AOPA Turbine Pilot Magazine - April 2015 - 18

SAFETY PILOT

ATC angels

BY BRUCE LANDSBERG

Recognizing the best of the best

BRUCE LANDSBERG

is the former
president of the
AOPA Foundation
who now serves an
advisor to the Air
Safety Institute.

18 | AOPA PILOT April 2015

LET'S FACE IT, pilots sometimes find themselves in real
"aw, shucks" situations. Despite superior skill, judgment, ingenuity, good looks, or enthusiasm, things just
aren't working out. Most often it's weather, but sometimes there's a mechanical problem or the infamous
short between the headsets that leads to life-threatening
circumstances. Who you gonna call? Not Ghostbusters!
Each year the National Air Traffic Controllers
Association (NATCA) recognizes the best of the best
with the Archie League Awards. I've been honored over
the years to be one of three judges who select these lifesaving men and women. We are awed by their skills and
often chagrined by the cluelessness of our fellow pilots.
From each of nine FAA regions just one controller or
team of controllers is chosen out of dozens of saves. The
Air Safety Institute is proud to also recognize superior
performance with Flight Assist Commendation awards.
A few repetitive themes have developed. VFR into
instrument meteorological conditions (IMC) is a recurring challenge for pilots. Listening to controllers guide
those who have blundered into situations well beyond
their skill level is inspiring. That said, sometimes there is
a bad outcome, with or without ATC contact. Obviously,
as helpful and calming as that may be, controllers can't
fly the aircraft for us. VFR-into-IMC accidents happen
at a rate of about 1.5 to two fatal accidents a month. For
2014 there were 10 nominations within this category,
and likely many more saves we didn't hear about where
controllers will simply say, "I was just doing my job."
In many cases the weather was down over a wide
area and there was no escape to VFR within fuel range.
Pilots were talked down with vectors right to the runway. Controllers who are qualified to conduct airport
surveillance radar approaches are becoming a rarity.
Icing is another perennial problem area, usually
for unprotected aircraft but sometimes for known ice
machines as well. There were six incidents where pilots
needed help to escape. Ice is much harder to predict
accurately than IMC and it be can't seen until you're in
it, unlike clouds. In a few cases, however, it was obvious
that the pilot was well past the point of pushing his luck.
There are about six or so ice-related accidents annually.
This year a new category surfaced. A controller
watching two VFR aircraft working their way around
Class Bravo in opposite directions at low altitude issued
a traffic alert in the blind. Perimeters of busy airspace
invariably have high-density VFR aircraft working

around the edges. In this case one of the pilots was monitoring the frequency and made a critical course change.
The radar replay is chilling. This controller went way
beyond what was required-and his action saved two
aircraft and several lives.
There were a few instances where the controller had
to make repeated "suggestions" to get pilots to divert
to safety when they were hell-bent to get to the original destination. This despite low ceilings, ice, or rapidly
declining fuel. Rule number one in politics and flying-
when you're in a hole, stop digging!
For instrument-rated pilots who got into difficulty,
two things stood out. Vacuum systems are a weak point
on older aircraft-so much so that few, if any, certificated IFR aircraft have been delivered since the 1980s
without at least two power sources for primary flight
displays (PFD). If you fly IMC and there isn't a solid
backup system for your PFD, invest in something. In
a couple of cases the pilot did not sufficiently prepare
for the approach and got disoriented-completely. ATC
stepped in, but if you're a little hazy or out of practice on
critical situational awareness, get some recurrent training. It beats whacking a mountain or a tall tower.
Both the Air Safety Institute and NATCA have suggested to the FAA leadership that it consider giving
promotional consideration or expertise pay to controllers who hold pilot certificates-especially CFIs.
Pilot-rated controllers have consistently saved lives and,
in some facilities, controller-pilots are identified to be on
call if a flight assist is needed. They understand exactly
what's happening in an emergency and what to do about
it. Sadly, they are also getting scarcer.
Archie League started out as a barnstormer and
became the nation's first air traffic controller in 1929.
His first assignment, the "tower" at what was to become
St. Louis Lambert Airport, consisted of a beach umbrella
with a wheelbarrow to hold the ATC equipment of the
day-some signal flags, a chair, a notepad, and lunch.
He later served as a pilot in World War II. He worked
in multiple management capacities with the Civil
Aeronautics Administration and later the FAA, helping
to design today's ATC system. He died in 1986. How fitting that NATCA should honor his memory annually
with controllers who go above and beyond to keep our
skies safe.
AOPA
WEB www.airsafetyinstitute.org

http://www.airsafetyinstitute.org

AOPA Turbine Pilot Magazine - April 2015

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