DOT, FAA Honor Tulsa Tower Controllers For 8 Years of Error-Free Operations

TULSA, Oklahoma - U.S. Transportation Secretary Norman Y.
Mineta and Federal Aviation Administrator Jane F. Garvey today
honored Tulsa International Airport air traffic controllers for an
unprecedented achievement - operating for eight years without a
mistake.

"These 46 men and women have done something very few people
in any profession can claim. They haven't made an on-the-job
mistake in eight years," Secretary Mineta said in remarks at the
afternoon awards ceremony held at the airport here. "This is
amazing. But what it really means is that pilots and passengers
flying into and out of Tulsa are able to do so in absolute
confidence that these controllers know what to do and when to do
it."

Administrator Garvey praised the group's accomplishment. "This
is what we strive for in the air traffic business; perfection every
day. It's difficult, but the Tulsa controllers have shown us that it's
not impossible. This is a reflection on their training, their skills,
their work ethic and their professionalism," she said. "This is a
first, a standard against which to measure everyone else, every
facility in the system. If it can be done in Tulsa, it can be done in
other places, as well."

Tulsa International Airport handles about 200,000 take-offs and
landings a year, and tower controllers haven't made an
"operational error" - allowing two airplanes to come too close
together - since 1993, for a total of 4 million error-free operations.

Forty-six controllers operate the Tulsa tower 24 hours a day,
seven days a week. Staff at the tower includes 40 controllers, six
operational supervisors, three staff assistants, three managers
and two clerical aides. Another 35 technicians and managers in
the Airway Facilities division maintain essential air traffic
equipment such as radios and radars.