Stress takes a toll on air traffic controllers

Chennai: On Friday, an air traffic controller asked an Indian Air Force pilot to shut up' after he repeatedly insisted on knowing the details of
the traffic. The controller, who was handling a number of aircraft at the time, used "an inappropriate communication" instead of the standard phraseology "stand by'', said a statement from the Airports Authority of India (AAI) after The Times of India reported the incident.
"Repeated insistence of the pilot for traffic details occupying considerable radio time could deny the controller the radio connectivity to other aircraft requiring immediate attention. This could easily distract the controller and affect his concentration leading to possible error of judgment in resolving other conflicts," the AAI said, adding that "the controller, after resolving other immediate traffic requirements conveyed his regret over the use of inappropriate language to the pilot."
Meanwhile, senior AAI officials concede that the incident points to the stress suffered by air traffic controllers while handling traffic over the Chennai region, a hub for air traffic management, because its Flight Information Region (FIR) spreads over almost the entire southern India. Controllers here have to handle more aircraft during peak hour morning and late evening and also have to keep a watch on aircraft overflying the region and also those taking off and landing at busy airports at Bangalore and Hyderabad. Stress levels of controllers increases further because they have to overcome the shortcomings of poor quality equipment.
Several air routes intersect near Bangalore and Hyderabad. And on several occasions the radar signals are weak at these intersecting points, which makes traffic control strenuous because controllers have to ask the pilots for their position repeatedly," said an air traffic controller.
16/12/08 Times of India

To Read the News in full at Source, Click the Headline

Categories: Airports Dec 2008