2006–2007 Brazilian aviation crisis

The Brazilian aviation crisis was a crisis of Brazil's civil aviation system, characterized by massive flight delays and cancellations, air traffic controller strikes and safety concerns about Brazil's airport and air traffic infrastructure. It ostensibly started after the crash of Gol Flight 1907 in September, 2006, to January 2008. While the government has announced a series of measures aimed at mitigating its effects, no clear solution has been found. [ [http://www.nytimes.com/2007/07/19/world/americas/19brazil.html Brazil Demands Solution to Aviation Crisis - New York Times ] ] [ [http://www.guardian.co.uk/brazil/story/0,,2129606,00.html Anger grows over Brazil plane crash | World news | The Guardian ] ] [ [http://english.aljazeera.net/NR/exeres/D88DF19F-D1AD-4F03-AF72-F65F1825A21A.htm Al Jazeera English - News - No Survivors In Brazil Air Crash ] ] [ [http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/N17283060.htm Reuters AlertNet - FACTBOX-Brazil's deepening aviation crisis ] ] In Brazil, the crisis has been dubbed "Apagão Aéreo" (Aerial blackout), an allusion to an energy crisis Brazil experienced between 2001 and 2002.

Brazil's air traffic control system

Brazil's air traffic control system is run by the Brazilian Air Force (FAB). While some approach controls and control towers may have civilian controllers, the vast majority are military non-commissioned officers supervised by commissioned officers (with the totality of ARTCCs being staffed by the military, under a department called Department of Airspace Control (Departamento de Controle de Espaço Aéreo).

The air traffic control centers are known by the acronym CINDACTA, or "Centro Integrado de Defesa Aérea e Controle de Tráfego Aéreo (Integrated Air Traffic Control and Air Defense Center). Four CINDACTAs are in operation, located in four different cities and each responsible for different regions of Brazil's airspace.

The use of military air traffic controllers for civilian traffic is not unusual, but has been deprecated in most developed countries. In the US, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) operates a wholly parallel system with that of the US Air Force and NORAD. This is also the case of Eurocontrol and each of its member nations' air defense systems. Brazil's use of an integrated command poses some unique challenges to the government. As members of the military, controllers are not allowed to form unions (such as the case of NATCA in the US) or to strike.

While the air traffic control system saw significant improvement with the implementation of SIVAM in the northern portion of the country, there were many warning signs that the system as a whole was heading towards an untenable situation. In 2003, the Brazilian Air Force warned of the need for upgraded equipment and additional funding. For three years, DECEA, the Air Force department in charge of air traffic control budget requests were denied. [pt icon [http://clipping.planejamento.gov.br/Noticias.asp?NOTCod=344585 FAB warns of crisis since 2004.] O Estado de S. Paulo. Retrieved July 22, 2007.] The government's "Tribunal de Contas da União" (Union Accounting Tribunal), an agency similar to the US Government Accountability Office, issued a report after the crisis which echoed the FAB's concerns, stating that a lack of planning and underfunding of the air traffic control system by the federal government was to blame for the crisis. [pt icon [http://www.agenciabrasil.gov.br/noticias/2006/12/12/materia.2006-12-12.8812427143/view Budget cut and lack of planning caused air crisis, says TCU report] Agência Brasil. Retrieved July 22, 2007.]

Gol Flight 1907

On September 29, 2006, a Gol Transportes Aéreos Boeing 737-800 collided with an Embraer Legacy 600 over the state of Mato Grosso, leading to the loss of 154 lives in what was, at the time, the deadliest air disaster in Brazilian history. While the final report on the crash has yet to be issued by Brazil's Centre for the Investigation and Prevention of Aeronautical Accidents (Centro de Investigação e Prevenção de Acidentes Aeronáuticos, CENIPA), several air traffic controllers from CINDACTA I have been indicted on counts ranging from reckless endangerment to manslaughter due to errors conducted in the course of their duties.

