The FAA is moving to fire two air traffic controllers who left their shifts early at New York’s LaGuardia Airport on the night of the March 22 collision between an Air Canada Express regional jet and an airport fire truck.
The Wall Street Journal reported Thursday that the FAA determined the controllers departed about an hour before their shifts ended. CBS News reported that, according to an unnamed source, the FAA considers the alleged conduct timecard fraud.
Two Controllers Remained
The departures left two other controllers working in the tower without backup during a period that included heavy traffic. The practice of controllers informally leaving before the end of their scheduled shifts is sometimes referred to as an “early shove.”
NTSB Examining ATC Operations
The disciplinary action does not establish that the controllers’ early departures contributed to the accident. The NTSB investigation remains ongoing, and investigators are examining air traffic control operations and human performance as part of determining what led to the collision.
The NTSB’s preliminary report states that two controllers were on duty in the tower at the time of the accident, which was consistent with LaGuardia’s basic midnight-shift schedule. Both were qualified and current on all tower positions. One was working local control, while the other was handling ground control and serving as controller-in-charge.
The NTSB has not determined whether staffing, workload or the absence of the two controllers played a role in the accident, and a probable cause has not been issued.
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