FAA Administrator Blakey Reduces Safety In The Name Of Procedural Conformance

FAA Administrator Blakey Reduces Safety In The Name Of Procedural
Conformance

ADS-B was removed from radar screens after 7 years of successful
operation "because it appeared controllers were operating outside the
scope of their authorization to separate the traffic."

And we're supposed to believe this Bush appointee has safety at the
forefront of her agenda?

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AVwebFlash Volume 12, Number 19b -- May 11, 2006
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Capstone, Here Then Gone

ADS-B, "THE FUTURE OF ATC," TAKEN OFFLINE IN ALASKA
(http://www.avweb.com/eletter/archive...ll.html#192213)
In Alaska, where the risks
(http://www.avweb.com/news/features/188284-1.html) of flying in
all that empty space and bad weather are well-known, the Capstone
(http://www.alaska.faa.gov/capstone/) program has been soundly
successful, reducing accidents by up to 47 percent. Yet a vital
part of that program, the Automatic Dependent
Surveillance-Broadcast (ADS-B) surveillance technology, has been
taken offline by the FAA at the Anchorage radar center.
Controllers now provide separation for IFR flights outside radar
coverage zones "procedurally," meaning they have no actual blips
on the screen to indicate position. The option is less efficient
and less safe than ADS-B. So why was ADS-B, which is due for
statewide implementation later this year, and which was recently
lauded by the FAA as "the future of air traffic control
(http://faa.gov/news/news_story.cfm?newsKey=4172)," taken offline?
http://www.avweb.com/eletter/archive...ll.html#192213
SAFETY CONCERNS CITED ABOUT SAFETY SYSTEM
(http://www.avweb.com/eletter/archive...ll.html#192214)
Sue Gardner, manager of the FAA Capstone program in Alaska, told
AVweb on Tuesday that ADS-B was removed from radar screens as of
March 24, "because it appeared controllers were operating outside
the scope of their authorization to separate the traffic." Why
that became a concern at this point, when the system has been in
operation since 1999, she wouldn't say. The decision was made
after a team from Washington conducted a "safety assessement" in
Alaska and "took [ADS-B] off the glass," Gardner said. Geoffrey
Basye, FAA spokesman in Washington, D.C., told AVweb last night
that "this is a case of growing pains." The project is continuing
to expand, and has had temporary bumps in the road before, he
said. "The issue remaining has to do with the provision of ATC
services in a mixed environment of ADS-B and radar returns. We
want to include this as part of the program's authorization but
have some short-term (two months) analysis to do. In the interim,
we have to limit temporarily the information available on the
controllers' scopes."
http://www.avweb.com/eletter/archive...ll.html#192214
USERS PROTEST, BLAKEY DEFENDS ACTION
(http://www.avweb.com/eletter/archive...ll.html#192215)
The Alaska Aviation Coordination Council (AACC), an industry
group, expressed immediate dismay to the FAA when the system went
off the scopes, calling the action "a most serious threat to
Alaska aviation safety." Even worse, the loss occurred just as the
state was gearing up for its busiest -- and riskiest -- spring and
summer season, when long hours of daylight and the tourist influx
drive operations. FAA Administrator Marion Blakey responded to
their concerns in a letter on Monday. She defended the suspension
of ADS-B from radar scopes as "appropriate," pending a review of
separation standards. Although Gardner (and the FAA Web site) said
there is "no timeline" for the return of service, Blakey said she
is "confident" that the issues can be resolved by July. But for
Alaskan aviators, the delay has caused problems beyond the
immediate operational ones.
http://www.avweb.com/eletter/archive...ll.html#192215
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Administrator Blakey reduces FAA budget citing a need for a change in
FAA funding practices (user fees).

BLAKEY DEFENDS FAA BUDGET BEFORE CONGRESS
(http://www.avweb.com/eletter/archive...ll.html#192220)
FAA Administrator Marion Blakey testified
(http://faa.gov/news/news_story.cfm?newsKey=4191) before the U.S.
Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Transportation last week, to
justify her FAA fiscal year 2007 budget. Blakey reiterated her
request for a change in FAA funding practices, saying the agency
needs "a stable and predictable funding system that provides
appropriate incentives to users and to the FAA to operate more
efficiently." The future presents many challenges, she said,
requiring an upgraded airspace system that can handle the giant
Airbus A380, fleets of microjets and everything in between. Blakey
asked overall for a lower budget than last year, but would add $8
million for 101 new aviation safety inspectors and 32 new
staffers for the Air Traffic Safety Oversight office.
http://www.avweb.com/eletter/archive...ll.html#192220
(Don't bother trying to access the faa.gov link above; it's no longer
there.)

How can anyone believe Ms. Blakey after her illogical actions?