Brothers and Sisters,
I’m sorry that it has been awhile since my last update. As you will read below, there is a lot going on behind the scenes. Your input on any of these issues is welcome and encouraged.
1. Your AWS requests have been submitted to management. As with the other areas, your requests are pending discussion between the front office and NATCA regarding some finer points of AWS. Hopefully we’ll have a resolution sometime next week.
2. At KSEA, 16L/34R will be closed from April 1st to May 15th. The arrival rates will decrease significantly when ILS approaches are required. Also, 16C/34C is scheduled to be closed immediately after the 16L/34R closure for 21 days. Expect heavy metering when the weather deteriorates.
3. There is a workgroup addressing Sector 46’s metering issues and our area is being represented at these meetings. Sector 46’s oversaturation is being handled inconsistently on different days of the week and we hope to come up with a solution that will help Sector 46 while not overwhelming our controllers. The tentative plan is as follows: If metering delays become too great to be absorbed by the B and D areas, Sector 02 will take more than a 1 minute delay. How much of a delay it takes will be defined and communicated by TMU. Sector 32 will reroute aircraft out of Sector 46 when necessary. The reroutes will be defined and coordinated by TMU when they are required. The tentative reroutes are DSD..JUNEJ.Q7, DSD..JUNEJ..BOWLS.TUDOR arrival (KSMF), and DSD..JUNEJ..next fix along the route. Aircraft on the OLM1 arrival will be positioned west of the HAWKZ arrivals. All of this will be organized into a Notice or MOU.
4. This summer, there will be TMIs on the HAWKZ when KSEA is in a north flow. The TMIs will be miles-in-trail at FOOTT with the MIT variable based on traffic and weather conditions. This is much preferable to the speed restrictions S46 initially wanted us to give aircraft (such as 250K at HAWKZ) which contradict the restrictions on the STAR.
5. S46 has come to the conclusion that the north flow transition of the HAWKZ allows for too much compression and too little time to blend aircraft from other arrivals. The north transition may be redesigned if the TMI’s do not alleviate the issues S46 has in a north flow. I am participating in a workgroup with Airspace & Procedures, S46, and the users (Alaska Airlines, etc.) to come up with a solution that works for everyone. The current proposed redesign will take the north flow transition west of Ft. Lewis. The altitudes on the arrival will place KSEA arrivals below KBFI arrivals.
6. S46 has also had some issues with the MARNR and JAWBN arrivals in a south flow. Remember that the MARNR and JAWBN arrivals are procedurally separated in a south flow when the JAWBN arrival is at 100. If there is a KBFI arrival at 110, the arrivals are not procedurally separated because the MARNR arrival can descend to 110 immediately after MARNR. If you leave a KBFI arrival at 110 then you have to use radar to separate them or else appreq the MARNR arrival at 120. Sorry if this is obvious, but a number of S46 controllers have been confused about various aspects of the LOA and I want to make sure that everyone on our end understands and is compliant.
Also, there are some folks at S46 that think we’re required to sequence turboprops (specifically DH8Cs) and jets over MARNR/JAWBN. They are incorrect and have been advised that is not a requirement.
7. The Vancouver LOA has been updated. There are a few minor changes that do not affect the way we have been operating and reflect what is already going on. The effective date is March 31st.
8. Route Channelization will be discussed in the near future. I am going to address transfer of control throughout our entire area. I would like us to have control from sector 07/47 and from Vancouver Center. Within our area, I think that some of the transfer of control agreements can be simplified and made more user-friendly.
9. Finally, as many of you know, Dave Wilson is out on extend leave. He has been accepted into the On-Line Voluntary Leave Transfer Program. For more information on donating, talk to a supervisor.
If you have any questions or suggestions, please come find me, email at skorniakoff@comcast.net, or call/text me at 253-332-2066.
In Solidarity,
Paul Skorniakoff