Anonymous wrote:Trump admin crumbling on week 2.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:➡️ January 20: FAA director fired
➡️ January 21: Air Traffic Controller hiring frozen
➡️ January 22: Aviation Safety Advisory Committee disbanded
➡️ January 28: Buyout/retirement demand sent to existing employees
➡️ January 29: First American mid-air collision in 16 years

Making America Great Again!

So they sabotaged it? I doubt that very much. I have a higher opinion of FAA employees than you do.

Not sabotage. Stress.

Remember that one of Trump’s people said their goal was to “traumatize federal employees.”

Was this actually an ATC error? I thought it was mainly the helicopter error.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Trump's comms team did not advise him well on this. Blaming it on DEI and implying the air traffic controllers may have messed up because they have psychiatric disabilities is not wise. Also, the FAA's rules around disabilities are the same as every federal agencies. The rules are nothing new and were in place during Trump's first term. He is saying ATCs are mentally incompetent. He doesn't even know who made the mistake at this point.

This is from the Federal Aviation Administration before trump:

Individuals with targeted or “severe” disabilities are the most under-represented segment of the Federal workforce. The People with Disabilities Program (PWD) ensures that people with disabilities have equal Federal employment opportunities. The FAA actively recruits, hires, promotes, retains, develops and advances people with disabilities.

The FAA meets the goals of the PWD Program through a variety of practices:

Targeted disabilities are those disabilities that the Federal government, as a matter of policy, has identified for special emphasis in recruitment and hiring. They include hearing, vision, missing extremities, partial paralysis, complete paralysis, epilepsy, severe intellectual disability, psychiatric disability and dwarfism.

FAA has 35,000 employees....of which only 14,000 are ATCs. Why is it a problem for FAA to employ someone in a non-ATC role that has paralysis? Or vision impairment?

ATCs are held to strict medical standards, but someone missing an extremity or dwarfism could do the job. Obviously they can't have a vision or hearing impairment. But people with certain disabilities can be cleared to be an ATC.

Is this supposed to be a gotcha? There's 21,000 FAA employees in non-ATC roles.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Trump's comms team did not advise him well on this. Blaming it on DEI and implying the air traffic controllers may have messed up because they have psychiatric disabilities is not wise. Also, the FAA's rules around disabilities are the same as every federal agencies. The rules are nothing new and were in place during Trump's first term. He is saying ATCs are mentally incompetent. He doesn't even know who made the mistake at this point.

This is from the Federal Aviation Administration before trump:

Individuals with targeted or “severe” disabilities are the most under-represented segment of the Federal workforce. The People with Disabilities Program (PWD) ensures that people with disabilities have equal Federal employment opportunities. The FAA actively recruits, hires, promotes, retains, develops and advances people with disabilities.

The FAA meets the goals of the PWD Program through a variety of practices:

Targeted disabilities are those disabilities that the Federal government, as a matter of policy, has identified for special emphasis in recruitment and hiring. They include hearing, vision, missing extremities, partial paralysis, complete paralysis, epilepsy, severe intellectual disability, psychiatric disability and dwarfism.

Yes. And all employees must be qualified to do the essential functions of their job. The FAA hires accountants, administrative assistants, attorneys, comms people, ATCs and many other occupations. All of them must be able to perform their job. Trump has implied that the people in that control tower were disabled for the job they were doing. There is no evidence whatsoever that is the case. ATCs must be fit for duty - these regulations do not change that. I do not think the people in the tower last night (or in towers anywhere) appreciate him implying they are not. And, these rules were in place from 2017-2020.

Anonymous wrote:FCPS just sent out statement that we have lost members of the FCPS family in the crash. No specific schools were mentioned. So awful.

Anonymous wrote:I hate that none of the journalists asked about the hiring freeze. It seems that theres a great need for more controllers, but they can’t hire anyone (even with trump’s “higher standards”). so when the people already there are overworked, and now being attacked by there boss before any investigation has come to an end, I can’t help but think that other accidents could more easily occur. This freeze needs to be lifted ASAP.

Anonymous wrote:Like others who have posted, I feel nauseated by Trump and his lackeys spinning the narrative that this tragedy had to be caused by DEI and blaming Obama and Biden. And here we go with a repeat of the obsequiousness of his first administration, with the transportation secretary, Pete Hedgseth, and JD Vance (I had to turn off the TV during his comments) thanking Trump for his amazing leadership. No facts of evidence, just the narrative that best suits their political purpose, insulting to all who were involved.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I want everyone also to say a prayer and hold in their hearts all the law enforcement and fire rescue/recovery divers that jumped into dark freezing water last night and swam through jet fuel and dangerous debris, only to be met with a plan full of dead teenagers. They should have the thanks, prayers, and support of all of us. I cannot imagine anything more scary and horrific. I hope they are all getting excellent mental health support.

Thank you.

Absolutely. They have a job that I cannot even begin to imagine.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:➡️ January 20: FAA director fired
➡️ January 21: Air Traffic Controller hiring frozen
➡️ January 22: Aviation Safety Advisory Committee disbanded
➡️ January 28: Buyout/retirement demand sent to existing employees
➡️ January 29: First American mid-air collision in 16 years

Making America Great Again!

So they sabotaged it? I doubt that very much. I have a higher opinion of FAA employees than you do.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This press conference might be the moment it all sinks in for me. We’re so f#%cked

💯. I was burying my head in the sand but this was brutal.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Totally inappropriate use of the press conference by every speaker so far.

If I was personally affected by this tragedy I would be LIVID.

You are if you live in the USA. Should Military be able to access and fly helicopters on/off private property? Near and around airports, etc… where are the rules?

There are plenty of neighborhoods where (military) helicopters are flown. If you are ever in the Walter Reed neighborhood or driving by on beltway around Bethesda you'll see them through suburban neighborboods

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Trump's comms team did not advise him well on this. Blaming it on DEI and implying the air traffic controllers may have messed up because they have psychiatric disabilities is not wise. Also, the FAA's rules around disabilities are the same as every federal agencies. The rules are nothing new and were in place during Trump's first term. He is saying ATCs are mentally incompetent. He doesn't even know who made the mistake at this point.

This is from the Federal Aviation Administration before trump:

Individuals with targeted or “severe” disabilities are the most under-represented segment of the Federal workforce. The People with Disabilities Program (PWD) ensures that people with disabilities have equal Federal employment opportunities. The FAA actively recruits, hires, promotes, retains, develops and advances people with disabilities.

The FAA meets the goals of the PWD Program through a variety of practices:

Targeted disabilities are those disabilities that the Federal government, as a matter of policy, has identified for special emphasis in recruitment and hiring. They include hearing, vision, missing extremities, partial paralysis, complete paralysis, epilepsy, severe intellectual disability, psychiatric disability and dwarfism.