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Against the Wind - National Air Traffic Controllers Association

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<strong>Against</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>Wind</strong><br />

The History of <strong>the</strong> <strong>National</strong> <strong>Air</strong> <strong>Traffic</strong> <strong>Controllers</strong> <strong>Association</strong><br />

by Paul McElroy<br />

All rights reserved.<br />

Copyright © 2002 by <strong>the</strong> <strong>National</strong> <strong>Air</strong> <strong>Traffic</strong> <strong>Controllers</strong> <strong>Association</strong>.<br />

Cover art copyright © 2002 by <strong>the</strong> <strong>National</strong> <strong>Air</strong> <strong>Traffic</strong> <strong>Controllers</strong> <strong>Association</strong>.<br />

Aeronautical charts courtesy of <strong>the</strong> <strong>National</strong> Aeronautical Charting Office of <strong>the</strong> U.S.<br />

Department of Transportation.<br />

Memorabilia courtesy of Mike Palumbo.<br />

No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by<br />

any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any<br />

information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from <strong>the</strong><br />

<strong>National</strong> <strong>Air</strong> <strong>Traffic</strong> <strong>Controllers</strong> <strong>Association</strong>.<br />

For information address:<br />

<strong>National</strong> <strong>Air</strong> <strong>Traffic</strong> <strong>Controllers</strong> <strong>Association</strong><br />

1325 Massachusetts Avenue NW<br />

Washington, D.C. 20005<br />

www.natca.org<br />

PRINTING HISTORY<br />

Hardcover edition / First printing: September 2002<br />

Int e r I o r d e s I g n b y Amy mcel r o y, JA pph I r e In c.<br />

co v e r d e s I g n b y sh e r r y st I n s o n, th e prI n t e d Im A g e<br />

Ind e x b y dA n co n n o l l y, Wo r d f o r Wo r d bo o k se r v Ic e s<br />

PRINTED IN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA<br />

10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1


Table of Contents<br />

Author’s Note 1<br />

Introduction 2<br />

Chapter 1 10<br />

Chapter 2 30<br />

Chapter 3 44<br />

Chapter 4 92<br />

Chapter 5 124<br />

Chapter 6 172<br />

Chapter 7 220<br />

NATCA at a Glance 234<br />

The NATCA Family 236<br />

Glossary 250<br />

Bibliography 252<br />

Index 253


To <strong>the</strong> men and women of <strong>the</strong><br />

<strong>National</strong> <strong>Air</strong> <strong>Traffic</strong> <strong>Controllers</strong> <strong>Association</strong>,<br />

whose ceaseless efforts help keep <strong>the</strong> world’s<br />

largest, most complex, and safest aviation system aloft.


Author’s Note<br />

During <strong>the</strong> mid-1980s, a visionary<br />

group of air traffic controllers<br />

sought to augment <strong>the</strong>ir words on<br />

<strong>the</strong> airwaves with a critically needed<br />

voice in <strong>the</strong> workplace. Ignoring personal considerations<br />

and threats to <strong>the</strong>ir careers, <strong>the</strong>y<br />

courageously embarked on a mission that blossomed<br />

into <strong>the</strong> influential and respected labor<br />

organization called NATCA.<br />

I’ve been privileged to discover <strong>the</strong>ir spirit<br />

and dedication, and glimpse corners of <strong>the</strong>ir<br />

profession that remain hidden to <strong>the</strong> world at<br />

large. What you hold in your hands represents<br />

<strong>the</strong> story of <strong>the</strong> first fifteen years of this vibrant<br />

union.<br />

Over <strong>the</strong> course of nine months, I digested<br />

reams of archives and traveled 50,000 miles to<br />

interview some 175 people. Even as NATCA<br />

committed generous resources to produce a<br />

high-quality work, it entrusted an outside observer<br />

to document its history while giving me<br />

<strong>the</strong> freedom to do so with honesty and balance.<br />

Necessarily, this book consists of a series<br />

of snapshots recording <strong>the</strong> dreams and deeds<br />

of a cast of thousands. I’m frustrated by space<br />

limitations that prevent me from mentioning<br />

<strong>the</strong> untold activists—and <strong>the</strong>ir families—who<br />

selflessly strive to ensure <strong>the</strong> safety of nearly<br />

two million air travelers a day and improve<br />

working conditions for some 20,000 federal<br />

employees. That I could not recognize <strong>the</strong>m all<br />

by name in no way diminishes <strong>the</strong>ir contributions,<br />

which command my lasting admiration.<br />

To <strong>the</strong> scores who graciously and patiently<br />

assisted me throughout this project, I offer my<br />

heartfelt appreciation.<br />

With apologies for not being able to acknowledge<br />

everyone individually, Atlanta<br />

Center controller Don Brown and Howie Barte<br />

from Providence Tower/TRACON deserve a<br />

very special thanks. They had <strong>the</strong> foresight<br />

to conceive of this project two years ago. They<br />

also played a key role, along with eight o<strong>the</strong>r<br />

union members who reviewed <strong>the</strong> manuscript,<br />

in making this book as comprehensive and accurate<br />

as possible.<br />

NATCA’s story is far from over. Each day<br />

forms unwritten chapters. May <strong>Against</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>Wind</strong><br />

honor those now and in <strong>the</strong> union’s past, and<br />

inspire <strong>the</strong> legions yet to carry on <strong>the</strong> dream.<br />

P.M. / June 2002


“<br />

You can’t organize<br />

happy people.<br />

— Axiom among labor organizers<br />

NATCA headquarters: In 2000, <strong>the</strong> union<br />

moved into its own seven-story building<br />

on <strong>the</strong> nor<strong>the</strong>rn edge of downtown Washington,<br />

D.C. The national office is known<br />

as <strong>the</strong> Barry Krasner Building in honor of<br />

NATCA’s second president. / Japphire


Introduction<br />

Union Rising<br />

Sitting amid <strong>the</strong> darkness of Washington Center in Leesburg, Virginia,<br />

an air traffic controller spoke incessantly into <strong>the</strong> tiny microphone of<br />

his headset. His accent revealed <strong>the</strong> soft twang of <strong>the</strong> West Virginian<br />

hills, but his strong, confident voice cut through <strong>the</strong> air like <strong>the</strong> boom of a<br />

howitzer.<br />

Despite his cocky demeanor, his restless eyes<br />

darted repeatedly across <strong>the</strong> radarscope before him,<br />

its round screen lit up like a pinball machine in <strong>the</strong><br />

dazzling throes of a bonus round. Twenty-two green<br />

blips flashed and danced on <strong>the</strong> glass while two stacks<br />

of airplanes pirouetted in unison over Woodstown in<br />

southwestern New Jersey and Yardley, Pennsylvania,<br />

near Philadelphia. The aerial ballet formed <strong>the</strong> swirling<br />

headwaters of a river that streamed nor<strong>the</strong>ast<br />

across his scope—and through his mind—before<br />

flowing on to New York’s LaGuardia <strong>Air</strong>port.<br />

Jerry Tierney’s hands were full on this day in<br />

1984. Besides <strong>the</strong> rush of planes, he was grappling<br />

with <strong>the</strong> aftershocks of a cataclysmic strike that<br />

wiped out three-quarters of <strong>the</strong> air traffic control<br />

work force in August 1981. Chronic low staffing<br />

frequently forced controllers to juggle more than<br />

one portion of airspace at a time. Tierney was riding<br />

herd over <strong>the</strong> Woodstown and Dupont sectors. Like<br />

many of his brethren, he was also toiling through yet<br />

ano<strong>the</strong>r grueling six-day workweek.<br />

Sporting a bushy head of dark brown hair,<br />

neatly cropped above <strong>the</strong> ears, and wearing his usual<br />

button-down shirt and slacks, <strong>the</strong> medium-built<br />

Tierney had earned a well-deserved reputation as one<br />

of Washington Center’s finest controllers. Colleagues<br />

respected his honest, sincere attitude and strong<br />

work ethic, and <strong>the</strong>y cheered his zero tolerance for<br />

nonsensical edicts from management.<br />

In his largely unseen world, where professionals<br />

balance <strong>the</strong> science of physics with <strong>the</strong> art<br />

of choreography, a thin line separates chaos from<br />

Courtesy of Jerry Tierney<br />

Jerry Tierney: Now retired, <strong>the</strong> West<br />

Virginia native began his air traffic control<br />

career in 1968 at Washington Center.


4<br />

<strong>Against</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>Wind</strong><br />

Inside Washington Center: The overnight<br />

solitude of this area gives way to frenetic<br />

activity after daybreak. The M-1 control<br />

room that Jerry Tierney and his colleagues<br />

worked in was replaced by this remodeled<br />

version during <strong>the</strong> late 1990s. / Paul Williams<br />

control. Good controllers know <strong>the</strong>ir limits. They<br />

can sense when one more plane will propel <strong>the</strong>m<br />

into <strong>the</strong> abyss and scatter <strong>the</strong>ir concentration like a<br />

collapsing house of cards. Tierney had been pushing<br />

tin for sixteen years and could tell he was nearing <strong>the</strong><br />

edge of <strong>the</strong> precipice. There was nowhere else to stack<br />

planes in <strong>the</strong> north while <strong>the</strong>y waited for <strong>the</strong>ir turn<br />

to land. He called ano<strong>the</strong>r controller at <strong>the</strong> center to<br />

briefly shut off <strong>the</strong> relentless streams from Maryland<br />

and Virginia in <strong>the</strong> south.<br />

Seated behind him, a supervisor snapped to<br />

attention and leaned forward. “We’ve got to get <strong>the</strong>m<br />

in,” he said.<br />

“I’m not taking <strong>the</strong>m,” Tierney responded, his<br />

eyes raking over <strong>the</strong> scope as he plotted his next several<br />

moves.<br />

The supervisor’s voice grew edgy. “You have to<br />

accept those aircraft.”<br />

Under pressure from Congress and <strong>the</strong> airlines,<br />

<strong>the</strong> Federal Aviation Administration was publicly<br />

proclaiming that <strong>the</strong> air traffic system had fully<br />

recovered from <strong>the</strong> strike. After enduring a period<br />

of cutbacks, <strong>the</strong> airlines published thicker timetables<br />

month by month, testing <strong>the</strong> limits of a largely inexperienced<br />

work force only half as big as in 1981. This<br />

was where <strong>the</strong> rubber met <strong>the</strong> runway.


“No,” Tierney said firmly. “I can’t.”<br />

“Why not?”<br />

“Because it’s not safe. I know how many aircraft<br />

I can handle.”<br />

Preoccupied with<br />

<strong>the</strong> twenty-two targets<br />

hopping across his scope,<br />

Tierney did not notice <strong>the</strong><br />

supervisor slide over to<br />

<strong>the</strong> keyboard at <strong>the</strong> data<br />

position next to him. His<br />

superior typed <strong>the</strong> computer<br />

ID codes for two or<br />

three more planes from<br />

<strong>the</strong> south and pressed<br />

ENTER after each number,<br />

transferring responsibility<br />

for <strong>the</strong>m to Tierney.<br />

One by one, <strong>the</strong> pilots<br />

checked in on his radio<br />

frequency.<br />

Suddenly realizing what was happening, Tierney<br />

exclaimed, “Hey, why am I talking to <strong>the</strong>se guys?” 1<br />

Fortunately, no near misses occurred.<br />

Incidents like this, although more serious than<br />

most at <strong>the</strong> time, typified <strong>the</strong> tumultuous culture of<br />

an air traffic system staggering back to its feet after a<br />

reeling blow. The Reagan administration’s dismissal<br />

of more than 11,000 federal employees—who broke<br />

<strong>the</strong> law by walking off <strong>the</strong> job—ranks as one of <strong>the</strong><br />

most regrettable chapters in aviation history. Careers,<br />

families, even a few lives were lost in a complex<br />

showdown of egos, greed, and legitimate air safety<br />

and workplace issues.<br />

For those who stayed on <strong>the</strong> job and <strong>the</strong> le-<br />

gions of replacement controllers who joined <strong>the</strong>m,<br />

an unfortunate sequel awaited. More than half <strong>the</strong><br />

world’s air traffic flew in <strong>the</strong> United States, creating<br />

an immense challenge for <strong>the</strong> FAA to restore its decimated<br />

work force.<br />

Aside from <strong>the</strong><br />

sheer numbers of people<br />

involved, time pressures<br />

“<br />

weighed heavily on <strong>the</strong><br />

system. New controllers<br />

typically spent several<br />

months at <strong>the</strong> FAA Academy<br />

in Oklahoma City,<br />

followed by two or more<br />

years of on-<strong>the</strong>-job training<br />

before <strong>the</strong>y were considered<br />

fully qualified.<br />

Even <strong>the</strong>n, <strong>the</strong> seasoning<br />

process had barely<br />

begun.<br />

But adversity also<br />

presented a singular possibility.<br />

“The FAA had a golden<br />

opportunity to treat<br />

<strong>the</strong> new group of controllers<br />

well and never<br />

have to face organization,”<br />

says Alexander<br />

“Doc” Cullison, former<br />

president of <strong>the</strong><br />

Marine Engineers<br />

Beneficial <strong>Association</strong>,<br />

a labor union that<br />

has supported air traffic<br />

controllers. “They had a<br />

The FAA had a golden<br />

opportunity to treat <strong>the</strong><br />

new group of controllers<br />

well and never have to face<br />

organization.<br />

— Alexander “Doc” Cullison,<br />

former president of <strong>the</strong><br />

Marine Engineers Beneficial <strong>Association</strong><br />

Introduction: Union Rising<br />

Alexander “Doc” Cullison: A marine<br />

engineer who became a union representative<br />

for MEBA, Cullison helped to organize<br />

controllers in 1986-87. / NATCA archives<br />

5


6<br />

<strong>Against</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>Wind</strong><br />

Ed Mullin: A longtime tower controller<br />

at Dallas Love Field and an early NATCA<br />

activist, Mullin faced special challenges in<br />

<strong>the</strong> Southwest, where strong anti-union<br />

attitudes are prevalent. / NATCA archives<br />

malleable, optimistic work force that <strong>the</strong>y could have<br />

done anything in <strong>the</strong> world with if <strong>the</strong>y had treated<br />

<strong>the</strong>m properly.”<br />

It was not to be.<br />

During a brief honeymoon, managers<br />

and rank and file worked side by side in a<br />

heroic effort to keep <strong>the</strong> traffic moving.<br />

The harmony was short-lived, however,<br />

with an agency that could not<br />

shake off its past habits.<br />

As <strong>the</strong> turbulence subsided<br />

for <strong>the</strong> transition force, too many<br />

autocratic managers reverted to<br />

<strong>the</strong>ir former roles. <strong>Controllers</strong>’<br />

complaints about excessive time on<br />

position, inadequate staffing, hasty<br />

training, and unreliable equipment<br />

were, for <strong>the</strong> most part, dismissed as<br />

whining. Suggestions on operational procedures<br />

and new equipment were rarely solicited and<br />

usually ignored. Yelling, intimidation, and a fundamental<br />

lack of respect became commonplace. Once<br />

again, managers relegated <strong>the</strong> front-line crew to <strong>the</strong><br />

status of hired hands ra<strong>the</strong>r than acknowledging<br />

<strong>the</strong>m as partners in providing air safety.<br />

By refusing to accept any responsibility for<br />

conditions that led to <strong>the</strong> strike and allowing <strong>the</strong><br />

same problems to fester, <strong>the</strong> agency sowed new seeds<br />

of discontent that inevitably blossomed into ano<strong>the</strong>r<br />

union.<br />

Howie Barte, a founder of <strong>the</strong> <strong>National</strong> <strong>Air</strong><br />

<strong>Traffic</strong> <strong>Controllers</strong> <strong>Association</strong>, notes that many people<br />

were involved in <strong>the</strong> grass-roots effort to form <strong>the</strong><br />

new organization. But, he adds, “No one could hold a<br />

candle to <strong>the</strong> best organizer we ever had—<strong>the</strong> FAA.”<br />

NATCA Takes Flight<br />

On <strong>the</strong> morning of May 6, 1987, a single-engine<br />

plane towing a white banner with black lettering<br />

droned above <strong>the</strong> vast Dallas Metroplex.<br />

The cryptic inscription on <strong>the</strong> banner—<br />

“Vote NATCA”—left many who saw it<br />

scratching <strong>the</strong>ir heads. But its intended<br />

audience understood <strong>the</strong> message<br />

and stood proud. Ballots had just<br />

been mailed across <strong>the</strong> country to<br />

more than 12,500 controllers, who<br />

would decide whe<strong>the</strong>r to officially<br />

sanction a labor organization that<br />

had been in <strong>the</strong> making for more<br />

than three years.<br />

At Love Field in Dallas, <strong>the</strong> control<br />

tower manager expressed astonishment<br />

as he peered through binoculars at <strong>the</strong><br />

streaming pennant. Standing nearby in <strong>the</strong> cramped<br />

glassed-in cab, where water leaked through <strong>the</strong> ceiling<br />

tiles when it rained, controller Ed Mullin could<br />

not resist chuckling. As a regional representative for<br />

<strong>the</strong> fledgling group, Mullin had devised <strong>the</strong> banner<br />

ploy to boost voter turnout in <strong>the</strong> decidedly antiunion<br />

state of Texas. If controllers saw <strong>the</strong>ir name in<br />

lights, so to speak, <strong>the</strong> recognition might convince<br />

<strong>the</strong>m that NATCA had a chance to succeed. A satisfied<br />

smile played on Mullin’s lips while he watched<br />

<strong>the</strong> plane disappear to <strong>the</strong> south for a pass over Redbird<br />

<strong>Air</strong>port.<br />

The hour-long flight also called for appearances<br />

above Addison <strong>Air</strong>port, Fort Worth Meacham<br />

<strong>Air</strong>port, <strong>the</strong> perimeter of Dallas-Fort Worth <strong>Air</strong>port,<br />

Fort Worth Center, and <strong>the</strong> FAA Regional Office


south of DFW. Although wea<strong>the</strong>r precluded flying<br />

over a few of <strong>the</strong> destinations, <strong>the</strong> banner scored a hit<br />

with controllers.<br />

Five weeks later, <strong>the</strong>ir sentiments were quantified<br />

when <strong>the</strong> government tallied ballots from 86<br />

percent of <strong>the</strong> work force.<br />

Seventy percent approved<br />

NATCA as <strong>the</strong>ir exclusive<br />

bargaining agent. The new<br />

union, formed while President<br />

Reagan still occupied<br />

<strong>the</strong> White House, allowed<br />

air traffic controllers to<br />

reclaim <strong>the</strong>ir voice in <strong>the</strong><br />

workplace and provided<br />

organized labor with a<br />

much-needed comeback<br />

victory.<br />

John Leyden, <strong>the</strong><br />

long time president of <strong>the</strong><br />

Professional <strong>Air</strong> <strong>Traffic</strong> <strong>Controllers</strong> Organization<br />

who was ousted in a coup before <strong>the</strong> strike, believes<br />

<strong>the</strong> achievement is a testament to <strong>the</strong> FAA and labor<br />

in general. “If you could have a union—like <strong>the</strong><br />

phoenix—rebuilt, it was a great sign for <strong>the</strong> need for<br />

unions,” he says.<br />

A Walk in <strong>the</strong> Woods<br />

Eleven years later, in early July 1998, four<br />

people ga<strong>the</strong>red around a table in a Montréal hotel<br />

conference room. NATCA President Michael McNally<br />

and his predecessor, Barry Krasner, sat on one side.<br />

FAA Administrator Jane Garvey and Tony Herman,<br />

a high-powered Washington, D.C., attorney, faced<br />

“<br />

If you could have a union—<br />

like <strong>the</strong> phoenix—rebuilt, it<br />

was a great sign for <strong>the</strong> need<br />

for unions.<br />

<strong>the</strong>m on <strong>the</strong> o<strong>the</strong>r side.<br />

The 20-minute meeting, aimed at closing <strong>the</strong><br />

deal on <strong>the</strong> union’s third contract with <strong>the</strong> agency,<br />

represented <strong>the</strong> culmination of a momentous journey.<br />

The groundwork for this ga<strong>the</strong>ring included eighteen<br />

months of bargaining<br />

preparations and talks, an<br />

exhaustive seven-year project<br />

to reclassify all air traffic<br />

— Former PATCO President<br />

John Leyden<br />

control facility rankings and<br />

<strong>the</strong>ir accompanying salary<br />

scales, and a concerted<br />

legislative effort by <strong>the</strong><br />

union that enabled NATCA<br />

and <strong>the</strong> FAA to abandon<br />

<strong>the</strong> traditional government<br />

compensation schedule and<br />

negotiate pay.<br />

This crowning achievement<br />

would shortly put <strong>the</strong><br />

federal-sector union and its employer in <strong>the</strong> ranks of<br />

a very select group that included such agencies as <strong>the</strong><br />

U.S. Postal Service and Federal Deposit Insurance<br />

Corporation.<br />

At issue this morning was <strong>the</strong> amount of money<br />

<strong>the</strong> FAA would pay 15,000 controllers under <strong>the</strong> new<br />

facility classification system. McNally and Herman<br />

haggled over millions of dollars while Krasner and<br />

Garvey observed in silence. Finally, Herman offered<br />

$200 million.<br />

The two NATCA negotiators briefly consulted<br />

before McNally turned to <strong>the</strong> administrator and said,<br />

“You’ve got a deal, Jane.”<br />

NATCA’s five-year contract with <strong>the</strong> agency resulted<br />

in substantial pay raises for controllers. More<br />

Introduction: Union Rising<br />

7


8<br />

<strong>Against</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>Wind</strong><br />

NATCA archives<br />

Signing on <strong>the</strong> dotted line: NATCA President Michael McNally and FAA<br />

Administrator Jane Garvey formally seal <strong>the</strong> 1998 contract. The agreement<br />

marked <strong>the</strong> first time <strong>the</strong> union and its employer negotiated wages.<br />

* The ranking is from 1999 figures based on<br />

information from <strong>the</strong> AFL-CIO, Almanac of<br />

Federal PACs, Federal Election Commission,<br />

and union-sponsored Web sites.<br />

significantly, it was <strong>the</strong> first time <strong>the</strong>y were compensated<br />

for <strong>the</strong> complexity of <strong>the</strong>ir work—not just<br />

simple traffic counts—while o<strong>the</strong>r provisions bound<br />

<strong>the</strong>m ever more tightly as partners with <strong>the</strong> FAA to<br />

ensure air safety and boost productivity.<br />

“We had to change <strong>the</strong> relationship between<br />

management and labor in order to meet <strong>the</strong> challenges,”<br />

Garvey says. Acknowledging that some<br />

trust issues still need to<br />

be resolved in light of<br />

<strong>the</strong> agency’s difficult history<br />

with its controller<br />

work force, she adds, “On<br />

balance, <strong>the</strong>re are more<br />

places where <strong>the</strong> relationship<br />

is more positive than<br />

negative.”<br />

The 1998 contract<br />

also represented ano<strong>the</strong>r<br />

highlight in <strong>the</strong> union’s<br />

relatively short but noteworthy<br />

history.<br />

Earlier in <strong>the</strong> year,<br />

<strong>the</strong> AFL-CIO granted<br />

NATCA a direct charter.<br />

The powerful labor<br />

organization preferred<br />

to consolidate its vast array<br />

of affiliates and had<br />

reserved this honor for a<br />

mere handful since NATCA was certified. The union<br />

cherished <strong>the</strong> recognition, vindicating <strong>the</strong> oncetarnished<br />

reputation of controllers in <strong>the</strong> house of<br />

organized labor.<br />

Founded on <strong>the</strong> premise of gaining a voice in<br />

<strong>the</strong> workplace, NATCA has evolved into what controllers<br />

like to think of as a white-collar union that<br />

shuns strong-arm tactics. Top officers enjoy regular<br />

access to <strong>the</strong> agency’s administrator—a hard-won<br />

victory that finally ensures <strong>the</strong> union’s issues are<br />

clearly communicated to <strong>the</strong> upper echelon. And<br />

while equipment and procedures historically have<br />

been implemented with little or no controller input,<br />

twenty-nine union liaisons and technical representatives<br />

now work full time—virtually all of <strong>the</strong>m at<br />

agency headquarters—on about sixty-five projects.<br />

NATCA’s role extends beyond <strong>the</strong> aviation community<br />

and <strong>the</strong> nation’s borders. Members contribute<br />

about $1 million every election cycle to a Political<br />

Action Committee fund—<strong>the</strong> second-highest average<br />

per member of all union PACs—that is passed along<br />

to both sides of <strong>the</strong> aisle on Capitol Hill. * One of its<br />

former <strong>National</strong> Executive Board members serves as<br />

deputy president of <strong>the</strong> International Federation of<br />

<strong>Air</strong> <strong>Traffic</strong> <strong>Controllers</strong>’ <strong>Association</strong>s, an influential<br />

body that deals with <strong>the</strong> profession’s issues on a<br />

global level. Two o<strong>the</strong>r union members serve on IF-<br />

ATCA committees.<br />

Taking its charge of organizing <strong>the</strong> unorganized<br />

seriously, NATCA has affiliated nineteen new<br />

bargaining units beyond its controller ranks and now<br />

represents about 20,000 FAA workers—including engineers<br />

and architects, computer specialists, inspectors,<br />

nurses, staff support personnel, and o<strong>the</strong>rs—as<br />

well as some controllers in <strong>the</strong> Defense Department<br />

and at towers run by private companies. Seventy-five<br />

percent of represented workers are union members<br />

(including 82 percent of FAA controllers), an exceedingly<br />

high level in <strong>the</strong> federal sector.<br />

At its core, a thousand or more dedicated


activists serve as facility representatives, on local<br />

executive boards, regional and national committees,<br />

and in numerous o<strong>the</strong>r capacities to guide NATCA<br />

on aviation and workplace safety issues, legislative<br />

affairs, finance, communications, constitutional matters,<br />

and such.<br />

“It is on <strong>the</strong>ir shoulders that we have built our<br />

successes,” Executive Vice President Ruth Marlin says.<br />

NATCA’s first national president and executive<br />

vice president walked into a largely empty office,<br />

hired staff members, bought furnishings and fax<br />

machines, and launched <strong>the</strong> union into flight. As <strong>the</strong><br />

organization grew, its leadership evolved, too. Each<br />

subsequent administration adroitly adapted to <strong>the</strong><br />

times and carried NATCA forward.<br />

In 2000, <strong>the</strong> union moved into its own seven-<br />

floor headquarters in Washington. The spacious<br />

building is a far cry from <strong>the</strong> cramped quarters it had<br />

leased across town at <strong>the</strong> offices of <strong>the</strong> Marine Engineers<br />

Beneficial <strong>Association</strong> in 1987. Working conditions<br />

<strong>the</strong>re were so tight that NATCA’s director of<br />

labor relations conducted business from a converted<br />

closet in <strong>the</strong> president’s office.<br />

While NATCA rose from <strong>the</strong> ashes of its predecessor,<br />

<strong>the</strong> new union has charted its own course<br />

and achieved unique successes. Even so, both organizations<br />

trace <strong>the</strong>ir roots to very similar motivations<br />

and ideals.<br />

1. Related by Jerry Tierney and Paul Williams during interviews in February<br />

2002 and March 2001, respectively.<br />

Introduction: Union Rising<br />

9


“<br />

We forget all those<br />

who died before us.<br />

— Former President<br />

Barry Krasner<br />

Era of automation: Center controllers<br />

hunched over flattop radarscopes to monitor<br />

aircraft circa 1970. Flight information<br />

appeared next to each target, thanks to<br />

a long-awaited computer modernization<br />

under way by <strong>the</strong> FAA. / NATCA archives


Chapter 1<br />

ATC Comes of Age<br />

The sun would rise in several more hours over Chicago. Rooftops across<br />

<strong>the</strong> slumbering city belched plumes of smoke into <strong>the</strong> dark, frigid air.<br />

On <strong>the</strong> Northwest Side, solitary cars occasionally whooshed past <strong>the</strong><br />

cylindrical glass towers of <strong>the</strong> Hyatt Regency O’Hare, ruffling <strong>the</strong> pre-dawn<br />

stillness.<br />

But inside <strong>the</strong> hotel on this morning of January<br />

8, 1980, a feverish atmosphere rippled through <strong>the</strong><br />

expansive atrium lobby like waves shimmering off a<br />

runway baking in <strong>the</strong> summer heat. A few hundred<br />

controllers—key activists of <strong>the</strong> Professional <strong>Air</strong><br />

<strong>Traffic</strong> <strong>Controllers</strong> Organization—anxiously milled<br />

about waiting to hear <strong>the</strong> outcome of a meeting that<br />

could radically change <strong>the</strong> course of <strong>the</strong>ir union.<br />

In a nearby conference room, PATCO Executive<br />

Board members had been wrangling interminably<br />

through <strong>the</strong> night. John F. Leyden, <strong>the</strong> stocky,<br />

Irish-American president of PATCO, debated with<br />

longtime Executive Vice President Robert E. Poli, <strong>the</strong><br />

union’s director of operations, and all but one of its<br />

seven regional vice presidents.<br />

Leyden’s tenure stretched back for a decade.<br />

Many controllers respected his vision, knowledge,<br />

and sophistication. They credited<br />

<strong>the</strong>ir second president with transforming<br />

PATCO from a disjointed organization<br />

that was deeply in debt into a<br />

powerful, highly visible union.<br />

During Leyden’s reign, PAT-<br />

CO had blazed a trail for <strong>the</strong> profession.<br />

Using slowdowns, sickouts,<br />

and hard-nosed bargaining,<br />

it won many benefits, some of which<br />

NATCA would have to fight to regain<br />

after <strong>the</strong> strike: a negotiated contract;<br />

higher pay at certain busy facilities; early<br />

re tirement and a second-career training program;<br />

cockpit jump seat privileges that enabled controllers<br />

John Leyden: The distinguished PATCO<br />

president led <strong>the</strong> union’s fight to achieve<br />

many gains for controllers. / NATCA archives


12<br />

<strong>Against</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>Wind</strong><br />

* Early retirement and <strong>the</strong> second-career<br />

training program were embodied in law and<br />

remained in force after <strong>the</strong> strike. However,<br />

Congress canceled funding for <strong>the</strong> secondcareer<br />

program and has never restored it.<br />

1980<br />

8<br />

Jan.<br />

to observe pilot procedures; controller representation<br />

in <strong>National</strong> Transportation Safety Board accident<br />

investigations; and creation of a program in which<br />

controllers (and pilots) could report errors without<br />

penalty to help solve common mistakes. *<br />

O<strong>the</strong>r goals, however, had eluded PATCO’s<br />

grasp: higher pay for all controllers; a shorter workweek;<br />

better staffing and equipment. Since 1978, an<br />

increasingly vocal chorus of union members—led by<br />

a cadre of brawny and rebellious activists known as<br />

“<strong>the</strong> choirboys”—had grown weary of <strong>the</strong> slowdowns<br />

and sickouts. Believing that only a strike would lead<br />

<strong>the</strong>m to more contract gains, <strong>the</strong>y dismissed Leyden<br />

as a dove afraid to take that final step. Poli was seen<br />

as <strong>the</strong> decisive hawk willing to go to <strong>the</strong> mat against<br />

<strong>the</strong> FAA.<br />

Now, during <strong>the</strong> board meeting at <strong>the</strong> Hyatt,<br />

unhappiness boiled over. Leyden’s detractors leveled<br />

a litany of accusations at him. He was too conservative.<br />

He’d lost touch with <strong>the</strong> membership and<br />

seemed aloof. He lived in a Florida condominium<br />

bought with union money. He flew around <strong>the</strong> country<br />

in a Gulfstream jet.<br />

Leyden bristled over <strong>the</strong> allegations. The union<br />

was like his family, so <strong>the</strong>ir barbs stung deeply. The<br />

condo and Gulfstream were figments of <strong>the</strong>ir imagination,<br />

he snapped, his accent betraying a childhood<br />

in Queens. Sure, he piloted a twin Beech or King <strong>Air</strong><br />

to union functions periodically, but <strong>the</strong> rental planes<br />

In a dramatic coup, <strong>the</strong> Executive Board of <strong>the</strong> Professional <strong>Air</strong> <strong>Traffic</strong><br />

