SWA departs from closed runway at KPWM - 6/25/24
In the English highway maintenance sector we have a process designed to prevent incursions into works areas. This consists of temporary barriers and signs at each entry point to the road (side turnings leading onto the road etc) which physically prevent access to the work area. In health and safety terms these are considered to be engineering controls. Once the person in overall control of the work has physically checked that all the work is complete, and all equipment and persons have left, only then are the temporary barriers and signs removed. To my (non aviation) mind this engineered solution is better than any administrative controls (such as verbal or written communication) barring entry.
The hierarchy of controls in the highway health and safety world is (in descending order with most effective control first):
elimination
substitution
engineering controls (so, barriers and signs preventing runway entry)
administrative controls (so, verbal or written communication such as ATC or NOTAMS of runway unavailability)
personal protective equipment.
The hierarchy of controls in the highway health and safety world is (in descending order with most effective control first):
elimination
substitution
engineering controls (so, barriers and signs preventing runway entry)
administrative controls (so, verbal or written communication such as ATC or NOTAMS of runway unavailability)
personal protective equipment.
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Too mean to buy a long personal title
Blind reliance on the WIP adhering to the scheduled finish time stated in the NOTAM without any attempt at contacting the worksite supervisor or safety car or whatnot to confirm it hasn't overrun the NOTAM'd finish time ain't smart - especially if you want to use that particular runway.
In USA runway closure may be indicated by NOTAM, ATIS, AWOS, painted X on the runway threshold, large illuminated X in the vertical plane, barriers preventing taxi access, and probably far more methods. If there is a control tower the runway closure is often scheduled for the hours the tower is closed and the runway doesn't become usable until tower opens and says it's usable.
Last edited by EXDAC; 2nd Jul 2024 at 11:52.
Southwest has a unique pilot pay system that allows crews to make more money if they underblock. That is why Southwest has a reputation for fast taxi times and always trying to reduce block. It may be time for their trip pay system to be reevaluated.
Last edited by Sailvi767; 2nd Jul 2024 at 17:00.
Thread Starter
Based on the referenced CNN quote in post #14, I went back and listened again to the LiveATC audio file and verified the following additional dialogue, which should be appended to my transcript in post #17.
ZBW Granted (?) it did open at 45 but you departed at 42
SWA That’s not what we’re showing, but OK
ZBW Southwest 4805 contact Boston Center on 133.42 (no response heard)
One aspect not conveyed in the transcript is the sheepish tone in ATC’s voice in querying SWA. Clear that this ZBW controller did not enjoy the dialogue, like a teacher confronting a student caught cheating on a test, concluding with the obligatory award of a failing grade.
I missed the above dialogue in the first listen due to quirks in the various browser-based and standalone media players; i.e., once you start moving the time slider around to repeat specific audio, the time marks become useless. Not sure if this is a quirk in the media players or a quirk in the mp3 file format.
ZBW Granted (?) it did open at 45 but you departed at 42
SWA That’s not what we’re showing, but OK
ZBW Southwest 4805 contact Boston Center on 133.42 (no response heard)
One aspect not conveyed in the transcript is the sheepish tone in ATC’s voice in querying SWA. Clear that this ZBW controller did not enjoy the dialogue, like a teacher confronting a student caught cheating on a test, concluding with the obligatory award of a failing grade.
I missed the above dialogue in the first listen due to quirks in the various browser-based and standalone media players; i.e., once you start moving the time slider around to repeat specific audio, the time marks become useless. Not sure if this is a quirk in the media players or a quirk in the mp3 file format.
And, the NOTAM saying runway closed to 0945Z doesn’t necessarily mean it opened at 0945Z. It opened when Airport Ops announced it open. Additionally, when WN called ZBW “ready for departure RWY 29, the controller should have recognized the closed runway and withheld the release.
And, the NOTAM saying runway closed to 0945Z doesn’t necessarily mean it opened at 0945Z. It opened when Airport Ops announced it open. Additionally, when WN called ZBW “ready for departure RWY 29, the controller should have recognized the closed runway and withheld the release.
From an FAA center controller on another forum, in a case such as this the center controller would have the NOTAM and should have held WN from release until the runway was confirmed open.
