Tag: Air Traffic Control

View All Tags

/ / / / / / / / / /

Continental Finally Gets to Join in on the Channel 9 and EconomyPlus Action

November 23, 2011 at 10:03 AM | by | Comments (0)

As part of the love and marriage that is the Continental and United merger, there were plans for the former Continental planes to update their seating maps. That’s because Continental—along with now having Thanksgiving at United’s parents’ house—is bringing EconomyPlus seating onboard.

It’s going to be a long process to upgrade and update all those planes and seats, but there’s been a little bit of progress. Just recently the combined carrier announced that the first Continental plane with EconomyPlus made its debut earlier this week. That means four extra inches of legroom towards the front of the economy cabin, but that also mean paying a few extra bucks for the privilege. As of now the only way to pay for the upgrade is during the check-in process, but as more planes get the seats it’ll also be available online.

more ›

/ / / / /

Coming Soon to Air Traffic Control Towers: Gigantic Ads?

November 21, 2011 at 9:15 AM | by | Comments (0)

Huge billboards plastered with advertisements and buses slapped with sales-y stickers are the norm when you’re headed to the airport. However, there’s a new spot that ads are showing up, and before long every airport might just have one.

Out in Medford, Oregon the city council just approved 25-by-25 foot signs that will soon be added to all sides of the airport’s air traffic control tower. The tower is around 100-feet tall, so this is going to be quite a billboard for those heading to and from the airport.

more ›

/ / / / / / / /

The Next Chapter for United Airlines' Cult-Favorite 'Channel 9'

August 22, 2011 at 8:15 AM | by | Comments (0)


A seatback TV on a United/Continental flight recently

You know what an "Easter Egg" is, right? Not the type laid by a mythical Easter Bunny, but the type of surprise unexpectedly found hidden in video games or other programs. Well, if you're flying United, you'll be happy to know that the airline has its own sort of Easter Egg embedded into the flying experience and it's called Channel 9.

Channel 9 is exactly what it sounds like: the 9 channel on a plane's in-flight entertainment radio at your seat. Instead of "The Hits of the '60s" or "Smooth Jazz Classics," Channel 9 plays the actual transmissions between your pilots and air traffic control, plus any other ATC transmissions your pilots are hearing. You're essentially listening in on the cockpit, catching everything from discussions of turbulence to pilot jokes.

more ›

/ / / /

New Rules to Keep Air Traffic Controllers Awake and Your Flight Safe

April 18, 2011 at 9:05 AM | by | Comments (0)


Neil Patrick Harris as an Air Traffic Controller on SNL

If you had a difficult time getting up and out of bed this Monday morning, then just take a moment to be so, so thankful that you're not an Air Traffic Controller who, short on sleep, has to head to work and be responsible for the lives of thousands to tens of thousands of travelers today. After several controllers were recently caught sleeping on the job (one of whom fell so asleep that planes landed on their own, uncontrolled), Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood has altered the rules for ATC shifts.

Now, instead of having only minimum 8 hours between shifts, controllers will get at least nine hours. They can also no longer be scheduled for a surprise midnight shift after a day off. They are small changes that mean a great deal for those working in this high-stress position. A single hour extra could be all the extra shut-eye they need to keep their eyelids up and their brain focused while in the Tower. Thankfully no crashes have occurred due to ATC sleep issues, so it could always be worse. And they could always be into fancy manicures...

/ / / / /

Forget About Napping; Some Air Traffic Control Towers Are Totally Empty At Night

March 28, 2011 at 9:31 AM | by | Comment (1)

At this point you’ve probably heard all about the air traffic controller snoozing on the job while two planes tried to land at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport. We’re thankful everyone is fine, and that the pilots for each airline were awesome in such a situation. We’re also pretty glad that we weren’t the ones that fell asleep—because heads are going to roll.

This might come as a surprise, but apparently some airports don’t even have air traffic controllers. We always thought that an air traffic control tower was filled with many workers—and for some reason, probably lots of cigarette smoke—but it’s not. Some airports just have a couple workers directing flights in and out of the airport, but after hours that isn’t always the case.

more ›

/ / / /

JFK Air Traffic Controller Allowed Not One, But Two, Children To Talk To Planes

Where: JFK International Airport [map], New York, NY, United States
March 8, 2010 at 5:00 PM | by | Comments (0)

A week or so after it was discovered via taped air traffic control conversations that a controller at New York-JFK had allowed his young son to speak on the radio and briefly communicate with planes, it was revealed that the controller's daughter had also been directing flights in the same manner.

The whole issue is way overblown by now, with many pilots stepping up to defend the controller, but the second child adds fuel to the flames, especially when it was discovered that the occurrences were on separate days and not just a quick moment where they took turns. Obviously the biggest issue is safety; a child speaking to planes, even while being prompted by a trained adult, could misspeak and endanger the lives of those in the sky and on the ground at the airport.

more ›

/ / / /

There'll Be Delays At Sydney Airport If They Don't Find Some Air Traffic People

September 14, 2009 at 3:18 PM | by | Comments (0)

Want to fly in or out of Australia's biggest city, Sydney? It could be tricky, because apparently there aren't quite enough people there to guide your plane in to a safe landing.

