NWP Reps/Members,
This past Saturday September 6, 2008, Mike Hull and I got some very troubling news out of the Southern California Tracon. It appears that our good friend and brother, Ted Angle, a Coast area controller was struck by a car while jogging near his home. Ted was airlifted to a local hospital and has undergone extensive surgery to deal with his head trauma. Ted’s wife, Judy Angle, is also a controller in the Coast area of SCT. Judy is also a former Marine and was Mel Davis’ direct supervisor in the Corps 25 years ago.
SCT Facility Rep Mel Davis has decided to cancel his trip to Miami and have one of his alternate delegates step up to be a delegate for SCT. Mel will be staying back to help with anything and everything that the Angle family needs.
Ted and Judy are members of OUR family. Our thoughts and prayers are with them and their family and friends as they deal with Ted’s injuries and he continues to fight to overcome his injuries.
Mel is continuing to share daily updates with us regarding Ted’s condition and his family’s need for assistance. This is what Mel sent to us and the facility last night:
“I was able to spend a few hours at the hospital with Judy the family. It is very encouraging to see their church and work communities come together to support them in their time of need. Tim Richard and Greg Lucker worked feverishly to ensure that all of the family paperwork is in order. The situation has been reviewed by legal counsel and it appears that all of the options have been evaluated. The medication that the doctors used to place Ted in a coma skews the tests to evaluate his condition. Once the medication leaves his body they will re-evaluate him and at that point we should have some firm information on his outlook. Those tests should be completed in the morning. Judy and the family are completely blessed by your support and love. They have asked me to express their gratitude and it is difficult for me to find the words. I will leave you with her parting words as I left the hospital and hope they are sufficient, "Thank You."
Locally, SCT is collecting some funds to help defray some of the costs associated with a sudden tragedy of this magnitude. Also from Mel:
“We have collected about $1000 for incidental expenses for the family that has flown in from around the country. I believe they will make a determination this morning about his brain activity. Judy will get his survivor annuity and she has her own retirement, which she will be eligible for in 6 months. She will be placed on the leave donor list soon.”
Kevin Sherwood and I have worked with Mel Davis to set up a Paypal account where our NATCA family can send in their donations to assist the Angle family. You can donate by going to the following link and clicking on the “Ted and Judy Angle Assistance Fund”:
http://kevin.thesherwoods.org/
We are also working with the FAA to prepare for any needed Critical Incident Stress debriefings. I have to give credit where credit is due and that goes to Western Terminal Service Area Director Kathryn Vernon. Although she and I do not agree on many issues, the SCT consolidation being one of them, I have to give her tremendous credit for being a strong proponent of the CISM (Critical Incident Stress Management) program. I have personally witnessed the benefits of the CISM program when I dealt with the Alaska Airlines 261 crash. I highly recommend the CISM program and I am very proud of the fine men and women of NATCA who are always there for us as NATCA peer de-briefers.
I would like to dedicate this weekly update to Ted and Judy and let them know that WE are here for them and that we will be praying for them. May God give Ted the strength to fight and give Judy the strength to endure what is sure to be a very difficult time for the Angle family.
Ham
NWP RVP
· These past two weeks have been incredibly busy with numerous General aviation accidents. We have dealt with two (2) fatal aircraft accidents at North Las Vegas, one (1) at Camarillo, and one (1) in Honolulu. We also had an aircraft develop fuel problems near Burbank which ultimately ended in a crash. Luckily, the BUR crash did not result in any fatalities.
· I am very proud of the work of our facility reps from VGT, CMA, HCF, BUR along with NWP ASI (Air Safety Investigator) Lead Peter Trono, OWCP Lead Steve Hefley, Mike Hull, Troy Verville, Kevin Sherwood, Gordie Thompson, Dave Caldwell, HCF VP Thomas Gurule, CISM Chair Jim Ullman, CISM Peer De-briefer Mike Matherne who helped us deal with these crashes. Our team did a fantastic job and I could not be happier with their performance in dealing with these stressful accidents.
· On Monday August 25, 2008, I attended the ZLA General Membership meeting/Pre-Convention meeting with NATCA President Pat Forrey. We talked to the members about regional/national issues and then opened the floor up to questions on anything and everything. I wanted to thank Pat Forrey for taking time out of his busy schedule to fly out to the West Coast and attend our General membership meeting. I would also like to thank Mark Nullman, Chad Geyer, and Garth Koleszar for doing a great job organizing the meeting.
· Recently, I have fielded some questions regarding the FAA’s good ole boy rating system which is better known as “Employee Self Assessment”. Air Traffic Controllers nationwide strive to provide the best possible service to the American flying public. We should not have to worry about self assessing ourselves to placate an agency that does not want to do its job of managing and rating the performance of its employees.
