Post by ronturner on Mar 28, 2023 7:43:29 GMT 1
50 years ago this month and during a strike of Air Traffic controllers over France, two aircraft on route to Heathrow collided.
Procedural service was being provided by the military. There was some loss of communication and some confusion. The Iberia DC-9 EC-BLL was totally lost with all lives. A Spantax Coronado EC-BJC made a landing at Cognac Air Base with no loss of life or injury, but damaged.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1973_Nantes_mid-air_collision
And now we are experiencing another round of ATC disruption, so you might think nothing has changed, but actually it has.
*The flight planning systems and Euro Control effectively manage flight plans to meet the capacity available.
*On board safety systems have moved on exponentially with Mode S, ADSB, GPS and Collision awareness to name but a few.
*French law now requires minimum service from all workers in Unions. So for example when the rail men go on strike about 50% of trains still run. (And in extreme cases, individuals can be requisitioned or conscripted to work, such as in the recent dispute at oil refineries.)
On the other hand, air traffic has increased exponentially too. The cost of air travel, in relative terms has plummeted, putting pressure on service providers such as airports and navigation systems; in turn putting pressure on staffing levels and remuneration.
Procedural service was being provided by the military. There was some loss of communication and some confusion. The Iberia DC-9 EC-BLL was totally lost with all lives. A Spantax Coronado EC-BJC made a landing at Cognac Air Base with no loss of life or injury, but damaged.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1973_Nantes_mid-air_collision
And now we are experiencing another round of ATC disruption, so you might think nothing has changed, but actually it has.
*The flight planning systems and Euro Control effectively manage flight plans to meet the capacity available.
*On board safety systems have moved on exponentially with Mode S, ADSB, GPS and Collision awareness to name but a few.
*French law now requires minimum service from all workers in Unions. So for example when the rail men go on strike about 50% of trains still run. (And in extreme cases, individuals can be requisitioned or conscripted to work, such as in the recent dispute at oil refineries.)
On the other hand, air traffic has increased exponentially too. The cost of air travel, in relative terms has plummeted, putting pressure on service providers such as airports and navigation systems; in turn putting pressure on staffing levels and remuneration.