On Sunday night, a number of flights out of Sydney were canceled and many incoming planes had to fly around for ages before being cleared for landing, because of a shortage of air traffic controllers. Three of the controllers who should have been working called in saying they couldn't come to work (we don't if they were sick, or just had a really good party to go to) and Air Services Australia, who run the tower at Sydney Airport, couldn't find any replacements.

more ›

/ / / / / / / /

Listen In On Air Traffic Control From Your iPhone

September 4, 2009 at 12:28 PM | by | Comments (0)

Noting that Labor Day weekend means one of the busiest travel times of the year, we're tuning in to something other than our iTunes on our iPhone. It's a newish app, released this summer, and it comes from the great people behind LiveATC.net, which lets you tune in to streaming air traffic control at select airports around the world.

At $2.99, it's the most expensive app we've bought, but there's just something exciting about listening in on JFK's Tower as flights depart and arrive for everywhere from Nice, France to Rochester. A few mornings ago, we even caught the air traffic controllers wrestling with some Coast Guard traffic and the occasional helicopter.

more ›

/ / /

You Can't Land Now, We're Eating

March 31, 2009 at 11:11 AM | by | Comment (1)

Thought about taking a trip around New Zealand soon? Feel free, but don't expect to be able to catch a plane around lunchtime. The air traffic controllers will be easy eating their sandwiches.

After years of working flexible hours to accommodate aircraft movement, the control tower staff will now be taking fixed breaks at particular times, and towers at five regional airports--Gisborne, Napier, New Plymouth, Rotorua and Invercargill--will be closed for half an hour twice a day. Air New Zealand is furious because it means the cancellation of 25 of its flights; regional airlines Air Nelson and Eagle Air might end up having to cut staff.

We definitely don't doubt the importance of satisfied air traffic control staff in keeping our flying experiences safe, but we're not convinced fixed lunch breaks will keep us out of danger. We'd suggest the infamous Kiwi company Hell Pizza just delivers up to the towers. See, Jaunted solves problems.

Related Stories:
· Air NZ Forced To Cancel Flights Due To Lunch Breaks [The Age]
· No Boundary This Kiwi Pizza Chain Won't Cross [Jaunted]
· New Zealand Travel Guide [Jaunted]

[Photo: superciliousness]

/ / / / / / /

Why We Were Disappointed By The SNL Air Traffic Control Skit

January 12, 2009 at 9:50 AM | by | Comment (1)

We were tickled to see a typically unlit corner of American travel shown on "Saturday Night Live" this past week in "Fran & Freba," in which two proper ladies (Kristen Wiig and guest host Neil Patrick Harris) chew over their personal problems while... directing air traffic. Neither a lecherous boss nor their giant fake fingernails could stop them from the task at hand! We could even use the phrase former Virgin America CEO Fred Reid used to describe the air traffic control system itself to describe them: "So retro [they're] cool."

But while we love Wiig with the fire of a thousand suns, and NPH brought the LOL this week, we wish the spot had tried to say something substantive about the problem the DOT is facing where over-congested airports are concerned. Last we heard, the DOT was asking airlines to voluntarily cut service to New York's LaGuardia Airport, one of the most plagued by delays. Not surprisingly, no airline has publicly stepped up yet. (A DOT spokesman claimed "strong support from at least one carrier" in December. Riiiiight.) And let's face it, these lovelies could barely deal with three flights on radar, let alone a traffic jam.

Maybe Lorne Michaels was afraid saying anything remotely critical would snag him a spot on the no-fly list or at least the dreaded SSSS secondary screening code. Lorne, may we suggest Amtrak?

Related Stories:
· Nov. 2007: Airport Hell: Is It Really That Bad? [Jaunted]
· The Best Travel Media Story of 2007 Is Airport Congestion [Jaunted]
· June 2008: Senator Sez NYC's Airports Still A Mess [Jaunted]
· Dec. 2008: DOT Lowers LGA Flight Caps [Aviation Week]
· Jaunted Interview: Chatting with Fred Reid [Jaunted]
· Funny Travel: Suspicious Samberg [Jaunted]

/ / / /

Not Breaking: FAA Takes Recruiting to YouTube

July 24, 2008 at 12:36 PM | by | Comments (0)

While everyone's suddenly talking about the fact that the FAA is recruiting high schoolers to work as air traffic controllers, the truth is that the agency's been at it for some time. Just check The YouTube, where this low-budget ad has been knocking around for more than a year.

CNN just caught wind of it and invited Acting FAA Administrator Robert Sturgell to comment:

We're targeting a new generation, and we're trying to connect with them where they are ... 18-year-olds today can go off to war and serve this country, so we will train the folks we hire, and we will make sure they're fully certified.

If these are the best ads the FAA can put together, it's no wonder they have to offer six-figure signing bonuses to recruit youngins.

Related Stories:
· Teen Air Traffic Controllers? [CNN, via]
· Senator Sez: NYC's Airports Still a Mess [Jaunted]
· Secretary Mary Peters Wants to Touch That Paper [Jaunted]

Registration on or use of this site constitutes acceptance of our User Agreement and Privacy Policy (Revised 08/01/2011). © Condé Nast Digital. All rights reserved. The material on this site may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, cached or otherwise used, except with the prior written permission of Condé Nast Digital.
Ad Choices