81, Hazardous Duty Pay, during this crisis. Our attorneys are reviewing the underlying federal regulations and caselaw, and we will keep you updated.

Each day of this pandemic brings new challenges. Each day, our aviation safety professionals continue to stand up and serve our country bravely. Each day, NATCA redoubles our efforts, and as we raise our collective voice to protect the membership.

As always, any member can directly contact their regional leadership at the email below with any questions regarding COVID-19 related issues. Someone will respond and provide an answer as quickly as possible.

Alaska
Central
Eastern
Great Lakes
New England
Northwest Mountain
Southern
Southwest
Western Pacific
Region X

In solidarity,

NATCA National Executive Board​
 
If this isn't Hazardous Duty applicable, then they should just delete it from the contract because nothing is.


Let's see what comes tomorrow. Tonight was a breaking point it seems. We are in the bizarre upside world position of actually having MORE staffing at most facilities than before the pandemic. No one is travelling or on scam details or wants to keep their leave so these facilities are jam packed full of bodies.
 

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