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Spain military takes over air traffic control
Source: Agencies |
December 4, 2010, Saturday
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SPAIN'S military took control of the nation's airspace last night after air traffic controllers staged a massive sickout that stranded hundreds of thousands of travelers on the eve of a long holiday weekend, forcing the government to shut down Madrid's big international hub and seven other airports.
About six hours after the sickout started, causing total travel chaos, Deputy Prime Minister Perez Rubalcaba announced that the Defense Ministry had "taken control of air traffic in all the national territory." He said the Army's chief of staff would make all decisions on air traffic control, organization, planning and supervision.
It was not immediately clear when airports would start operating again or whether military controllers would actually guide planes in and out of airports or oversee those controllers who did not take part in the sickout. Spanish flagship carrier Iberia SA said all of its flights in and out of Madrid were suspended until at least 11 am today.
The controllers abandoned their posts amid a lengthy dispute over working conditions and after the administration of Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero yesterday approved a package of austerity measures - including a move to partially privatize airports and hand over management of Madrid and Barcelona airports to the private sector.
Spanish prosecutors said they were researching whether they could charge the controllers with crimes. Air traffic controllers meeting to plot strategy at a hotel near Madrid's airport were heckled and filmed by stranded passengers as they entered and left the building.
"To the unemployment line with you all!" one man yelled at the controllers, in footage shown by Spanish National Television.
Handfuls of passengers made it out of Madrid to destinations like Barcelona and Lisbon, Portugal, on buses provided by airlines. But the vast majority were forced to go home or to hotels with no information on when they might make their canceled flights.
"It's a disgrace, how can a group of people be so selfish as to wreck the plans of so many people?" said dentist Marcela Vega, 35, unable to travel to Chile with her husband, 5-year-old son and baby boy.
Spain's airport authority, known as Aena, said authorities were in contact with Europe's air traffic agency, Eurocontrol, and the United State's FAA about how best to deal with arriving international flights.
Aena chief Juan Ignacio Lema called the sickout "intolerable" and warned controllers to return to work, or face disciplinary actions or criminal charges.
About six hours after the sickout started, causing total travel chaos, Deputy Prime Minister Perez Rubalcaba announced that the Defense Ministry had "taken control of air traffic in all the national territory." He said the Army's chief of staff would make all decisions on air traffic control, organization, planning and supervision.
It was not immediately clear when airports would start operating again or whether military controllers would actually guide planes in and out of airports or oversee those controllers who did not take part in the sickout. Spanish flagship carrier Iberia SA said all of its flights in and out of Madrid were suspended until at least 11 am today.
The controllers abandoned their posts amid a lengthy dispute over working conditions and after the administration of Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero yesterday approved a package of austerity measures - including a move to partially privatize airports and hand over management of Madrid and Barcelona airports to the private sector.
Spanish prosecutors said they were researching whether they could charge the controllers with crimes. Air traffic controllers meeting to plot strategy at a hotel near Madrid's airport were heckled and filmed by stranded passengers as they entered and left the building.
"To the unemployment line with you all!" one man yelled at the controllers, in footage shown by Spanish National Television.
Handfuls of passengers made it out of Madrid to destinations like Barcelona and Lisbon, Portugal, on buses provided by airlines. But the vast majority were forced to go home or to hotels with no information on when they might make their canceled flights.
"It's a disgrace, how can a group of people be so selfish as to wreck the plans of so many people?" said dentist Marcela Vega, 35, unable to travel to Chile with her husband, 5-year-old son and baby boy.
Spain's airport authority, known as Aena, said authorities were in contact with Europe's air traffic agency, Eurocontrol, and the United State's FAA about how best to deal with arriving international flights.
Aena chief Juan Ignacio Lema called the sickout "intolerable" and warned controllers to return to work, or face disciplinary actions or criminal charges.
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