<strong>Controllers</strong> Organization ousts union President John Leyden and replaces<br />

him with Executive Vice President Robert Poli. Leyden’s reign spanned ten<br />

saved PATCO money. And Poli or o<strong>the</strong>r board members<br />

always accompanied him on <strong>the</strong> trips.<br />

Leyden gazed at <strong>the</strong> strapping, bearded Poli—<br />

Caesar appraising Brutus. A few days earlier, Poli had<br />

appeared in Leyden’s office at PATCO headquarters<br />

to say he intended to run against him for president<br />

in <strong>the</strong> election that spring. Previously, Poli had never<br />

expressed interest in higher office, and <strong>the</strong> two men<br />

exchanged harsh words. A shocked Leyden later discovered<br />

that Poli had quietly cultivated support from<br />

many board members and <strong>the</strong> choirboys.<br />

“Why didn’t you say anything about this beforehand?”<br />

Leyden asked now.<br />

Citing <strong>the</strong> alleged transgressions, Poli responded<br />

that he could no longer work for Leyden. It<br />

was why he wanted to be president. He abruptly announced<br />

his resignation and left <strong>the</strong> room. Later, Poli<br />

would tell The New York Times that his dispute with<br />

Leyden was “a difference in philosophy. I guess I’m<br />

more a militant than he is.” 1<br />

The board members pressed Leyden to explain<br />

his differences with Poli. Leyden refused, saying only<br />

that <strong>the</strong>y were personal issues beyond <strong>the</strong> board’s<br />

purview. However, he acknowledged that he planned<br />

to make some personnel changes in <strong>the</strong> national and<br />

regional offices based on a consultant’s study conducted<br />

at his behest. Finally, he cautioned <strong>the</strong>m that<br />

<strong>the</strong> divisiveness was factionalizing <strong>the</strong> union.<br />

“The best thing that can happen is to have<br />

years and was founded on a <strong>the</strong>me of collaboration with <strong>the</strong> FAA. Poli appealed<br />

to more militant union members who had become dissatisfied with<br />

Leyden’s perceived inability to improve <strong>the</strong>ir working conditions.


completely new leadership,” he said reluctantly. With<br />

that, Leyden announced he was stepping down, too,<br />

an action he hadn’t contemplated before <strong>the</strong> meeting.<br />

Angry, frustrated and hurt, he walked out and rode<br />

a glassed-in elevator up to his room. He grabbed his<br />

bag and began to pack.<br />

Meanwhile, <strong>the</strong><br />

board voted 6-1 to accept<br />

his resignation, closing<br />

<strong>the</strong> curtain on an era and<br />

steering PATCO toward<br />

labor infamy. Eastern<br />

Region Vice President<br />

George Kerr stood alone<br />

in supporting Leyden.<br />

“To this day, I still wonder<br />

if <strong>the</strong>y really thought<br />

about it and understood<br />

<strong>the</strong> implications,” Kerr<br />

says. “We all had our fellow<br />

travelers and our loyalists and our politics.”<br />

Several minutes later, Kerr knocked on <strong>the</strong><br />

door to Leyden’s room. A pained expression was<br />

etched on Kerr’s face. Poli had returned to <strong>the</strong> meeting<br />

and withdrawn his resignation at <strong>the</strong> board’s<br />

urging, he said.<br />

“Go back and pull yours.”<br />

Leyden refused. “When I say something, that’s<br />

it. My word is my bond.”<br />

15<br />

Apr.<br />

“<br />

That was <strong>the</strong> end of it. My<br />

organization was my life. I<br />

was a basket case for months<br />

afterward.<br />

In a few more minutes Leyden heard ano<strong>the</strong>r<br />

knock. PATCO General Counsel William Peer stood<br />

in <strong>the</strong> doorway this time. The resignations had been<br />

orchestrated so that Poli could take over, Peer told<br />

him. “You got sandbagged.”<br />

Wayne Preston,<br />

head of <strong>the</strong> local at Chicago<br />

Center, showed up<br />

next and pleaded with<br />

— Former PATCO President<br />

John Leyden<br />

PATCO distributes an “educational package” to its members that outlines<br />

how to establish communication networks and committees on security,<br />

welfare, and picketing. Information also includes advice on financial prepa-<br />

Leyden not to walk away.<br />

The ousted president<br />

struggled over <strong>the</strong><br />

fate of <strong>the</strong> union he’d devoted<br />

much of his adult<br />

life to, but he remained<br />

steadfast.<br />

“When I’m gone,<br />

I’m gone,” he said.<br />

The Executive Board<br />

named Poli interim presi-<br />

dent and <strong>the</strong> membership elected him to a three-year<br />

term in April 1980.<br />

Poli and <strong>the</strong> board offered Leyden <strong>the</strong> salaried<br />

position of president emeritus but he declined.<br />

Instead, he spent several difficult weeks at PATCO<br />

headquarters in Washington, D.C., tying up loose<br />

ends.<br />

“That was <strong>the</strong> end of it,” he says. “My organization<br />

was my life. I was a basket case for months afterward.” 2<br />

Chapter 1: ATC Comes of Age<br />

rations in case of lost wages during a job action, and how union locals can<br />

arrange bond and o<strong>the</strong>r legal services. Many in <strong>the</strong> FAA consider this a<br />

strike plan.<br />

13


John F.<br />

Leyden<br />

Op e r a t i n g in i t i a l s: XL<br />

Courtesy of Howie Barte<br />

HOm e t O w n : Queens, New York<br />

sp O u s e / CHildre n:<br />

Mary / John, Carol Ann<br />

Ot Her tr i v i a:<br />

Avid handicapper<br />

in t e r e s t s:<br />

Golf<br />

Retired<br />

2001 — Pre s e n t<br />

ATC FACiliTies<br />

Cu r r e n t:<br />

pr e v i O u s: ZNY Center<br />

John F. Leyden, a fa<strong>the</strong>r of organized labor in air<br />

traffic control, learned about <strong>the</strong> profession as an<br />

<strong>Air</strong> Force radio and radar operator in Korea. When<br />

he became a civilian controller at New York Center<br />

in early 1959, <strong>the</strong> World War II-vintage radarscopes<br />

failed regularly, testing his ability to “put<br />

<strong>the</strong> scrambled egg back toge<strong>the</strong>r again” by instantly<br />

recalling <strong>the</strong> positions of all his planes.<br />

Leyden’s interest in a union stemmed from a<br />

desire that would later prove to be all too familiar<br />

to NATCA organizers. “You were not supposed to<br />

have a voice,” he says. “You were supposed to follow<br />

blindly what [management] told you to do.”<br />

He became president of <strong>the</strong> New York Center<br />

local and was elected president of <strong>the</strong> Professional<br />

<strong>Air</strong> <strong>Traffic</strong> <strong>Controllers</strong> Organization in 1970. During<br />

his ten-year reign, PATCO achieved many gains<br />

in benefits and working conditions for controllers.<br />

Progress sometimes came from slowdowns and<br />

sickouts that landed Leyden in court, but <strong>the</strong> law<br />

could be kind.<br />

To avoid arrest stemming from a job action,<br />

he temporarily resided in a Long Island hotel.<br />

The ploy failed. Federal marshals burst into his<br />

room one evening, surprising several visitors and<br />

Leyden, his face la<strong>the</strong>red with shaving cream.<br />

He nervously identified himself using <strong>the</strong> name<br />

of ano<strong>the</strong>r controller standing nearby. Seemingly<br />

satisfied, <strong>the</strong> marshals left.<br />

Pr e v i o u s PATCo Po s iT i o n s / AC h i e v e m e n T s<br />

<strong>National</strong> president 1970-80<br />

FAA Employee of <strong>the</strong> Year 1969<br />

New York Center local president<br />

hir e d<br />

1959<br />

Two years later, an airline security official at<br />

Kennedy <strong>Air</strong>port approached Leyden, who recognized<br />

<strong>the</strong> former agent.<br />

“If you thought you fooled me that night<br />

when I broke into <strong>the</strong> room and had <strong>the</strong> warrant<br />

for you, we knew who you were,” <strong>the</strong> man said.<br />

“But I also knew you had to go to court <strong>the</strong> next<br />

day for <strong>the</strong> o<strong>the</strong>r thing.”<br />

Leyden nodded gratefully. The o<strong>the</strong>r thing<br />

was an adoption hearing for one of two children<br />

that he and his wife, Mary, raised. They now have<br />

three grandchildren. The oldest was born a dwarf.<br />

For <strong>the</strong> past seven years, Leyden has organized a<br />

golf tournament for <strong>the</strong> Little People’s Research<br />

Fund, raising $750,000, and also serves as chairman<br />

of <strong>the</strong> board for <strong>the</strong> charity.<br />

After his ouster from PATCO in 1980,<br />

Leyden worked as director of <strong>the</strong> Public Employee<br />

Department of <strong>the</strong> AFL-CIO until 1998. Before<br />

retiring, he spent two years as chairman of <strong>the</strong><br />

Federal Prevailing Rate Advisory Committee in <strong>the</strong><br />

Office of Personnel Management, which sets pay<br />

scales for blue-collar government workers.<br />

Leyden has also stood by NATCA’s side<br />

throughout its evolution: organizing, lobbying<br />

MEBA to underwrite <strong>the</strong> new union, helping draft<br />

its constitution, lending contract guidance, and<br />

supporting its successful bid for direct affiliation to<br />

<strong>the</strong> AFL-CIO.


Emerging from <strong>the</strong> Dark Ages<br />

Leyden and Poli held diametrically opposing<br />

views on <strong>the</strong> union’s path to success, but <strong>the</strong>y were<br />

driven by identical goals. Those same strong sentiments<br />

had stirred controllers for decades and created<br />

a cohesive sense of purpose that prompted Leyden,<br />

Poli, and <strong>the</strong>ir colleagues to seek <strong>the</strong> protection of a<br />

union. The motivation was so powerful that it survived<br />

PATCO’s subsequent dismemberment and fueled<br />

a second organizing effort a mere two years later<br />

among a predominantly different work force.<br />

Leyden had served in <strong>the</strong> military before entering<br />

<strong>the</strong> private sector, a typical career path for many<br />

controllers in his day. After <strong>the</strong> Federal Aviation<br />

Agency hired him in early 1959, he received basic<br />

training at <strong>the</strong> FAA Academy in Oklahoma City and<br />

<strong>the</strong>n settled in at New York Center, located in Hangar<br />

11 at Idlewild <strong>Air</strong>port (now Kennedy).<br />

Federal-sector unions did not exist yet. Leyden<br />

and his Hangar 11 crew even worked some sectors<br />

without <strong>the</strong> benefit of flattop radarscopes, let alone<br />

computerized flight information.<br />

Instead, <strong>the</strong>y used small plastic “shrimp<br />

boats”—so named because of <strong>the</strong>ir resemblance<br />

to fishing vessels—which contained slips of paper<br />

about each flight. <strong>Controllers</strong> pushed <strong>the</strong> shrimp<br />

boats on <strong>the</strong> scopes as <strong>the</strong> targets for <strong>the</strong>ir planes<br />

inched across <strong>the</strong> glass. Coordination with approach<br />

1980<br />

15<br />

Aug.<br />

controllers was handled by telephone.<br />

They separated traffic by 1,000 feet vertically<br />

and relied on pilot time estimates for arriving at<br />

navigational fixes to maintain lateral distances of<br />

10 minutes, an inefficiency that translated into<br />

more than ten times <strong>the</strong> horizontal spacing used<br />

today. The reliance on estimates also led to frequent<br />

separation errors.<br />

Chapter 1: ATC Comes of Age<br />

<strong>National</strong> Archives<br />

Pushing plastic: Washington Center controllers in 1955 monitored aircraft with surplus radarscopes built for Navy<br />

battleships in World War II. They identified each target using a plastic “shrimp boat” that contained flight information.<br />

PATCO controllers stage a one-day slowdown at O’Hare International<br />

<strong>Air</strong>port that causes 616 delays of thirty minutes or more and costs <strong>the</strong> airlines<br />

more than $1 million in wasted fuel. The slowdown follows <strong>the</strong> FAA’s<br />

15<br />

refusal to pay O’Hare controllers an annual tax-free bonus of $7,500 and<br />

upgrade <strong>the</strong> tower to Level V. All o<strong>the</strong>r control towers are classified as<br />

Level IV. The agency calls <strong>the</strong> O’Hare demand “non-negotiable.”


16<br />

<strong>Against</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>Wind</strong><br />

* <strong>Controllers</strong> refer to operational errors, which<br />

involve loss of required separation between<br />

aircraft, as “deals.”<br />

1980<br />

20<br />

Oct.<br />

<strong>National</strong> Archives<br />

Big Blue: The prototype of <strong>the</strong> IBM 9020 computer, which provided real-time flight<br />

data information on radarscopes, was installed at Jacksonville Center in 1967.<br />

“You had one or two ‘deals’ on almost every<br />

single watch,” Leyden recalls. * For <strong>the</strong> most part,<br />

managers and pilots looked <strong>the</strong> o<strong>the</strong>r way.<br />

Shortly before Leyden arrived at <strong>the</strong> center,<br />

BOAC (now British <strong>Air</strong>ways) began flying <strong>the</strong> de<br />

Havilland Comet between London and New York in<br />

October 1958. Days later, Pan American World <strong>Air</strong>ways<br />

inaugurated Boeing 707 service across <strong>the</strong> Atlantic<br />

to Paris. In December, <strong>National</strong> <strong>Air</strong>lines started<br />

operating <strong>the</strong> Douglas DC-8 between New York and<br />

Miami. The commercial jet age had dawned.<br />

Yet Leyden and his brethren dwelled in <strong>the</strong><br />

Dark Ages of air traffic control. The system was<br />

stagnating from two decades of neglect, largely<br />

Presidential candidate Ronald Reagan writes to PATCO President<br />

Robert Poli, stating that, if elected, he will work to ensure<br />

adequate staffing and new equipment for controllers.<br />

23<br />

Oct.<br />

due to inadequate congressional funding<br />

and bureaucratic infighting within<br />

<strong>the</strong> Commerce Department, which had<br />

governed <strong>the</strong> former Civil Aeronautics<br />

Administration.<br />

Many changes loomed, however,<br />

spurred in part by two highly publicized<br />

midair collisions, over <strong>the</strong> Grand Canyon<br />

in 1956 and New York City in 1960.<br />

On <strong>the</strong> heels of <strong>the</strong> first accident,<br />

Democratic Senators Mike Monroney from<br />

Oklahoma and Warren Magnuson from<br />

Washington spent two years shepherding<br />

a bill through Congress to create <strong>the</strong><br />

Federal Aviation Agency, predecessor to<br />

today’s FAA. The new organization, run by a Cabinetlevel<br />

administrator, opened its doors in late 1958. It was<br />

charged with taking over development and operation of<br />

<strong>the</strong> air traffic control system from <strong>the</strong> CAA, regulating<br />

aviation safety, and promoting air travel.<br />

The New York collision helped to expedite<br />

equipment modernization. Shortly after his inauguration<br />

in 1961, President Kennedy issued an executive<br />

order that led to a task force called Project Beacon.<br />

Based on nearly a year of study, <strong>the</strong> panel echoed<br />

controller sentiment for upgrading radar equipment<br />

so that all flights nationwide could be monitored continuously<br />

from takeoff to landing.<br />

At <strong>the</strong> time, vast chunks of U.S. airspace re-<br />

PATCO’s Executive Board publicly endorses Reagan and charges<br />

that President Jimmy Carter is ignoring serious safety problems<br />

that are jeopardizing <strong>the</strong> nation’s ATC system.


mained invisible to controllers.<br />

Project Beacon also urged development of a<br />

computerized system to display aircraft identifications,<br />

altitudes, and airspeeds directly on radarscopes—eliminating<br />

<strong>the</strong> need for shrimp boats. Ano<strong>the</strong>r<br />

computer system would automatically print out<br />

13<br />

The back room (above): Sperry Univac Corporation<br />

developed a system for TRACONs, similar to computers<br />

at centers, that displayed flight information from<br />

aircraft transponders on radarscopes. / Japphire<br />

Nov.<br />

The front line (right): <strong>Controllers</strong> used <strong>the</strong> system,<br />

called ARTS, for more than three decades. A new system<br />

known as STARS is replacing ARTS. / <strong>National</strong> Archives<br />

The Federal Register publishes a 23-page contingency plan drafted by<br />

<strong>the</strong> FAA outlining how it would respond to a potential air traffic controller<br />

strike. Among o<strong>the</strong>r things, <strong>the</strong> plan would forbid commercial flights<br />

flight strips and continuously distribute information<br />

to controllers for better coordination.<br />

The task force envisioned one common system.<br />

However, en route centers handle high-speed,<br />

high-altitude traffic over a broad area while terminal<br />

environments deal with a mix of planes converging<br />

Chapter 1: ATC Comes of Age<br />

shorter than 500 miles. In August 1981, <strong>the</strong> agency develops a different<br />

plan to deal with <strong>the</strong> strike.<br />

17


18<br />

<strong>Against</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>Wind</strong><br />

President Kennedy<br />

issued an executive<br />

order in 1962 granting<br />

federal employees <strong>the</strong><br />

right to form unions.<br />

* TRACON is an acronym for Terminal Radar<br />

Approach Control. In <strong>the</strong>se dark, windowless<br />

radar rooms, controllers sequence planes for<br />

landing before handing <strong>the</strong>m off to airport<br />

towers. They also guide planes shortly after<br />

takeoff until controllers at en route centers<br />

assume responsibility.<br />

1981<br />

10<br />

Jan.<br />

around airports. To accommodate <strong>the</strong>se diverse needs,<br />

<strong>the</strong> FAA worked with Sperry Univac Corporation to<br />

develop <strong>the</strong> Automated Radar Terminal System—<br />

ARTS—that accepted information from a single radar<br />

site for its approach control facilities. The prototype<br />

was installed at Atlanta TRACON in 1965. *<br />

Two years later, <strong>the</strong> agency implemented a different<br />

system at Jacksonville Center in Florida. Run<br />

by IBM’s 9020 computer, this one was capable of<br />

ga<strong>the</strong>ring data from multiple radar sites. The software<br />

contained more than 475,000 instructions, relatively<br />

small by today’s standards but larger than any o<strong>the</strong>r<br />

program of its time. The complexity created<br />

a coding nightmare.<br />

David Thomas, <strong>the</strong>n-deputy administrator<br />

of <strong>the</strong> FAA, recalled that one frustrated<br />

IBM worker “complained that all <strong>the</strong> aircraft<br />

flew at different speeds, and if we could only<br />

get <strong>the</strong>m to fly at <strong>the</strong> same velocity <strong>the</strong> programming<br />

difficulties could be overcome.” 3<br />

Eventually, <strong>the</strong> problems were largely<br />

solved. All twenty centers across <strong>the</strong> continental<br />

United States and sixty-three TRACONs were using<br />

<strong>the</strong> computerized systems by 1975.<br />

About <strong>the</strong> time Project Beacon released its recommendations,<br />

Kennedy issued ano<strong>the</strong>r executive<br />

order in January 1962 granting federal employees <strong>the</strong><br />

right to form unions. His action elated government<br />

workers. Their counterparts in <strong>the</strong> private sector had<br />

New York TRACON becomes operational in Westbury, Long Island.<br />

The facility replaces <strong>the</strong> “Common IFR Room” at Kennedy International<br />

enjoyed similar rights under <strong>the</strong> Wagner Act and<br />

o<strong>the</strong>r national and state labor laws for more than a<br />

quarter century. Kennedy’s order and a subsequent<br />

one signed by President Nixon were codified into law<br />

when Congress passed <strong>the</strong> Civil Service Reform Act<br />

of 1978.<br />

From <strong>the</strong> beginning, two provisions were key:<br />

Federal-sector strikes were illegal and unions could<br />

not force individuals to join—a concept known as an<br />

“open shop.”<br />

Before Kennedy’s edict, <strong>the</strong> sole option for<br />

controllers seeking a voice on issues was <strong>the</strong> <strong>Air</strong><br />

<strong>Traffic</strong> Control <strong>Association</strong>. Formed in<br />

1956, this professional group welcomed<br />

members from all segments of <strong>the</strong> aviation<br />

industry. Instructors at <strong>the</strong> FAA Academy<br />

encouraged trainees to join and some<br />

even implied that those who didn’t risked<br />

washing out. But ATCA lacked <strong>the</strong> legal<br />

authority to represent workers. Many<br />

controllers also discovered that managers<br />

dominated <strong>the</strong> group’s elected offices and<br />

delegate ranks at conventions, setting a decidedly<br />

anti-union tone.<br />

Kennedy’s mandate gave <strong>the</strong> rank and file new<br />

choices. Soon afterward, under <strong>the</strong> auspices of <strong>the</strong><br />

<strong>National</strong> <strong>Association</strong> of Government Employees and<br />

<strong>the</strong> <strong>National</strong> <strong>Association</strong> of <strong>Air</strong> <strong>Traffic</strong> Specialists, facility-based<br />

locals representing about 5,000 control-<br />

<strong>Air</strong>port. Serving Kennedy, LaGuardia, and Newark airports, it is slated to<br />

assume operations for several smaller airports.


lers formed in New York, Washington, Minneapolis,<br />

at LAX <strong>Air</strong>port and Los Angeles Center in Palmdale,<br />

and elsewhere.<br />

A Union is Born<br />

The local unions exercised little power, limited<br />

by <strong>the</strong>ir size, relative isolation, and an agency loath<br />

to take <strong>the</strong>m seriously. <strong>Controllers</strong> continued to eat<br />

lunch on position much of <strong>the</strong> time. If someone needed<br />

to visit <strong>the</strong> restroom and no one was available to<br />

step in, ano<strong>the</strong>r controller worked two positions during<br />

<strong>the</strong> interim. Guaranteed breaks were unheard of.<br />

Unless supervisors authorized time off, controllers<br />

guided planes continuously throughout <strong>the</strong> day—in<br />

white shirts and black ties, dark dress slacks, and<br />

lea<strong>the</strong>r shoes.<br />

Two aspects of <strong>the</strong> FAA’s culture exacerbated<br />

discontent over <strong>the</strong>se conditions.<br />

At towers, TRACONs and centers, large and<br />

small, many managers ruled with a militaristic, command-control<br />

style. They largely ignored <strong>the</strong> partnership<br />

role that controllers could play in developing<br />

operational procedures, improving equipment, and<br />

generally ensuring air safety.<br />

“We were lectured to ra<strong>the</strong>r than consulted<br />

with,” says Dave Landry, who spent most of his career<br />

at a small tower in Lebanon, New Hampshire.<br />

“The people who made <strong>the</strong> rules never pushed tin.”<br />

23<br />

Jan.<br />

Transportation Secretary Drew Lewis takes over from Neil E. Goldschmidt,<br />

who resigned after eighteen months in office when Ronald Reagan<br />

was inaugurated as president on January 20, 1981. Lewis, a business<br />

Overbearing managers sometimes dwelled on<br />

seemingly inconsequential issues, such as <strong>the</strong> dress<br />

code, which could lead to regrettable outcomes. An<br />

Oakland Center controller reported for work one day<br />

in 1968 wearing a pastel yellow shirt. Managers told<br />

him to go home, change into a white one, and put on<br />

a different pair of lea<strong>the</strong>r shoes.<br />

“These shoes cost more than <strong>the</strong> suit you’re<br />

wearing,” retorted <strong>the</strong> controller, who believed his<br />

attire was appropriately professional.<br />

“That’s it,” <strong>the</strong> manager shot back. “You’re fired<br />

for insubordination.” 4<br />

Without an established grievance procedure,<br />

<strong>the</strong> controller had little recourse and never retrieved<br />

his job.<br />

“It was <strong>the</strong> reason I got involved,” says Domenic<br />

Torchia, who went on to serve as a PATCO<br />

regional vice president, was fired in <strong>the</strong> strike, and<br />

joined NATCA after <strong>the</strong> agency rehired him in <strong>the</strong><br />

late 1990s.<br />

A second cultural aspect also affected working<br />

conditions. The doors to many facilities revolved<br />

every year or two with new managers who were<br />

working <strong>the</strong>ir way up <strong>the</strong> hierarchy. Too often, career<br />

motivations overshadowed a facility’s long-term<br />

interests, allowing many problems to fester. Fred Gilbert<br />

encountered that philosophy when he started at<br />

Chicago Center in 1970.<br />

“There was no interest in what controllers’<br />

Chapter 1: ATC Comes of Age<br />

management specialist from Philadelphia, ran unsuccessfully for governor<br />

of Pennsylvania in 1974. He later became deputy chairman of <strong>the</strong> Republican<br />

<strong>National</strong> Committee.<br />

19


20<br />

1981<br />

<strong>Against</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>Wind</strong><br />

2<br />

Feb.<br />

needs were. It was all in personal needs as far as careers,”<br />

he says. “The most enjoyable times were when<br />

we were without a manager.”<br />

Fifteen years later, <strong>the</strong> same issues would<br />

motivate Landry, Gilbert, and many o<strong>the</strong>rs to form<br />

NATCA, and offer persuasive arguments for attracting<br />

widespread interest in <strong>the</strong> new union.<br />

Back in 1967, frustration<br />

finally led to action.<br />

O’Hare Tower/TRACON<br />

controllers were exhausted<br />

from working manda-<br />

tory overtime and angry<br />

that premium pay was<br />

based on a lower scale,<br />

meaning <strong>the</strong>y earned less<br />

than normal for <strong>the</strong> extra<br />

hours.<br />

After <strong>the</strong> FAA denied<br />

<strong>the</strong>ir request for a special<br />

raise, <strong>the</strong> controllers staged<br />

a work-to-rule slowdown<br />

by strictly adhering to legal separation standards,<br />

which <strong>the</strong>y often winked at with management’s tacit<br />

approval to minimize traffic backups. Chicago’s central<br />

location and its status as an airline hub caused<br />

delays to radiate nationwide.<br />

Chastened, <strong>the</strong> FAA granted <strong>the</strong> controllers<br />

three step-increases on <strong>the</strong> government’s GS—Gen-<br />

The FAA commissions <strong>the</strong> first Direct Access Radar Channel at Salt Lake<br />

Center. Ray<strong>the</strong>on Company developed DARC as a backup system to<br />

eral Schedule—pay scale, equal to a $1,100 annual<br />

raise. To stave off requests at o<strong>the</strong>r facilities, <strong>the</strong><br />

agency maintained that only O’Hare merited <strong>the</strong> extra<br />

money because of Chicago’s high cost of living, its<br />

staff shortage, and difficulty in attracting transfers.<br />

<strong>Controllers</strong> elsewhere objected to <strong>the</strong> distinction.<br />

They argued for a comprehensive policy change<br />

that became a battle cry<br />

for PATCO and NATCA<br />

over <strong>the</strong> next thirty years.<br />

Namely, that compensation<br />

should be based<br />

“<br />

on complexity of operations<br />

and not merely <strong>the</strong><br />

number of takeoffs and<br />

landings.<br />

Atlanta and Chicago<br />

controllers jointly<br />

crafted a formula to reclassify<br />

all facilities and<br />

sought signatures from<br />

a majority of <strong>the</strong> work<br />

force to pressure <strong>the</strong> FAA into upgrading salaries<br />

across <strong>the</strong> board—a plan <strong>the</strong>y dubbed “Operation<br />

Snowman.”<br />

Although <strong>the</strong> petition drive fizzled, <strong>the</strong> effort<br />

ignited a desire to create a national group to represent<br />

controllers’ interests. In <strong>the</strong> fall of 1967, two<br />

NAGE local presidents—Jack Maher at New York<br />

We were lectured to ra<strong>the</strong>r<br />

than consulted with. The<br />

people who made <strong>the</strong> rules<br />

never pushed tin.<br />

— Lebanon Tower controller Dave Landry<br />

be used during failures and scheduled maintenance of <strong>the</strong> primary radar<br />

system.


Center and Mike Rock at LaGuardia Tower—formed<br />

<strong>the</strong> Metropolitan <strong>Controllers</strong> <strong>Association</strong>, which also<br />

included Kennedy and Newark towers.<br />

Quickly realizing that NAGE could not provide<br />

enough support to help <strong>the</strong>m expand, Maher<br />

and Rock looked for a public personality who might<br />

champion <strong>the</strong>ir cause. They were ecstatic when <strong>the</strong><br />

flamboyant, well-known attorney F. Lee Bailey, a private<br />

pilot, agreed to head <strong>the</strong>ir budding group.<br />

More than 700 people from twenty-two states<br />

attended <strong>the</strong> first meeting of <strong>the</strong> Professional <strong>Air</strong><br />

<strong>Traffic</strong> <strong>Controllers</strong> Organization on January 11, 1968.<br />

Bailey brought <strong>the</strong> cheering crowd to its feet eleven<br />

times by endorsing <strong>the</strong>ir concerns and pledging to<br />

highlight <strong>the</strong>m before Congress and <strong>the</strong> news media.<br />

Within a month, more than 4,000 controllers joined<br />

PATCO, submitting <strong>the</strong>ir dues voluntarily since <strong>the</strong><br />

agency had no provision to collect <strong>the</strong> money by payroll<br />

deduction.<br />

‘Sicking’ It Out<br />

Born at <strong>the</strong> end of a decade plagued by civil<br />

unrest and a divisive war, PATCO’s rough and tumble<br />

character was shaped by <strong>the</strong> times as much as<br />

its close-knit, fervent membership. Before PATCO<br />

was barely two years old, it scraped through ano<strong>the</strong>r<br />

work-to-rule slowdown and two sickouts with<br />

mixed results.<br />

15<br />

Mar.<br />

The three-year labor agreement between PATCO and <strong>the</strong> FAA lapses.<br />

All provisions remain in force until a new agreement is negotiated, except<br />

immunity under NASA’s Aviation Safety Reporting System. This program,<br />

Following a nationwide slowdown in <strong>the</strong> summer<br />

of 1968, unprecedented talks with <strong>the</strong> FAA<br />

enabled jubilant PATCO members to claim a Triple<br />

Crown victory that fall.<br />

The FAA upgraded pay scales in Atlanta, Chicago,<br />

Cleveland, Los Angeles, New York, and Washington.<br />

Thanks to a law passed by Congress, controllers began<br />

earning time-and-a-half<br />

at <strong>the</strong>ir regular pay<br />

grade for overtime.<br />

Capitol Hill also<br />

appropriated<br />

$14 million in<br />

new money to<br />

permit <strong>the</strong> FAA<br />

to dust off its<br />

training facility,<br />

which had been<br />

closed for seven years,<br />

and hire 1,000 controllers<br />

over <strong>the</strong> next few years.<br />

Two subsequent job actions, however, showered<br />

trouble on <strong>the</strong> growing union.<br />

On June 17, 1969, television host Johnny Carson<br />

invited Bailey on his program to talk about air<br />

traffic control problems. Confusion plagued an accompanying<br />

sickout aimed at pressuring <strong>the</strong> FAA<br />

into fur<strong>the</strong>r concessions and only 477 controllers<br />

took part.<br />

Chapter 1: ATC Comes of Age<br />

which former FAA Administrator Langhorne M. Bond unilaterally canceled<br />

for controllers in 1980, enabled <strong>the</strong>m to report mistakes without <strong>the</strong> risk<br />

of penalty in an attempt to solve common problems.<br />

21


22<br />

1981<br />

<strong>Against</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>Wind</strong><br />

22<br />

Apr.<br />

To PATCO’s dismay, <strong>the</strong> agency disavowed<br />

an immunity deal that Bailey brokered with Transportation<br />

Secretary John Volpe and suspended <strong>the</strong><br />

participants.<br />

The following spring, <strong>the</strong> agency issued transfer<br />

orders to four controller activists in Baton Rouge,<br />

Louisiana. PATCO worried<br />

that o<strong>the</strong>r involuntary<br />

moves would wreck<br />

<strong>the</strong> union and announced<br />

its intention to stage ano<strong>the</strong>r<br />

sickout. For <strong>the</strong> second<br />

time, Bailey declined<br />

to insist on signatures to<br />

document a four-point<br />

deal he negotiated with<br />

<strong>the</strong> FAA. Once again,<br />

<strong>the</strong> agency reneged on<br />

<strong>the</strong> gentlemen’s agreement. Outraged, nearly 3,300<br />

controllers—about one in four—called in sick over<br />

twenty days starting on March 25, 1970.<br />

The FAA responded by withholding paychecks<br />

and serving subpoenas on all <strong>the</strong> participants. Although<br />

federal courts ordered <strong>the</strong> controllers back<br />

to work under judicial protection, <strong>the</strong> FAA later suspended<br />

many of <strong>the</strong>m and fired 114 that it identified<br />

as leaders.<br />

Ano<strong>the</strong>r public-sector job action in March 1970<br />

ended far differently. About 152,000 postal workers<br />

FAA Administrator J. Lynn Helms takes over from Langhorne M. Bond,<br />

who resigned after nearly four years in office when Ronald Reagan was<br />

inaugurated as president. Helms served as an instructor and test pilot in<br />

“<br />

I want all those people put<br />

back to work.<br />

walked out for eight days. The illegal strikers won<br />

amnesty, and Congress passed <strong>the</strong> Postal Reorganization<br />

Act, which enabled <strong>the</strong> new, quasi-governmental<br />

U.S. Postal Service to negotiate substantial pay raises<br />

with its unions.<br />

The disparity left a lasting impression on John<br />

Leyden, who was among<br />

<strong>the</strong> “ill” controllers. Thereafter,<br />

he contended, “The<br />

only illegal strike is <strong>the</strong><br />

— President Nixon<br />

one that’s lost.”<br />

From <strong>the</strong> Doghouse<br />

to <strong>the</strong> White House<br />

One month after<br />

<strong>the</strong> sickout, Leyden flew<br />

to Las Vegas to attend<br />

PATCO’s third national convention. He was dissatisfied<br />

with F. Lee Bailey’s leadership and unhappy<br />

about <strong>the</strong> recent setbacks his union had suffered.<br />

Many of <strong>the</strong> o<strong>the</strong>r 200 delegates felt <strong>the</strong> same way<br />

and elected Leyden to succeed Jimmy Hays as <strong>the</strong>ir<br />

new president.<br />

Leyden wasted no time trying to rebuild <strong>the</strong><br />

organization. He persuaded convention delegates to<br />

revise <strong>the</strong> constitution and transform PATCO from a<br />

corporate orientation run by attorneys, which Bailey<br />

had established, to a union structure that put power<br />

<strong>the</strong> Marines during World War II. He later held top executive positions at<br />

Bendix Corporation, <strong>the</strong> Norden Division of United <strong>Air</strong>craft, and Piper<br />

<strong>Air</strong>craft Corporation. He was General Aviation Man of <strong>the</strong> Year in 1978.


exclusively in <strong>the</strong> hands of controllers. At an emotional<br />

meeting two months later, <strong>the</strong> Executive Board<br />

agreed with Leyden’s recommendation to ask for<br />

Bailey’s resignation.<br />

Finances presented ano<strong>the</strong>r serious issue, but<br />

help was at hand. Various<br />

unions had been courting<br />

PATCO, including one of<br />

<strong>the</strong> oldest—<strong>the</strong> powerful<br />

Marine Engineers<br />

Beneficial <strong>Association</strong>,<br />

an AFL-CIO affiliate<br />

with 10,000 members<br />

that was founded in<br />

1875. MEBA offered <strong>the</strong><br />

controllers money, influential<br />

political contacts,<br />

and office space around<br />

<strong>the</strong> country. In a vote of <strong>the</strong> membership, 92 percent<br />

approved affiliating with MEBA.<br />

PATCO’s new relationship soon paid off<br />

handsomely.<br />

For twenty years, MEBA’s longshoremen had<br />

refused to handle Russian ships and cargo. President<br />

Nixon now sought to change <strong>the</strong>ir position so <strong>the</strong><br />

Soviet Union could receive badly needed U.S. wheat.<br />

MEBA President Jesse Calhoon suggested that Leyden<br />

use <strong>the</strong> issue as a bargaining chip to win reinstatement<br />

of <strong>the</strong> 114 controllers dismissed in <strong>the</strong> 1970 sickout.<br />

“<br />

If <strong>the</strong>y [<strong>the</strong> FAA] do not come<br />

to <strong>the</strong>ir senses, I vow to you<br />

that <strong>the</strong> skies will be silent.<br />

Leyden brokered <strong>the</strong> deal in a phone call to <strong>the</strong><br />

White House. After explaining that <strong>the</strong> fired controllers<br />

were “all good people” who should get <strong>the</strong>ir jobs<br />

back, he said, “Mr. Calhoon has had discussion with<br />

you on an issue of vital importance.” The message<br />

was clear. During a brief<br />

meeting late one evening<br />

in <strong>the</strong> Oval Office, Leyden<br />

joined Nixon, top aides<br />

H.R. “Bob” Haldeman<br />

— PATCO President Robert Poli<br />

Apr. May<br />

28<br />

PATCO representatives walk out of contract talks with <strong>the</strong> FAA<br />

after thirty-seven bargaining sessions. Union demands for a 32hour<br />

workweek and separate pay scale meet stiff resistance.<br />

23<br />

and John Ehrlichman,<br />

a White House counsel,<br />

and representatives from<br />

<strong>the</strong> FAA and Transportation<br />

Department.<br />

“I want all those<br />

people put back to work,”<br />

Nixon said simply before<br />

leaving <strong>the</strong> room.<br />

The men from <strong>the</strong> FAA and Transportation<br />

Department filed out, too, while Leyden stayed behind.<br />

The White House counsel turned to him and<br />

advised: “Now just remember, John. If you have any<br />

problems, if this doesn’t work <strong>the</strong> way we’ve agreed<br />

here today, you call me and let me know.”<br />

Leyden thanked him and walked out into <strong>the</strong><br />

hallway. The voices of <strong>the</strong> two transportation officials,<br />

who were far<strong>the</strong>r ahead, echoed down <strong>the</strong><br />

corridor. “That crazy bastard thinks he’s going to get<br />

Chapter 1: ATC Comes of Age<br />

At its annual convention in New Orleans, PATCO sets June 22<br />

as <strong>the</strong> deadline for agreeing on a new contract with <strong>the</strong> FAA.<br />

23<br />

Courtesy of Dave Landry<br />

PATCO pin: Choirboys, who led <strong>the</strong> call for<br />

a strike, wore this distinctive trinket.


