Govt jet plan angers pilots, air controllers

Press, 20 September 1980, Page 26

Govt jet plan angers pilots, air controllers

If the steady deterioration in airport services to aviation resulted in an accident the Government could expect to be accused of criminal neglect, said the president of the Airline Pilots’ Association, Captain D. G. McAlister, yesterday. The deterioration was occurring because of outdated air-traf-fic ' control equipment, which was in a parlous state, and the increasing shortage of air-traffic controllers.

Captain McAlister and the Wellington branch chairman of the Air Traffic Controllers’ Association, Mr A. Herd, criticised a Ministry of Transport proposal to buy a $l5 million executive jet aircraft for calibration and V.I.P. work. Auckland air-traffic controllers said that the $l5 million would go threequarters of the way towards correcting all the deficiencies in navigational aids at New Zealand airports. If the Government went ahead with the plan to buy the Falcon jet, disruptions at airports could result. Moves were under way to bring forward meetings of the Air Traffic Controllers’ Association to discuss the matter.

Mr E. McNae, the Civil Aviation Divison’s assistant director, ground ser-

vices, said that air-traffic control equipment, including radar, was being modernised. This was expected to be completed within two years. The surveillance radar at Wellington Airport was being improved to give it an added life span of 12 to 15 years. Mr McNae. confirmed reports that the division was contemplating closing Wellington' Airport between midnight and 6 a.m. becausp of the shortage of air-traffic controllers.

However, the airport would be open on Tuesday and Friday nights for the arrival at 12.40 a.m. of Air New Zealand flights from: Brisbane. The night closing would affect mainly freight aircraft although there could be some difficulties if the airpot needed to be open for sudden emergency flights. The division had received or had been told about 15 resignations of air-traffic controllers: seven at Wellington, three at Auckland, one at Christchurch, three at Dunedin, and one at Ohakea.

But Captain McAlister said his association had been told that more than 40 air-traffic controllers, representing 20 per cent of the total, would leave this year through retirements or resignations.