· You do not have to participate in the voluntary “Employee Self Assessment” process. This part of the good ole boy system is optional and you are not required to participate. Instead, I would strongly urge you to continue to provide the best and safest possible service to the American flying public.
· I worked with Kathryn Vernon, Las Vegas Hub Manager Del Meadows, and VGT ATM Nancy Myrick regarding a CISM briefing at North Las Vegas. They had two (2) fatal aircraft accidents in seven (7) days. I am very happy with the cooperation that we received from Kathryn, Del, and Nancy.
· Meanwhile, our controller at VGT who witnessed these crashes received calls at home from an FAA management official who pretends to be our friend, Mr. Dale Durbin. Please remember that you are not obligated to discuss anything regarding your OWCP claim or your medical condition with Mr. Durbin. Please direct this individual to contact your NATCA Facility Representative or better yet, have him contact the OWCP with any questions. He is not your friend.
· Please remember to notify us if you have a close call or an accident or incident so that we can help you. There is a very thorough Aircraft Accident checklist on our website, http://nwp.natca.net under the “Safety” tab. This checklist will guide you every step of the way. Just keep in mind that it’s quite easy to get overwhelmed when dealing with an aircraft accident. So, just call or e-mail us and we will work with you to ensure your members are taken care of in a timely fashion.
· NWP Finance Lead Eric Hughes put out guidance on the NWP Treasurers listserve about how long we need to retain financial records. Please make sure that your local treasurer is on that listserve. The listserve is interactive and you will be able to ask questions and then receive any answers that are provided. If there are any questions on how long you should keep your affidavits or your LM forms or election results, please contact Eric Hughes at air.rock@sbcglobal.net
· I worked with Western Terminal regarding the SEE break room situation; there is no air conditioning in the break room. Tech ops has received a bid from the contractor who will be doing the work. The work will start today, September 9, 2008 and should only take a day or two to complete.
· I would like to thank outgoing FFZ Facility Rep Jim Carter for doing an outstanding job representing his local. I would also like to welcome new FFZ Facility Rep Bob Fletcher and thank him for stepping up to the plate.
· Mike Hull worked with FFZ Facility Rep Bob Fletcher regarding some new separation standards at FFZ which call for increased runway separation above and beyond what the 7110.65 requires.
· Believe it or not, yet another critical FAA system failed on Tuesday August 26, 2008 causing massive delays nationwide. Here is an excerpt of the news story:
Air Traffic Is Delayed Nationwide
“Tuesday August 26, 2008 Communications problems at one of two air-traffic control facilities that process flight plans for U.S. airliners delayed hundreds of flights nationwide, disrupted operations at dozens of airports, and raised questions about whether the Federal Aviation Administration has adequate backup systems.
With the FAA's facility in Hampton, Ga., cut off from the rest of the air-traffic network, problems rippled across the country as many planes were temporarily grounded, and FAA officials scrambled to process flight plans using a backup arrangement. Agency officials and controllers said a second facility, near Salt Lake City, which usually handles only the Western U.S., was used to process instrument flight plans for all commercial and general-aviation aircraft. The shift resulted in airliner takeoff delays of often two hours or more at some airports. But within hours, most of the trouble spots had disappeared.”
· I worked with NCT Facility Rep Steve Hefley and NCT VP Ron McAuley regarding a hostile work environment issue/retaliation issue at NCT.
· By now, most of you have heard about the latest FAA public relations ploy. They are spreading rumors that there is a new FAA settlement offer regarding the imposed conditions of employment (ICE). Well, we checked, and then checked some more, and could not find anything that resembled a new settlement offer.
· On the two year anniversary of the imposed conditions of employment, NCT management has offered to buy every controller and developmental at NCT a new fleece jacket for being voted “Facility of the Year”.
· Just a reminder for everyone regarding the NATCA Academy (any courses offered through NATCA National); training will cover ALL expenses associated with any training classes taken through the NATCA Academy for ALL facilities (large facilities as well as SRF-12 facilities).
· The only cost not covered is 1/2 the room if not shared. Please e-mail Mickela at Mickela@natca.net if you are interested in attending any Training classes. You will have to get prior approval from your Facility Rep. If you are interested in attending the Basic Arbitration or Advanced Arbitration class, please contact NWP LR Lead Mike Hull.
· On Tuesday September 2, 2008, we were advised of some fumes at the North Tower in Oakland. One (1) CPC was transported by ambulance to Kaiser Oakland and various controllers who were in the North Tower complained of numb lips and rubbery legs.
· I worked with NWP OSHA Lead Garth Koleszar and OAK Facility Rep Les Scott to make sure the North Tower was completely free of any fumes and safe for our controllers to return. Garth did an outstanding job working with Les and the Port Authority to ensure strict adherence to OSHA standards.