24<br />

<strong>Against</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>Wind</strong><br />

1978 PATCO contract: Ten years later,<br />

NATCA would rely on parts of its predecessor’s<br />

last agreement with <strong>the</strong> FAA as a<br />

foundation for new bargaining talks.<br />

1981<br />

22<br />

June<br />

<strong>the</strong>m all back to work,” one said.<br />

“If you have a problem with that, let’s go back<br />

in <strong>the</strong>re now,” Leyden shouted.<br />

He watched with glee as <strong>the</strong>y scurried away.<br />

Although no public announcement was made, all of<br />

<strong>the</strong> fired controllers were gradually reinstated.<br />

Decade of Progress<br />

By September 1972, PATCO was<br />

back on solid footing and had gained official<br />

recognition as a trade union representing<br />

all controllers—not just its members.<br />

That same year, PATCO successfully<br />

lobbied for congressional passage of its Second-Career<br />

Retirement Bill. This landmark<br />

law established <strong>the</strong> precedent that controllers<br />

experienced more debilitating stress than o<strong>the</strong>r<br />

workers. On that basis, Congress stipulated<br />

<strong>the</strong>y could retire on half <strong>the</strong>ir base salary at age<br />

50 with twenty years of service or at any age<br />

with twenty-five years of service. The law also<br />

enabled controllers who could no longer work because<br />

of physical or psychological reasons to collect<br />

full salary and benefits for two years while <strong>the</strong>y<br />

received vocational retraining.<br />

Leyden considers this “one of <strong>the</strong> crowning<br />

achievements of my term in office,” despite his disappointment<br />

that Congress later canceled funding for<br />

Telephone polling of union halls across <strong>the</strong> nation conducted in <strong>the</strong> early<br />

hours of <strong>the</strong> morning indicates that less than 80 percent of PATCO<br />

controllers have voted to strike. About 5 a.m. Eastern time, Robert Poli<br />

<strong>the</strong> retraining program.<br />

The union racked up o<strong>the</strong>r gains throughout<br />

<strong>the</strong> decade and signed its second contract with <strong>the</strong><br />

FAA in 1978. One notable provision included an annual<br />

overseas familiarization trip (FAM trips enable<br />

controllers to observe pilots from <strong>the</strong> cockpit jump<br />

seat). But when <strong>the</strong> <strong>Air</strong> Transport <strong>Association</strong> told<br />

Leyden it wouldn’t honor <strong>the</strong> FAM<br />

provision, he called for ano<strong>the</strong>r<br />

slowdown.<br />

He viewed it as a matter<br />

of principle. “If <strong>the</strong>y’re going<br />

to make that clause invalid,<br />

<strong>the</strong>n that opens up <strong>the</strong> whole<br />

contract and everything else is<br />

subject to review and change.<br />

This was my mistake,” Leyden<br />

acknowledges now.<br />

<strong>Controllers</strong> in New<br />

York, Chicago, and elsewhere,<br />

who were more interested<br />

in financial gains,<br />

offered only lukewarm support<br />

for two-day slowdowns in May and<br />

June.<br />

Leyden’s second key error stemmed from a proactive<br />

move that backfired. Realizing that ano<strong>the</strong>r job<br />

action would have to entail a strike, he reviewed o<strong>the</strong>r<br />

public walkouts. Borrowing an idea from a teach-<br />

tentatively agrees to <strong>the</strong> FAA’s “final” contract offer from Transportation<br />

Secretary Drew Lewis, despite knowing <strong>the</strong>re is little union support for its<br />

provisions.


ers’ strike in St. Louis, he formed a special group<br />

of controllers who could be counted<br />

on to deliver <strong>the</strong> vote. These “choirboys,”<br />

chosen by local and regional<br />

vice presidents, operated with <strong>the</strong>ir<br />

own budget administered by Robert<br />

Poli, a Cleveland Center controller<br />

who’d been elected executive vice<br />

president in 1973.<br />

Over time, <strong>the</strong> choirboys<br />

“pretty much ran around uncontrolled,”<br />

recalls George Kerr, <strong>the</strong><br />

Eastern Region vice president.<br />

Leyden agrees that <strong>the</strong> renegade<br />

group “led to my downfall.”<br />

‘The Skies will be Silent’<br />

Talk of a strike ga<strong>the</strong>red<br />

momentum with <strong>the</strong><br />

advent of <strong>the</strong> choirboys.<br />

Many were Vietnam veterans.<br />

Treated poorly when<br />

<strong>the</strong>y came home after <strong>the</strong><br />

war and fed up with <strong>the</strong> FAA’s militaristic<br />

management style, <strong>the</strong>y were spoiling for a fight.<br />

“It was like <strong>the</strong> proverbial locomotive on <strong>the</strong><br />

track,” Kerr says. “Once you get a head of steam up<br />

23<br />

June<br />

The FAA announces it will proceed with testing and deploying <strong>the</strong> <strong>Traffic</strong><br />

Alert/Collision Avoidance System. The basic version of <strong>the</strong> computerized<br />

equipment, installed onboard airplanes, would work in conjunction with<br />

and you get her pointed in a direction, <strong>the</strong> object now<br />

becomes how do we stop it?”<br />

Not everyone was<br />

onboard <strong>the</strong><br />

train. A sizable<br />

segment<br />

of <strong>the</strong> work<br />

force took seriously<br />

<strong>the</strong>ir<br />

signed oath not<br />

to strike. Many<br />

controllers also<br />

thought <strong>the</strong>y were<br />

re latively well off.<br />

More money and<br />

a shorter workweek<br />

sounded appealing,<br />

but <strong>the</strong>y believed <strong>the</strong><br />

public wouldn’t sympathize<br />

with such demands<br />

while inflation<br />

raged at an average of<br />

14.7 percent throughout<br />

1980.<br />

However, o<strong>the</strong>rs in<br />

PATCO believed <strong>the</strong>y were<br />

invincible. Part of <strong>the</strong>ir<br />

confidence stemmed from a letter written in October<br />

1980 by presidential candidate Ronald Reagan. Among<br />

Chapter 1: ATC Comes of Age<br />

25<br />

A politician’s promise: While campaigning<br />

for president in 1980, Ronald Reagan<br />

vowed to support air traffic controllers.<br />

<strong>the</strong> air traffic control radar beacon system to alert pilots to nearby traffic.<br />

Advanced versions would tell pilots to climb or descend in a coordinated<br />

maneuver to avoid each o<strong>the</strong>r in <strong>the</strong> event of potential collisions.


26<br />

1981<br />

<strong>Against</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>Wind</strong><br />

28<br />

o<strong>the</strong>r things, Reagan stated, “You can rest assured that<br />

if I am elected president, I will take whatever steps<br />

are necessary to provide our air traffic controllers<br />

with <strong>the</strong> most modern equipment available and to<br />

adjust staff levels and workdays so that <strong>the</strong>y are commensurate<br />

with achieving<br />

a maximum degree of<br />

public safety.”<br />

Armed with this<br />

apparent support, Poli<br />

and his contract team<br />

started negotiations with<br />

<strong>the</strong> FAA in February<br />

1981 demanding three<br />

key items (along with<br />

ninety-three o<strong>the</strong>rs): an<br />

across-<strong>the</strong>-board annual<br />

raise of $10,000, plus<br />

sem iannual<br />

cost-of-living<br />

raises<br />

1½ times <strong>the</strong> rate of inflation; a 32-hour<br />

workweek (controllers elsewhere in <strong>the</strong><br />

world labored 29 to 38 hours a week); and<br />

retirement after twenty years at 75 percent<br />

of base salary.<br />

When contract talks continued with<br />

little progress, Poli turned up <strong>the</strong> heat at PAT-<br />

CO’s national convention in May by announc-<br />

June July<br />

The FAA commissions <strong>the</strong> twentieth DARC system at Minneapolis<br />

Center.<br />

“<br />

It was like <strong>the</strong> proverbial<br />

locomotive on <strong>the</strong> track. Once<br />

you get a head of steam up,<br />

how do we stop it?<br />

ing a strike deadline of June 22. “If <strong>the</strong>y [<strong>the</strong> FAA] do<br />

not come to <strong>the</strong>ir senses, I vow to you that <strong>the</strong> skies<br />

will be silent,” he declared to a thunderous standing<br />

ovation. 5<br />

Three hours before <strong>the</strong> threatened walkout,<br />

Transportation Secretary<br />

Drew Lewis made<br />

<strong>the</strong> FAA’s final $40 million<br />

offer. It included<br />

a $4,000 pay increase<br />

— George Kerr,<br />

former PATCO Eastern Region VP<br />

2<br />

(equal to 11.4 percent,<br />

although 4.8 percent represented<br />

a raise that all<br />

federal workers would receive)<br />

and overtime when<br />

controllers worked more<br />

than 36 hours a week.<br />

Having just been<br />

informed that PATCO’s<br />

membership strike vote<br />

fell short of <strong>the</strong> required<br />

80 percent, Poli accepted <strong>the</strong> offer. But after vocal<br />

arguing, <strong>the</strong> union’s Executive Board recommended<br />

that <strong>the</strong> membership turn down <strong>the</strong> proposal. Local<br />

presidents asked controllers for <strong>the</strong>ir vote in public,<br />

an intimidation tactic that helped overcome some reluctance<br />

and boosted <strong>the</strong> rejection rate to 95 percent.<br />

When <strong>the</strong> Reagan administration steadfastly opposed<br />

fur<strong>the</strong>r concessions, Poli declared a second strike<br />

PATCO’s Executive Board unanimously recommends that controllers<br />

turn down <strong>the</strong> FAA’s “final” offer. The board believes<br />

<strong>the</strong> level of militancy will never be higher to achieve its goals.


deadline of August 3, 1981.<br />

The night before, controllers showed up at<br />

union halls across <strong>the</strong> nation for a head count. Doors<br />

were sometimes locked to guard against those whose<br />

second thoughts might prompt <strong>the</strong>m to leave,<br />

helping to ensure a paper-thin strike authorization<br />

of 80.5 percent. Several<br />

hours later, at 7 o’clock on that<br />

fateful Monday morning, nearly<br />

13,000 controllers—about 79<br />

percent of <strong>the</strong> work force—<br />

honored <strong>the</strong> picket line. 6<br />

Former MEBA President<br />

Doc Cullison believes that<br />

PATCO’s vocal “chest-pounding<br />

stage” drove <strong>the</strong> FAA to intensively<br />

prepare for <strong>the</strong> strike. “The<br />

FAA almost felt challenged. Bring it on,”<br />

he says. “Both of <strong>the</strong>m had loaded pistols and <strong>the</strong>y were<br />

ready to go.”<br />

Agency staff specialists working with airline<br />

representatives created a contingency plan called<br />

“Flow Control 50.” Half <strong>the</strong> peak-hour flights at<br />

twenty-two major airports were abolished, alleviating<br />

traffic rushes. En route centers increased horizontal<br />

spacing between aircraft from <strong>the</strong> normal 10 miles to<br />

as much as 100 miles. Even so, airlines flew about 65<br />

percent of <strong>the</strong>ir normal schedules on that first day.<br />

While <strong>the</strong> effect of <strong>the</strong> walkout was significant, <strong>the</strong><br />

29<br />

July<br />

PATCO announces that more than 95 percent of its members rejected <strong>the</strong><br />

FAA’s proposed agreement by a vote of 13,495 to 616. <strong>Controllers</strong> voted<br />

publicly ra<strong>the</strong>r than by secret mail-in ballot.<br />

skies were far from silent as Poli had predicted.<br />

Instrument flights were prohibited for smaller<br />

private planes. The FAA required o<strong>the</strong>r general aviation<br />

pilots to reserve flight plans on a first-come,<br />

first-served basis until <strong>the</strong> end of 1983. No pilots<br />

could enter airspace around major<br />

airports, known as Terminal Control<br />

Areas, unless <strong>the</strong>y were flying<br />

under instrument flight rules.<br />

Eighty small control towers<br />

were closed and twenty-seven<br />

remained shuttered two years<br />

later. The agency began contracting<br />

with private firms to<br />

operate many of <strong>the</strong>m, leading<br />

to a longstanding battle with<br />

NATCA.<br />

Four hours into <strong>the</strong> walkout, President<br />

Reagan appeared in <strong>the</strong> Rose Garden and ordered<br />

<strong>the</strong> strikers to return to <strong>the</strong>ir jobs within two<br />

days or face dismissal. Federal judges moved swiftly<br />

to impound PATCO’s $3.5 million strike fund and<br />

impose fines of $100,000 an hour for defying an injunction<br />

against job actions, which arose from <strong>the</strong><br />

1970 sickout.<br />

About 875 controllers—whom strikers disdainfully<br />

called “sprinters”—reported back to <strong>the</strong>ir<br />

facilities within Reagan’s deadline. The remaining<br />

picketers, accounting for three-quarters of <strong>the</strong> work<br />

Chapter 1: ATC Comes of Age<br />

27<br />

Gary Eads: PATCO’s last president, elected<br />

in January 1982, took over a decertified<br />

union facing bankruptcy. Six months later,<br />

he announced: “It is over for PATCO. The<br />

union is gone.” / NATCA archives


28<br />

1981<br />

<strong>Against</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>Wind</strong><br />

31<br />

July<br />

What’s in a Name?<br />

Robert Poli announces PATCO will go on strike August 3 unless its demands<br />

are met. Eleventh-hour talks begin between <strong>the</strong> union and <strong>the</strong> FAA.<br />

Japphire<br />

�<br />

Built on <strong>the</strong> mudflats of <strong>the</strong> Potomac River,<br />

two miles south of The Mall, Washington<br />

<strong>National</strong> <strong>Air</strong>port memorialized <strong>the</strong> nation’s<br />

first president.<br />

In 1998, to <strong>the</strong> outrage of controllers<br />

across <strong>the</strong> country, Congress passed a law<br />

renaming <strong>the</strong> airport in honor of <strong>the</strong> president<br />

responsible for firing more than 11,000 of<br />

<strong>the</strong>ir brethren.<br />

Speaking against <strong>the</strong> proposal while<br />

lawmakers were considering <strong>the</strong> action, former<br />

NATCA Executive Vice President Randy<br />

Schwitz said: “To name a major U.S. airport<br />

after Reagan would be a slap in <strong>the</strong> face to<br />

today’s controllers and <strong>the</strong> many thousands<br />

terminated still on <strong>the</strong> street waiting to be rehired<br />

by <strong>the</strong> Federal Aviation Administration.<br />

I’d ra<strong>the</strong>r have a hot poker in my eye than<br />

have an airport named after him.”<br />

To this day, many controllers refuse to<br />

call DCA by its new name.


force, were fired. Most appealed <strong>the</strong>ir dismissal to <strong>the</strong><br />

Merit Systems Protection Board, but only 440 were<br />

reinstated during <strong>the</strong> next two-and-a-half years. 7<br />

When <strong>the</strong> dust finally settled, more than 11,000<br />

workers no longer had a career in air traffic control.<br />

The Federal Labor Relations Authority decertified<br />

<strong>the</strong> 13-year-old PATCO on October 17. For <strong>the</strong><br />

first time, a union representing U.S. government<br />

workers had been stripped of its legal standing.<br />

On <strong>the</strong> last day of 1981, Poli resigned, persuaded<br />

by o<strong>the</strong>r board members that <strong>the</strong> union could<br />

not move forward until he stepped aside. According<br />

to PATCO members who kept in touch, Poli later ran<br />

several car dealerships along <strong>the</strong> East Coast. Executive<br />

Vice President Robert Meyer also quit. Central<br />

Region Vice President Gary Eads and Western Region<br />

VP Domenic Torchia were elected president and vice<br />

3<br />

Aug.<br />

1. Fuerbringer, Jonathan. 1981. Militant controller chief: Robert Edmond Poli.<br />

The New York Times. 4 August, late city final edition.<br />

2. Much of <strong>the</strong> material about <strong>the</strong> January 1980 PATCO meeting is based on<br />

interviews with John Leyden and George Kerr in September and November<br />

2001, respectively.<br />

3. Garonzik, Joseph. 1986. Aviation’s Indispensable Partner Turns 50. U.S. Department<br />

of Transportation.<br />

4. Related by Domenic Torchia during an interview in July 2001.<br />

5. 1981. <strong>Air</strong> traffic controllers set a June 22 strike deadline. The New York Times.<br />

24 May.<br />

6. PATCO figures.<br />

7. Transportation Department figures.<br />

The walkout starts at 7 a.m. Eastern time. Nearly 13,000 controllers—<br />

about 79 percent of <strong>the</strong> work force—honor <strong>the</strong> picket line. President Reagan<br />

announces <strong>the</strong> controllers must return to <strong>the</strong>ir jobs within forty-eight<br />

president, respectively.<br />

They took over a mortally wounded organization.<br />

Stripped of its charter and facing claims of<br />

about $40 million, <strong>the</strong> union filed for bankruptcy on<br />

July 2, 1982. “It is over for PATCO,” Eads told reporters.<br />

“The union is gone.” 8<br />

8. Shifrin, Carole. 1982. PATCO goes bankrupt 11 months after strike. The<br />

Washington Post. 3 July, final edition.<br />

Chapter 1: ATC Comes of Age<br />

hours or <strong>the</strong>y’ll be fired. Supervisors, staff specialists, and military controllers<br />

step in to help handle traffic. Even so, airlines cancel more than 6,000<br />

flights. A federal court impounds PATCO’s $3.5 million strike fund.<br />

29


“ We did not<br />

rebuild <strong>the</strong> system.<br />

We re-staffed it.<br />

— Anonymous air traffic controller<br />

Fallout from <strong>the</strong> strike: The FAA hired<br />

thousands of controllers throughout<br />

<strong>the</strong> 1980s, yet understaffing persistently<br />

plagued Washington Center. / NATCA archives


Chapter 2<br />

Opportunity Lost<br />

As <strong>the</strong> clock ticked toward seven on <strong>the</strong> morning of <strong>the</strong> strike, John<br />

Gilbert drove along <strong>the</strong> two-lane road approaching Albuquerque<br />

Center. Across <strong>the</strong> street, a group of picketers huddled in front of a<br />

vast expanse of land dotted with gray sagebrush. They recognized Gilbert’s<br />

truck—a classic, cherry red 1966 Chevy pickup—and began waving at him.<br />

Gilbert noticed several members of his crew,<br />

including <strong>the</strong> secretary and treasurer of <strong>the</strong> PATCO<br />

local. Friendly shouts drifted through his open driver’s<br />

side window.<br />

“You’re on <strong>the</strong> wrong side,” <strong>the</strong>y hollered.<br />

“Come over with us. It’s not too late.”<br />

Gilbert glanced at <strong>the</strong>m and <strong>the</strong>n resolutely<br />

turned right to head past a guard shack toward <strong>the</strong><br />

center’s parking lot.<br />

Sixteen months earlier, <strong>the</strong> tall, slender Houston<br />

native had left a low-paying job selling telephone<br />

gear to join <strong>the</strong> FAA as a controller. He later discovered<br />

<strong>the</strong> center’s switching equipment was so antiquated<br />

that it no longer appeared in <strong>the</strong> catalogs he’d<br />

used at <strong>the</strong> phone company.<br />

Never<strong>the</strong>less, Gilbert was happy to have a ca-<br />

reer with potential. He believed <strong>the</strong> strikers were demanding<br />

too much. Still certifying as a journeyman<br />

controller, he was too new to fully understand <strong>the</strong>ir<br />

frustrations. That would come later.<br />

Several weeks earlier, his crewmates<br />

had asked him whe<strong>the</strong>r he<br />

planned to join <strong>the</strong> picket line. “Hypo<strong>the</strong>tically,”<br />

Gilbert asked, “say we<br />

all walk and <strong>the</strong> FAA says: ‘Okay,<br />

we concede to your demands. You<br />

can all go back to work—except <strong>the</strong><br />

trainees.’ What <strong>the</strong>n? Will you stay<br />

out with us?”<br />

“Let me think about it,” one of<br />

<strong>the</strong>m said. Many journeymen controllers held<br />

developmentals at arm’s length until <strong>the</strong>y certified<br />

Driving on: John Gilbert began working at<br />

Albuquerque Center in 1980 and steered<br />

clear of <strong>the</strong> strike. / Courtesy of John Gilbert


32<br />

<strong>Against</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>Wind</strong><br />

John Gilbert: A colleague awarded <strong>the</strong><br />

young controller a gold star for working<br />

on August 3, 1981. Gilbert, who later<br />

transferred to Houston, still wears <strong>the</strong><br />

star on his ID badge. / Courtesy of John Gilbert<br />

1981<br />

5<br />

Aug.<br />

because <strong>the</strong> washout rate was so high. As a trainee,<br />

Gilbert was not yet part of <strong>the</strong> inner circle.<br />

“If you’ve got to stop and think about it, that’s<br />

answer enough for me,” Gilbert replied. “So much for<br />

solidarity. I’m not striking with you guys.”<br />

They threatened to make his life miserable<br />

when <strong>the</strong> walkout ended, but Gilbert shrugged it off.<br />

“Misery is a two-way street,” he retorted.<br />

Leaving his car, Gilbert ambled inside <strong>the</strong> facility<br />

under <strong>the</strong> watchful eyes of his colleagues and<br />

friends standing in <strong>the</strong> New Mexico heat across <strong>the</strong><br />

street. His supervisor, Chuck Tuberville, one of <strong>the</strong><br />

few people on his crew to show up, greeted him. Sally<br />

Lane, a fellow controller, had just finished <strong>the</strong> midnight<br />

shift. She sauntered up to Gilbert holding a card<br />

of gold stars, peeled one off, and stuck it on <strong>the</strong> ID<br />

badge dangling from his neck.<br />

“This is your gold<br />

star,” Lane said. “It’s <strong>the</strong><br />

only thing you’re going<br />

to get out of <strong>the</strong><br />

agency for coming in<br />

to work.”<br />

Gilbert chuckled<br />

and gazed around<br />

<strong>the</strong> control room.<br />

Only a few sectors<br />

were open. <strong>Controllers</strong><br />

were joined by supervisors<br />

About 875 controllers return to work. More than 11,000 lose <strong>the</strong>ir jobs.<br />

The ranks of journeymen and developmental controllers drop 74 percent.<br />

The FAA institutes “Flow Control 50,” which requires <strong>the</strong> airlines to<br />

and staff specialists, some of<br />

whom had untangled<br />

head set cords<br />

that morning for<br />

<strong>the</strong> first time in<br />

several years and<br />

looked nervous facing<br />

<strong>the</strong> scopes again.<br />

Normally, <strong>the</strong>y’d be<br />

required to train and<br />

re-certify after such a<br />

lengthy absence. But<br />

today’s unique event<br />

forced <strong>the</strong>m to jump<br />

back in cold.<br />

I r o n i c a l l y ,<br />

Gilbert realized he was better qualified to control<br />

airplanes than many o<strong>the</strong>rs present. He wished he<br />

could help, but he wasn’t authorized to work without<br />

an instructor. Having nothing else to do, he teased<br />

Tuberville about handling <strong>the</strong> traffic.<br />

The Honeymoon<br />

Nearly 3,400 controllers reported for duty that<br />

August 3 rd and in <strong>the</strong> following days, augmented by<br />

roughly 500 military controllers and <strong>the</strong> 875 FAA<br />

workers who returned within Reagan’s 48-hour<br />

deadline. They encountered similar scenes.<br />

cancel about half of <strong>the</strong>ir peak-hour flights at twenty-two major airports.<br />

In-trail restrictions increase to as much as 100 miles. IFR flights are prohibited<br />

for general aviation planes weighing 12,500 pounds or less.


Picketers congregated on <strong>the</strong> driveway of <strong>the</strong><br />

fire station across <strong>the</strong> street from Chicago Center in<br />

suburban Aurora, Illinois, shouting at co-workers<br />

and running out to kick <strong>the</strong> tires of <strong>the</strong>ir cars. At<br />

Houston Center, some 140 strikers yelled and waved<br />

signs while clustered along <strong>the</strong> grassy median of busy<br />

JFK Boulevard in front of <strong>the</strong> facility. At Salt Lake<br />

Center, managers stood on <strong>the</strong> roof, peered through<br />

binoculars, and wrote down picketers’ names.<br />

The tension outside yielded to different, yet<br />

equally charged, emotions inside. Some strikebreakers<br />

fretted about dealing with <strong>the</strong>ir colleagues<br />

when <strong>the</strong>y came back. O<strong>the</strong>rs were glad to be rid of<br />

<strong>the</strong>m—even if only temporarily. The stress during<br />

<strong>the</strong> preceding months, fueled by peer pressure and<br />

uncertainty, had swelled like a volcano on <strong>the</strong> verge<br />

of eruption.<br />

Yet, <strong>the</strong> strike resulted in one very pleasant<br />

consequence for those on <strong>the</strong> job. As never before,<br />

controllers, managers, staff specialists, and <strong>Air</strong>ways<br />

Facilities technicians set aside antagonism, pettiness,<br />

and class distinctions. Instead, <strong>the</strong>y banded toge<strong>the</strong>r<br />

with a sorely needed esprit de corps to keep <strong>the</strong> traffic<br />

moving.<br />

“For <strong>the</strong> first week, people were just operating<br />

on guts,” says Howie Barte, a controller at Quonset<br />

TRACON, south of Providence, Rhode Island. “It was<br />

<strong>the</strong> Alamo and we were loving it.”<br />

Initially, traffic was relatively light, leading one<br />

4<br />

Sep.<br />

The FAA announces it will hire about 1,500 temporary workers, including<br />

furloughed airline pilots, to serve as flight data assistants and perform<br />

o<strong>the</strong>r controller support functions.<br />

wag to declare: “We’re going to have one-state separation<br />

between airplanes.”<br />

To handle <strong>the</strong> gradual resumption of flights,<br />

bosses turned pragmatic and abandoned cumbersome<br />

operating procedures. Ra<strong>the</strong>r than haranguing<br />

controllers about phraseology errors, managers did<br />

whatever <strong>the</strong>y could to help, even ordering in food.<br />

Indeed, coffee and snacks were verboten in control<br />

rooms before <strong>the</strong> strike. Now <strong>the</strong>y were a necessity.<br />

The only breaks <strong>the</strong> skeletal work force enjoyed were<br />

dashes to <strong>the</strong> restroom. O<strong>the</strong>r rules were relaxed and<br />

Chapter 2: Opportunity Lost<br />

Japphire<br />

Houston Center: Nearly all of <strong>the</strong> FAA’s en route centers were built from <strong>the</strong> same cookie-cutter blueprint. The agency<br />

opted for a different design at its Houston facility, however, due to <strong>the</strong> influence of Lady Bird Johnson.<br />

33


34<br />

<strong>Against</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>Wind</strong><br />

Fred Gilbert: The Chicago Center veteran<br />

organized a conference for controllers<br />

from all of <strong>the</strong> FAA’s en route centers<br />

some eighteen months after <strong>the</strong> strike.<br />

However, agency managers pressured him<br />

to cancel <strong>the</strong> event. / Courtesy of Howie Barte<br />

1981<br />

30<br />

Sep.<br />

compliments from managers flowed freely.<br />

<strong>Traffic</strong> gradually resumed as summer faded<br />

into fall. Meanwhile, <strong>the</strong> strikers’ hopes of getting<br />

rehired waned and <strong>the</strong>ir resentment mounted toward<br />

those still wearing headsets. Picketers grew more vocal<br />

and telephoned threats to controllers’ homes. Cars<br />

were splattered with paint and tires were slashed.<br />

Onetime friends wordlessly walked away when <strong>the</strong>y<br />

saw each o<strong>the</strong>r at supermarkets and shopping malls,<br />

a bitterness that lingered for years.<br />

“The division of loyalty was huge,” recalls<br />

Barte, who burned his PATCO membership card in<br />

an ashtray in <strong>the</strong> TRACON a week after <strong>the</strong> strike. “If<br />

you were in, you hated PATCO. If you were out, you<br />

hated <strong>the</strong> people who were in.”<br />

<strong>Controllers</strong> embraced <strong>the</strong> challenge of <strong>the</strong><br />

job itself, however, and relished <strong>the</strong>ir honeymoon<br />

with management. Joe O’Brien, a lanky<br />

former Navy controller who started at New<br />

York TRACON in February 1982, has fond<br />

memories of <strong>the</strong> period and his decision to<br />

enter <strong>the</strong> profession. “It was <strong>the</strong> best thing I<br />

ever did in my life,” he says.<br />

Energetic and all of 22, O’Brien joined about<br />

fifty o<strong>the</strong>r controllers in a facility built for 200. They<br />

had to keep planes separated by <strong>the</strong> legal minimums,<br />

of course, but exercised some latitude in doing so.<br />

Gulping coffee and smoking cigarettes, screaming<br />

and cursing at each o<strong>the</strong>r to coordinate traffic, <strong>the</strong>y<br />

