Sure, pilots want to talk to people, but so do everyone else calling customer support.
People are expensive and capitalists want to eliminate every expense to maximize profits. Anything short of a mass strike by pilots every time they want to replace workers will not change that.
They already do this with SCC, they used to have someone at each ARTCC who would consult with additional controllers at SCC for timings and altitudes. Now it’s a handful of them at SCC who simply monitor several screens and now towers/radar controllers have a central screen that gives them updated data.
SCC is an additional service. RNAV and GPS was the so called replacement in the 70s. 18k AGL and above is easier to use a rely system. Below 18k is a different ballgame.
I know one person referred to ATC as customer service but I’m guessing we have a different view on it? I would call ATC the nurses to the doctors (pilots). ATC is a skill that saves lives.
Consolidating these positions with tech sounds great. TCAS was also promised to fix this but instead it became another tool for the short staff controllers.
Plus side is our ticket prices keep going up with all the new tech. I wish it made us safer in the skies bc right now is one of the most dangerous times to fly.
Easy fix? Remove age limits on ATC - it’s outdated and pointless. Make it where different health issues are dealt with the same way career FAA controllers do. Fix the damn pay scale for new hires. 50k a year difference should not be a norm. New hires are damn near homeless. Invest in more FAA schools.
I’d give it 10 years and most of the ATC system will be automated except for ground and tower operations.
They’ll probably have one person monitoring the traffic separation of what 20 controllers once did.
They’ve been preparing and setting it up for the last 20 years.
Big problem with this. Pilots want controllers talking to them.
I would love to meet the person capable of doing this. I know I wouldn’t plug in for that shit show.
Sure, pilots want to talk to people, but so do everyone else calling customer support.
People are expensive and capitalists want to eliminate every expense to maximize profits. Anything short of a mass strike by pilots every time they want to replace workers will not change that.
They already do this with SCC, they used to have someone at each ARTCC who would consult with additional controllers at SCC for timings and altitudes. Now it’s a handful of them at SCC who simply monitor several screens and now towers/radar controllers have a central screen that gives them updated data.
SCC is an additional service. RNAV and GPS was the so called replacement in the 70s. 18k AGL and above is easier to use a rely system. Below 18k is a different ballgame.
I know one person referred to ATC as customer service but I’m guessing we have a different view on it? I would call ATC the nurses to the doctors (pilots). ATC is a skill that saves lives.
Consolidating these positions with tech sounds great. TCAS was also promised to fix this but instead it became another tool for the short staff controllers.
Plus side is our ticket prices keep going up with all the new tech. I wish it made us safer in the skies bc right now is one of the most dangerous times to fly.
Easy fix? Remove age limits on ATC - it’s outdated and pointless. Make it where different health issues are dealt with the same way career FAA controllers do. Fix the damn pay scale for new hires. 50k a year difference should not be a norm. New hires are damn near homeless. Invest in more FAA schools.
Still safer then driving!
AI? Seriously?
you want to put the lives of thousands into the hands of technology that can’t tell you how many Rs are in Strawberry?