As control towers go dark, air travel will suffer

John Burgeson

Updated 8:53 pm, Wednesday, February 27, 2013

An air traffic controller works at Waterbury-Oxford Airport in Oxford, Conn. Wednesday, Feb. 27, 2013. The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) will begin furloughing air traffic controllers March 1 because of looming automatic spending cuts which will affect six airports in Connecticut and about 190 airports nationwide.
Photo: Autumn Driscoll

The air traffic control tower at Waterbury-Oxford Airport in Oxford, Conn. The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) will begin furloughing air traffic controllers March 1 because of looming automatic spending cuts which will affect six airports in Connecticut and about 190 airports nationwide.
Photo: Autumn Driscoll

The air traffic control tower at Waterbury-Oxford Airport in Oxford, Conn. The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) will begin furloughing air traffic controllers March 1 because of looming automatic spending cuts which will affect six airports in Connecticut and about 190 airports nationwide.
Photo: Autumn Driscoll

The air traffic control tower at Waterbury-Oxford Airport in Oxford, Conn. The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) will begin furloughing air traffic controllers March 1 because of looming automatic spending cuts which will affect six airports in Connecticut and about 190 airports nationwide.

The Federal Aviation Administration is predicting waits of up to 90 minutes at airline security checkpoints. Major hubs such as New York, Houston, Atlanta and San Francisco are likely to be among the hardest-hit.
Photo: Andrew Bret Wallis, Getty Images

1. Longer lines at airline security

The Federal Aviation...

2. Flight delays and cancellations

Don’t plan on getting where you want to on time. About 10 percent of air traffic controllers will be furloughed at any time, leading to longer waits on the runway — but not in a predictable pattern. Nineteen regional airports will lose their federal tower operations.
Photo: Wesley Hitt, Getty Images

2. Flight delays and cancellations

Don’t plan on getting where you...

3. A disaster disaster

FEMA will lose $375 million from its disaster-relief budget. Texas and the rest of the Midwestern Tornado Alley can only hope for good weather this spring.
Photo: Willoughby Owen, Getty Images/Flickr RF

3. A disaster disaster

FEMA will lose $375 million from its...

4. Backed-up borders

The Department of Homeland Security warns of delays of four hours or more at U.S. ports of entry. You could be affected if your crossing the border from Mexico or Canada, taking a cruise, or arriving from an international flight.
Photo: John Moore, Getty Images

4. Backed-up borders

The Department of Homeland Security warns of...

5. Pain down the Pentagon supply chain

Defense-dependent states such as Virginia, Texas and Connecticut will be particularly hard-hit. In Virginia, for example, 90,000 civilian Defense Department workers could be furloughed. In Texas, that number is 52,000 — costing employees an estimated $274.8 million in lost pay. Modernization, maintenance and demolition projects at military facilities could be put on hold or canceled — an estimated $233 million in Texas Army spending alone. The Navy plans to reduce procurement of the Joint Strike Fighter and cancel Blue Angels Shows in Corpus Christi and Fort Worth. Some defense contractors already are laying off workers because of coming cuts in Pentagon outlays.
Photo: U.S. Navy, Getty Images

5. Pain down the Pentagon supply chain

Defense-dependent states such...

6. Delays in receiving international shipments

If you’re waiting for that delivery from overseas — or if your company depends on imported parts or material — you’ll just have to wait longer. Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano predicts that imported goods will be delayed at U.S. ports because of required furloughs. “When you slow down the inspection of containers by up to five days … that translates into lots and lots of jobs, good paying jobs, and those are going to be impacted,” she said.
Photo: Thierry Dosogne, Getty Images

6. Delays in receiving international shipments

If you’re waiting...

7. Spot shortages of meat

The administration has announced plans to furlough 2,100 food inspectors. That could lead to delays in inspecting meat, producing spot shortages over time and increasing the chance of food-borne illness.
Photo: Vito Palmisano, Getty Images

7. Spot shortages of meat

The administration has announced plans to...