During <strong>the</strong> preceding year, <strong>the</strong> FAA has added two key capabilities to<br />

equipment at <strong>the</strong> nation’s twenty-one en route centers: minimum safe<br />

altitude warning, already in use at TRACONs; and arrival metering, which<br />

somehow got it done. “It was like <strong>the</strong> Wild West,”<br />

he says.<br />

Far<strong>the</strong>r east on Long Island from O’Brien, Michael<br />

McNally enjoyed <strong>the</strong> same sense of exhilaration<br />

on <strong>the</strong> scopes at New York Center. “I was young. I was<br />

cocky. I was on <strong>the</strong> top of my game,” he says. “They<br />

wanted us to become tin junkies and that’s what we<br />

became. We kept running, running, running.”<br />

It would take awhile for O’Brien, McNally, and<br />

o<strong>the</strong>rs to recognize <strong>the</strong> negative long-term effects of<br />

<strong>the</strong>ir frenetic pace. Much sooner, <strong>the</strong>ir post-strike rapport<br />

with management would turn sour, like blissful<br />

newlyweds lapsing into an abusive<br />

marriage.<br />

One morning about<br />

six months after <strong>the</strong><br />

walkout, Fred Gilbert<br />

strolled into Chicago<br />

Center and passed <strong>the</strong><br />

cafeteria on his way<br />

to <strong>the</strong> control room.<br />

Darkness shrouded<br />

<strong>the</strong> food line, as it had<br />

since August 3 rd . Diners<br />

used to fight for seats; <strong>the</strong>se days,<br />

<strong>the</strong>y occupied a mere handful of tables at lunchtime.<br />

Gilbert’s foot steps echoed along <strong>the</strong> largely deserted<br />

halls. Inside <strong>the</strong> control room, <strong>the</strong> formerly vibrant,<br />

noisy atmosphere had softened to a hush, much like<br />

provides controllers with computerized advisories to help manage traffic<br />

flows into major airports.


a midnight shift. Less than half <strong>the</strong> normal complement<br />

of controllers sat along <strong>the</strong> four rows of radarscopes.<br />

So few workers remained that several coffee<br />

funds had dwindled into one. The solitary pot was<br />

located in an outer office of <strong>the</strong> administrative wing<br />

on <strong>the</strong> second floor. Though not a coffee drinker, Gilbert<br />

listened in disbelief as an astonished colleague<br />

told him about a sign that had appeared overnight<br />

next to <strong>the</strong> pot. From now on, <strong>the</strong> coffee was for<br />

managers only.<br />

The honeymoon was over.<br />

Power Plays<br />

From Anchorage to<br />

Miami, controllers faced <strong>the</strong><br />

same rude awakening during<br />

<strong>the</strong> next few years. Many supervisors,<br />

who wielded little<br />

real authority yet were pressured<br />

from above to restore<br />

<strong>the</strong> system to normal, flexed<br />

<strong>the</strong>ir muscles where <strong>the</strong>y could.<br />

Unilaterally, <strong>the</strong>y adjusted work<br />

schedules and granted or denied<br />

leave on <strong>the</strong> basis of personal relationships.<br />

Operating procedures<br />

and work rules were changed by<br />

1<br />

Oct.<br />

FAA operations are reduced from eleven regions to nine. Western and<br />

Pacific-Asia regions consolidate into a new Western-Pacific Region, with<br />

headquarters in Los Angeles. Rocky Mountain and Northwest regions<br />

fiat, often with little apparent planning and virtually<br />

no controller input.<br />

At Denver Center, four areas were being expanded<br />

into five. One key change occurred overnight.<br />

Mike Fellows arrived for work <strong>the</strong> next day and saw a<br />

line drawn with a grease pencil across his scope that<br />

split one sector into two. “We weren’t briefed on <strong>the</strong><br />

frequency, what <strong>the</strong> procedures were, nothing,” Fellows<br />

says. “They just said, ‘plug in.’ ” Such incidents<br />

fueled worries about safety.<br />

Some managers solicited comment and <strong>the</strong>n ignored<br />

it. The facility chief at Quonset TRACON<br />

posted a notice about a proposal to revert to<br />

unwieldy operating procedures put in place<br />

years earlier. The announcement included<br />

“yes” and “no” columns. No checkmarks appeared<br />

in <strong>the</strong> “yes” column, yet <strong>the</strong> plan was<br />

implemented anyway.<br />

“It was like somebody flipped a<br />

switch,” Atlanta Center controller Don<br />

Brown remembers. The attitude became:<br />

“ ‘Okay, we don’t need you anymore. We<br />

won.’ And <strong>the</strong>y went back to managing.”<br />

In <strong>the</strong> absence of a union contract,<br />

<strong>the</strong> FAA published a 30-page “Handbook<br />

for <strong>Air</strong> <strong>Traffic</strong> Employees in Centers<br />

and Towers.” Commonly referred to<br />

as <strong>the</strong> Green Book, <strong>the</strong> manual spelled<br />

out scheduling and disciplinary proce-<br />

Chapter 2: Opportunity Lost<br />

consolidate into <strong>the</strong> Northwest Mountain Region, with headquarters in<br />

Renton, Washington. The states of North and South Dakota are reassigned<br />

from Rocky Mountain to Great Lakes Region.<br />

35<br />

The Green Book: FAA managers and controllers<br />

created this 30-page guide, which<br />

was used in <strong>the</strong> absence of a collective<br />

bargaining agreement after <strong>the</strong> strike.


36<br />

1981<br />

<strong>Against</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>Wind</strong><br />

2<br />

Oct.<br />

dures and <strong>the</strong> like. Although four controllers were<br />

involved in creating <strong>the</strong> guide, some disparagingly<br />

referred to it as “management’s rights and controllers’<br />

responsibilities.”<br />

Once again, <strong>the</strong> dress code became a bone of<br />

contention. The Green<br />

Book left <strong>the</strong> policy up<br />

to <strong>the</strong> discretion of facility<br />

managers, many of<br />

whom held firm to <strong>the</strong><br />

agency’s traditional IBMstyle<br />

uniform.<br />

In Monroe, Louisiana,<br />

a graduate fresh<br />

from <strong>the</strong> FAA Academy<br />

named Phil Barbarello<br />

showed up for his first<br />

day of work without a<br />

belt. He was sent home<br />

to find one. Three Atlanta<br />

Center controllers<br />

arrived at <strong>the</strong> facility<br />

one hot July day wearing<br />

officially sanctioned sandals but no socks, which<br />

were required. They, too, were ordered home on<br />

administrative leave (which is not deducted from an<br />

employee’s allotment of annual leave).<br />

“Instead of working,” says Lee Riley, “I was at<br />

home sitting in <strong>the</strong> sun on <strong>the</strong> porch getting paid by<br />

The FAA awards a $10 million contract to <strong>the</strong> University of Oklahoma to<br />

provide certified instructors to <strong>the</strong> FAA Academy to help <strong>the</strong> agency train<br />

new controllers.<br />

<strong>the</strong> federal government because some idiot is worried<br />

about whe<strong>the</strong>r I have socks on—in a place where <strong>the</strong><br />

public doesn’t even show up.”<br />

Inevitably, hostilities resurfaced. Yelling at controllers<br />

and trainees became part of <strong>the</strong> culture. The<br />

contentious environment<br />

affected <strong>the</strong> ability of<br />

some developmentals to<br />

learn critical job skills.<br />

Craig Guensch<br />

“<br />

arrived at Minneapolis<br />

Tower six months after<br />

<strong>the</strong> strike, and survived<br />

as <strong>the</strong> only one of his<br />

group of five from <strong>the</strong><br />

academy to certify as<br />

a journeyman. Each<br />

month, four or five<br />

more graduates arrived<br />

and usually just one<br />

checked out. Guensch<br />

credits his success to an<br />

understanding supervisor<br />

named Nick Conom, who led by example ra<strong>the</strong>r<br />

than shouting. When Guensch transferred to Miami<br />

Tower three years later, he walked into an even more<br />

rancorous atmosphere.<br />

“I saw a supervisor take a strip holder and<br />

throw it across <strong>the</strong> tower off <strong>the</strong> window because<br />

Instead of working, I was at<br />

home sitting in <strong>the</strong> sun on<br />

<strong>the</strong> porch getting paid by <strong>the</strong><br />

federal government because<br />

some idiot is worried about<br />

whe<strong>the</strong>r I have socks on.<br />

— Atlanta Center controller Lee Riley


somebody taxied an airplane down <strong>the</strong> wrong taxiway,”<br />

says Guensch, who is now <strong>the</strong> NATCA local<br />

vice president at <strong>the</strong> FAA Command Center in Herndon,<br />

Virginia. “I’ve seen <strong>the</strong>m throw chairs across <strong>the</strong><br />

room and push controllers across <strong>the</strong> room in <strong>the</strong>ir<br />

chairs because <strong>the</strong>y were in <strong>the</strong> way.”<br />

While filling out <strong>the</strong> sign-off log, Miami controllers<br />

would mutter with relief, “I made it through<br />

ano<strong>the</strong>r one with my ticket intact.”<br />

Two weeks after <strong>the</strong> strike, Transportation<br />

Secretary Drew Lewis appointed an independent<br />

task force to study labor-management relations in <strong>the</strong><br />

FAA. President Lawrence M. Jones of The Coleman<br />

Company, a manufacturer of camping and outdoor<br />

recreation products, headed <strong>the</strong> three-member panel.<br />

In March 1982, <strong>the</strong> Jones Committee released a detailed<br />

report documenting what controllers already<br />

knew. Despite <strong>the</strong> massive upheaval of <strong>the</strong> walkout,<br />

little had changed.<br />

“Morale of most employees at all levels in <strong>the</strong><br />

FAA is poor,” <strong>the</strong> report stated. The committee attributed<br />

this to incompetent and poorly trained managers.<br />

Noting that autocratic supervisors made controllers<br />

believe <strong>the</strong> agency did not care about <strong>the</strong>m, <strong>the</strong><br />

145-page report warned of recurring problems with<br />

employee relations.<br />

Lewis conceded <strong>the</strong> situation had been deteriorating<br />

for years, but told reporters he saw no “immediate<br />

solution.” However, he vowed to “begin as<br />

17<br />

Oct.<br />

soon as possible <strong>the</strong> job of improving <strong>the</strong> working<br />

environment.” 1<br />

<strong>Controllers</strong> summarized <strong>the</strong> issue more succinctly<br />

with a frequent refrain: “They fired <strong>the</strong> wrong<br />

half of <strong>the</strong> work force.”<br />

Boot Camp<br />

AFL-CIO President Lane Kirkland tells Robert Poli and John Leyden that<br />

<strong>the</strong> Reagan administration will allow striking controllers to return to work<br />

if PATCO calls off <strong>the</strong> walkout and its leadership acknowledges respon-<br />

Craig Guensch was part of <strong>the</strong> “new breed,”<br />

one of thousands of controllers hired to rebuild <strong>the</strong><br />

system. The FAA allowed a lucky few with military<br />

experience and <strong>the</strong> right entrance exam scores to<br />

report directly to a tower, radar room, or center.<br />

But <strong>the</strong> vast majority of new-hires formed <strong>the</strong>ir first<br />

impression of <strong>the</strong> agency during several months of<br />

intensive, boot camp-like training at <strong>the</strong> revitalized<br />

FAA Academy, which is part of <strong>the</strong> Mike Monroney<br />

Aeronautical Center in Oklahoma City.<br />

Among those in <strong>the</strong> first class, which began<br />

one week after <strong>the</strong> strike, was a friendly, soft-spoken<br />

man named John Tune. Growing up on a farm in<br />

sou<strong>the</strong>rn Missouri, two miles from his grandparents,<br />

Tune was drawn by <strong>the</strong> open horizon and developed<br />

an interest in aviation. After high school, he enlisted<br />

in <strong>the</strong> <strong>Air</strong> Force for six years with <strong>the</strong> understanding<br />

that he could become an air traffic controller.<br />

“I didn’t entirely know what an air traffic controller<br />

was back <strong>the</strong>n. I’d just heard descriptions from<br />

o<strong>the</strong>r people,” Tune says, echoing a lack of knowledge<br />

Chapter 2: Opportunity Lost<br />

37<br />

In March 1982, <strong>the</strong><br />

Jones Committee<br />

released a detailed<br />

report documenting<br />

continued laborrelations<br />

problems<br />

within <strong>the</strong> FAA.<br />

The report cited<br />

incompetent and<br />

poorly trained<br />

managers.<br />

sibility. Some PATCO members dispute <strong>the</strong> deal’s au<strong>the</strong>nticity. Five days<br />

later, PATCO’s Executive Board votes 7-2 to reject <strong>the</strong> terms, insisting any<br />

agreement should also include <strong>the</strong> resignation of FAA chief J. Lynn Helms.


38<br />

<strong>Against</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>Wind</strong><br />

John Tune: After working as as a controller<br />

in <strong>the</strong> <strong>Air</strong> Force, <strong>the</strong> Missouri native<br />

underwent FAA training in <strong>the</strong> first class at<br />

<strong>the</strong> academy after <strong>the</strong> strike. / NATCA archives<br />

1981<br />

22<br />

Oct.<br />

common to newcomers in <strong>the</strong> profession.<br />

Tune was overwhelmed by <strong>the</strong> unfamiliar<br />

equipment and terminology when he first walked into<br />

<strong>the</strong> control tower at Dyess <strong>Air</strong> Force Base in Abilene,<br />

Texas. Fortunately, he was paired with a patient<br />

supervisor, six months from<br />

retirement.<br />

“If you want to be a controller<br />

and have questions, I’ll<br />

be happy to answer <strong>the</strong>m,”<br />

<strong>the</strong> supervisor said. “But I’m<br />

not going to motivate you to<br />

do <strong>the</strong> job. That’s something<br />

you have to do yourself.”<br />

Tune took <strong>the</strong> advice<br />

to heart, hit <strong>the</strong> books, and<br />

peppered his supervisor with<br />

queries. He became adept at<br />

working T-37s, T-38s, and numerous<br />

B-52 training missions before moving on to Keesler<br />

<strong>Air</strong> Force Base in Biloxi, Mississippi. Meanwhile, he<br />

applied to <strong>the</strong> FAA to get a head start on joining <strong>the</strong><br />

agency when he went back to civilian life since it often<br />

took months or even years before job openings<br />

occurred.<br />

The FAA wasn’t hiring when Tune left <strong>the</strong> service<br />

in September 1980, so he returned to sou<strong>the</strong>rn<br />

Missouri and busied himself driving forklifts at a<br />

lumber mill, working on <strong>the</strong> mill equipment, and<br />

The FLRA decertifies PATCO, and <strong>the</strong> union files suit to appeal <strong>the</strong> action.<br />

On December 3, Anthony “Skip” Skirlick from Los Angeles Center<br />

testifies before <strong>the</strong> U.S. Court of Appeals. He agrees <strong>the</strong> government has<br />

fixing semi-trailer trucks while he waited for <strong>the</strong><br />

call. He could barely contain his excitement when<br />

<strong>the</strong> phone rang late in <strong>the</strong> afternoon of August 5 th ,<br />

Reagan’s deadline.<br />

“It was a goal,” Tune says, “and I’d worked for<br />

peanuts long enough.”<br />

But <strong>the</strong> strike concerned him. Although Tune<br />

didn’t know much about unions, he understood<br />

that crossing a picket line could be dangerous.<br />

He called his former supervisor in <strong>the</strong> <strong>Air</strong> Force,<br />

who was now working for <strong>the</strong> FAA, and several<br />

o<strong>the</strong>r buddies in <strong>the</strong> agency. “Don’t worry<br />

about it,” <strong>the</strong>y told him. “They won’t fire us all.<br />

Go ahead and take <strong>the</strong> job.”<br />

Tune and his wife, Faye, drove to <strong>the</strong> FAA<br />

Regional Office in Kansas City for an orientation<br />

session on Friday. Then <strong>the</strong>y returned home to<br />

pick up <strong>the</strong>ir 2½-year-old son and some belongings<br />

before heading west to Oklahoma City. Armed with<br />

a list of apartments that <strong>the</strong> Regional Office had supplied,<br />

<strong>the</strong>y quickly found a place to live.<br />

On Tuesday, August 11, Tune arrived at <strong>the</strong><br />

academy feeling apprehensive. He didn’t know what<br />

to expect as he walked past numerous television news<br />

cameras and into a large auditorium filled with about<br />

sixty people. Among <strong>the</strong>m was Tom Rucker, whom<br />

Tune now describes as “probably <strong>the</strong> best controller<br />

I’ve ever known.” During opening remarks, <strong>the</strong> man<br />

at <strong>the</strong> podium asked everyone in <strong>the</strong> audience with<br />

a legal right to fire <strong>the</strong> strikers, but argues that it serves no purpose to<br />

disband a union still numbering several thousand members who are active<br />

controllers. However, <strong>the</strong> court rules in favor of <strong>the</strong> FLRA in June 1982.


military training to raise <strong>the</strong>ir hand.<br />

“You’ll probably make it,” he announced somberly.<br />

“The rest of you, good luck. You might be able<br />

to get recycled.”<br />

Subsequent classes heard a variation on <strong>the</strong><br />

<strong>the</strong>me. “Turn to your left. Turn to your right,” <strong>the</strong>y<br />

were told. “By <strong>the</strong> time<br />

we’re done, one of you<br />

won’t be here.”<br />

Typically, stu-<br />

dents watched at least<br />

half of <strong>the</strong>ir colleagues<br />

wash out. While some<br />

trainees viewed <strong>the</strong><br />

academy’s curriculum<br />

as unrealistic, <strong>the</strong> need<br />

for rigorous standards<br />

was understandable. As<br />

former academy Deputy<br />

Superintendent Doug<br />

Murphy once explained:<br />

“A controller has to make<br />

thousands of life-anddeath<br />

decisions. The only thing we require is that he<br />

make <strong>the</strong> right decision every time.” 2<br />

The strike added a less obvious hurdle for <strong>the</strong><br />

new-hires. After dividing into several classes, <strong>the</strong>y<br />

faced instructors who were strong strike supporters.<br />

Many trainers were PATCO members who had<br />

9<br />

Dec.<br />

taken temporary leave from <strong>the</strong> boards to work at <strong>the</strong><br />

academy. Looking askance at <strong>the</strong> new breed, several<br />

intimated that <strong>the</strong> training would be very difficult. In<br />

one class, nine of <strong>the</strong> ten students failed to graduate.<br />

There was little time to worry about it.<br />

During <strong>the</strong>ir first week, Rucker and o<strong>the</strong>r<br />

students destined for en<br />

route centers immersed<br />

<strong>the</strong>mselves in <strong>the</strong> formidable<br />

task of studying a<br />

“<br />

map called Aero Center,<br />

which <strong>the</strong>y would be<br />

required to draw from<br />

memory. Depicting a<br />

fictitious center, <strong>the</strong> map<br />

included twenty-one<br />

named intersections, sixteen<br />

airways, and more<br />

than 300 radio frequencies,<br />

altitudes, compass<br />

bearings, and mileages.<br />

Copies of <strong>the</strong> map were<br />

plastered across <strong>the</strong> walls<br />

of apartments, on bedroom ceilings, doors, refrigerators,<br />

even in <strong>the</strong> laundry room of one complex.<br />

Those who survived <strong>the</strong> map challenge<br />

sweated through several more weeks of classroom<br />

instruction. Every night except Saturday, <strong>the</strong>y studied<br />

toge<strong>the</strong>r at someone’s apartment. After a pass/fail<br />

A controller has to make<br />

thousands of life-and-death<br />

decisions. The only thing we<br />

require is that he make <strong>the</strong><br />

right decision every time.<br />

— Former FAA Academy<br />

Deputy Superintendent Doug Murphy<br />

President Reagan rescinds an order banning fired controllers from seeking<br />

federal work for three years. However, <strong>the</strong>y are still barred from returning<br />

to <strong>the</strong> FAA. Many controllers who subsequently apply for jobs in o<strong>the</strong>r<br />

Chapter 2: Opportunity Lost<br />

government agencies and at overseas air traffic control facilities claim <strong>the</strong>y<br />

have been blacklisted because it’s nearly impossible to get hired.<br />

39


40<br />

1981<br />

<strong>Against</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>Wind</strong><br />

31<br />

Dec.<br />

exam, <strong>the</strong> lucky survivors moved on to simulated<br />

non-radar problems.<br />

In an unadorned lab, lined with masonry walls<br />

and checkered green linoleum, <strong>the</strong>y were tested<br />

on <strong>the</strong>ir ability to think in three dimensions. The<br />

room also contained several<br />

chalkboards and two<br />

rows of beige consoles.<br />

Each console included<br />

a microphone, several<br />

intercom switches, and<br />

a rack for flight strips.<br />

Students sitting along<br />

one row practiced being<br />

controllers while <strong>the</strong><br />

o<strong>the</strong>r row acted as pilots,<br />

following a detailed<br />

script to simulate various<br />

flights. Some trainees<br />

were so intimidated that <strong>the</strong>y simply quit.<br />

Looming at <strong>the</strong> end of <strong>the</strong> grueling course was<br />

a two-hour, 100-question exam. Only those who<br />

scored at least seventy out of a possible 100 for all of<br />

<strong>the</strong>ir work in <strong>the</strong> program would graduate.<br />

“You’d dream about airplanes and crossing<br />

restrictions all night long,” recalls Don Brown, who<br />

entered <strong>the</strong> academy in November 1981. His half-apack-a-day<br />

smoking habit billowed to three packs<br />

by graduation. Ironically, he encountered problems<br />

Robert Poli reluctantly resigns as president of PATCO after a late-evening<br />

conference call among PATCO leaders. They maintain that <strong>the</strong> administration<br />

will not alter its stance toward <strong>the</strong> union until its leadership changes.<br />

even with a background in aviation. Brown knew airplanes<br />

like <strong>the</strong> back of his hand, having been a “ramp<br />

rat” since age 16 at <strong>the</strong> airport in Spartanburg, South<br />

Carolina. Yet he failed <strong>the</strong> aircraft identification test<br />

because <strong>the</strong> agency mislabeled <strong>the</strong> planes.<br />

When <strong>the</strong> trainees<br />

weren’t studying,<br />

<strong>the</strong>y blew off steam at<br />

parties in each o<strong>the</strong>r’s<br />

apartments and at local<br />

“<br />

hangouts. A favorite was<br />

Chi Chi’s, which served<br />

gargantuan margaritas<br />

in fish bowls and sold<br />

three drinks for <strong>the</strong> price<br />

of one during happy<br />

hour. Waiters at Molly<br />

Murphy’s dressed in odd<br />

clo<strong>the</strong>s, purposely acted<br />

rude, and lay across <strong>the</strong> table while taking customers’<br />

orders. Salad bar patrons stepped up to a low-slung<br />

Jaguar XKE with holes cut into <strong>the</strong> hood to accommodate<br />

bowls of lettuce and garnishes. Many students<br />

also frequented <strong>the</strong> Red Dog Saloon, renowned<br />

for <strong>the</strong> best indoor motorcycle parking in <strong>the</strong> state.<br />

Customers were warned that anyone without a firearm<br />

would be issued one at <strong>the</strong> door.<br />

“It was a life of excess,” says one trainee. The<br />

pressure cooker atmosphere also encouraged a cul-<br />

You’d dream about airplanes<br />

and crossing restrictions all<br />

night long.<br />

— Atlanta Center controller Don Brown<br />

Vice President Robert Meyer steps down, as well. In a close election <strong>the</strong><br />

next day, Central Region Vice President Gary Eads succeeds Poli and<br />

Western Region VP Domenic Torchia is elected executive vice president.


ture of easy morals. “No one was married <strong>the</strong>re, not<br />

even married couples,” says ano<strong>the</strong>r.<br />

The trainees felt a close-knit camaraderie that<br />

spilled over into John Tune’s family life. When Halloween<br />

rolled around, he and his wife felt uncomfortable<br />

dressing up <strong>the</strong>ir young son as a trick-or-treater<br />

and taking him to strangers’ houses. Not wanting <strong>the</strong><br />

tot to miss one of <strong>the</strong> little pleasures of childhood,<br />

several trainees stopped by <strong>the</strong> Tune apartment wearing<br />

masks and bearing bags of candy. Their home<br />

overflowed again on Thanksgiving, when fellow<br />

students watched football, drank beer, and enjoyed a<br />

holiday feast that Faye Tune prepared.<br />

After taking <strong>the</strong> final exam in early December<br />

1981, hopeful trainees spent an anxious night awaiting<br />

<strong>the</strong>ir scores, which were posted on a board <strong>the</strong><br />

next day. Tom Rucker was <strong>the</strong> only one of his class of<br />

ten to graduate.<br />

For many who survived <strong>the</strong> boot camp, <strong>the</strong>ir<br />

joy was often cut short when <strong>the</strong> realities of <strong>the</strong> job<br />

sank in after arriving at <strong>the</strong>ir assigned facility.<br />

Tune received a cordial reception at Wichita<br />

Tower, but Rucker confronted his biggest test yet. The<br />

day he reported to Kansas City Center, he learned <strong>the</strong><br />

facility hadn’t checked out a trainee in six years and<br />

was told <strong>the</strong>y didn’t plan to start with him. Rucker<br />

viewed <strong>the</strong> odds as a challenge. He certified eighteen<br />

months later.<br />

Graduates watched many of <strong>the</strong>ir academy<br />

31<br />

Dec.<br />

The FLRA certifies <strong>the</strong> Professional <strong>Air</strong>ways Systems Specialists to represent<br />

<strong>the</strong> FAA’s electronics technicians.<br />

brethren wash out for no apparent reason o<strong>the</strong>r than<br />

personality conflicts with journeymen controllers<br />

and FAA managers. Some endured what amounted<br />

to an initiation rite.<br />

“I’ll let you make coffee for a week and <strong>the</strong>n<br />

we’ll see if you can put a headset on straight,”<br />

John Carr’s trainer told him at Kansas City Tower/<br />

TRACON.<br />

“If coffee is part of <strong>the</strong> job, you can just wash<br />

my ass out right now,” Carr responded with his usual<br />

forthrightness.<br />

The peeved instructor replied, “I’m not going to<br />

tell <strong>the</strong> supervisor, but I’ll make you a project that I<br />

can wash out myself.”<br />

Carr, who’d spent two years as a Navy controller<br />

in Corpus Christi, Texas, and ano<strong>the</strong>r two on <strong>the</strong><br />

USS Eisenhower aircraft carrier, checked out with<br />

relative ease.<br />

Lack of staffing sometimes resulted in hasty<br />

training, particularly at control towers and TRA-<br />

CONs. <strong>Controllers</strong> who certified on a position—many<br />

referred to this as a “pencil whipping”—immediately<br />

began training o<strong>the</strong>rs. Some struggled as traffic volumes<br />

continued to mount. In a follow-up report issued<br />

by <strong>the</strong> Jones Committee in November 1984, one<br />

controller noted: “We’re moving <strong>the</strong>m up too fast.<br />

Usually, a check ride is taken in average traffic. That’s<br />

what <strong>the</strong>y’re qualified for—average traffic.”<br />

Although <strong>the</strong> FAA publicly maintained that<br />

Chapter 2: Opportunity Lost<br />

41<br />

Lack of staffing<br />

sometimes resulted<br />

in hasty training.<br />

<strong>Controllers</strong> who<br />

certified on a position<br />

immediately began<br />

training o<strong>the</strong>rs.


42<br />

<strong>Against</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>Wind</strong><br />

Sign of <strong>the</strong> times: This warning is posted<br />

at all FAA centers, towers, and TRA-<br />

CONs. After <strong>the</strong> September 11, 2001,<br />

terrorist attacks, <strong>the</strong> agency has been<br />

improving security at its facilities. / Japphire<br />

1982<br />

28<br />

Jan.<br />

<strong>the</strong> skies had never been safer, <strong>the</strong> agency reported<br />

589 near midair collisions during 1984, a 64 percent<br />

increase over 1981. While rookies poured out<br />

of <strong>the</strong> academy’s doors and spent several years earning<br />

<strong>the</strong>ir stripes, near misses climbed ano<strong>the</strong>r 80<br />

percent to a peak of 1,058 in 1987 before declining<br />

steadily <strong>the</strong>reafter. Despite <strong>the</strong> soaring number of<br />

close calls, however, no major accidents occurred<br />

that involved controller error.<br />

Seeds of Discontent<br />

In an effort to improve its relations with employees,<br />

<strong>the</strong> FAA formed groups of managers and<br />

controllers in early 1982 to address<br />

local issues. With <strong>the</strong> right<br />

people, <strong>the</strong>se Facility Advisory<br />

Boards and Human Relations<br />

Councils—known as FABs and<br />

HRCs—could give controllers<br />

a voice and effect real change.<br />

Too often, however, <strong>the</strong>y focused<br />

on inconsequential concerns<br />

and management ignored <strong>the</strong><br />

committee’s recommendations.<br />

As a result, <strong>the</strong> initiative proved<br />

largely futile and piled on ano<strong>the</strong>r<br />

frustration for controllers.<br />

A supervisor named Fred-<br />

The FAA announces <strong>the</strong> <strong>National</strong> <strong>Air</strong>space System Plan, which outlines<br />

a twenty-year blueprint. Key elements include: Replacing <strong>the</strong> aging and<br />

unreliable IBM 9020 mainframe computers and developing “sector suites”<br />

die Fisher ran <strong>the</strong> FAB in Lincoln, Nebraska. <strong>Controllers</strong><br />

would submit suggestions for consideration,<br />

yet he’d typically hand <strong>the</strong>m right back, asserting<br />

<strong>the</strong>y wouldn’t go anyplace. Dan Brandt, a husky Midwesterner<br />

who spent 8½ years in <strong>the</strong> <strong>Air</strong> Force before<br />

joining <strong>the</strong> FAA after <strong>the</strong> strike, objected one day.<br />

“Wait a minute,” he said. “Isn’t this a group<br />

decision?”<br />

“I’m chairman of <strong>the</strong> board,” Fisher replied<br />

crisply. “If I say it doesn’t go, it doesn’t go.”<br />

Controller Fred Gilbert served as <strong>the</strong> FAB<br />

chairman at Chicago Center. “We took <strong>the</strong> order at<br />

face value,” he says, and became proactive on airspace,<br />

personnel, and o<strong>the</strong>r issues. During monthly<br />

telephone conferences among all<br />

four centers in <strong>the</strong> Great Lakes<br />

Region, Gilbert and his colleagues<br />

realized <strong>the</strong>y faced <strong>the</strong><br />

same problems. They quickly realized<br />

that a meeting of all center<br />

FABs made sense.<br />

Gilbert crafted a questionnaire<br />

to query controllers about<br />

work issues and whe<strong>the</strong>r a national<br />

meeting should be held.<br />

The FABs from all twenty-four<br />

centers and center-approach<br />

controls—CERAPs—from Guam<br />

to Puerto Rico responded with a<br />

at <strong>the</strong> agency’s en route centers; consolidating facilities; implementing<br />

Mode S transponders, which ultimately will enable e-mail communications<br />

between controllers and pilots; and installing Doppler wea<strong>the</strong>r radar.


esounding yes, although two indicated <strong>the</strong>y could<br />

not afford <strong>the</strong> trip.<br />

Knowing that it could take several years for <strong>the</strong><br />

FAA to fund such a ga<strong>the</strong>ring, Gilbert planned an affair<br />

for <strong>the</strong> spring of 1983 that would be economical<br />

enough for controllers to pay <strong>the</strong>ir own way. Then<br />

he approached management to ask for <strong>the</strong>ir input.<br />

The facility chief, acting on orders from <strong>the</strong> Regional<br />

Office, summoned Gilbert soon after and told him<br />

to kill <strong>the</strong> meeting. O<strong>the</strong>r managers also browbeat<br />

Gilbert and intimidated members of <strong>the</strong> Chicago<br />

Center FAB. Gilbert finally capitulated and canceled<br />

<strong>the</strong> event.<br />

Later that summer, Gilbert was asked to testify<br />

at a congressional hearing on controller stress. The<br />

FAA’s notoriety extended beyond <strong>the</strong> Jones Committee<br />

report, and Capitol Hill continued to monitor <strong>the</strong><br />

industry. Gilbert appeared with half a dozen o<strong>the</strong>r<br />

controllers and managers. Obviously prepped in<br />

advance, committee members asked him a series of<br />

pointed questions about <strong>the</strong> canceled FAB conference.<br />

One congressman wanted to know whe<strong>the</strong>r management’s<br />

intimidation had been stressful.<br />

“For <strong>the</strong> rest of my life, this will define what<br />

stress is,” Gilbert replied.<br />

The agency gradually phased out FABs by 1990.<br />

2<br />

July<br />

PATCO files for Chapter 7 bankruptcy. President Gary Eads says <strong>the</strong> union<br />

has $5 million in assets but owes $40 million, including $33.4 million to<br />

airlines for violating a 1970 injunction against striking.<br />

NATCA and <strong>the</strong> FAA had signed <strong>the</strong>ir first contract<br />

by this time, and <strong>the</strong> committees were in violation of<br />

Articles 7 and 48, which concerned negotiations over<br />

changes in <strong>the</strong> workplace.<br />

“The opportunity was here to improve <strong>the</strong> situation<br />

tremendously and <strong>the</strong> opportunity was lost,”<br />

says Jack Crouse, a Washington Center controller<br />

who chose not to strike and later helped lead <strong>the</strong> effort<br />

to form a new union at <strong>the</strong> facility. “The FAA did<br />

not take advantage of it.”<br />

Instead, <strong>the</strong> agency turned a deaf ear to complaints<br />

from its work force and a blind eye to <strong>the</strong><br />

Jones Committee reports and General Accounting<br />

Office studies that documented <strong>the</strong> FAA’s abysmal<br />

employee-management relations. Staggering under<br />

<strong>the</strong> weight of so many autocratic managers, <strong>the</strong><br />

agency found itself incapable of significant change.<br />

Just as <strong>the</strong> PATCO strike had evolved into a fait accompli,<br />

so, too, did <strong>the</strong>se new seeds of discontent inevitably<br />

blossom into <strong>the</strong> desire for regaining union<br />

representation.<br />

1. 1982. Incompetent management found to be a factor in low morale among<br />

controllers. Daily Labor Reporter. 17 March (No. 52).<br />

2. Chiles, Jim. 1990. The rigors of air traffic control school. Smithsonian Magazine.<br />

January.<br />

Chapter 2: Opportunity Lost<br />

43


“ We wanted a<br />

greater voice<br />

because we knew<br />

what happened<br />

when we didn’t<br />

have one.<br />

— President John Carr<br />

Day of reckoning: NATCA provisional<br />

regional reps and o<strong>the</strong>rs listen to national<br />

organizer John Thornton, right, on June 11,<br />

1987, when <strong>the</strong> FLRA tallied votes that resulted<br />

in union certification. / NATCA archives


Chapter 3<br />

A Long and <strong>Wind</strong>ing Road<br />

The day shift had ended at Washington Center, a squat, oblong building<br />

clad in red brick and white corrugated metal siding on <strong>the</strong> outskirts<br />

of Leesburg, Virginia. Many of <strong>the</strong> controllers trudging across<br />

<strong>the</strong> parking lot were exhausted. Washington Center handles traffic over eight<br />

states, including <strong>the</strong> congested New York-D.C. corridor.<br />

Since 1981, <strong>the</strong> number of flights had increased<br />

20 percent to an average of 6,000 a day, yet<br />

<strong>the</strong> ranks of radar controllers had rebounded to only<br />

about half <strong>the</strong>ir pre-strike levels. On this afternoon in<br />

<strong>the</strong> fall of 1983, twelve to fifteen controllers chose not<br />

to go directly home. Alerted by word of mouth to a<br />

special meeting, <strong>the</strong>y ga<strong>the</strong>red around a large conference<br />

table in a training room on <strong>the</strong> second floor of<br />

<strong>the</strong> facility. Many of <strong>the</strong>m, including a well-liked man<br />

named Rick Jones, were veterans who had stayed on<br />

<strong>the</strong> job in 1981.<br />

Jones stood up and began talking about a new<br />

program <strong>the</strong> FAA planned to implement at all of its<br />

centers called Structured Staffing. The agency intended<br />

to limit <strong>the</strong> number of full-performance level<br />

radar controllers. New-hires could not move up until<br />

<strong>the</strong>re was a vacancy. It appeared no relief was in sight<br />

for FPLs weary of six-day weeks that resulted from<br />

short staffing.<br />

“My head, my stomach, my<br />

whole body is spinning around,”<br />

one controller said at <strong>the</strong> time. “I<br />

can’t keep up with <strong>the</strong> workload.<br />

You ei<strong>the</strong>r need more people to do<br />

<strong>the</strong> work or you need less work—<br />

it’s a simple equation.” 1<br />

Ano<strong>the</strong>r aspect of Structured<br />

Staffing, which <strong>the</strong> FAA put<br />

into effect soon after <strong>the</strong> Washington<br />

Center meeting, gave priority<br />

for on-<strong>the</strong>-job training to developmentals with college<br />

credits, regardless of previous air traffic control<br />

Paul Williams<br />

Birthplace: Frustrated by short-staffing,<br />

air traffic controllers at Washington Center<br />

formed a facility-based organization<br />

called NATCA during <strong>the</strong> fall of 1983.