The Legacy aircraft's transponder has been found to have been off at the time of the crash. Footage of the radar screens at the time of the incident reveals that the primary radar lost contact with the Legacy altogether, which should have been operating independently of the Legacy's transponder's operation. [pt icon [Flight 1907: CINDACTA radar screens depict tragedy] Rede Globo (via YouTube). Retrieved July 21, 2007] Following that, many technology and personnel issues were made public, showing the poor situation of Brazilian aviation's infrastructure and transforming the crash in a boiling point for the crisis [en icon [http://search.ft.com/ftArticle?id=070404011083 Brazilian aviation in chaos.] Financial Times Retrieved July 22, 2007.] . Facing the possibility of being blamed for one accident which, in their point of view, could have been avoided by appropriated improvement measures, the controllers decided to take action.

Air traffic control chaos

Following the Gol incident, the situation deteriorated rapidly, which controllers commencing a work-to-rule protest which culminated in massive flight delays and protests from passengers and airlines alike. The apex of the crisis occurred in December 2006. Due to a combination of equipment failures, understaffed ATC and the holiday travel season, travel at many Brazilian airports stopped altogether for some days. [en icon [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/6212516.stm Flights resume at Brazil airports] BBC News. Retrieved July 21, 2007.] With the airlines unable to clear the backlog of passengers due to the cancelled flights, and under pressure to solve the crisis from the general public, the government pressed into service several Brazilian Air Force jets, including one of the president's own planes.

International organizations joined the protest by complaining of the work conditions experienced by the Brazilian air traffic controllers, citing long hours and low pay. [pt icon [http://www1.folha.uol.com.br/folha/cotidiano/ult95u127680.shtml Air Traffic Control in Brazil worries NGO] Folha de São Paulo. Retrieved July 21, 2007.] At the same time, two different congressional inquiries were established to look into the matter. The executive branch's own inter-ministerial work-group concluded that the issue could be partly solved by both demilitarizing the air traffic control system and reinvesting the user fees and taxes levied on aviation back into the national air traffic control system. [pt icon [http://g1.globo.com/Noticias/Brasil/0,,AA1385628-5598,00.html Work-group suggest demilitarization of air traffic control.] G1.com. Retrieved July 22, 2007.]

On March 30, 2007, nearly 100 controllers walked out during a protest over working conditions. [ [http://www.ft.com/cms/s/fa0fae10-e155-11db-bd73-000b5df10621.html Brazil promises quick solution to aviation crisis] . Financial Times. Retrieved July 22, 2007] The walkout occurred soon after President Lula left the country for a summit with US president George W. Bush. Lula was reported to have said he felt as if he had been "backstabbed". [pt icon [http://josiasdesouza.folha.blog.uol.com.br/arch2007-04-01_2007-04-07.html#2007_04-03_21_01_15-10045644-0 Lula: Controllers "stabbed me in the back."] Josias de Souza, Folha de São Paulo. Retrieved July 22, 2007.]

On July 21, 2007, a short-circuit at a communications relay shut down CINDACTA-4 for nearly 3 hours during the hours of 23:15 and 02:30. While this incident was relatively short-lived, its consequences were emblematic of the crisis as a whole: 44.7% of the following day's flights suffered delays or cancellations. [pt icon [http://www1.folha.uol.com.br/folha/cotidiano/ult95u314033.shtml Short-circuit caused failure at CINDACTA-4, says FAB] Folha de São Paulo. Retrieved July 22, 2007.]

TAM Airlines Flight 3054

On July 17, 2007, a fully-loaded TAM Airlines Airbus A320 aircraft ran off a runway at Congonhas-São Paulo International Airport, crashed into a warehouse and exploded, resulting in nearly 200 fatalities. While its causes are still under investigation, Congonhas is one of the busiest airports in Brazil, and has been singled-out for problems with water accumulation on the runway and an excessive number of flights.

The Brazilian press was quick to add this to a growing list of civil aviation woes, and pressed the government for changes.

