Ep41: Three Kansas City Controllers Aid Yak 18T Pilot Experiencing Fuel, Weather Challenges
Listen now
Description
On a Thursday afternoon in September 2020 in the Prairie Area of Kansas City Center (ZKC), just six months into the COVID pandemic, the facility was staffed with small teams of controllers working their shifts together for safety but still handling busy traffic volumes. ZKC member Ingrid “Inga” Owens was working a Yak 18T that was headed north toward Nebraska from Texas. The pilot encountered two big problems. First, he was flying this aircraft for the first time, delivering it to its owner. It was burning fuel at a rate exceeding what he was told it would, leaving him with a shortage that led him to declare an emergency. Second, he encountered IFR weather conditions in western Kansas airspace, with 200-foot minimum ceilings. He was flying beneath the glideslope, which is unusual for hitting the ILS. Owens had fellow ZKC member Taylor Rosenbaum as her D-side controller. Member Brett Rolofson was working as the controller-in-charge. “I remember at one point saying to Taylor, ‘I feel like this guy’s going to be a problem,’” Owens said. “I was just super relieved that when we asked if he was IFR-qualified, the answer was yes, because my fear was that he wasn’t and then I don’t know what we would have done.” Owens, Rosenbaum, and Rolofson worked to help the pilot to a safe landing. For their efforts, they will receive the Archie League Medal of Safety Award for the Central Region on June 17 in New Orleans.
More Episodes
NATCA has started an advertising effort targeting members of Congress and other D.C. influencers urging congressional action to address the ATC staffing crisis while Congress acts on FAA Reauthorization. Radio ads started running in the National Capital Region, emphasizing the critical need for...
Published 04/16/24
Published 04/16/24
At NATCA CFS 2023, NATCA Director of Safety and Technology Tom Adcock and NASA ATM-X Project Manager Shivanjli Sharma moderated a panel titled “Meeting the Demands of Tomorrow,” with panelists from Joby Aviation, the Association for Uncrewed Vehicle Systems International (AUVSI), and the MITRE...
Published 12/27/23