46<br />

1982<br />

<strong>Against</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>Wind</strong><br />

9<br />

July<br />

experience. On <strong>the</strong> surface, <strong>the</strong> policy appeared to be<br />

profiling. It favored new-hires with more education,<br />

a group that might be less likely to harbor pro-union<br />

sentiments.<br />

But, ra<strong>the</strong>r than<br />

quell ano<strong>the</strong>r uprising,<br />

<strong>the</strong> agency sparked a<br />

fire. Angry trainees with<br />

more seniority watched<br />

helplessly as <strong>the</strong>y were<br />

passed over. Ex-military<br />

controllers in <strong>the</strong><br />

FAA were particularly<br />

incensed. Despite <strong>the</strong>ir<br />

years at military air bases<br />

or onboard aircraft carriers,<br />

<strong>the</strong>y were relegated to<br />

passing out flight strips<br />

and assisting radar controllers.<br />

Meanwhile, less<br />

experienced colleagues,<br />

many of whom had no<br />

aviation background,<br />

advanced in <strong>the</strong> training program and enjoyed accompanying<br />

pay raises.<br />

“The academy was tough enough,” says Atlanta<br />

Center controller Don Brown, whose class in Oklahoma<br />

City lost 65 percent. “Once we got back, we had<br />

to do just about as much work all over again before<br />

A Pan American World <strong>Air</strong>ways 727 departing from New Orleans International<br />

<strong>Air</strong>port encounters wind shear and crashes, killing all 145 aboard<br />

and eight on <strong>the</strong> ground. A subsequent study recommends wider use of<br />

we got on <strong>the</strong> floor. And <strong>the</strong>n we got on <strong>the</strong> floor and<br />

that was tough. But we survived this process—where<br />

you had to be superhuman to do it because <strong>the</strong> vast<br />

majority of us didn’t make it—and what was our<br />

reward? They held us up<br />

six months.”<br />

The issue involved<br />

more than money. For<br />

“<br />

academy graduates who’d<br />

been told <strong>the</strong>y could check<br />

out at <strong>the</strong>ir en route center<br />

in two years and two<br />

days—an impractical goal<br />

for such a complex job,<br />

<strong>the</strong>y realized later—this<br />

constituted <strong>the</strong> “first big<br />

lie” from <strong>the</strong>ir employer.<br />

The FAA also proposed<br />

a variation of Structured<br />

— Washington Center controller Staffing for towers and<br />

TRACONs, but never<br />

implemented it.<br />

For <strong>the</strong> Washington<br />

Center controllers who had ga<strong>the</strong>red after work,<br />

<strong>the</strong> mere prospect of Structured Staffing was <strong>the</strong> last<br />

straw. Most of <strong>the</strong>m had been fully trained long ago.<br />

But <strong>the</strong> center dearly needed more radar controllers<br />

so <strong>the</strong>y could cut back on <strong>the</strong>ir overtime hours. Nor<br />

did <strong>the</strong> old guard like how <strong>the</strong> program would delay<br />

My head, my stomach, my<br />

whole body is spinning<br />

around. I can’t keep up with<br />

<strong>the</strong> workload. You ei<strong>the</strong>r need<br />

more people to do <strong>the</strong> work<br />

or you need less work—it’s a<br />

simple equation.<br />

Low-Level <strong>Wind</strong> Shear Alert Systems at airports, and in October 1983 <strong>the</strong><br />

FAA orders fifty-one more systems. By October 1991, LLWAS units are<br />

installed at 110 airports across <strong>the</strong> country.


timely advancement of new-hires. Rick Jones and<br />

o<strong>the</strong>rs in <strong>the</strong> room agreed that <strong>the</strong> only way <strong>the</strong>y<br />

could try to change <strong>the</strong> new policy, along with o<strong>the</strong>r<br />

issues, was through a labor union.<br />

Philosophical deliberation quickly turned tactical:<br />

Who could lead <strong>the</strong>ir embryonic group? For<br />

president, Jones suggested Jack Crouse, an <strong>Air</strong> Force<br />

veteran who had worked at Rochester Tower and<br />

Baltimore Approach before transferring to <strong>the</strong> center<br />

about six weeks before <strong>the</strong> strike. Easygoing and<br />

articulate, Crouse seemed like a good choice and <strong>the</strong><br />

controllers appointed him without<br />

bo<strong>the</strong>ring to vote.<br />

They also agreed on Charlie<br />

Bolling for vice president and a<br />

tall, heavyset controller named Mike<br />

Scott, who’d previously worked at<br />

Chicago Center, for treasurer. For secretary,<br />

<strong>the</strong>y prevailed on John Bentley,<br />

a Washington Center mainstay since<br />

1970 who was perfectly suited for <strong>the</strong><br />

position. He owned a key tool of <strong>the</strong><br />

trade—a RadioShack TRS-80 ® computer.<br />

With that settled, a new question arose: What<br />

should <strong>the</strong>y call <strong>the</strong>mselves? Someone suggested<br />

PATCA, replacing “Organization” with “<strong>Association</strong>.”<br />

Crouse shook his head. Too close to PATCO, he said.<br />

Someone else proposed NATCO, and <strong>the</strong> wheels be-<br />

5<br />

Nov.<br />

The FAA announces it will consider specially qualified air traffic controller<br />

applicants who are 31 to 35 years old, waiving <strong>the</strong> previous age limit of<br />

gan turning. The <strong>Air</strong> <strong>Traffic</strong> Control <strong>Association</strong> still<br />

existed, so ATCA was ruled out. But what if <strong>the</strong>y added<br />

<strong>the</strong> word “<strong>National</strong>” in front of it?<br />

The group made no decision that day, but <strong>the</strong>y<br />

soon adopted <strong>the</strong> name <strong>National</strong> <strong>Air</strong> <strong>Traffic</strong> <strong>Controllers</strong><br />

<strong>Association</strong>, despite <strong>the</strong>ir intention to form a<br />

single-facility union. The organizers created simple<br />

membership cards and those who joined contributed<br />

whatever <strong>the</strong>y could afford each month. NATCA’s<br />

founders wanted to get back with <strong>the</strong> AFL-CIO, as<br />

<strong>the</strong>ir predecessor<br />

union had<br />

been. But <strong>the</strong>y<br />

learned <strong>the</strong><br />

vast labor organization<br />

was<br />

not accepting<br />

unions<br />

directly. Instead,<br />

NAT-<br />

CA would<br />

need to join<br />

through an AFL-CIO affiliate.<br />

Undeterred, NATCA contacted <strong>the</strong> American<br />

Federation of Government Employees, which represented<br />

about 750,000 workers employed by sixtyseven<br />

agencies and <strong>the</strong> District of Columbia. The controllers’<br />

issues were all too familiar to organizer John<br />

Thornton, whom AFGE had hired a year earlier.<br />

Chapter 3: A Long and <strong>Wind</strong>ing Road<br />

31. The change applies to <strong>the</strong> November 8-30 application period and any<br />

o<strong>the</strong>r application periods through 1984.<br />

47<br />

New union: Within six months of its<br />

founding, two-thirds of Washington Center<br />

controllers had signed a petition supporting<br />

<strong>the</strong> proposed labor organization.


48<br />

1983<br />

<strong>Against</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>Wind</strong><br />

4<br />

Jan.<br />

A fired striker, Thornton had been out of work<br />

until early 1982. He and his family survived on his<br />

wife’s nursing salary until he picked up a job selling<br />

insurance, although he continued to lobby Capitol<br />

Hill to get <strong>the</strong> strikers rehired. Several months later,<br />

John Leyden told Thornton about <strong>the</strong> job at AFGE<br />

and he soon found himself working happily for <strong>the</strong><br />

largest federal employee union in <strong>the</strong> country.<br />

But when his boss approached him about<br />

organizing <strong>the</strong> Washington Center controllers—he<br />

was <strong>the</strong> only PATCO member on staff—Thornton<br />

resisted.<br />

“I didn’t want to do it,” he says. “These were<br />

people who had replaced me. I had a lot of baggage<br />

to get over.” Wrestling with his emotions, Thornton<br />

finally recognized <strong>the</strong> wisdom of helping after Leyden<br />

said to him, “There’s no way <strong>the</strong> government will<br />

allow fired controllers to be rehired unless <strong>the</strong>y’re<br />

unionized.”<br />

One evening in December 1983, as Thornton<br />

headed toward <strong>the</strong> door at AFGE headquarters on his<br />

way to meet some of <strong>the</strong> Leesburg organizers, union<br />

President Ken Blaylock caught his eye and stopped<br />

him. “Now, John, when you get <strong>the</strong>re, you tell those<br />

people that AFGE was <strong>the</strong> only union to support<br />

PATCO. Make sure <strong>the</strong>y know that,” Blaylock said.<br />

Thornton nodded politely. He knew <strong>the</strong> NAT-<br />

CA contingent would never respond to that type of<br />

message and suddenly realized how little <strong>the</strong> clerical<br />

The FAA increases requirements for on-<strong>the</strong>-job instructors.<br />

They must be certified on <strong>the</strong> position <strong>the</strong>y are training, worked<br />

it for at least 30 solo hours, and been certified as an instructor.<br />

A Face from <strong>the</strong> Past<br />

After serving as a controller in <strong>the</strong> <strong>Air</strong><br />

Force for eight years—including a year at<br />

Phan Rang <strong>Air</strong> Base in Vietnam—John Thornton<br />

joined <strong>the</strong> FAA in 1973 at Washington<br />

<strong>National</strong> Tower/TRACON.<br />

He ran for president of <strong>the</strong> PATCO local<br />

three years later while still a trainee. His<br />

bro<strong>the</strong>r-in-law, Victor Padgett, an FPL at <strong>the</strong><br />

facility, tossed his name in <strong>the</strong> ring, too, telling<br />

Thornton, “I didn’t think anyone should<br />

run unopposed.”<br />

But Padgett cast his ballot for Thornton,<br />

who won by a single vote.<br />

Tall, soft-spoken, and professional,<br />

Thornton distinguished himself as a union<br />

leader at <strong>the</strong> facility and as a voting representative<br />

at several PATCO conventions, speaking<br />

for towers and TRACONs from Pittsburgh<br />

south to Richmond and Roanoke, Virginia.<br />

With a young daughter at home, <strong>the</strong><br />

36-year-old fa<strong>the</strong>r worried about <strong>the</strong> health<br />

consequences of his job. He couldn’t bear to<br />

endure <strong>the</strong> same fate as a friend a few years<br />

older who’d suffered a heart attack and was no<br />

longer able to pick up his children. Thornton<br />

joined <strong>the</strong> chorus for a strike in hopes of gaining<br />

a better retirement and shorter workweek.<br />

Like o<strong>the</strong>r notables in PATCO, his<br />

activism attracted unwanted attention. He


was singled out with<br />

five o<strong>the</strong>r controllers<br />

in Washington,<br />

D.C., and Virginia<br />

and arrested on felony<br />

charges of striking<br />

against <strong>the</strong> government.<br />

Kenneth Conklin,<br />

<strong>the</strong> attorney who<br />

represented Thornton<br />

and two o<strong>the</strong>r defendants,<br />

negotiated a<br />

settlement with <strong>the</strong><br />

Justice Department<br />

in which <strong>the</strong>y would<br />

plead no contest to<br />

misdemeanor contempt<br />

charges and pay<br />

a small fine.<br />

But two weeks<br />

before Christmas in<br />

1981, <strong>the</strong> final court<br />

hearing took an unexpected turn.<br />

“The government has made its<br />

point, but <strong>the</strong> court’s point is a little different:<br />

<strong>the</strong> integrity of its orders,” District<br />

Judge Albert Bryan Jr. told Conklin and<br />

his clients. 2<br />

“They made one mistake,” Conk-<br />

Courtesy of Howie Barte<br />

John Thornton: The former PATCO controller<br />

found himself organizing a largely<br />

new work force two years after <strong>the</strong> strike.<br />

�<br />

lin argued in <strong>the</strong>ir<br />

defense. “They didn’t<br />

go back to work.” 3<br />

Unmoved, <strong>the</strong><br />

judge ignored <strong>the</strong> plea<br />

bargain agreement<br />

and sentenced <strong>the</strong><br />

defendants to ten days<br />

in <strong>the</strong> Fairfax County<br />

Jail.<br />

Thornton, Tom<br />

Galloway, who had<br />

been <strong>the</strong> PATCO<br />

president at Washington<br />

Center, and ano<strong>the</strong>r<br />

center controller<br />

named Bill Lombardi<br />

Jr. glanced at each<br />

o<strong>the</strong>r in shock. When<br />

<strong>the</strong> hearing concluded,<br />

federal marshals<br />

handcuffed <strong>the</strong> three<br />

nervous men, secured <strong>the</strong>ir legs with<br />

shackles, and shuffled <strong>the</strong>m out <strong>the</strong> back<br />

door of <strong>the</strong> courthouse to an official car.<br />

In a conciliatory gesture, ano<strong>the</strong>r<br />

judge reduced <strong>the</strong> $5,000 fines levied<br />

against Thornton and Galloway to $1,000<br />

each later that day. *<br />

Chapter 3: A Long and <strong>Wind</strong>ing Road<br />

To <strong>the</strong>ir relief, <strong>the</strong> three controllers<br />

were locked up toge<strong>the</strong>r in <strong>the</strong> same<br />

cellblock with older, non-violent inmates.<br />

For ten sobering days, <strong>the</strong>y slept fitfully<br />

on mattresses on <strong>the</strong> floor and listened as<br />

guards regularly broke up fights among<br />

younger convicts across <strong>the</strong> hall. The<br />

worst moment for Thornton came that<br />

first night when he faced his wife and<br />

daughter through <strong>the</strong> thick glass separating<br />

him from <strong>the</strong> visitors’ room.<br />

Ginny had been present at all previous<br />

hearings, but on Thornton’s advice<br />

she skipped <strong>the</strong> final court appearance on<br />

<strong>the</strong> assumption that it would be routine.<br />

Alerted by his attorney, she quickly called<br />

relatives before <strong>the</strong>y watched <strong>the</strong> evening<br />

news. Eleven-year-old Michelle handled it<br />

well, too, though Thornton still worried<br />

that <strong>the</strong> experience would frighten her.<br />

When <strong>the</strong> trio was released, 200<br />

controllers and <strong>the</strong>ir families massed<br />

outside <strong>the</strong> jailhouse to greet <strong>the</strong>m in a<br />

touching show of support.<br />

* Fines were also reduced for <strong>the</strong> PATCO presidents from<br />

Dulles Tower/TRACON and Newport News, Virginia. Stephen<br />

Wallaert of Norfolk Tower/TRACON was not fined,<br />

but spent a week in jail in August 1981.<br />

49


50<br />

<strong>Against</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>Wind</strong><br />

union understood his former profession. The key, he<br />

believed, was to focus on controller issues.<br />

Outlining <strong>the</strong> process of forming a union, he<br />

explained to <strong>the</strong> group that <strong>the</strong>y had to collect signatures<br />

calling for an election from at least 30 percent of<br />

<strong>the</strong> work force. The petition would <strong>the</strong>n be filed with<br />

<strong>the</strong> Federal Labor Relations Authority. Then, once an<br />

Brian Fallon<br />

Expanding interest: The strike wiped out much of <strong>the</strong> work force at New York TRACON. Heavy traffic, understaffing,<br />

and a difficult certification process for trainees prompted controllers to discuss organizing a new union in early 1984.<br />

1983<br />

Feb. Feb.<br />

Transportation Secretary Drew Lewis leaves office after serving<br />

since January 23, 1981.<br />

1<br />

7<br />

election was scheduled, a majority would have to vote<br />

in favor of <strong>the</strong> union.<br />

The next month, President Reagan recited <strong>the</strong><br />

oath of office for his second term. At AFGE, Thornton’s<br />

phone began ringing with calls from controllers<br />

in New York, Atlanta, several cities in Florida, and<br />

elsewhere.<br />

The Pressure Cooker<br />

Situated along bustling Stewart Avenue in <strong>the</strong><br />

Long Island suburb of Westbury is New York TRA-<br />

CON. The boxy white building contains a cavernous<br />

dark room with radarscopes lining all four walls and<br />

rows of lockers that stand upright like sentries behind<br />

<strong>the</strong> scopes. In <strong>the</strong> center of <strong>the</strong> room are more scopes,<br />

plus desks for supervisors and o<strong>the</strong>r personnel.<br />

From here, controllers juggle thousands of arrivals<br />

and departures every day from seventeen airport<br />

towers crowded into some of <strong>the</strong> most congested<br />

airspace in <strong>the</strong> world. Aside from <strong>the</strong> big three—Kennedy,<br />

LaGuardia, and Newark—Teterboro in New<br />

Jersey ranks as one of <strong>the</strong> busiest general aviation<br />

airports in <strong>the</strong> country. <strong>Controllers</strong> also coordinate<br />

en route traffic crossing over <strong>the</strong> metropolitan area<br />

with Boston, New York, and Washington centers.<br />

Formerly known as <strong>the</strong> “Common IFR Room,”<br />

<strong>the</strong> facility earned a notorious reputation in <strong>the</strong> wake<br />

of <strong>the</strong> strike for its heavy traffic and harsh manage-<br />

Elizabeth Dole takes over from Lewis. Dole, most recently<br />

assistant to President Reagan for public liaison, had served in<br />

government posts as far back as <strong>the</strong> Johnson administration.


ment, which increasingly leaned on <strong>the</strong> decimated<br />

work force to move more metal.<br />

The pressure cooker atmosphere was often brutal<br />

for trainees, half of whom washed out. Walking on<br />

eggshells trying to please <strong>the</strong>ir instructors, <strong>the</strong>y frequented<br />

<strong>the</strong> local T.G.I. Friday’s and o<strong>the</strong>r watering<br />

holes, hoping to pass muster with <strong>the</strong> FPLs in an<br />

initiation rite to certification.<br />

The atmosphere also helped spawn close<br />

friendships and a hotbed of unionism that<br />

brought toge<strong>the</strong>r such activists as Phil Barbarello,<br />

Steve Bell, Joe Fruscella, Steve Kelley, and<br />

Joe O’Brien, all of whom worked in <strong>the</strong> Newark<br />

sector, and Barry Krasner over in <strong>the</strong> LaGuardia<br />

area. *<br />

George Kerr was now on <strong>the</strong> boards at <strong>the</strong> TRA-<br />

CON, too, working in <strong>the</strong> Islip sector. After losing his<br />

re-election bid as <strong>the</strong> Eastern Region vice president<br />

for PATCO, he left office a month before <strong>the</strong> strike.<br />

Kerr suffered from hepatitis A, a condition that prevented<br />

him from passing <strong>the</strong> FAA’s medical exam, his<br />

ticket back to <strong>the</strong> boards. Consequently, he watched<br />

sadly from home as thousands of fellow union members<br />

forfeited <strong>the</strong>ir careers.<br />

By <strong>the</strong> time he recuperated, PATCO had been<br />

decertified. With <strong>the</strong> help of <strong>the</strong> FAA Eastern Region<br />

director and <strong>the</strong> agency’s head of labor relations, who<br />

respected Kerr’s honesty and even-handedness, he<br />

was rehired in September 1982.<br />

Fall<br />

The FAA institutes Structured Staffing at its centers. The program limits<br />

<strong>the</strong> number of radar controllers, which delays training for new-hires and<br />

increases overtime for journeymen. Structured Staffing also gives priority<br />

Kerr immediately saw that little had changed<br />

within <strong>the</strong> FAA. He also felt a certain debt over getting<br />

his job back. “I’m a trade unionist and I do believe<br />

in this thing called <strong>the</strong> bro<strong>the</strong>rhood,” he says.<br />

When new controllers sought his advice<br />

on workplace issues, he offered<br />

it freely.<br />

Krasner, O’Brien, and o<strong>the</strong>rs<br />

had learned about NATCA<br />

at Washington Center. Frustrated<br />

by <strong>the</strong> ineffectiveness<br />

of <strong>the</strong> TRACON’s Human Relations<br />

Council, <strong>the</strong>y heeded<br />

Kerr’s whispered suggestions<br />

about organizing and held a meeting<br />

for controllers in early 1984 at <strong>the</strong><br />

Westbury Holiday Inn. Only a handful of people<br />

showed up, but <strong>the</strong> group was determined to move<br />

forward. They appointed O’Brien and Krasner as<br />

president and vice president, respectively, of an organization<br />

with no formal name.<br />

Krasner, who grew up in Flushing, New York,<br />

had quit high school five months before graduation<br />

(he later earned his GED) and served as a surveillance<br />

radar controller on a guided missile frigate in<br />

<strong>the</strong> Atlantic. After his discharge from <strong>the</strong> Navy, he<br />

attended electronics school and opened a shop with<br />

a friend. But <strong>the</strong> business relationship soured and he<br />

drifted along selling electronics parts. By <strong>the</strong> time of<br />

Chapter 3: A Long and <strong>Wind</strong>ing Road<br />

for on-<strong>the</strong>-job training to controllers with college credits regardless of<br />

previous ATC experience. The FAA dissolves Structured Staffing in June<br />

1984, but it leads some frustrated controllers to thoughts of a union.<br />

51<br />

Joe O’Brien: The former Navy controller<br />

was 22 when he started at New York<br />

TRACON in February 1982. Two years<br />

later, he was appointed <strong>the</strong> facility’s first<br />

local president. / Courtesy of Howie Barte<br />

* In spring 2002, New York TRACON boasted<br />

100 percent membership in NATCA. With<br />

250 controllers and fourteen traffic management<br />

specialists, it was <strong>the</strong> largest such local<br />

in <strong>the</strong> country. Chicago Center ranked as <strong>the</strong><br />

local with <strong>the</strong> most members—400.


52<br />

<strong>Against</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>Wind</strong><br />

<strong>the</strong> strike, Krasner was on <strong>the</strong> brink of turning 29,<br />

and realized he and his wife needed more financial<br />

security. <strong>Air</strong> traffic control seemed like a good bet.<br />

He took <strong>the</strong> FAA’s entrance exam and <strong>the</strong> agency<br />

soon called to offer him a job.<br />

Despite his experience in <strong>the</strong> Navy, Krasner<br />

didn’t know much about air traffic control, least of all<br />

<strong>the</strong> distinction between centers and TRACONs. When<br />

<strong>the</strong> FAA asked him where he wanted to work, he inquired,<br />

“What’s <strong>the</strong> highest-paying place closest to my<br />

house?” New York TRACON, <strong>the</strong> agency said. Krasner<br />

promptly told <strong>the</strong>m <strong>the</strong> TRACON was his choice. At<br />

<strong>the</strong> academy, though, he began to question his decision.<br />

Instructors who heard where he was headed after<br />

Japphire<br />

Atlanta Center: Organizing began here in spring 1984 after controllers heard about efforts in Washington and New<br />

York. Despite fear of management reprisals, 30 percent of <strong>the</strong> center’s controllers signed a petition within one week.<br />

1983<br />

Fall<br />

<strong>Controllers</strong> at Washington Center talk about creating an independent<br />

union at <strong>the</strong>ir facility. Veterans Jack Crouse, Charlie Bolling, John Bentley,<br />

and Mike Scott lead <strong>the</strong> effort, which <strong>the</strong>y call <strong>the</strong> <strong>National</strong> <strong>Air</strong> <strong>Traffic</strong><br />

graduation would often ask, “Who did you piss off?”<br />

Krasner’s interest in <strong>the</strong> union was an anomaly<br />

for his family, which only knew about organized labor<br />

from word of mouth. When he called home to announce<br />

his intentions and seek advice, <strong>the</strong> response<br />

reflected that culture.<br />

“Don’t do it. Just walk away,” said his fa<strong>the</strong>r,<br />

a chiropractor. “You’re going to be fired just like <strong>the</strong><br />

rest of <strong>the</strong>m.”<br />

Krasner shrugged off his concerns. He and <strong>the</strong><br />

o<strong>the</strong>r activists met with John Thornton and went<br />

about <strong>the</strong> process of ga<strong>the</strong>ring signatures for an election<br />

petition. To fund <strong>the</strong>ir venture, <strong>the</strong>y instituted<br />

voluntary dues of $5 a pay period. More than half<br />

of <strong>the</strong> controllers supported <strong>the</strong> effort, coughing up<br />

money to crew reps who came around to collect.<br />

A Daunting Task<br />

Atlanta Center lies tucked away off Highway<br />

19/41, across <strong>the</strong> road from <strong>the</strong> Atlanta Motor Speedway<br />

in rural Hampton, Georgia, a half-hour’s drive<br />

south of <strong>the</strong> city. During a midnight shift, controller<br />

Lee Riley leaned back in his chair, propped both feet<br />

up on <strong>the</strong> console, and chatted on <strong>the</strong> phone with a<br />

colleague in Leesburg.<br />

Riley, who had all of two years of experience<br />

in <strong>the</strong> FAA, was commiserating about a software program<br />

installed recently at <strong>the</strong> centers. Traditionally,<br />

<strong>Controllers</strong> <strong>Association</strong>. O<strong>the</strong>r facilities also launch organizing efforts<br />

soon after, including New York Center and TRACON, and control towers<br />

in Atlantic City, New Jersey, and Bradley, Connecticut.


center controllers visually estimated <strong>the</strong> horizontal<br />

separation minimum of five miles between planes.<br />

The new program—called <strong>the</strong> Operational Error Detection<br />

Patch—automatically documented instances<br />

when Riley and his colleagues underestimated<br />

five miles by as<br />

little as 528 feet. <strong>Controllers</strong><br />

were suffering<br />

deals left and<br />

right while <strong>the</strong>y<br />

grew used to <strong>the</strong><br />

software, which<br />

<strong>the</strong>y scornfully<br />

referred to as “<strong>the</strong><br />

Snitch” and “Squeal-a-<br />

Deal.”<br />

Riley’s ears perked up<br />

when he heard about <strong>the</strong> formation of NATCA in Leesburg.<br />

He passed <strong>the</strong> word on to several Atlanta Center<br />

controllers, including his bro<strong>the</strong>r, Bill, who owned a<br />

trucking business with Lee on <strong>the</strong> side and had been<br />

hired immediately after <strong>the</strong> strike. Galvanized by <strong>the</strong><br />

activity at Washington Center, <strong>the</strong> group held a meeting<br />

in April 1984 at a nearby Holiday Inn to gauge<br />

union interest at <strong>the</strong>ir facility.<br />

They kept <strong>the</strong> ga<strong>the</strong>ring secret from management<br />

in hopes of attracting a larger turnout, but only<br />

a dozen or so controllers attended. Among <strong>the</strong>m was<br />

a crew member from Bill Riley’s area named Randy<br />

23<br />

Dec.<br />

A Korean <strong>Air</strong> Lines cargo DC-10 attempting to take off in fog from Anchorage<br />

International <strong>Air</strong>port collides on <strong>the</strong> runway with a Piper Navajo.<br />

The accident injures three people and destroys both planes. Subsequently,<br />

Carter. Hard working and low-key, Carter represented<br />

<strong>the</strong> anti<strong>the</strong>sis of unionism, and to Riley his presence<br />

spoke volumes about frustration among <strong>the</strong> rank and<br />

file. Despite <strong>the</strong> fear of retaliation from management,<br />

<strong>the</strong> controllers formed a research committee. Tom<br />

Allen, Al Damalas, and Bob Hoffman were appointed<br />

to check out <strong>the</strong>ir options.<br />

Damalas called his old friend, John<br />

Leyden, who put <strong>the</strong> Atlanta group in<br />

touch with George Kerr and NATCA.<br />

Kerr told Damalas about <strong>the</strong> AFGEsponsored<br />

petition drive at New York<br />

TRACON, as well as ano<strong>the</strong>r one at<br />

New York Center. In late spring, <strong>the</strong><br />

Atlanta Center contingent decided to<br />

align itself with AFGE, too, and started to<br />

ga<strong>the</strong>r signatures.<br />

Riley and company faced a daunting task in <strong>the</strong><br />

South. Widespread textile mill strikes earlier in <strong>the</strong><br />

century—as many as 400,000 walked out in 1934—<br />

had cultivated a deep-rooted aversion to labor unions.<br />

Wounds were still fresh for those who endured <strong>the</strong><br />

upheaval in 1981. And many new-hires turned a cold<br />

shoulder to anything resembling a “PATCO II” organization.<br />

<strong>Controllers</strong> who stood still long enough to<br />

listen to <strong>the</strong> pitch about signing a petition fretted over<br />

<strong>the</strong> vast wasteland of trainee washouts, management<br />

clampdowns on phraseology mistakes, and a general<br />

fear of <strong>the</strong> unknown. More than a few who signed<br />

Chapter 3: A Long and <strong>Wind</strong>ing Road<br />

53<br />

Lee Riley: Along with his bro<strong>the</strong>r, Bill, he<br />

was an early advocate for a new controllers’<br />

union. Riley later became Sou<strong>the</strong>rn<br />

regional representative. / NATCA archives<br />

ground radar known as <strong>Air</strong>port Surface Detection Equipment undergoing<br />

testing at <strong>the</strong> FAA Technical Center is transferred to Anchorage. On<br />

October 10, 1985, <strong>the</strong> agency orders thirteen more ASDE-3 units.