Administration reaction

The administration's reaction began by an internal conflict between the military and civilian leadership on whether or not to negotiate with the air traffic controllers. Given their military position, they were not entitled to negotiate or press grievances outside their chain of command. The civilian government pressed for a pragmatic approach,Fact|date=July 2007 while the military, with a view to guarding discipline, took a more hardline view.Fact|date=July 2007 While the civilian government initially negotiated with the controllers, in June 2007, Lula's government sacked 14 military controllers and arrested 2 others for mutiny. [en icon [http://www.usatoday.com/travel/flights/2007-07-18-brazil-aviation_N.htm Brazil's deepening aviation crisis] Reuters. Retrieved July 22, 2007.]

With the public, the administration has been heavily criticized by sometimes insensitive comments. Fact|date=July 2007 On June 9, 2007, asked by reporters what passengers should do while waiting for the delayed flights, the Minister of Tourism, Marta Suplicy, replied "relaxa e goza" ("relax and enjoy"), a sexual expression relating to coitus, which also mean "not to care". Marta apologized officially on the same day, expressing regret over an "unfortunate" comment. [pt icon [http://g1.globo.com/Noticias/Politica/0,,MUL51536-5601,00.html Marta on the air crisis: "relax and enjoy"] G1.com. Retrieved July 22, 2007.]

Three weeks later, the Finance Minister, Guido Mantega, tried to minimize the crisis, by saying that the crisis was "the price of prosperity". He stated he believed the crisis was due to the "increase in the flow of traffic due to the country's prosperity." [pt icon [http://noticias.terra.com.br/brasil/interna/0,,OI1704149-EI7897,00.html Mantega: air crisis is a signal of prosperity.] Terra.com.br. Retrieved July 22, 2007.]

In July, 2007, after TAM Flight 3054's crash, a Rede Globo story reported that the TAM plane's right thrust reverser was inoperative at the time of the crash. [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/TAM_Linhas_A%C3%A9reas_Flight_3054#Crash] A camera set up by Globo caught one of the president's top advisers, Marco Aurélio Garcia, inside the Palácio do Planalto, apparentely celebrating with an aide immediately after watching the newscast, ostensibly due to the blame placed on the federal administration's policies for the crash. The gestures, which were colloquially understood as being obscene, were widely condemned in the media. [pt icon [http://www1.folha.uol.com.br/folha/cotidiano/ult95u313645.shtml Lula aide apologizes for gesture after criticism.] Folha de São Paulo. Retrieved July 22, 2007.] Relatives of those who died in the crash asked for their resignation. [pt icon [http://g1.globo.com/Noticias/SaoPaulo/0,,MUL73834-5605-9920,00.html Lula's aide gesture indignates victims' relatives. G1 Retrieved July 22, 2007.] ]

Ten months after the beginning of the crisis, on July 2007, President Lula made a statement on national TV, in which he acknowledged the existence of a crisis, and while did not offer specific measures to improve the air traffic control system, did commit the administration to solving some of the criticisms levied on Congonhas Airport. [pt icon [http://www1.folha.uol.com.br/folha/cotidiano/ult95u313826.shtml Read in full President Lula's address to the nation.] Folha de São Paulo. Retrieved July 22, 2007.] During the following week, the President fired the Minister of Defense, Waldir Pires. [en icon [http://www.reuters.com/article/latestCrisis/idUSN25339531?sp=true Brazil's defense minister ousted after air crash] Reuters. Retrieved July 27, 2007.] The new minister is former Supreme Federal Tribunal president Nelson Jobim. [Giraldi, Renata. [http://www1.folha.uol.com.br/folha/brasil/ult96u315299.shtml Jobim diz que há problema estrutural no setor aéreo e promete soluções] . Folha Online. July 26, 2007. Retrieved August 20, 2007.]

References

ee also

* TAM Linhas Aéreas Flight 402
* Gol Transportes Aéreos Flight 1907
* TAM Linhas Aéreas Flight 3054
* List of notable accidents and incidents on commercial aircraft
* Air safety
* List of the busiest airports in Brazil

External links

* [http://www.decea.gov.br DECEA - Departamento de Controle de Espaço Aéreo]
* [http://www.aer.mil.br Brazilian Air Force]