Boston – Two Southwest Airlines flights were forced to circle Manchester-Boston Regional Airport last week when the lone air traffic controller on duty had to go to the bathroom, raising concerns about staffing at the airport’s control tower.
The Federal Aviation Administration said Wednesday that another air traffic controller was in the tower at the time but was not fully certified to land the planes. The event Friday forced flights from Chicago and Orlando, Fla., to delay their landings by 18 minutes. The tower was unoccupied for about 12 minutes.
In addition, the event delayed the takeoff of a medical flight carrying human lungs to a New Jersey airport for an eventual transplant.
Officials with the National Air Traffic Controllers Association said the controller had worked a stretch of 2 hours, 40 minutes without a rest, which they called “a serious fatigue and safety concern.” The controller was scheduled to work in the tower from 5:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m, and union officials said it was the third time in several months that local FAA management scheduled only one certified controller during the nighttime shift.
Jim Peters, an FAA spokesman, said the planes were never in danger and were being monitored by the regional FAA facility while the Manchester tower was unstaffed. He also said the controller did everything by the book. “He followed procedure and waited until a time that he could leave his position and that the airborne aircraft could be handled by another facility.”
Airport officials did not return calls seeking comment Wednesday.