54<br />

<strong>Against</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>Wind</strong><br />

1983/84<br />

31<br />

Dec.<br />

sheepishly approached organizers later and asked<br />

<strong>the</strong>m to scratch <strong>the</strong>ir name off <strong>the</strong> list.<br />

“I never saw any management retribution,”<br />

Bill Riley says. “But <strong>the</strong><br />

fear was <strong>the</strong>re.” Never<strong>the</strong>less,<br />

30 percent of Atlanta<br />

Center controllers signed<br />

within <strong>the</strong> first week of<br />

<strong>the</strong>ir drive.<br />

The numbers were<br />

mounting elsewhere, too.<br />

In late May 1984, AFGE<br />

filed a petition with <strong>the</strong><br />

Federal Labor Relations<br />

Authority for an independent,<br />

facility-only union<br />

at Washington Center.<br />

NATCA’s petition included<br />

signatures from twothirds<br />

of <strong>the</strong> 320 controllers<br />

in Leesburg.<br />

In June, AFGE filed<br />

petitions from New York<br />

Center and TRACON<br />

and Atlanta Center, <strong>the</strong><br />

first salvos in a nationwide<br />

drive. Although <strong>the</strong> eventual union would be<br />

relatively small, organizing presented a monumental<br />

challenge. The FAA’s 12,000 controllers staffed about<br />

The FAA cancels its General Aviation Reservation system,<br />

which had been in effect for private pilots wishing to fly IFR<br />

since <strong>the</strong> PATCO strike 2½ years earlier.<br />

450 facilities scattered across all fifty states and several<br />

U.S. territories. Hoping to obtain faster results,<br />

AFGE planned to separately organize each of <strong>the</strong><br />

agency’s nine regions before<br />

combining <strong>the</strong>m into<br />

a national unit.<br />

The union would<br />

be designated a council<br />

“<br />

of AFGE ra<strong>the</strong>r than a<br />

full affiliate. As such, it<br />

was called <strong>the</strong> American<br />

<strong>Air</strong> <strong>Traffic</strong> <strong>Controllers</strong><br />

Council—or AATCC.<br />

Meanwhile, ano<strong>the</strong>r<br />

government union<br />

known as <strong>the</strong> <strong>National</strong><br />

Federation of Federal<br />

Employees submitted<br />

— ALPA President Henry A. Duffy<br />

petitions from control<br />

towers in Atlantic City,<br />

New Jersey, and Bradley-<br />

<strong>Wind</strong>sor Locks in Connecticut.<br />

Whe<strong>the</strong>r <strong>the</strong><br />

combined activity influenced<br />

<strong>the</strong> FAA is unclear,<br />

but <strong>the</strong> agency suspended<br />

its Structured Staffing program that same month.<br />

The controllers’ efforts also attracted outside attention<br />

and gained significant credibility when <strong>the</strong> influ-<br />

<strong>Controllers</strong> must be recognized<br />

by <strong>the</strong>ir employers as<br />

<strong>the</strong> professional group that<br />

<strong>the</strong>y are, and must be provided<br />

with <strong>the</strong> work rules<br />

needed to exercise <strong>the</strong>ir judgments<br />

free of fatigue and<br />

overburdened working<br />

conditions.<br />

31<br />

Jan.<br />

FAA Administrator J. Lynn Helms leaves office after serving<br />

since April 22, 1981.


ential <strong>Air</strong> Line Pilots <strong>Association</strong> endorsed <strong>the</strong>ir cause.<br />

“We don’t wish to see a return to old attitudes,”<br />

ALPA President Henry A. Duffy said. “To prevent<br />

that, <strong>the</strong> controllers must be recognized by <strong>the</strong>ir<br />

employers as <strong>the</strong> professional group that <strong>the</strong>y are,<br />

and must be provided with <strong>the</strong> work rules needed to<br />

exercise <strong>the</strong>ir judgments free of fatigue and overburdened<br />

working conditions.” 4<br />

Like sparks from a prairie fire, pockets of interest<br />

ignited rapidly. Drives sponsored by AFGE spread<br />

south into West Virginia, Tennessee, and Florida,<br />

where former PATCO controller Art Joseph at Miami<br />

Center was collecting signatures. They took flight in<br />

<strong>the</strong> Midwest under Fred Gilbert’s stewardship at Chicago<br />

Center and at Indianapolis Center, where Mike<br />

Ford—one of <strong>the</strong> strikers who’d successfully appealed<br />

his firing—formed a loose-knit group with<br />

some colleagues called <strong>the</strong> Professional <strong>Controllers</strong><br />

Alliance. Out West, veterans Phil Greer at<br />

Oakland Center and Anthony “Skip” Skirlick<br />

at Los Angeles Center sounded <strong>the</strong> call.<br />

In New England, Howie Barte, who’d<br />

refused to strike in Rhode Island, heard about<br />

<strong>the</strong> Washington Center effort earlier in <strong>the</strong><br />

spring. Barte, with warm green eyes punctuated<br />

by dark eyebrows and a face framed in a Dutch boy<br />

haircut, was no stranger to union activism.<br />

A former pilot for three air taxi outfits in<br />

Puerto Rico, he joined <strong>the</strong> FAA during a hiring binge<br />

1984<br />

10<br />

Apr.<br />

in 1970 and later served for eighteen months as <strong>the</strong><br />

local PATCO president at <strong>the</strong> tower in New Bedford,<br />

Massachusetts. Barte transferred to Quonset TRA-<br />

CON in 1978. After barely finishing classroom training,<br />

he demonstrated his characteristic feistiness by<br />

successfully challenging management’s decision to<br />

reschedule developmentals who were supposed to<br />

work on Labor Day, robbing <strong>the</strong>m of holiday pay. He<br />

later became editor of <strong>the</strong> Quonset TRACON Tabloid, a<br />

PATCO newsletter.<br />

Now, however, Barte was reluctant to jump into<br />

<strong>the</strong> fray again. “I really didn’t want to have anything<br />

to do with unions because of <strong>the</strong> fear and anguish<br />

that PATCO put me through,” he says. “But <strong>the</strong> FAA<br />

made me realize how shortsighted that was.”<br />

He, too, phoned Kerr and<br />

subsequently received a call<br />

from John Thornton. At a<br />

meeting in May, Thornton<br />

met Barte, Donna Gropper,<br />

who was a controller at<br />

Providence Tower, and eight<br />

or so o<strong>the</strong>rs from Quonset,<br />

Providence, New Bedford,<br />

and Groton, Connecticut. Once<br />

again, Thornton mapped out <strong>the</strong> road to a union.<br />

After returning to Washington, Thornton called<br />

Barte to ask if he’d serve as <strong>the</strong> New England organizing<br />

representative. With 8- and 11-year-old daugh-<br />

Retired Navy Vice Adm. Donald D. Engen takes over as FAA administrator<br />

from J. Lynn Helms, who resigned two months earlier. Engen received<br />

twenty-nine decorations for flying in World War II. He also flew combat<br />

Chapter 3: A Long and <strong>Wind</strong>ing Road<br />

55<br />

Dynamic duo: <strong>Controllers</strong> Donna Gropper<br />

and Howie Barte led <strong>the</strong> drive to<br />

organize facilities throughout New England<br />

during <strong>the</strong> summer of 1984. / NATCA archives<br />

missions in <strong>the</strong> Korean War. After retiring from <strong>the</strong> Navy in 1978, he<br />

worked for Piper <strong>Air</strong>craft Corporation and <strong>the</strong> consulting firm Kentron<br />

before becoming a member of <strong>the</strong> <strong>National</strong> Transportation Safety Board.


56<br />

<strong>Against</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>Wind</strong><br />

Donna Gropper: Since <strong>the</strong> FAA hired her<br />

in 1975, Gropper has worked in numerous<br />

union and management positions. She is<br />

now air traffic manager at Orlando Tower/<br />

TRACON. Workers and management laud<br />

her collaborative philosophy. / Japphire<br />

* PATCO’s bargaining unit included automation<br />

specialists, who maintain <strong>the</strong> software<br />

programs that run radarscopes and o<strong>the</strong>r<br />

equipment at FAA facilities. They logically<br />

became involved in efforts for a new union.<br />

1984<br />

May<br />

ters who kept him on <strong>the</strong> go and a half-built addition<br />

in <strong>the</strong> back of his home waiting to be finished, Barte<br />

declined. “All I wanted was a contract,” he says. “I<br />

didn’t want to be a leader. I didn’t have time to get<br />

involved.”<br />

Thornton <strong>the</strong>n asked Gropper, who agreed.<br />

Like Barte, she had been involved in<br />

PATCO as <strong>the</strong> secretary and vice<br />

president of <strong>the</strong> union local at<br />

Mac Arthur TRACAB (a combined<br />

tower and TRACON)<br />

on Long Island. However,<br />

Barte, a passionate, driven<br />

individual who could<br />

not stand idly on <strong>the</strong><br />

sidelines, called Thornton<br />

back. “We’ll give<br />

you two for <strong>the</strong> price of<br />

one,” he said. “We’ll be<br />

co-reps.”<br />

Throughout <strong>the</strong><br />

summer, <strong>the</strong> two arduously<br />

mounted <strong>the</strong>ir drive<br />

for signatures, quickly turning<br />

petitions over to AFGE from <strong>the</strong><br />

four facilities that attended <strong>the</strong> May meeting as well<br />

as o<strong>the</strong>rs in New England. During all of <strong>the</strong>ir spare<br />

time, Barte burned up <strong>the</strong> phone lines making contacts<br />

while Gropper tapped a staccato beat on <strong>the</strong>ir<br />

AFGE files a petition with <strong>the</strong> FLRA to form NATCA at Washington Center.<br />

The petition is signed by 214 controllers, about two-thirds of those<br />

working in Leesburg, Virginia. In June, AFGE also files petitions for Atlanta<br />

Royal typewriter crafting a monthly newsletter to<br />

spread <strong>the</strong> gospel.<br />

On October 22, 1984, AFGE filed a petition on<br />

behalf of all facilities in New England, making it <strong>the</strong><br />

first region to seek an election for a union. The bargaining<br />

unit would represent about 665 controllers,<br />

automation specialists, and air traffic assistants. *<br />

“It really took fire in <strong>the</strong> Nor<strong>the</strong>ast,” recalls<br />

Gropper, who later moved into several management<br />

positions along <strong>the</strong> Eastern Seaboard<br />

before assuming her current job as air traffic<br />

manager at Orlando Tower/TRACON. “But I<br />

was amazed by how <strong>the</strong> rest of <strong>the</strong> country<br />

came through pretty quickly, too. It<br />

was a grass-roots effort.”<br />

By this time, AFGE had filed petitions<br />

from twenty-eight facilities and organizing<br />

had branched out into Kansas,<br />

Texas, Arizona, New Mexico, and as far<br />

away as Alaska.<br />

A Damaging Rift<br />

Even as <strong>the</strong> controllers celebrated reaching<br />

a major milestone in New England, several brewing<br />

problems threatened <strong>the</strong>ir momentum.<br />

In Atlanta, <strong>the</strong> Riley bro<strong>the</strong>rs disliked AFGE’s<br />

policy of making <strong>the</strong>ir proposed union a council<br />

ra<strong>the</strong>r than a separate affiliate. “We have different<br />

Center, and New York Center and TRACON for a union called <strong>the</strong><br />

American <strong>Air</strong> <strong>Traffic</strong> <strong>Controllers</strong> Council (AATCC). NFFE files for unions<br />

at control towers in Atlantic City, New Jersey, and Bradley, Connecticut.


needs. We wanted to be our own game,” Lee Riley<br />

says. How could <strong>the</strong> controllers expect AFGE to<br />

negotiate on <strong>the</strong>ir behalf for a straight 20-year retirement,<br />

extra sick leave, and a major pay raise when its<br />

legions of office workers could not justify <strong>the</strong> same<br />

consideration because of <strong>the</strong> less stressful nature of<br />

<strong>the</strong>ir jobs?<br />

O<strong>the</strong>r controllers agreed—up to a point. Yes,<br />

<strong>the</strong>ir profession faced unique issues that were foreign<br />

to AFGE’s membership. But <strong>the</strong>y did not believe <strong>the</strong><br />

union’s policy on councils was a showstopper. If<br />

AFGE failed to serve <strong>the</strong>m adequately, <strong>the</strong> controllers<br />

could affiliate with ano<strong>the</strong>r union after <strong>the</strong>y were<br />

certified as a bargaining unit.<br />

The Rileys disagreed, however, and withdrew<br />

<strong>the</strong>ir support for AATCC. * The bro<strong>the</strong>rs did not<br />

speak officially for <strong>the</strong> Sou<strong>the</strong>rn Region, but <strong>the</strong>ir<br />

actions affected <strong>the</strong> organizing. Only 24 percent of<br />

<strong>the</strong> region’s 2,700 controllers had signed AATCC petitions<br />

by December 1984.<br />

In a yearend status report, AFGE organizing<br />

director David Kushner noted that <strong>the</strong> rift “hurt us<br />

quite badly and spilled over to Southwest, Central,<br />

and Western-Pacific regions.” At a just-concluded<br />

meeting in Chicago, he wrote, several AATCC regional<br />

representatives talked about <strong>the</strong> difficulty in<br />

attracting younger controllers. The new-hires echoed<br />

<strong>the</strong> Rileys’ contention that a union of clerical workers<br />

didn’t understand <strong>the</strong>ir profession well enough to<br />

22<br />

Oct.<br />

AFGE files a petition for AATCC New England. More than 40 percent<br />

of controllers have signed petition cards. The FLRA holds hearings on<br />

AATCC’s petition November 27-30. The FAA challenges <strong>the</strong> proposed<br />

help <strong>the</strong>m effectively. Even in <strong>the</strong> Eastern Region, anchored<br />

by <strong>the</strong> labor stronghold of New York, Kushner<br />

warned that support for AFGE was waning.<br />

Predictably, AATCC also faced resistance from<br />

its employer, which did not welcome <strong>the</strong> prospect<br />

of ano<strong>the</strong>r union regardless of its affiliation. Retired<br />

Navy Adm. Donald Engen, who had taken over as<br />

FAA administrator from J. Lynn Helms in April 1984,<br />

publicly acknowledged that <strong>the</strong> agency “never really<br />

resolved” its labor problems. But he said he preferred<br />

to work with controllers individually. 5<br />

That July, <strong>the</strong> FAA moved to derail <strong>the</strong> organizers.<br />

In a motion filed with <strong>the</strong> FLRA, <strong>the</strong> agency<br />

sought to consolidate all <strong>the</strong> facility petitions into<br />

a single national bargaining unit. “The employees<br />

covered by <strong>the</strong> petitions do not have a community of<br />

interest separate and distinct” from controllers elsewhere,<br />

<strong>the</strong> FAA argued. The FLRA scheduled hearings<br />

in November to consider <strong>the</strong> issue.<br />

Ironically, <strong>the</strong> FAA had taken <strong>the</strong> opposite stance<br />

in 1970 when it demanded that PATCO form single-facility<br />

unions. As a result of <strong>the</strong> agency’s current tactic,<br />

controllers would have to invest significantly more<br />

time and money to collect signatures from 30 percent<br />

of <strong>the</strong> entire work force before an election could be<br />

held. The outlook was even gloomier at Washington<br />

Center, where <strong>the</strong> agency’s action appeared to doom<br />

<strong>the</strong> independent NATCA. In September, Jack Crouse<br />

and company decided to merge <strong>the</strong>ir effort with<br />

Chapter 3: A Long and <strong>Wind</strong>ing Road<br />

union on <strong>the</strong> grounds that it is regional ra<strong>the</strong>r than national and includes<br />

data systems specialists (<strong>the</strong>y were included in PATCO’s bargaining unit).<br />

A regional FLRA director rules in AATCC’s favor, but <strong>the</strong> FAA appeals.<br />

57<br />

The darkest cloud<br />

overshadowing <strong>the</strong><br />

organizing effort<br />

was money. AFGE<br />

had serious financial<br />

difficulties.<br />

* In March 1985, Lee Riley and Anthony “Skip”<br />

Skirlick formed an organization called <strong>the</strong><br />

United <strong>Air</strong> <strong>Traffic</strong> <strong>Controllers</strong> Lobby in hopes<br />

of affiliating directly with ALPA. However, <strong>the</strong><br />

group never got off <strong>the</strong> ground.


58<br />

<strong>Against</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>Wind</strong><br />

AATCC and <strong>the</strong> NATCA name was dropped.<br />

The darkest cloud overshadowing <strong>the</strong> effort<br />

was money. AFGE membership had plummeted<br />

during <strong>the</strong> early 1980s, creating serious financial<br />

difficulties. In his report, Kushner proposed a conservative<br />

budget of $675,000 to continue organizing<br />

<strong>the</strong> controllers in 1985. He conceded it would<br />

take ano<strong>the</strong>r twelve to fifteen months before AFGE<br />

could expect enough money in dues from AATCC<br />

to cover its costs. Kushner also worried about <strong>the</strong><br />

“shallow support” for <strong>the</strong> effort among AFGE’s<br />

national vice presidents, given its financial constraints<br />

and <strong>the</strong> challenges of organizing a different<br />

Japphire<br />

800 Independence Avenue: In its appeal against petitions for regional unions, <strong>the</strong> FAA argued that it ran <strong>the</strong> air traffic<br />

control system from headquarters in Washington and, <strong>the</strong>refore, <strong>the</strong> new bargaining unit should be nationwide.<br />

1984<br />

2<br />

Nov.<br />

At an AATCC New England meeting, controllers elect Howie Barte from<br />

Quonset TRACON in Rhode Island as <strong>the</strong>ir regional representative. Several<br />

o<strong>the</strong>r regions also have reps by this time: Eastern, Joe D’Alessio, later<br />

type of work force.<br />

The movement at Washington Center, which<br />

began a mere two years after <strong>the</strong> strike, had sparked<br />

regional activity and coalesced into a promising<br />

takeoff. But as AATCC ended 1984 on a tenuous<br />

note, <strong>the</strong> flight toward a national union was in danger<br />

of stalling.<br />

<strong>Controllers</strong> Win a Round<br />

A badly needed victory lifted spirits on February<br />

28, 1985, when <strong>the</strong> FLRA approved <strong>the</strong> New<br />

England petition. The ruling followed three days<br />

of hearings <strong>the</strong> previous November, when <strong>the</strong> FAA<br />

reiterated its objection to <strong>the</strong> proposed single-facility<br />

unions in Atlantic City and Bradley-<strong>Wind</strong>sor Locks<br />

as well as <strong>the</strong> regional unit in New England.<br />

The agency argued that it directed air traffic<br />

operations and employee relations from its headquarters<br />

at 800 Independence Avenue in Washington—not<br />

from its nine regional offices. Therefore,<br />

any union should be national in scope. The FAA also<br />

maintained that automation specialists were part of<br />

management and should not be included in any bargaining<br />

unit.<br />

FLRA Regional Director S. Jesse Reuben partially<br />

agreed and dismissed petitions for <strong>the</strong> singlefacility<br />

unions. But he allowed <strong>the</strong> New England unit<br />

by noting that FAA regional directors “have broad au-<br />

replaced by Joe O’Brien, both from New York TRACON; Great Lakes,<br />

Fred Gilbert from Chicago Center; Northwest Mountain, Gary Molen<br />

from Salt Lake Center.


thority concerning day-to-day conditions of employment.”<br />

Reuben also agreed with AATCC’s inclusion of<br />

automation specialists and air traffic assistants in <strong>the</strong><br />

union since employees in both jobs worked closely<br />

with controllers. <strong>Traffic</strong> assistants even reported<br />

to <strong>the</strong> same supervisors and personnel office.<br />

The FAA had sixty days to appeal, until<br />

which time <strong>the</strong> election for a union in<br />

New England remained on hold. Never<strong>the</strong>less,<br />

<strong>the</strong> ruling thrilled AATCC’s organizers.<br />

They were also encouraged that <strong>the</strong><br />

FLRA’s regional director understood <strong>the</strong><br />

FAA’s inconsistent management policies.<br />

All controllers knew that <strong>the</strong> FAA was not<br />

<strong>the</strong> cohesive, nationwide entity it purported<br />

to be. Substantial differences in work rules,<br />

terminology, and even some operating procedures<br />

existed among <strong>the</strong> regions, giving rise to <strong>the</strong> term<br />

“<strong>the</strong> Nine Kingdoms.”<br />

Shortly after <strong>the</strong> ruling, Eastern Region ga<strong>the</strong>red<br />

enough signatures to petition <strong>the</strong> FLRA for a<br />

second regional unit. By <strong>the</strong> spring of 1985, AATCC<br />

had submitted sixty-four petitions—more than double<br />

<strong>the</strong> number from <strong>the</strong> previous October—from<br />

facilities in twenty states and Puerto Rico, thanks<br />

to dogged efforts by Thornton, two organizers he’d<br />

hired, and numerous controllers. Discontent was<br />

so pervasive at <strong>the</strong> San Juan CERAP that Barte and<br />

Gropper signed up most of <strong>the</strong> controllers during a<br />

30<br />

Nov.<br />

The United States <strong>Air</strong> <strong>Traffic</strong> Control Organization disbands due to a lack<br />

of money. USATCO was created in April 1982 and included about 800<br />

members at its peak in 1983. Existing without a contract or an employer,<br />

three-day trip to Puerto Rico.<br />

AFGE’s Eastern states organizer was Beth Thomas.<br />

A former operating room nurse turned controller,<br />

Thomas had firsthand experience<br />

with <strong>the</strong> issues and was steeped in<br />

union culture. She had grown<br />

up in Altoona, Pennsylvania,<br />

where her grandfa<strong>the</strong>r<br />

sloshed through knee-deep,<br />

icy water in <strong>the</strong> state’s coal<br />

mines. His descriptions<br />

of <strong>the</strong> hazardous working<br />

conditions—miners carried<br />

a canary with <strong>the</strong>m through<br />

<strong>the</strong> dark, dank tunnels to<br />

warn of toxic gases—left a lasting<br />

impression about <strong>the</strong> important<br />

protections that unions can provide.<br />

Thomas’s mo<strong>the</strong>r worked for <strong>the</strong> city and belonged<br />

to a union, as did several uncles who held railroad<br />

jobs.<br />

Her husband, Chuck, was a fired controller<br />

in Tampa. Beth Thomas had applied to <strong>the</strong> agency<br />

in <strong>the</strong> 1970s and was waiting to be hired when <strong>the</strong><br />

strike hit. The FAA offered her a job soon after, but<br />

she declined. However, she accepted a second offer<br />

in December 1981 and was assigned to small control<br />

towers in Hagerstown, Maryland, and Binghamton,<br />

New York. Unable to transfer back to Tampa, where<br />

Chapter 3: A Long and <strong>Wind</strong>ing Road<br />

USATCO focused on reinstating <strong>the</strong> fired controllers. Membership continually<br />

dwindled, however, in <strong>the</strong> face of a May 1984 federal court ruling<br />

against reinstatement and President Reagan’s re-election in <strong>the</strong> fall.<br />

59<br />

Beth Thomas: The controller turned labor<br />

organizer understood <strong>the</strong> pressures of<br />

her former profession. Even so, Thomas<br />

fought an uphill battle persuading controllers<br />

to support a new union. / NATCA archives


Beth<br />

Thomas<br />

<strong>Traffic</strong> Management<br />

Specialist<br />

2001 — Pre s e n t<br />

Op e r a t i n g in i t i a l s: ET<br />

NATCA archives<br />

HOm e t O w n : Altoona, Pennsylvania<br />

Ot Her tr i v i a:<br />

Completed <strong>the</strong> Boston Marathon in<br />

3 hours, 15 minutes<br />

in t e r e s t s:<br />

Running<br />

ATC FACiliTies<br />

Cu r r e n t:<br />

pr e v i O u s: HGR, BGM<br />

TMB, FLL,<br />

AAT-120<br />

ATCSCC Command Ctr.<br />

Towers<br />

Evaluations<br />

In <strong>the</strong> chess game of life, Beth Thomas has landed<br />

on many squares across <strong>the</strong> board: operating<br />

room nurse, air traffic controller, labor organizer,<br />

manager. While she usually plays on <strong>the</strong> side of<br />

rank-and-file workers, her eclectic background<br />

drives <strong>the</strong> benevolent Thomas to seek strategies<br />

where everyone wins.<br />

Her union orientation was grounded in<br />

<strong>the</strong> hills of Pennsylvania, where family members<br />

mined coal and kept <strong>the</strong> railroads running.<br />

Her management philosophy was influenced by<br />

Maslow’s <strong>the</strong>ory of satisfying <strong>the</strong> hierarchy of<br />

human needs. Those views have been honed by<br />

professional experience.<br />

A better retirement plan prompted her to<br />

leave nursing and join <strong>the</strong> FAA. She also realized<br />

it would be easier to help her former husband,<br />

Chuck, and his colleagues, who were all fired<br />

PATCO strikers, from within <strong>the</strong> agency. Despite<br />

four years in <strong>the</strong> <strong>Air</strong> Force, <strong>the</strong> FAA’s autocratic<br />

rule still turned her off. “There are better ways of<br />

doing business that involve common, decent courtesy,”<br />

she says.<br />

Thomas quit 3½ years later after tiring of <strong>the</strong><br />

commute between upstate New York and her home<br />

in Tampa, Florida. Yet her desire to improve workers’<br />

rights still burned bright. As an organizer for<br />

AFGE and MEBA, she traveled almost constantly<br />

from <strong>the</strong> summer of 1985 until NATCA was certified<br />

in July 1987.<br />

Facing antagonism, apprehension and apa-<br />

Pr e v i o u s NATCA Po s iT i oN s / AC h i e v e m e N T s<br />

1988 contract team; national chairwoman for<br />

Employee Assistance Program and Critical Incident<br />

Stress Mgmt. Team; Sou<strong>the</strong>rn Region QTP coord.<br />

hir e d<br />

Dec.<br />

1981<br />

thy, <strong>the</strong> diminutive Thomas stood firm and won<br />

over many skeptical controllers.<br />

“You have to have a union,” she has always<br />

maintained. “There isn’t ano<strong>the</strong>r avenue, as one<br />

person, to have your voice heard and be recognized.”<br />

After certification, she organized nurses at<br />

four hospitals in South Florida before <strong>the</strong> FAA<br />

rehired her at Tamiami Tower. When Quality<br />

Through Partnership came into vogue, Thomas<br />

went back on <strong>the</strong> road again as <strong>the</strong> Sou<strong>the</strong>rn Region<br />

coordinator and discovered that collaboration<br />

sessions could be testier than organizing meetings.<br />

“People don’t want to give up <strong>the</strong>ir territory,” she<br />

says.<br />

Encouraged by QTP’s potential, Thomas<br />

became air traffic manager at Tamiami for two<br />

years, an experience that reminded her people—<br />

not programs—cultivate successful relationships.<br />

She moved on to <strong>Air</strong> <strong>Traffic</strong> Evaluations and<br />

transferred again to <strong>the</strong> FAA Command Center in<br />

December 2001.<br />

Through it all, Thomas has steadfastly maintained<br />

her relationship with NATCA, ei<strong>the</strong>r as a<br />

full member or an associate. Her long-distance run<br />

with <strong>the</strong> union reflects ano<strong>the</strong>r passion. She has<br />

competed four times in <strong>the</strong> Boston Marathon, as<br />

well as o<strong>the</strong>rs. But Thomas frequently slows down<br />

long enough to savor life, spending free time with<br />

her non-NATCA family: a mo<strong>the</strong>r, sisters, nieces<br />

and nephews, and <strong>the</strong>ir children.


her husband was still living, Thomas quit <strong>the</strong> agency<br />

in May 1985. But she wanted to remain active in <strong>the</strong><br />

movement. A month later, she began working out of<br />

her home for AFGE and Thornton, whom she knew<br />

casually from PATCO days.<br />

Chuck Thomas was a handy carpenter and<br />

crafted an office for his wife in a spare bedroom.<br />

She quickly plastered <strong>the</strong> walls with organizational<br />

charts, contact names at facilities,<br />

travel plans, and signature tallies, which<br />

grew slowly with <strong>the</strong> fragmented organizing<br />

effort. As an outsider, one of her biggest<br />

challenges was spreading <strong>the</strong> word to <strong>the</strong><br />

rank and file on <strong>the</strong> inside.<br />

“Not too many people were willing to<br />

go out on a limb and post stuff on <strong>the</strong> bulletin<br />

board,” Thomas recalls. “It wasn’t readily<br />

accepted in a lot of places. I give a lot of credit to<br />

<strong>the</strong> people who were actively campaigning.”<br />

Even her affable personality couldn’t break<br />

through <strong>the</strong> ice at first in <strong>the</strong> labor-wary South. During<br />

a swing through Florida with Bill Riley, <strong>the</strong> two<br />

camped out for a day in <strong>the</strong> back of a franchise steakhouse,<br />

yet spoke to a mere ten controllers from nearby<br />

Jacksonville Center. Only two showed up to hear<br />

<strong>the</strong>ir pitch in Orlando.<br />

“I had a lot of tough meetings,” Thomas says. “A<br />

lot of people hung up on me.”<br />

More organizing activity occurred west of <strong>the</strong><br />

1985<br />

7<br />

Mar.<br />

Mississippi River.<br />

Gary Molen, a plain-spoken veteran at Salt<br />

Lake Center, was one of many who picked up <strong>the</strong><br />

torch. His penchant for boots and wide belt buckles,<br />

reminiscent of his Montana upbringing,<br />

earned him a reputation<br />

as a cowboy with a headset.<br />

After joining <strong>the</strong> FAA<br />

in 1968, Molen suffered<br />

through a year of humidity<br />

and crowds in Houston<br />

while working at <strong>the</strong> center<br />

before eagerly transferring<br />

to a small en route center<br />

back in his hometown of<br />

Great Falls.<br />

The center handled<br />

traffic all across Montana east to<br />

Fargo, North Dakota, and south to<br />

Sheridan, Wyoming. When it closed in<br />

1976 and operations were transferred to Minneapolis<br />

and Salt Lake centers, Molen moved to Utah.<br />

Growing up with a fa<strong>the</strong>r who worked as a<br />

union switchman and brakeman for <strong>the</strong> Great Nor<strong>the</strong>rn<br />

Railway, Molen understood <strong>the</strong> value of labor organizations.<br />

He joined PATCO while still training in<br />

Great Falls, but had to leave <strong>the</strong> bargaining unit once<br />

he became a classroom instructor. When <strong>the</strong> strike<br />

hit, Molen wrestled over his own good fortune and<br />

Howie Barte presents a graphic containing a control tower and radar<br />

sweep bearing <strong>the</strong> letters AATCC as <strong>the</strong> proposed logo for <strong>the</strong> group<br />

at an organizing meeting in Boston. AATCC declines to adopt <strong>the</strong> logo,<br />

Chapter 3: A Long and <strong>Wind</strong>ing Road<br />

61<br />

Gary Molen: During <strong>the</strong> 1970s, he worked<br />

at an en route center in his hometown of<br />

Great Falls, Montana. Molen was NATCA’s<br />

Northwest Mountain regional rep from<br />

1985 to 1993. / Courtesy of Howie Barte<br />

which Barte and controller Kim Kochis collaborated on, due to concerns<br />

that it favors terminal controllers. However, Barte uses it for organizing<br />

efforts in New England.