· Garth advised that after some very thorough tests in the Tower, PID Test (Photo Ionization Detector), they received negative results throughout the building even while running the HVAC unit. They identified several aerosol containers stored under a sink as a potential culprit or possibly something that someone had inadvertently exposed to the air.
· Our NWP Constitution Lead Troy Verville worked with NCT Facility Rep Steve Hefley regarding an upcoming motion at a NCT Executive Board meeting.
· Mike Hull and I worked with ZLA Facility Rep Garth Koleszar regarding a member who had been arrested for a domestic dispute. Please keep in mind that in accordance with ER 4.1, paragraph 2i, that you are required to report the arrest to your First Line Manager. I would seriously suggest that you ask for NATCA representation when disclosing this type of information to the FAA. Here is what ER 4.1 paragraph 2i states:
“i. Report known or suspected violations of law, regulations or policy through appropriate channels and fully participate in inquiries. This includes reporting any personal violation that has the possibility or appearance of impacting on the employee's position (e.g., an arrest for an alcohol or drug-related driving infraction by an employee in any safety or security-sensitive position).”
· I worked with Gordie Thompson regarding a fatal aircraft accident at Camarillo. Gordie did an outstanding job in assisting CMA Facility Rep Don Hiebert and I with the accident while Don was spending some quality time with his family at Disneyland.
· Today, NATCA was notified by the FAA that a GENOT was issued, which will hopefully clear up the confusion with the Cactus-US Air debacle.
· On September 19, 2008, all flight strips and data blocks for Cactus will be ‘AWE’ instead of ‘USA’. Where we will still have an issue is at the airports, since US Air is going forward with its paint job.
· Late in the afternoon on Labor Day, I drove down to San Diego for a meeting with Rick Ducharme, Kathryn Vernon, and Linda O’Brien regarding the various issues plaguing the operation at SCT. Most of the issues are a direct result of the failed plan to consolidate from six to five areas of operation at.
· During the meeting, Mike Hull, Ron Geyer, Mel Davis and I were advised that the main reason behind the consolidation was staffing and the need for a balanced workload among the areas. Never mind that in neither the six area configuration nor the five area configuration, did they EVER address the balanced workload issue in the San Diego area. When questioned why the consolidation plan and the associated cross training had changed so often, SCT management advised us that this had been the plan all along. Their plan was always to cross train Departure Area controllers on the Arrival sectors, Arrival Area controllers on the Departure sectors and BUR Area Controllers on the Zuma sector.
· Meanwhile, the Empire area at SCT continues to deal with horrendous staffing and massive overtime. Half of the controllers in the area have yet to be certified on the two PSP Sectors and it appears that proficiency at the two PSP sectors is becoming a serious issue for those who were previously certified.
· Over fourteen months after the two (2) PSP sectors were moved from PSP to SCT, there are still controllers on temporary duty from PSP working at SCT. There are still controllers that need to go through class room training for the PSP sectors.
· SFO Facility Rep Dave Caldwell and PHX Facility Rep Steve Palmer send me a copy of their local update, thanks.
· LR Chronicles #22 which deals with “Training Review Boards”, is up and ready on the NWP website, http://nwp.natca.net. Also, Kevin Sherwood has updated the search page for the LR Chronicles. Please take a look and let us know if you have any further suggestions, http://nwp.natca.org/LR_Chronicles_Search.htm
· Kevin Sherwood and I worked with our HNL 2010 website developer on finalizing the website. Here is a link to the website which is still under construction: http://alohanatca2010.natca.net
· For those of you who do not have Office 2007 and have trouble viewing some of Mike Hull’s updates on your computer, you need to go to the following website and update your computer with the latest service packs http://update.microsoft.com
· Thursday August 28, 2008, there was a very close call at FAT (Fresno). Here is a snippet from the news story that appeared in the Fresno Bee:
Close call at Fresno airport
Wingtips of SkyWest jet and private plane came within 15 feet
By Jim Guy / The Fresno Bee
08/29/08 22:56:16
“The Federal Aviation Administration is investigating a close call at Fresno Yosemite International Airport in which a SkyWest Airlines jet narrowly avoided colliding with a private aircraft on a runway Thursday night.
The wingtips of the two aircraft were within 15 feet of each other at one point, according to the SkyWest pilot.
The incident occurred about 9 p.m. just after a Piper Malibu touched down at the Fresno airport, Ian Gregor of the FAA said.
The pilot of the Piper received instructions from the tower to turn off the runway onto a taxiway, Gregor said, but the pilot was unable to make the turn and then was told to proceed to the next taxiway for the turn.
Then a controller in the tower visually checked the runway and believed it to be clear.
The pilot of the SkyWest jet was then told to land on the runway, but the Piper pilot had not yet cleared it, Gregor said, because he was having trouble finding the turnoff.
