By Jesse Liebman -- March
4, 2010
An air traffic controller and his supervisor are under investigation after the controller allegedly brought his son and another child into the control tower and allowed them to speak with pilots on an air traffic control frequency.
The incidents occurred on succeeding days last month at New York's John F. Kennedy Airport, the Federal Aviation Administration said Wednesday.
Authorities have suspended the controller and a supervisor
Wednesday after a recording of the radio calls was posted on the Internet and reported
by a Boston television station.
On the recording, which lasts about a minute, the elementary-school-age boy
appears to repeat instructions fed to him by his father. At no time does the
child tell aircraft how to maneuver in flight.
"This lapse in judgment not only violated FAA's own policies, but common-sense standards for professional conduct. These kinds of distractions are totally unacceptable," FAA Administrator Randy Babbitt said in a statement. "This kind of behavior does not reflect the true caliber of our work force."
The FAA offered few details on its investigation and would not reveal the name of the controller or supervisor. Control towers are highly secure areas; the agency does sometimes give employees permission to bring their children for tours.
Radio transmissions between air traffic controllers and pilots are routinely streamed live on the Internet. A user of one popular Web site devoted to controller talk, LiveATC.net, posted a recording of the child's radio calls not long after they happened on Feb. 16 -- a date when many New York schoolchildren were on a midwinter break.
LiveATC founder Dave Pascoe, a pilot and radio enthusiast,
said he was sickened at the thought that the controller could be disciplined.
"I absolutely believe that this is being blown out of proportion," he said. "This is just a completely controlled situation. A child was being told exactly what to say."