62<br />

<strong>Against</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>Wind</strong><br />

Kelly Candaele: The organizer for AFGE<br />

(and later MEBA) covered <strong>the</strong> West,<br />

where laid-back attitudes and a rightto-work<br />

culture challenged his ability to<br />

inspire interest in a labor union. / Japphire<br />

1985<br />

29<br />

Apr.<br />

<strong>the</strong> pain of watching friends lose <strong>the</strong>ir jobs. Returning<br />

to <strong>the</strong> scopes was an eye-opener.<br />

“Everybody was pulling toge<strong>the</strong>r. Many, many<br />

people commented that this was <strong>the</strong> way it was supposed<br />

to be,” he says. Then <strong>the</strong> honeymoon between<br />

controllers and management ended. “It reverted<br />

back to <strong>the</strong> same old crap. Very little<br />

changed from <strong>the</strong> time of <strong>the</strong> strike<br />

until we formed a new union.”<br />

One night Molen listened<br />

to a colleague talking on <strong>the</strong><br />

phone with Skip Skirlick<br />

from Los Angeles Center.<br />

Molen got on <strong>the</strong> line, heard<br />

about <strong>the</strong> organizing efforts,<br />

and before long was talking<br />

up a union in Salt Lake. Soon<br />

after, AFGE’s Western states<br />

organizer, Kelly Candaele, visited<br />

<strong>the</strong> center.<br />

The AFGE position was <strong>the</strong> tall,<br />

thoughtful Irishman’s first union job. Initially,<br />

Candaele was ambivalent toward <strong>the</strong> controllers<br />

based on his strong feelings about people who cross<br />

picket lines. But he knew a lot was at stake in air traffic<br />

control, making <strong>the</strong> workers vulnerable without<br />

a union. He also realized it would be symbolic for<br />

<strong>the</strong> labor movement if several thousand controllers<br />

organized again.<br />

The <strong>Air</strong> Line Pilots <strong>Association</strong> announces <strong>the</strong> possibility of organizing<br />

controllers. ALPA and AFGE discuss <strong>the</strong> proposition throughout <strong>the</strong> summer,<br />

but in late August ALPA’s Master Executive Council votes against <strong>the</strong><br />

Molen’s philosophical outlook appealed to Candaele<br />

and <strong>the</strong>y hit it off. Selling AATCC was tough in<br />

<strong>the</strong> West, though, given <strong>the</strong> region’s laid-back culture<br />

and right-to-work ethic. Molen and Candaele also<br />

found it hard to interest new-hires in <strong>the</strong>ir 20s, who<br />

were earning good money and had little job experience<br />

to put <strong>the</strong> working conditions in perspective.<br />

The two traveled extensively toge<strong>the</strong>r across<br />

Utah and Colorado. Candaele knew that certain<br />

personality traits and communication skills<br />

were critical in <strong>the</strong> people who waved <strong>the</strong> organizing<br />

flag. The upheaval from PATCO had<br />

colored many controllers’ views of organized<br />

labor. Candaele understood that <strong>the</strong> AFGEfinanced<br />

team had to tread lightly, focus on<br />

issues, and allay anxieties before <strong>the</strong>y could<br />

gain <strong>the</strong> trust of controllers.<br />

He believed that Molen’s reflective, sincere<br />

nature and “cowboy wisdom” fit <strong>the</strong> mold perfectly.<br />

The covert nature of <strong>the</strong>ir efforts could turn<br />

anxiety into anger for potential recruits at meetings,<br />

some of whom felt trapped by poor working conditions<br />

yet frightened of <strong>the</strong> potential consequences of<br />

organizing. Molen was patient and calm.<br />

One fateful incident helped to shape Candaele’s<br />

view of <strong>the</strong> Montana native. Snow was falling while<br />

<strong>the</strong>y drove south along Interstate 25 back to Stapleton<br />

<strong>Air</strong>port from Denver Center in Longmont. Candaele<br />

nervously gripped <strong>the</strong> steering wheel whenever <strong>the</strong><br />

move. During <strong>the</strong> fall, John Thornton and Howie Barte seek interest from<br />

o<strong>the</strong>r unions, including <strong>the</strong> Marine Engineers Beneficial <strong>Association</strong>, which<br />

had organized PATCO.


car skidded along <strong>the</strong> slippery highway. As a resident<br />

of Los Angeles, he was not accustomed to winter<br />

driving. Suddenly, a semi-trailer truck passed by,<br />

throwing up a wave of slush that cascaded across <strong>the</strong><br />

windshield and obliterated <strong>the</strong> road ahead.<br />

Candaele hit <strong>the</strong> brakes.<br />

The car spun around.<br />

Sparks flew as <strong>the</strong> passenger<br />

side scraped against<br />

<strong>the</strong> guardrail along <strong>the</strong><br />

median. The car pulled<br />

away, <strong>the</strong>n banged<br />

against <strong>the</strong> railing several<br />

times, flinging more<br />

orange embers into <strong>the</strong><br />

air before skidding to a<br />

stop. Both men silently<br />

thanked <strong>the</strong> presence<br />

of <strong>the</strong> guardrail, which<br />

prevented <strong>the</strong>m from<br />

careening into oncoming<br />

traffic. Candaele looked<br />

over at Molen.<br />

“Gary was just as calm as could be—with a<br />

kind of smirk on his face. Almost like, what did you<br />

do that for?” Candaele recalls.<br />

Nei<strong>the</strong>r man was hurt. Unfortunately, Candaele<br />

had neglected to take out insurance and his bosses at<br />

AFGE weren’t pleased about paying for <strong>the</strong> damage.<br />

O<strong>the</strong>r controllers joined Candaele as he ranged<br />

far<strong>the</strong>r afield in <strong>the</strong> West, including Dave Bottini, an<br />

organizer from San Francisco Tower.<br />

Bottini became involved after <strong>the</strong> tower chief<br />

changed <strong>the</strong> seniority policy, denying him credit for<br />

<strong>the</strong> time he’d spent at SFO while on loan from <strong>the</strong><br />

Defense Department.<br />

Lack of job security for<br />

a largely inexperienced<br />

work force also con-<br />

“<br />

cerned him.<br />

“If management<br />

decid ed to look for technical<br />

faults, <strong>the</strong>y could find<br />

things wrong. They could<br />

make life miserable for an<br />

individual,” he says. “You<br />

always knew you could be<br />

fired. That wasn’t fair.”<br />

Bottini joined<br />

Candaele and Skirlick<br />

on a winter trip to visit<br />

Albuquerque Center.<br />

They had advertised two meetings at a nearby hotel.<br />

The morning dragged by while <strong>the</strong>y waited in a<br />

conference room for someone to show up. Finally, a<br />

lone controller appeared in <strong>the</strong> afternoon and warily<br />

asked a few questions. No, we’re not here to get you<br />

fired, <strong>the</strong> organizers stressed. We can’t strike. The<br />

If management decided to<br />

look for technical faults, <strong>the</strong>y<br />

could find things wrong. They<br />

could make life miserable<br />

for an individual. You always<br />

knew you could be fired.<br />

— O’Hare Tower controller Dave Bottini<br />

June July<br />

Citing financial constraints, AFGE lays off fourteen staff members,<br />

including John Thornton and <strong>the</strong> rest of its organizing staff<br />

except for <strong>the</strong> department’s director.<br />

26<br />

Chapter 3: A Long and <strong>Wind</strong>ing Road<br />

The FAA awards a contract to IBM to replace <strong>the</strong> 9020 computers<br />

at en route centers with new 3083-BX1 “Host” computers.<br />

The 9020s were installed starting in 1967.<br />

63


64<br />

<strong>Against</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>Wind</strong><br />

Some controllers<br />

regarded professional<br />

organizations such as<br />

ALPA and <strong>the</strong> AMA as<br />

<strong>the</strong> perfect role models<br />

for <strong>the</strong>ir budding<br />

union.<br />

1985<br />

2<br />

Aug.<br />

controller relaxed and listened while <strong>the</strong>y explained<br />

his labor rights under <strong>the</strong> law.<br />

A knock sounded at <strong>the</strong> door. They all looked<br />

over and saw a reporter and TV cameraman peeking<br />

into <strong>the</strong> room. “Is this <strong>the</strong> group of controllers who<br />

are trying to organize a union?” <strong>the</strong> reporter asked.<br />

“Can we come in and<br />

film?”<br />

“No,” <strong>the</strong> organizers<br />

replied in unison.<br />

But <strong>the</strong> edgy controller<br />

was already hustling<br />

out <strong>the</strong> door.<br />

Interest from<br />

an Interloper<br />

On April 26, 1985,<br />

<strong>the</strong> day before <strong>the</strong> deadline<br />

for <strong>the</strong> FAA to appeal<br />

<strong>the</strong> ruling that authorized<br />

regional unions, <strong>the</strong> agency filed a two-page<br />

statement. This predictable move fur<strong>the</strong>r delayed an<br />

election until <strong>the</strong> full FLRA reviewed <strong>the</strong> case.<br />

The following Monday, however, controllers<br />

and AFGE organizers awoke to surprising<br />

news. ALPA President Henry A. Duffy announced<br />

that his union, an AFL-CIO affiliate representing<br />

34,000 pilots at forty-eight airlines, planned to<br />

A Delta <strong>Air</strong> Lines L-1011 crashes after encountering wind shear during<br />

final approach to Dallas-Fort Worth <strong>Air</strong>port. The accident kills 134 of <strong>the</strong><br />

163 people aboard <strong>the</strong> plane and one on <strong>the</strong> ground. DFW’s Low-Level<br />

“<br />

The AFGE effort is dead in <strong>the</strong><br />

water, it is not moving, and<br />

time is of <strong>the</strong> essence.<br />

organize <strong>the</strong> controllers.<br />

ALPA First Vice President Thomas Ashwood<br />

said <strong>the</strong> pilots were keen on accelerating <strong>the</strong> drive<br />

because <strong>the</strong>y wanted <strong>the</strong> controllers’ input on a<br />

$10 billion program to overhaul <strong>the</strong> air traffic control<br />

system.<br />

“The AFGE effort is<br />

dead in <strong>the</strong> water, it is not<br />

moving, and time is of <strong>the</strong><br />

essence,” Ashwood said. 6<br />

— ALPA First Vice President<br />

Thomas Ashwood<br />

Some controllers<br />

regarded professional organizations<br />

such as ALPA<br />

and <strong>the</strong> American Medical<br />

<strong>Association</strong> as <strong>the</strong> perfect<br />

role models for <strong>the</strong>ir budding<br />

union. They admired<br />

how <strong>the</strong> organizations<br />

emphasized brains over<br />

brawn and cooperation<br />

ra<strong>the</strong>r than conflict.<br />

But while ALPA was financially sound, well<br />

organized, and exercised significant influence in <strong>the</strong><br />

industry, fundamental disputes periodically erupted<br />

between controllers and airline pilots. Many worried<br />

about how <strong>the</strong> disagreements could be resolved<br />

within <strong>the</strong> same organization.<br />

ALPA’s interest also raised a legal issue. Article<br />

20 of <strong>the</strong> AFL-CIO constitution frowned upon com-<br />

<strong>Wind</strong> Shear Alert System did not record <strong>the</strong> turbulence until after <strong>the</strong><br />

crash, demonstrating its limitations. Ray<strong>the</strong>on Company develops Terminal<br />

Doppler Wea<strong>the</strong>r Radar to provide improved alert capability.


petition among its affiliates. If a second union tried to<br />

organize <strong>the</strong> same group of workers, <strong>the</strong> original affiliate<br />

could seek mediation to determine which one<br />

should retain exclusive rights.<br />

While AFGE publicly vowed to continue <strong>the</strong><br />

drive, it quietly held talks with ALPA throughout<br />

<strong>the</strong> summer of 1985 about transferring <strong>the</strong> campaign.<br />

AFGE’s ongoing money problems served as a<br />

catalyst. In June, it laid off fourteen staff members,<br />

including Thornton, Thomas, and Candaele.<br />

Like a broken summer romance, ALPA ended<br />

its flirtation in late August when its Master Executive<br />

Council voted against <strong>the</strong> proposal. Insiders<br />

believe it is likely that MEBA was a factor in<br />

<strong>the</strong>ir decision.<br />

The Marine Engineers Beneficial<br />

<strong>Association</strong> had formally ceded its<br />

rights to organize <strong>the</strong> controllers to<br />

AFGE in <strong>the</strong> spring of 1984. When it<br />

appeared that AFGE might try to sell<br />

those rights to <strong>the</strong> pilots’ union, MEBA<br />

strongly opposed <strong>the</strong> move.<br />

Most controllers merely shrugged,<br />

given <strong>the</strong>ir worries about dealing with ALPA as<br />

a union. But <strong>the</strong>y were bitterly disappointed, though<br />

not too surprised, in September when <strong>the</strong> full FLRA<br />

overruled its Washington regional director and disallowed<br />

New England’s bid for a regional union.<br />

The authority agreed with <strong>the</strong> FAA’s conten-<br />

20<br />

Sep.<br />

Overruling its regional director, <strong>the</strong> full FLRA disallows New England’s bid<br />

for a regional union. Citing PATCO and a similar FLRA ruling concerning<br />

tion that it administered a nationwide air traffic<br />

system primarily from headquarters. To support its<br />

decision, <strong>the</strong> authority cited PATCO’s national bargaining<br />

unit and a similar FLRA ruling concerning<br />

<strong>the</strong> Agriculture Department’s Food and Nutrition<br />

Service as precedents. In light of its decision, <strong>the</strong><br />

authority declined to rule on whe<strong>the</strong>r automation<br />

specialists and air traffic assistants were entitled to<br />

be a part of AATCC.<br />

The determination, which came eleven months<br />

after AFGE filed for a New England unit, sounded a<br />

death knell for its stagnating effort. Layoffs<br />

had wiped out AFGE’s organizing<br />

department and <strong>the</strong> union appeared<br />

disinclined to spend<br />

much more money on<br />

<strong>the</strong> controllers, who now<br />

needed to obtain all new<br />

signatures on petitions<br />

calling for a national<br />

union.<br />

Heading for a Fall<br />

Since June 1984, Barte had been holding<br />

monthly telephone conferences among activists<br />

in New England and o<strong>the</strong>r regions as <strong>the</strong>y joined<br />

AATCC. By now, <strong>the</strong> calls were about <strong>the</strong> only thread<br />

holding <strong>the</strong> effort toge<strong>the</strong>r and represented AFGE’s<br />

Chapter 3: A Long and <strong>Wind</strong>ing Road<br />

65<br />

Gene DeFries: The MEBA president<br />

repeated history by committing his union’s<br />

resources to <strong>the</strong> controllers. MEBA also<br />

organized PATCO. / NATCA archives<br />

<strong>the</strong> Agriculture Department’s Food and Nutrition Service as precedents,<br />

<strong>the</strong> authority mandates that only a national bargaining unit is appropriate.


Howie<br />

Barte<br />

PVD Local President<br />

New England Alt. RVP<br />

ANE-540 Liaison<br />

1990 / ’93 / ’97 — Pr e s e n t<br />

Op e r a t i n g in i t i a l s: RJ<br />

HOm e t O w n : New York City<br />

CHildre n:<br />

Laura, Susan<br />

Ot Her tr i v i a:<br />

Courtesy of Howie Barte<br />

Rebuilt a Korean War-era Jeep<br />

in t e r e s t s:<br />

Science, electronics, computers,<br />

space exploration, sushi<br />

ATC FACiliTies<br />

Cu r r e n t:<br />

pr e v i O u s: OQU<br />

EWB<br />

ZSU<br />

PVD Tower/TRACON<br />

TRACON<br />

Tower<br />

Center<br />

Born in <strong>the</strong> Bronx, Howie Barte spent part of his<br />

childhood in Madrid, Spain, Caracas, Venezuela,<br />

and San Juan, Puerto Rico, while his parents<br />

followed various professional pursuits. But it<br />

wasn’t until he saw <strong>the</strong> world from inside cramped<br />

airplane cockpits above <strong>the</strong> azure seas of <strong>the</strong> Caribbean<br />

that Barte developed an appreciation for<br />

unions. His first air taxi outfit pressured him to fly<br />

despite bad wea<strong>the</strong>r, excess payloads, and without<br />

water survival gear. The next airline, whose pilots<br />

belonged to ALPA, rated safety much higher.<br />

“It was very much akin to working in a<br />

sweatshop and <strong>the</strong>n realizing it doesn’t have to be<br />

this way,” he says.<br />

Nor did <strong>the</strong> shoestring carriers offer much<br />

job security. After being furloughed twice, Barte<br />

applied to <strong>the</strong> FAA and started as a controller at<br />

San Juan Center in 1970. Two months later, he<br />

heard familiar voices on <strong>the</strong> radio as his pilot<br />

friends confronted a nasty thunderstorm. Grateful<br />

to be on terra firma, Barte recalls, “They got out of<br />

it, but it was scary.”<br />

He joined PATCO, retained his membership<br />

as an associate while a controller for four years in<br />

<strong>the</strong> Navy, <strong>the</strong>n was drafted to be facility rep six<br />

months after arriving at New Bedford Tower in<br />

Massachusetts. “I wasn’t afraid to speak up,” he<br />

says. Barte stayed involved when he transferred<br />

Pr e v i o u s NATCA Po s iT i oN s / AC h i e v e m e N T s<br />

New England provisional regional rep 1984-88;<br />

parliamentarian at NATCA national conventions<br />

since 1992.<br />

hir e d<br />

Nov.<br />

1970<br />

to Quonset TRACON in Rhode Island by editing<br />

<strong>the</strong> local union newsletter. However, he viewed<br />

<strong>the</strong> mounting drumbeat to walk out as “corporate<br />

hysteria,” resigned from PATCO <strong>the</strong> day after <strong>the</strong><br />

first strike vote, and stayed on <strong>the</strong> job.<br />

Barte soon realized controllers needed ano<strong>the</strong>r<br />

union and, in 1984, became a founder of <strong>the</strong><br />

movement to form NATCA. His goal was to regain<br />

a contract. “I had no idea this thing would become<br />

my life,” he says.<br />

After playing a central role in NATCA’s drive<br />

to certification, Barte endured a heartbreaking loss<br />

in <strong>the</strong> union’s national election in 1988. He could<br />

not ignore <strong>the</strong> call of activism for long. During<br />

<strong>the</strong> past dozen years, he has served as <strong>the</strong> local<br />

president at Providence Tower/TRACON, alternate<br />

New England Region vice president, and NATCA<br />

regional liaison to <strong>the</strong> FAA’s Resource Management<br />

Branch (ANE-540), all while maintaining his certification<br />

as a controller. He serves as parliamentarian<br />

at every union convention, a role he assumed<br />

in 1992, and is known as NATCA’s “unofficial<br />

historian.”<br />

Somehow, Barte has also found time to raise<br />

two daughters, feed his craving for “Star Trek,” and<br />

restore a military Jeep that he inscribed with <strong>the</strong><br />

serial number NCC-1701-NATCA, a reference, of<br />

course, to <strong>the</strong> Starship Enterprise.


sole financial commitment to <strong>the</strong> campaign (in addition<br />

to Barte’s regular long-distance phone bill). Fed<br />

up with <strong>the</strong> lack of support and its effect on <strong>the</strong> pace<br />

of organizing, Barte began contacting o<strong>the</strong>r unions to<br />

solicit <strong>the</strong>ir backing. Thornton, who stayed in touch<br />

with key activists while collecting unemployment,<br />

worked <strong>the</strong> phone, too.<br />

The Communications<br />

Workers of America<br />

sounded eager to help,<br />

but would offer funding<br />

only after controllers had<br />

collected <strong>the</strong> requisite<br />

30 percent of signatures.<br />

With a work force of<br />

about 12,500 controllers,<br />

that amounted to 3,750<br />

names, an expensive<br />

proposition.<br />

Officials at <strong>the</strong><br />

American Federation of<br />

State, County and Municipal<br />

Employees, <strong>the</strong><br />

American Federation of Teachers, and <strong>the</strong> Teamsters<br />

all responded, “We’ll get back to you,” and never did.<br />

MEBA President Clayton E. “Gene” DeFries sounded<br />

<strong>the</strong> same refrain. Growing despondent, Barte wrote<br />

off <strong>the</strong> former PATCO organizer.<br />

In late October 1985, leaf-peeping season had<br />

1985<br />

13<br />

Nov.<br />

come and gone in New England, and winter coats<br />

were in style again. The white and scrub pine tree<br />

needles carpeting Barte’s back yard seemed to symbolize<br />

more than a passing season. Barte gloomily<br />

figured <strong>the</strong> frost that had stalled <strong>the</strong> organizing effort<br />

was about to kill it in a deep freeze.<br />

Suddenly, <strong>the</strong>re was<br />

a thaw. At three o’clock one<br />

afternoon, his phone rang.<br />

DeFries informed him that<br />

“<br />

MEBA would organize <strong>the</strong><br />

controllers, but <strong>the</strong> news<br />

could not be made public<br />

until December 2. An ecstatic<br />

Barte agreed to keep quiet.<br />

In mid-November,<br />

Thornton and ten activists<br />

met with AFGE’s David<br />

— MEBA President Gene DeFries Kushner in Alexandria,<br />

Virginia. AFGE had spent<br />

about $250,000 and was<br />

limited in how much more it<br />

could do, Kushner warned.<br />

He talked about a national organizing committee and<br />

ano<strong>the</strong>r mailing. But <strong>the</strong> wi<strong>the</strong>ring support prompted<br />

growing disenchantment from several people sitting<br />

around <strong>the</strong> table, including Barte, who knew this<br />

would be AFGE’s last meeting with <strong>the</strong>m.<br />

The curtain was coming down.<br />

Let me emphasize that this<br />

new air traffic controllers’<br />

organization will indeed be<br />

new. It will not be a disguised<br />

rebirth of <strong>the</strong> old PATCO.<br />

ABC News devotes its program “Nightline” to ATC, representing <strong>the</strong> first<br />

major TV broadcast about <strong>the</strong> topic since <strong>the</strong> strike ended. Howie Barte<br />

challenges FAA Administrator Donald Engen’s contention that <strong>the</strong> FAA is<br />

Chapter 3: A Long and <strong>Wind</strong>ing Road<br />

67<br />

sufficiently staffed with controllers and says management hasn’t changed<br />

since <strong>the</strong> strike. Joe O’Brien from New York TRACON and two unidentified<br />

controllers also appear on <strong>the</strong> program, along with Rep. Guy Molinari.


68<br />

<strong>Against</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>Wind</strong><br />

Howie Barte: His appearance on ABC’s<br />

“Nightline” in November 1985 helped<br />

draw attention to controller understaffing<br />

and poor morale. / Courtesy of Howie Barte<br />

1985<br />

As promised, MEBA publicly announced its<br />

intentions in early December. Taking pains to clarify<br />

<strong>the</strong> initiative for <strong>the</strong> public and controllers, DeFries<br />

said: “Let me emphasize that this new air traffic controllers’<br />

organization will indeed be new. It will not<br />

be a disguised rebirth of <strong>the</strong> old PATCO. The new<br />

union will be effectively and responsively geared to<br />

serving <strong>the</strong> needs of this new generation of air traffic<br />

controllers.” 7<br />

Barte flew to Washington again to meet De-<br />

Fries on December 5 and chart <strong>the</strong> new campaign. At<br />

Barte’s request, two o<strong>the</strong>r key activists joined <strong>the</strong>m:<br />

Joe O’Brien from New York<br />

TRACON, representing <strong>the</strong><br />

Eastern Region, and Dan<br />

Keeney from Daytona<br />

Beach Tower/TRACON<br />

in <strong>the</strong> Sou<strong>the</strong>rn Region.<br />

The difference<br />

from <strong>the</strong> AFGE meeting<br />

was like night and day.<br />

DeFries promised solid financial<br />

backing and pointed<br />

out an important distinction: The controllers would be<br />

a full affiliate of <strong>the</strong> engineers’ union. Unlike AFGE’s<br />

council arrangement, <strong>the</strong> new union would establish<br />

its own structure and decide on policies without competing<br />

against <strong>the</strong> interests of o<strong>the</strong>r workers.<br />

“What do you want in return?” Barte asked.<br />

Nov. Dec.<br />

16<br />

AFGE outlines fur<strong>the</strong>r organizing activities, which solidifies <strong>the</strong><br />

belief among several controllers that <strong>the</strong> union does not intend<br />

to commit adequate resources to finish <strong>the</strong> AATCC campaign. 2<br />

“We don’t want anything,” DeFries said. “We just<br />

want to see you guys organized. It’s good for labor.”<br />

DeFries <strong>the</strong>n asked Barte to quit <strong>the</strong> FAA and<br />

become national coordinator for <strong>the</strong> new union.<br />

“I’m an air traffic controller,” Barte replied. “My<br />

goal is to get a contract—not a job.” He suggested<br />

that DeFries ask John Thornton, whose controller<br />

background and organizing experience made him a<br />

perfect candidate.<br />

Barte, Keeney, and O’Brien left MEBA headquarters<br />

feeling elated. Much work lay ahead, but<br />

<strong>the</strong> drive for a new union had been revitalized. Part<br />

of <strong>the</strong>ir optimism stemmed from ano<strong>the</strong>r helpful<br />

boost three weeks earlier when ABC-TV highlighted<br />

<strong>the</strong> controllers’ cause on its popular news program<br />

“Nightline.”<br />

The segment aired near <strong>the</strong> end of a year in<br />

which 1,500 people had died in plane crashes around<br />

<strong>the</strong> world. The worst in <strong>the</strong> United States occurred<br />

on August 2 nd , when a Delta <strong>Air</strong> Lines L-1011 plummeted<br />

to <strong>the</strong> ground after encountering wind shear<br />

on final approach to Dallas-Fort Worth <strong>Air</strong>port, killing<br />

137. Ten days later, a Japan <strong>Air</strong> Lines 747 suffered<br />

mechanical problems and limped along for thirty<br />

minutes before plunging into Mount Ogura outside<br />

Tokyo. All but four of <strong>the</strong> 524 aboard perished, making<br />

it <strong>the</strong> deadliest single-plane accident in history.<br />

The “Nightline” broadcast was prompted by a<br />

midair collision three days earlier between a Nabisco<br />

MEBA President Gene DeFries announces that <strong>the</strong> union will<br />

organize controllers. In October, DeFries notified Howie Barte,<br />

who had contacted <strong>the</strong> union for help, of MEBA’s intentions.


Brands corporate jet and a Piper Archer over Cliffside<br />

Park, New Jersey, which killed six and injured<br />

several o<strong>the</strong>rs.<br />

<strong>Controllers</strong> were not initially implicated in any<br />

of <strong>the</strong> accidents, but “Nightline” called into question<br />

President Reagan’s actions in 1981. * Reporter Jack<br />

Smith noted that <strong>the</strong> ranks of journeymen controllers<br />

had dropped by 5,000 since <strong>the</strong> strike yet <strong>the</strong>y<br />

were handling 1,000 more flights a day. Reported<br />

near misses had soared an alarming 65 percent. Inexperienced<br />

controllers were training o<strong>the</strong>rs and sick<br />

leave was being denied because <strong>the</strong>re weren’t enough<br />

replacements.<br />

In a taped interview, Joe O’Brien said employee<br />

relations committees had failed because FAA management<br />

simply took <strong>the</strong> groups’ recommendations<br />

“into consideration” and did nothing more. FAA Associate<br />

Administrator Quentin Taylor brushed off <strong>the</strong><br />

problem, contending <strong>the</strong> complaints came from “an<br />

extreme minority” of controllers.<br />

FAA Administrator Donald Engen, New York<br />

Republican congressman Guy Molinari, and Barte<br />

appeared live on <strong>the</strong> program. Barte spoke from<br />

ABC’s studios in Boston. When a technician attached<br />

a microphone to his lapel, he could hear his heart<br />

thumping in an earpiece. His nervousness vanished<br />

as he listened to Taylor’s assessment.<br />

Barte noted that 2,500 controllers had signed a<br />

petition to form a new union, even though organizers<br />

5<br />

Dec.<br />

MEBA President Gene DeFries invites Howie Barte to Washington,<br />

D.C., to discuss organizing, and agrees to Barte’s request to include two<br />

o<strong>the</strong>r controllers: Joe O’Brien and Dan Keeney, representing Eastern and<br />

had not reached all parts of <strong>the</strong> country, and said,<br />

“Management within <strong>the</strong> FAA, in reality, has not<br />

changed at all since 1981.”<br />

“Nightline” also ran a video clip of Engen in<br />

Congress—one week after <strong>the</strong> strike—testifying that<br />

<strong>the</strong> FAA did not need more controllers. “I’m full up.<br />

I have everything I need right now,” he said. “If I had<br />

more controllers today, I literally couldn’t use <strong>the</strong>m.”<br />

The clip prompted a spirited debate about continuing<br />

staff shortages between Engen, Barte and Molinari,<br />

who said he planned to give President Reagan a letter<br />

signed by seventy members of <strong>the</strong> House urging that<br />

he rehire some of <strong>the</strong> fired controllers.<br />

During commercial breaks in <strong>the</strong> Boston studio,<br />

Donna Gropper jumped excitedly in <strong>the</strong> shadows<br />

behind <strong>the</strong> cameraman while flashing Barte a<br />

thumbs-up sign.<br />

On <strong>the</strong> way home in a rented limo, courtesy of<br />

ABC, <strong>the</strong>y decided to stop for a drink to watch <strong>the</strong><br />

program, which had been taped an hour beforehand.<br />

While <strong>the</strong>y searched for a tavern, Barte schemed that<br />

he’d tell <strong>the</strong> bartender he was about to appear on TV,<br />

<strong>the</strong>n wager for a free round, figuring <strong>the</strong> bartender<br />

wouldn’t believe him. As <strong>the</strong> minutes ticked down to<br />

broadcast time, <strong>the</strong>y found a bar at last. Barte, Gropper,<br />

and <strong>the</strong> driver rushed inside, only to discover it<br />

had no television.<br />

The broadcast piqued <strong>the</strong> interest of many air<br />

travelers and galvanized controllers who watched<br />

Chapter 3: A Long and <strong>Wind</strong>ing Road<br />

Sou<strong>the</strong>rn regions, respectively. DeFries asks Barte to serve as national<br />

coordinator, but he declines and recommends John Thornton, who accepts<br />

<strong>the</strong> job.<br />

69<br />

The ranks of<br />

journeymen controllers<br />

had dropped by 5,000<br />

since <strong>the</strong> strike yet<br />

<strong>the</strong>y were handling<br />

1,000 more flights a<br />

day. Reported near<br />

misses had soared an<br />

alarming 65 percent.<br />

* In its accident report issued in May 1987, <strong>the</strong><br />

<strong>National</strong> Transportation Safety Board cited a<br />

breakdown in coordination among Teterboro<br />

Tower controllers as a contributing cause to<br />

<strong>the</strong> midair collision. Several controllers were<br />

also named in a civil lawsuit, leading NATCA<br />

to lobby for immunity from tort actions.


70<br />

<strong>Against</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>Wind</strong><br />

New acronym: When MEBA took over<br />

<strong>the</strong> organizing effort in December 1985,<br />

<strong>the</strong> union resurrected <strong>the</strong> name created at<br />

Washington Center two years earlier.<br />

1985<br />

16<br />

Dec.<br />

with a sense of vindication as one of <strong>the</strong>ir ranks successfully<br />

debated <strong>the</strong> FAA administrator in a national<br />

forum. Engen ignored <strong>the</strong> facts and seemed out of<br />

touch with <strong>the</strong> realities of his work force.<br />

Barte’s appearance “was one of our biggest<br />

tools,” says Dave Landry from Lebanon Tower in<br />

New Hampshire.<br />

“The<br />

i n t e r v i e w<br />

pushed people<br />

who were<br />

sitting on <strong>the</strong><br />

fence.”<br />

In mid-<br />

D e c e m b e r<br />

1985, Engen<br />

fulfilled a<br />

promise he<br />

made on<br />

“Nightline”<br />

and met with<br />

five controllers<br />

at FAA<br />

headquarters in Washington, away from <strong>the</strong> intimidating<br />

presence of facility managers. Among those<br />

at <strong>the</strong> unprecedented 2½-hour meeting were Barte<br />

and Washington Center controller Walt Simpkins,<br />

who had taken over as president from Jack Crouse<br />

and also served as <strong>the</strong> alternate Eastern regional<br />

Five controllers meet with FAA Administrator Donald Engen to discuss<br />

<strong>the</strong> state of <strong>the</strong> ATC system and controller morale. The ga<strong>the</strong>ring is a result<br />

of <strong>the</strong> “Nightline” program. Afterward, Howie Barte and John Thorn-<br />

representative on <strong>the</strong> controllers’ provisional Executive<br />

Board.<br />

Following up on <strong>the</strong> “Nightline” debate, both<br />

controllers drove home <strong>the</strong> point that continued<br />

understaffing translated into excessive overtime.<br />

Simpkins acknowledged <strong>the</strong>y were able to take summer<br />

leave, but stressed that <strong>the</strong>ir colleagues suffered<br />

as a result.<br />

“While we were on leave, we knew that someone<br />

at <strong>the</strong> facility was working overtime so we could<br />

be off,” he said. Simpkins had not enjoyed two consecutive<br />

days off during <strong>the</strong> past ten months.<br />

After <strong>the</strong> meeting, Barte hopped in a cab for <strong>the</strong><br />

ride across The Mall to MEBA headquarters on North<br />

Capitol Street to talk about <strong>the</strong> organizing campaign<br />

with Thornton, who had been hired as national coordinator.<br />

Once again, <strong>the</strong> question arose over a name for<br />

<strong>the</strong> new group. This time, <strong>the</strong>re was little discussion.<br />

Thornton had prepared a list of possibilities and <strong>the</strong>y<br />

quickly agreed to resurrect <strong>the</strong> <strong>National</strong> <strong>Air</strong> <strong>Traffic</strong><br />

<strong>Controllers</strong> <strong>Association</strong>.<br />

Back on Track<br />

The new year dawned on a bright, if confusing,<br />

note for controllers. AFGE and MEBA each vied for<br />

<strong>the</strong>ir loyalty and <strong>the</strong> all-important signatures on election<br />

petitions in letters mailed nationwide. Although<br />

ton agree to change <strong>the</strong> name of <strong>the</strong> proposed union to NATCA, which<br />

Washington Center controllers used during organizing. They also agree to<br />

adopt <strong>the</strong> AATCC logo used in New England as <strong>the</strong> new NATCA logo.