8. Financial aid cuts

Primary and second schools will feel the pinch with reductions in Head Start and special education funding. But the greatest education-related impact will be felt by university students in need of financial aid. Federal work-study programs will be whacked, and low-income students could lose more than $300 from their Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grants. Other students will face higher loan-origination fees the next time they secure a loan.
Photo: Peter Glass, Getty Images

8. Financial aid cuts

Primary and second schools will feel the pinch...

9. Mental illness funding cuts

Social programs from pre-school to health-care stand to lose 10 percent of more of their federal funding. That will force states and localities to either increase their contributions or face service cuts. One example: 373,000 mentally ill adults and children would be required to go without treatment if states don’t step in to replace lost federal revenues.
Photo: Aurumarcus, Getty Images/Vetta

9. Mental illness funding cuts

Social programs from pre-school to...

10. Disrupted vacations

This would not be the best year to take a spring break at a National Park or other federal recreational facility. With $110 million in cuts coming to the National Parks Service, reduced services and spot closures expected. Make sure to plan ahead and check ahead before you leave for vacation.
Photo: Jacom Stephens, Getty Images

STRATFORD -- Sometime in the next three weeks, barring any last-minute deals on Capitol Hill, the control tower at Bridgeport's Sikorsky Memorial Airport will quite likely go dark, along with the towers at five other medium-sized airports in the state.

"It'll be extremely bad for general aviation in the state and it'll create havoc in the air, to be honest with you, given our close proximity to New York City," said Michael Safranek, the assistant administrator of Danbury Municipal Airport.

The loss of air-traffic controllers in the state is just one of the many problems in Connecticut that will be caused by our deadlocked Congress. The state stands to lose about $50 million in federal aid, including $8.7 million for schools, $15 million in furloughed Defense Department workers, $2 million for clean water and air, $242,000 in job search help, the list goes on. The cuts officially take place Friday, although, as with the ATCs, most of these effects won't be felt for another three or four weeks.

Safranek explained that it's the controllers at airports like Danbury and Sikorsky Memorial that have much to do with making sure that air traffic in an out of LaGuardia, Kennedy and Newark operates smoothly.

"It won't just cause delays for private aircraft, but for commercial carriers as well in the region," agreed Matthew J, Kelly, manager of the Waterbury-Oxford airport. "When jets take off from here, they have to be `blocked' into the system."

He said these delays will cause a cascade of problems. There will be more fuel consumed, for example, causing more environmental damage. There also will be more delays for air travel passengers and everyone else in the industry.

"Needless to say, we're all anxious about it," said John Ricci, the manager at Sikorsky Memorial. "We'll make all the appeals that we can to the FAA. The entire nation is at the mercy of Congress."

There are six airports in the state that use so-called "contract" air-traffic controllers. In addition to Sikorsky Memorial and the Waterbury-Oxford airports, they are Hartford-Brainard, Tweed-New Haven, Groton-New London and Danbury Municipal airports.

Not affected will be the major airports such as Bradley International in Windsor Locks and Westchester County Airport in White Plains, N.Y. These use ATCs who work directly for the FAA, and hence have a labor agreement that requires 90 days notice before a furlough could take effect.

But the cuts will also affect these FAA-employed ATCs, who will see their five-day workweeks shortened to four from April through September, a 20 percent reduction of their incomes. Overall, the FAA would have to absorb a $600 million hit, officials said.

"The fact is, airports with staffed towers are safer than the airports without controllers," said Peter Dumont, president and CEO of the Air Traffic Control Association. "This isn't good for anyone. Local communities rely on these airports served by contract towers for their economies and to enter into the national airspace system."

Most of the contract ATCs, including all in Connecticut, are employees of Midwest Air Traffic Control Services of Overland Park, Kan. Other companies that provide contract ATCs are Robinson Aviation of Manassas, Va., and Serco management Services of Herndon, Va.

The majority of airports in the United States make do without towers. There are about 20,000 airports in the U.S., and only 500 of these have air-traffic controllers. About 38 of these "nontowered ` airports are scattered throughout Connecticut, from Bee Field in Jewett City to Waterbury Airport.

"I'm hoping, of course, that our tower won't be affected, and that's based on safety," said Catherine Young, the manager of the Groton-New London airport. "And that's not just in the air, but on the ground, too."