Blame Samuel Jackson for Two More ATC Suspensions
The Ohio, controller who watched a DVD while monitoring three planes sent audio of Samuel Jackson in the movie The Cleaner to those three planes over his mike, and sticking his mike in the ON position so he couldn’t receive calls. The FAA announcement of that controller’s suspension said that a military pilot on an alternative frequency heard the movie broadcast over airspace. That controller has been suspended along with his manager.
Is this Oberlin Ohio controller the only one doing this or was he just the only one unlucky enough to get caught? What other distracting solutions have air traffic controllers found to keep them from falling asleep during long dull lapses during the night? FAA policy prohibits the use of portable DVD players.
We haven’t heard from Samuel Jackson.