Airline inspectors are among the many government workers affected by the shutdown. One explains how his absence from the job introduces real dangers.
A Fox News commentator recently downplayed the effects of the government shutdown — now officially the longest in U. S. history — suggesting that half the government’s agencies could be shut down for years before “the regular person, the normal, average working American,” noticed the effects. Aside from the oddness of suggesting government workers themselves aren’t normal Americans, the remark dismisses the vital work these agencies do. It’s true that a vast share of government jobs are invisible to most of the public, but often that’s only because they’re being done effectively. Like running water or electricity, no one thinks about these services until they’re cut off.
One prime example: air safety. This week, I spoke with Ben Struck, an aviation-safety inspector of six years who lives in Brooklyn, who has been furloughed since December 22. His team oversees small airlines, pilots, maintenance schools, and repair stations throughout Long Island and Westchester County, plus helicopters throughout New York City’s five boroughs. In the conversation below, he explains what’s being left undone in his absence, and reflects on the worst-case scenarios for an extended shutdown.
Yeah, ride-alongs — or what we call cabinet-safety inspections — are one of the tools we have. But when pilots make airspace deviations, or level at the wrong altitude, those also get reported through air traffic control. We can investigate and get down to the root cause. We can have a conversation with the pilot. He might say, “Yeah, my autopilot got screwy, I wrote it up when I got back,” or he might say, “Eh, I never got trained on this autopilot, but I decided to fly the plane anyway.” That’s a different conversation to have. What kind of retraining can we require that pilot to do?
Yes, the larger businesses do.