The Piper pilot was on the far left side of the runway when the SkyWest jet touched down.
The SkyWest pilot veered to the right and avoided the smaller craft.
Gregor said the FAA's internal investigation will probably be accompanied by another probe by the National Transportation Safety Board.”
· On Friday August 29, 2008, there was a General Aviation accident at Burbank. A Cessna 172 crashed just west of the BUR airport and at one point was hanging from a power line. BUR VP Kevin Sherwood and BUR Facility Rep Cau Hau interrupted their family time and went into work to assist their fellow controllers. Later that evening, Kevin sent us a very thorough update of the events giving rise to the aircraft accident. Kevin went above and beyond the call of duty. He received the call from the facility while he was having dinner with his wife. Rather than spend the rest of the Friday evening with his wife, he decided to go in and assist the new facility rep at BUR; very nicely done Kevin.
· Here is a snippet from Kevin’s update that I would like to share with you:
“Cau and I arrived shortly before 9PM to represent and advise the Local Controller, and the other Air Traffic Controllers, during the aftermath of the crash. I took the Local Controller to the NATCA office and talked with him about the crash in an effort to determine his state of mind and to see if the event had adversely affected him. I shared with him how I had experienced PTSD in 2004 and that there was no shame in seeking help. I briefed him on the CISM program and called the CISM On-call Coordinator and left a message. I briefed him also on the need to file a CA-1 and that he had 24 hours to do so. We waited for the arrival of the Drug and Alcohol testers. He was tested and afterwards I helped him fill out the NATCA Drug and Alcohol Testing Checklist. We finished up about 1125 pm.”
· P50 Facility Rep Kevin Van Uden advised us that the winner of the Vice President Election at P50 was Timothy Krieger. I would like to welcome Tim and thank him for stepping up during such trying times. Kevin has conferred with Tim and I, and he will be stepping down as P50 Facility Representative as of midnight on Saturday, September 13th. By local constitution, Tim will become the Facility Representative on Sunday, September 14th. I would like to thank my friend Kevin for his outstanding work. Kevin is an absolute professional and I am delighted to have had the opportunity to work with him.
· I worked with RNO Facility Rep Rich Ferris regarding an aircraft emergency that resulted in an operational error. Rich and I are working with the Las Vegas Hub and Western Terminal to address this issue.
· The OWCP committee has amended each regional FacRep guide and we have added the new guide to our website under the “Forms Library” tab.
· NWP OWCP Lead Steve Hefley worked with SCT Empire Rep Tina Kratz regarding an OWCP issue at SCT.
· NATCA prevailed in an arbitration (New England Region) dealing with the FAA’s failure to grant oral presentations and provide timely written responses for two prior grievances (one individual and one union grievance) in violation of Article 9 and 5 USC 7121(b)(1). The FAA claimed that the grievance was procedurally defective since it was filed under the 2003 contract. The FAA also denied the grievance stating that the only remedy for those Agency failures to allow presentations and provide timely responses is for the grievances to be elevated to the next level. NATCA argued that the instant grievance was arbitrable and requested that the Agency be held accountable for its contractual violations. Arbitrator Craig Overton ruled that NATCA’s grievance was arbitrable and sustained the grievance.
Merits: The arbitrator noted both documents require the Agency to grant an opportunity, if requested, to present the grievance orally prior to making a decision. “What is of extreme importance is that the hearing of the oral presentation regarding a grievance shall (mandatory) take place if requested.” The hearing of presentations is within management’s duties and the failure to do so is “inexcusable.” The Arbitrator stressed the importance of making an oral presentation before a final decision has been made so that the management official has all pertinent information to make and informed decision. Also, there is a requirement for the Agency to address each of the grievances filed. He found that the fail safe system that allows a grievance not to languish and be elevated when a grievance decision is not rendered is the exception to the rule. “The rule is to hear grievances and render decisions on those grievances after the Agency representative has been made aware of all facts prior to rendering a decision.”
Arbitrator Overton awarded that:
“The grievance is arbitrable. The Agency violated the language in Article 9 of the Collective Bargaining Agreement by not allowing requested oral presentations to be made and by failing to provide timely decisions. This process shall cease and desist.”
· Kevin Sills settled a case with the FAA for a member who had been charged with improper use of his Government identification and suspended for three days. The agency reduced the three day suspension to a letter of reprimand.
· Kevin Sills also settled the case of Robert Vance, our Chief Warrant Officer that was recently terminated from Oakland Center while he was serving his country with the California National Guard. He received a favorable settlement that requires the FAA to rescind the termination and allow him to retire from Federal Service.
· As a reminder to all, Mike Hull and I will be at the Miami Convention the rest of the week. If you have any urgent issues, please call us AND if no response, then e-mail us.
