ATC fatigue - FAA sits on dynamite? - Curt Lewis

FAA sits on study results for three years
It is not surprising that a 2012 study conducted by NASA for the FAA found that air traffic controllers sometimes experience fatigue, which can negatively impact their on-the-job performance ["U.S. air controller study shows chronic fatigue," Aug. 11]. Not surprising because fatigue issues are common among shift workers. Controllers are shift workers, no different physiologically than truck drivers, doctors, nurses, firefighters, policemen and other 24/7 occupations.

The bigger story regarding the 2012 study is that the FAA sat on it for more than three years and denied multiple FOIA requests by the Associated Press to release it, thus giving the appearance of a coverup. Only after the AP obtained a draft copy did the FAA finally let it go public.

FAA Administrator Michael Huerta had a propeller loose if he thought that the contents of the 270-page study, which was unclassified and widely disseminated within the ranks of more than 18,000 air traffic employees, could somehow remain hidden from the public. So much for "transparency and open government." Apparently Huerta did not get the White House memo with that particular subject line.