A Logo is Born<br />

Like many of NATCA’s founders, <strong>the</strong><br />

union’s logo traced its heritage to<br />

AATCC. In <strong>the</strong> fall of 1984, Howie Barte<br />

took a break from<br />

drumming up support<br />

on <strong>the</strong> phone<br />

one day to sketch<br />

out a logo for New England’s<br />

monthly newslet- ters.<br />

The circular<br />

artwork paid hom- age<br />

to centers and<br />

TRACONs with its<br />

dotted and crosshatched<br />

lines and<br />

o<strong>the</strong>r markings representing<br />

a radarscope, and was anchored<br />

by a control tower near <strong>the</strong> bottom.<br />

Influenced by his interest in “Star Trek,”<br />

he selected a computer-style typeface for<br />

<strong>the</strong> initials AATCC in <strong>the</strong> center.<br />

After <strong>the</strong> logo’s debut in <strong>the</strong> October<br />

edition of <strong>the</strong> New England AATCC<br />

Update, Barte collaborated with Kim<br />

Kochis, ano<strong>the</strong>r controller on his crew at<br />

Quonset TRACON. *<br />

Kochis, who loved to draw and<br />

�<br />

paint, relied on graphic design skills she<br />

developed in high school. By <strong>the</strong> time<br />

Barte and Kochis were finished, concentric<br />

circles with a radar sweep<br />

had replaced <strong>the</strong> radar<br />

map. A tower cab rested<br />

atop <strong>the</strong> “T” in a series of<br />

simple block letters spelling<br />

AATCC.<br />

Barte presented<br />

<strong>the</strong> finished product for<br />

formal adoption at an<br />

AATCC regional representatives<br />

meeting in<br />

March 1985. But a few<br />

controllers argued that<br />

it didn’t adequately represent en route<br />

centers.<br />

Unwilling to change <strong>the</strong> design,<br />

Barte used it throughout <strong>the</strong> year in<br />

New England. When MEBA entered <strong>the</strong><br />

picture, he gave a copy to Thornton, who<br />

turned it over to <strong>the</strong> union’s graphic artist.<br />

The resulting logo, with red letters<br />

and blue lines, made Barte swell with<br />

pride when he saw it at NATCA’s first<br />

national meeting.<br />

Chapter 3: A Long and <strong>Wind</strong>ing Road<br />

The logo was subsequently trademarked<br />

in 1993, and in 2000 <strong>the</strong>n-President<br />

Michael McNally presented Barte<br />

with a plaque recognizing<br />

him for his efforts<br />

in creating <strong>the</strong><br />

union’s longstanding<br />

symbol.<br />

Noting that<br />

many companies<br />

change <strong>the</strong>ir visual<br />

identity as <strong>the</strong>y<br />

mature, Kochis says,<br />

“I’m surprised it’s<br />

held all <strong>the</strong>se years.”<br />

Two unsuccessful<br />

attempts to redesign <strong>the</strong> logo<br />

were made during <strong>the</strong> 1990s. To help<br />

ensure its enduring look, NATCA convention<br />

delegates in 2000 mandated<br />

that any changes must be approved by a<br />

majority vote at a convention.<br />

* Kochis later transferred to two o<strong>the</strong>r New England facilities<br />

before settling in at Raleigh-Durham Tower/TRACON in<br />

North Carolina in May 1995.<br />

71


72<br />

<strong>Against</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>Wind</strong><br />

Helping hand: When <strong>the</strong> FAA instituted<br />

random drug testing in 1986, NATCA educated<br />

<strong>the</strong> work force about its rights. In<br />

<strong>the</strong> fall of 1987, a few months after certification,<br />

<strong>the</strong> union signed an agreement with<br />

<strong>the</strong> agency outlining testing procedures.<br />

1985/86<br />

m o s t<br />

activists quickly jumped aboard<br />

MEBA’s deck, a handful clung to AATCC’s sinking<br />

ship. AFGE cranked out a handful of newsletters<br />

during <strong>the</strong> spring trying to retain support, but its<br />

limited efforts foundered.<br />

Unwilling to go down quietly and keen to re-<br />

Dec. Jan.<br />

First NATCA organizing letter is sent via U.S. mail from<br />

NATCA New England to activists across <strong>the</strong> country.<br />

31<br />

3<br />

coup its organizing investment through future dues,<br />

AFGE forced <strong>the</strong> issue of organizing rights for<br />

<strong>the</strong> controllers at an Article 20 hearing before<br />

<strong>the</strong> AFL-CIO in June. It soon became a moot<br />

point. Still struggling with money problems,<br />

AFGE convention delegates voted later that summer<br />

to stop funding <strong>the</strong> AATCC drive, opting<br />

instead to focus on <strong>the</strong> organization’s existing<br />

unions.<br />

By contrast, NATCA hit <strong>the</strong> ground running<br />

and never looked back. MEBA’s support<br />

brea<strong>the</strong>d life back into <strong>the</strong> smoldering effort and<br />

soon stoked a roaring blaze.<br />

Many familiar faces were on hand at its first<br />

national organizing meeting on January 11, 1986,<br />

including several who had been nominally elected<br />

to represent <strong>the</strong>ir regions in AATCC: Barte from<br />

New England, Dan Keeney from Sou<strong>the</strong>rn, Gary<br />

Molen from Northwest Mountain—who endured<br />

ribbing for wearing cowboy boots and a belt buckle<br />

with his suit—and O’Brien from Eastern. Walt Simpkins<br />

also attended, along with representatives from<br />

Boston, Denver, Los Angeles and Miami centers, and<br />

elsewhere.<br />

Notably, <strong>the</strong> president and vice president of <strong>the</strong><br />

Professional <strong>Air</strong>ways Systems Specialists were among<br />

<strong>the</strong> crowd. PASS, which became a union at <strong>the</strong> end<br />

of 1981, represented workers in <strong>the</strong> FAA’s <strong>Air</strong>ways<br />

Facilities, Flight Standards, and Office of Aviation<br />

First NATCA organizing letter is sent to all controllers in <strong>the</strong><br />

country from NATCA/MEBA headquarters in Washington, D.C.


Standards branches. After PASS President Howard<br />

Johanssen stood up and offered to lend guidance on<br />

establishing locals, post information about NATCA,<br />

and file grievances on <strong>the</strong>ir behalf, a grateful audience<br />

applauded him warmly.<br />

An ebullient John Thornton directed <strong>the</strong> proceedings.<br />

His high spirits stemmed from more than<br />

being gainfully employed again. After watching<br />

AFGE run out of money and one union after ano<strong>the</strong>r<br />

decline to help, he had worried that <strong>the</strong> controllers<br />

might never get organized. MEBA’s deep pockets and<br />

powerful political contacts came as a major relief.<br />

The sense of history was also not lost on<br />

Thornton. Aside from its long tradition of representing<br />

seafaring workers, MEBA had backed PATCO.<br />

Now, it seemed only right that <strong>the</strong> same union should<br />

stand beside <strong>the</strong> controllers once more as <strong>the</strong>y fought<br />

to restore <strong>the</strong>ir place in organized labor.<br />

Joining Thornton on <strong>the</strong> dais were Beth Thomas<br />

and Kelly Candaele, whom he’d hired to resume<br />

<strong>the</strong>ir roles as organizers. Hanging behind <strong>the</strong>m was<br />

a banner bearing NATCA’s new logo and <strong>the</strong> inscription<br />

MEBA/AFL-CIO.<br />

Even at this early stage, <strong>the</strong> controllers expressed<br />

<strong>the</strong>ir desire to become more than a trade<br />

union. They envisioned a professional organization<br />

that would exercise clout in such matters as <strong>the</strong>ir retirement,<br />

stress reduction, and restoring <strong>the</strong> immunity<br />

program for controllers who reported operational<br />

1986<br />

11<br />

Jan.<br />

errors. Former FAA Administrator Langhorne Bond<br />

had unilaterally canceled <strong>the</strong> program in 1980.<br />

NATCA did not waste time developing strength<br />

and finding its voice.<br />

Budding Influence<br />

About 7:30 on <strong>the</strong> morning of March 3, 1986, a<br />

lanky controller named Michael Sheedy sped across<br />

<strong>the</strong> double-decker Verrazano Narrows Bridge on his<br />

way to New Brunswick, New Jersey. Sheedy, whose<br />

deep voice was familiar to pilots on New York TRA-<br />

CON frequencies, had been selected by his colleagues<br />

to testify at a congressional field hearing about airspace<br />

congestion, jurisdiction, and procedures. After<br />

<strong>the</strong> hearing, Sheedy had to race back to Long Island<br />

in time to start his 3 o’clock shift.<br />

Such was <strong>the</strong> frenetic pace of NATCA activists,<br />

many of whom still worked six-day weeks and<br />

spent <strong>the</strong>ir free day hustling to get <strong>the</strong> new union<br />

off <strong>the</strong> ground. Even with MEBA’s help, <strong>the</strong>y had to<br />

use annual leave, FAM trip privileges, and sometimes<br />

spend <strong>the</strong>ir own money to visit o<strong>the</strong>r facilities, attend<br />

organizing meetings and, at long last, publicly air<br />

<strong>the</strong>ir issues.<br />

The House Subcommittee on Aviation hearing,<br />

chaired by California Democrat Norman Mineta,<br />

marked ano<strong>the</strong>r milestone. For <strong>the</strong> first time since<br />

<strong>the</strong> strike, an organization representing controllers<br />

About two dozen controller activists, MEBA organizers, and representatives<br />

from across <strong>the</strong> nation attend NATCA’s first national organizing<br />

meeting in Alexandria, Virginia. The AATCC logo, which MEBA graphic<br />

Chapter 3: A Long and <strong>Wind</strong>ing Road<br />

artists converted to <strong>the</strong> name NATCA, is used officially for <strong>the</strong> first time.<br />

The same logo is still used today.<br />

73


74<br />

<strong>Against</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>Wind</strong><br />

Norman Mineta: The California Democrat<br />

attended a one-day NATCA conference in<br />

March 1986, while he was chairman of <strong>the</strong><br />

House Subcommittee on Aviation. President<br />

Bush appointed him transportation<br />

secretary in 2001. / Transportation Department<br />

1986<br />

3<br />

Mar.<br />

was testifying to Congress. Joining Sheedy were fellow<br />

Newark sector controllers Steve Bell and Joel<br />

Hicks. As a General Accounting Office representative<br />

presented testimony about serious<br />

staffing problems, Bell,<br />

Hicks, and Sheedy nodded<br />

in agreement. They<br />

worked in an area with<br />

just half <strong>the</strong> number of<br />

controllers authorized<br />

by <strong>the</strong> FAA.<br />

The hearing attracted<br />

news coverage,<br />

prompting an enthusiastic<br />

reaction from controllers at<br />

<strong>the</strong> TRACON. When Bell walked into work <strong>the</strong> next<br />

day, “it was like I’d just hit a home run at Yankee<br />

Stadium,” he recalls. The attention helped <strong>the</strong>ir organizing<br />

efforts, too. Meetings that previously attracted<br />

six or seven people began pulling in forty to sixty<br />

participants.<br />

Several weeks after <strong>the</strong> hearing, more than thirty<br />

NATCA activists from every region except Alaskan<br />

ga<strong>the</strong>red in San Francisco. Congressman Mineta, a<br />

renowned speaker on aviation issues, also attended<br />

<strong>the</strong> one-day conference. MEBA’s political contacts led<br />

to his presence, which fur<strong>the</strong>r legitimized NATCA’s<br />

increasingly public role on behalf of controllers.<br />

In June, Fred Gilbert and John Thornton tes-<br />

For <strong>the</strong> first time since 1981, an organization representing<br />

working controllers testifies before Congress. Steve Bell, Joel<br />

Hicks, and Michael Sheedy speak on behalf of NATCA.<br />

An Activist Finds His Voice<br />

Steve Bell, a newcomer to <strong>the</strong> blossoming<br />

union, quickly moved into its leadership.<br />

The oldest of three children, he grew up in<br />

Baltimore and moved to Omaha when he was<br />

15. During nine years as a controller in <strong>the</strong> <strong>Air</strong><br />

Force, Bell and his buddies dreamed of hitting<br />

<strong>the</strong> big time with <strong>the</strong> FAA after <strong>the</strong>y got out of<br />

<strong>the</strong> service.<br />

The agency hired one of Bell’s friends,<br />

who became <strong>the</strong> PATCO representative at<br />

Litchfield Tower (now Goodyear) in west<br />

suburban Phoenix. Bell was astonished when<br />

<strong>the</strong> friend refused to accede to Reagan’s ultimatum.<br />

Ano<strong>the</strong>r ex-military friend was also<br />

fired, giving Bell his first inkling of <strong>the</strong> strong<br />

sentiments boiling within.<br />

The FAA shut down all of <strong>the</strong> small towers<br />

in <strong>the</strong> Phoenix Valley and began contracting<br />

with private firms to operate <strong>the</strong>m. Several<br />

months later, Barton ATC Incorporated hired<br />

Bell to work at Falcon Field in Mesa. By <strong>the</strong><br />

time <strong>the</strong> FAA called him <strong>the</strong> following spring,<br />

PATCO had been decertified. Worried that<br />

he might never get ano<strong>the</strong>r chance to join <strong>the</strong><br />

agency, Bell accepted <strong>the</strong>ir job offer.<br />

He hadn’t understood <strong>the</strong> issues in<br />

August 1981. But <strong>the</strong>y immediately became<br />

apparent when his first instructor sat down<br />

to talk to him at Ontario TRACON in South-


ern California.<br />

“Steve, we don’t<br />

want you here,”<br />

<strong>the</strong> trainer said.<br />

“Your chances<br />

of making it are<br />

slim to none.”<br />

Bell survived<br />

training,<br />

however, and by<br />

December 1984<br />

found himself<br />

at New York<br />

TRACON after<br />

a brief stopover<br />

at Omaha Approach.<br />

One of<br />

Bell’s instructors<br />

was Joe O’Brien,<br />

who occasionally<br />

talked about <strong>the</strong> union. One day, O’Brien<br />

asked Bell if he wanted to get involved.<br />

“You’ve got to be kidding me,” Bell<br />

said. “I don’t even know if I’ll be here<br />

next month, let alone help you start a<br />

union.”<br />

“That’s fair,” O’Brien responded.<br />

“I’ll ask when you’re checked out.”<br />

Steve Bell: A preacher’s son, he inherited a gifted tongue.<br />

�<br />

The day<br />

Bell certified<br />

in June 1985,<br />

O’Brien approached<br />

him<br />

again.<br />

After a<br />

swing shift,<br />

Bell and ano<strong>the</strong>r<br />

controller<br />

joined O’Brien<br />

in his basement<br />

in Selden on<br />

Long Island and<br />

learned about<br />

AATCC.<br />

Reflecting<br />

his penchant<br />

Stan Barough<br />

for history, Bell<br />

sought out more<br />

information over<br />

<strong>the</strong> next several months from PATCO cofounder<br />

Mike Rock, John Leyden, and a<br />

few choirboys who’d been fired. He didn’t<br />

see <strong>the</strong> militancy reoccurring, but knew<br />

<strong>the</strong> issue would be a major hurdle to<br />

overcome with controllers who distrusted<br />

unions and were anti-PATCO.<br />

The Cliffside Park, New Jersey,<br />

Chapter 3: A Long and <strong>Wind</strong>ing Road<br />

midair in November 1985, which led to<br />

several civil lawsuits against controllers,<br />

pushed Bell over <strong>the</strong> edge into union<br />

activism.<br />

“I saw what happened to my friend<br />

and colleague, Steve Kelley, who had to<br />

go to <strong>the</strong> NTSB by himself,” Bell says.<br />

“When he got no help from <strong>the</strong> FAA, I<br />

knew and a lot of o<strong>the</strong>r controllers knew<br />

this is not right. We need to organize so<br />

this can never happen again.”<br />

Bell was well suited to <strong>the</strong> task.<br />

He’d inherited a sense of leadership and<br />

a gifted tongue from his fa<strong>the</strong>r, a nondenominational<br />

Christian preacher. Bell<br />

soon took over as president of <strong>the</strong> New<br />

York TRACON local from O’Brien, whose<br />

extensive travels kept him away from his<br />

wife and two young children too often.<br />

More than a few controllers listened to<br />

Bell proselytize and promptly joined <strong>the</strong><br />

cause.<br />

“Steve had a gift and his gift was<br />

his ability to speak,” says New York Center<br />

controller Michael McNally, who saw<br />

<strong>the</strong> light after a two-hour session with<br />

Bell. “By <strong>the</strong> time I walked out of that<br />

preach, I said, ‘This is something I want<br />

to do.’ He put it all in perspective for me.”<br />

75


76<br />

<strong>Against</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>Wind</strong><br />

Guy Molinari: The New York Republican<br />

congressman advocated rehiring some of<br />

<strong>the</strong> fired strikers to ease staffing shortages<br />

during <strong>the</strong> 1980s. / Stan Barough<br />

* Despite 145 co-sponsors, H.R. 4003 never<br />

came to <strong>the</strong> floor for a vote. Molinari tried<br />

again in <strong>the</strong> next Congress. Although <strong>the</strong><br />

House passed his bill, <strong>the</strong> Senate never voted<br />

on it.<br />

** The Salt Lake Center election served as a<br />

noteworthy litmus test on <strong>the</strong> competition<br />

between AFGE and MEBA. Local President<br />

Gary Molen supported NATCA while Vice<br />

President Jim Edmunds preferred to stay<br />

with AFGE (he was voted AATCC national<br />

vice president in a separate election that <strong>the</strong><br />

group held in April).<br />

1986<br />

26<br />

Mar.<br />

tified before Congress about continued low staffing<br />

to generate support for a bill that would authorize<br />

rehiring at least 1,000 PATCO<br />

strikers. Reflecting <strong>the</strong><br />

polar differences of its<br />

membership, NATCA<br />

walked a fine line on<br />

<strong>the</strong> emotional rehire<br />

issue.<br />

While Gilbert<br />

and Thornton acknowledged<br />

that <strong>the</strong> ratio of air<br />

traffic to full-performance level controllers had begun<br />

“to exceed <strong>the</strong> acceptable, prudent level,” NAT-<br />

CA shied away from formally endorsing <strong>the</strong> bill.<br />

Never<strong>the</strong>less, Rep. Molinari, <strong>the</strong> bill’s sponsor,<br />

met privately with Thornton and Gilbert after<br />

<strong>the</strong> hearing and pledged his support to <strong>the</strong> NATCA<br />

organizing. *<br />

The following month, NATCA appeared before<br />

a Senate committee to support <strong>the</strong> creation of <strong>the</strong><br />

Aviation Safety Commission. The proposed panel<br />

would be charged with presenting recommendations<br />

to President Reagan on improving air safety.<br />

The four events highlighted a key difference<br />

between AFGE and MEBA. Where AFGE preferred to<br />

focus on organizing and ignored <strong>the</strong> controllers’ desire<br />

to lobby Congress, MEBA plugged <strong>the</strong>m in right<br />

away on Capitol Hill.<br />

MEBA organizer Kelly Candaele coordinates a NATCA Western-Pacific<br />

conference in San Francisco, which is attended by more than thirty con-<br />

“That was really what was needed,” Thornton<br />

says. “MEBA not only put up money, <strong>the</strong>y put up<br />

some of <strong>the</strong>ir political capital.”<br />

The Home Stretch<br />

Meanwhile, <strong>the</strong> drive to collect 3,750<br />

election petition signatures was in full swing.<br />

Some controllers grumbled over signing for <strong>the</strong><br />

third time—once for a regional union, ano<strong>the</strong>r<br />

for a national AATCC, and now for NATCA. But<br />

sign <strong>the</strong>y did. In February 1986, Salt Lake Center<br />

controllers voted 22-0 to join NATCA. ** In March,<br />

<strong>the</strong> Professional <strong>Controllers</strong> Alliance at Indianapolis<br />

Center climbed aboard. Cleveland Center held its<br />

first organizing meeting in April and 140 controllers<br />

signed up in two weeks. By <strong>the</strong> time Minneapolis<br />

Center got involved, organizers could see <strong>the</strong> nationwide<br />

movement start to jell.<br />

NATCA had collected more than 3,000 names<br />

when AFGE and MEBA argued <strong>the</strong>ir case at <strong>the</strong> Article<br />

20 hearing in June. After two years of false starts<br />

and stagnation, <strong>the</strong> numbers were climbing steadily.<br />

The almost constant travel to endless meetings with<br />

controllers, answering familiar questions, and allaying<br />

common fears gave Thornton, Candaele, Thomas,<br />

and a cadre of former AATCC activists a sense of déjà<br />

vu. Joining <strong>the</strong>m during this second national campaign<br />

were new NATCA activists and ano<strong>the</strong>r MEBA<br />

trollers from all regions except Alaskan. Rep. Norman Mineta, chairman of<br />

<strong>the</strong> House Subcommittee on Aviation, also attends.


14<br />

Apr.<br />

For Want of a Signature<br />

Ed Mullin took <strong>the</strong> FAA’s entrance<br />

exam in 1974, but never heard<br />

back from <strong>the</strong> agency. At <strong>the</strong> time, he<br />

worked at Philadelphia International<br />

<strong>Air</strong>port in passenger service and flight<br />

operations for Eastern <strong>Air</strong>lines, which<br />

contracted with British <strong>Air</strong>ways to<br />

handle <strong>the</strong>ir flights, as well.<br />

Several years later, Mullin<br />

planned to use his pass privileges to<br />

enjoy a trip to Ireland with his mo<strong>the</strong>r. Unfortunately,<br />

British <strong>Air</strong>ways went on strike <strong>the</strong><br />

day before <strong>the</strong>y were scheduled to leave.<br />

Mullin told his mo<strong>the</strong>r <strong>the</strong>ir vacation<br />

would have to be restricted to <strong>the</strong> United<br />

States and asked her to pick any destination as<br />

an alternative.<br />

They were soon flying first class to Denver<br />

to see <strong>the</strong> Rocky Mountains. They rented<br />

a car at <strong>the</strong> airport and stopped at a motel in<br />

nearby Aurora for <strong>the</strong> night. Mullin happened<br />

to notice <strong>the</strong> FAA Regional Office in <strong>the</strong> town<br />

The FAA reports 758 near midair collisions during 1985, compared with<br />

589 in 1984, a 29 percent increase. FAA Administrator Donald Engen<br />

attributes <strong>the</strong> higher rate to improved reporting. The previous fall, NTSB<br />

�<br />

(it was later moved to a<br />

suburb of Seattle after<br />

regional consolidations).<br />

Curious, he decided to<br />

inquire about his longlost<br />

job application <strong>the</strong><br />

next day. The receptionist<br />

directed Mullin to a man-<br />

NATCA archives<br />

ager down <strong>the</strong> hall and<br />

he introduced himself.<br />

The man broke into a wide grin, opened<br />

his bottom desk drawer, and pulled out<br />

Mullin’s file. “We’ve been looking for a medical<br />

qualification,” he said. A form needed a<br />

signature.<br />

Mullin shook his head over <strong>the</strong> circuitous<br />

route his application had taken from<br />

Philadelphia and signed <strong>the</strong> document. The<br />

manager <strong>the</strong>n consulted some o<strong>the</strong>r paperwork<br />

and announced that Mullin could start<br />

work in Lewistown, Montana, in two weeks.<br />

Chapter 3: A Long and <strong>Wind</strong>ing Road<br />

Chairman James Burnett told Congress <strong>the</strong> board was very concerned.<br />

Subsequently, <strong>the</strong> FAA reports 840 near midair collisions in 1986 and<br />

1,058 in 1987, followed by a steady downward trend to 293 during 1993.<br />

77


Ed<br />

Mullin<br />

Op e r a t i n g in i t i a l s: EM<br />

HOm e t O w n : Philadelphia<br />

CHildre n:<br />

Jennifer Aileen<br />

Ot Her tr i v i a:<br />

Former sky diver<br />

in t e r e s t s:<br />

Retired<br />

2002 — Pr e s e n t<br />

NATCA archives<br />

Arkansas Ozarks, Philadelphia<br />

Eagles, NCAA basketball, Rolling<br />

Rock beer<br />

ATC FACiliTies<br />

Cu r r e n t:<br />

pr e v i O u s: DAL<br />

FAY<br />

Various<br />

Tower<br />

Tower<br />

Flight Ser. Stations<br />

Ed Mullin’s involvement with aviation began<br />

during college, when he worked for Eastern<br />

<strong>Air</strong>lines and, later, British <strong>Air</strong>ways in passenger<br />

service and flight operations. The experience gave<br />

him a good grounding for air traffic control, but<br />

his formal education proved equally valuable when<br />

he helped organize NATCA. After growing up in<br />

<strong>the</strong> Philadelphia suburbs and attending a Jesuit<br />

prep school, Mullin graduated from West Chester<br />

University of Pennsylvania with a degree in philosophy<br />

and a concentration in Eastern studies.<br />

“All that ‘philosophy’ helped me quite a bit<br />

and enabled me to frame lucid opinions,” he says.<br />

He needed all available resources. The<br />

FAA hired him in 1977 as a flight service station<br />

specialist in Lewistown, Montana. But by <strong>the</strong> time<br />

Mullin joined <strong>the</strong> NATCA movement in early 1986,<br />

he was working at Dallas Love Field Tower. Unionism<br />

in Texas and <strong>the</strong> Southwest is largely nonexistent—a<br />

world away from Philadelphia, where he<br />

belonged to <strong>the</strong> United Steelworkers of America as<br />

a teenager.<br />

Dealing with a post-strike work force composed<br />

largely of “Pepsi generation” controllers,<br />

who were often ambivalent about organized labor,<br />

presented ano<strong>the</strong>r challenge. “Just <strong>the</strong> fact of certifying<br />

was literally against all odds by anybody’s<br />

calculus,” he says.<br />

Yet Mullin and his fellow organizers pre-<br />

Pr e v i o u s NATCA Po s iT i oN s / AC h i e v e m e N T s<br />

Southwest regional rep 1986-94; Reclassification<br />

Committee; member of NMI Board of Directors;<br />

Southwest Region vice president emeritus.<br />

hir e d<br />

Oct.<br />

1977<br />

vailed and set about shaping <strong>the</strong>ir union. During<br />

his six years on <strong>the</strong> <strong>National</strong> Executive Board, he<br />

approached many issues with a long-term view, including<br />

his successful campaign to set aside a portion<br />

of dues money for a rainy day fund, a program<br />

that remains in effect.<br />

He also advocated professional standards.<br />

Mullin acknowledges it is a sensitive issue, but<br />

believes <strong>the</strong> union should police itself like lawyers<br />

and doctors. “If NATCA can deal with it, <strong>the</strong>y will<br />

have really come of age,” he says.<br />

Back in <strong>the</strong> region, Mullin relied on good<br />

communications to build membership and get<br />

NATCA going. His detailed newsletters did not<br />

escape <strong>the</strong> attention of FAA management. When<br />

Mullin found out a staff member was assigned to<br />

collect all of his material, he chided <strong>the</strong> agency for<br />

wasting taxpayer money and promptly added <strong>the</strong><br />

Regional Office to his mailing list.<br />

Mullin retired as a controller in January<br />

2002, and his daughter, Jennifer, graduated from<br />

veterinary school at Texas A&M University that<br />

year. He still serves as a member of <strong>the</strong> NMI Board<br />

of Directors, and hopes to transition into aviation<br />

research on air traffic services and health issues.<br />

Noting that three controllers at <strong>the</strong> same facility<br />

suffered heart attacks one recent summer, Mullin<br />

says, “We’re hitting effects that no one has ever<br />

studied.”


organizer.<br />

Doc Cullison, a former marine engineer, handled<br />

<strong>the</strong> Central and Southwest regions. Although his<br />

family included a long line of ship captains, <strong>the</strong> allure<br />

of <strong>the</strong> bridge eluded him. After plying <strong>the</strong> seas for<br />

a few years, Cullison became a MEBA representative<br />

organizing workers and conducting contract<br />

negotiations while PATCO was still an affiliate.<br />

His familiarity with controller issues led MEBA<br />

President Gene DeFries to assign him to <strong>the</strong> project.<br />

Cullison worked out of his Houston townhouse<br />

and found himself scrambling at all hours to meet<br />

workers engaged in a 24/7 occupation.<br />

Right-to-work states throughout <strong>the</strong> Southwest<br />

Region and many new-hires who were ambivalent<br />

toward unions presented a difficult challenge. But<br />

Cullison discovered that <strong>the</strong> controllers’ “independent,<br />

Marvel Man mentality” and a string of broken<br />

promises by <strong>the</strong> FAA made <strong>the</strong> new union inevitable.<br />

“The FAA thought that in eliminating PATCO<br />

<strong>the</strong>ir problems were solved,” he says. “They refused<br />

to accept any responsibility for any of <strong>the</strong>ir labor<br />

problems.” *<br />

His right-hand man in <strong>the</strong> Southwest was a<br />

reflective, committed controller from Love Field in<br />

Dallas, who held a bachelor’s degree in philosophy<br />

emphasizing Eastern studies. Ed Mullin had joined<br />

<strong>the</strong> agency in 1977 as a flight service station specialist<br />

1986<br />

12<br />

June<br />

in Lewistown, Montana, along <strong>the</strong> eastern edge of <strong>the</strong><br />

Continental Divide. At <strong>the</strong> time, Mullin and his estranged<br />

wife were involved in a dispute over custody<br />

of <strong>the</strong>ir infant daughter. Mullin’s sister and bro<strong>the</strong>rin-law<br />

took care of young Jennifer in Columbia,<br />

Maryland, leading him to seek<br />

several transfers in an attempt to relocate<br />

closer to his family.<br />

To avoid imperiling his chances<br />

for custody—and sensing political<br />

realities—Mullin chose not to strike.<br />

It was a difficult decision because he believed<br />

in <strong>the</strong> legitimacy of a number of <strong>the</strong> issues.<br />

But reuniting with Jennifer was paramount. By now,<br />

his daughter and her surrogate parents lived in Dallas.<br />

Around Christmas 1981, Mullin finally arrived at<br />

Love Field.<br />

He was no stranger to working conditions<br />

within <strong>the</strong> FAA, but it took a pivotal event for him to<br />

get involved in <strong>the</strong> new union. As a FAB chairman,<br />

Mullin had been pushing to add a second person to<br />

<strong>the</strong> midnight shift at <strong>the</strong> busy airport. Despite his<br />

arguments about <strong>the</strong> higher level of fatigue (he noted<br />

that <strong>the</strong> Three Mile Island and Exxon Valdez disasters<br />

occurred during midnight shifts), his proposal<br />

never went anywhere.<br />

One night in late 1985, an elderly private pilot<br />

suffered a heart attack. His wife, who’d logged only<br />

a few hours of flying time, struggled to control <strong>the</strong><br />

NATCA national organizer John Thornton and Chicago Center controller<br />

Fred Gilbert testify in Congress. They say <strong>the</strong> ratio of air traffic to<br />

journeymen controllers has started to “exceed <strong>the</strong> acceptable, prudent<br />

Chapter 3: A Long and <strong>Wind</strong>ing Road<br />

79<br />

* Cullison wrote a <strong>the</strong>sis on <strong>the</strong> subject titled<br />

The Forgotten Promise: The Resurgence of<br />

Unionism Among <strong>the</strong> <strong>Air</strong> <strong>Traffic</strong> <strong>Controllers</strong>,<br />

which he submitted while earning a master’s<br />

degree in labor and policy studies from State<br />

University of New York in 1988.<br />

level.” The hearing is held in conjunction with an ill-fated effort to pass a<br />

bill, introduced <strong>the</strong> previous fall by Rep. Guy Molinari, R-N.Y., that would<br />

have authorized rehiring at least 1,000 fired PATCO controllers.


80<br />

<strong>Against</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>Wind</strong><br />

Dan Brandt: When <strong>the</strong> Omaha TRACON<br />

controller organized in America’s heartland,<br />

he had to counter a perception that<br />

unions were violent. / Courtesy of Howie Barte<br />

1986<br />

26<br />

June<br />

plane. The sole controller on duty at Love Field tried<br />

to talk her down while juggling o<strong>the</strong>r traffic. But <strong>the</strong><br />

plane flew into some clouds, tumbled to <strong>the</strong> earth near<br />

Dallas-Fort Worth <strong>Air</strong>port, and <strong>the</strong> couple perished.<br />

After <strong>the</strong> crash, <strong>the</strong> FAA assigned two people to<br />

<strong>the</strong> midnight shift to adequately staff <strong>the</strong> tower. When<br />

news media attention dwindled a month later,<br />

however, <strong>the</strong> schedule was changed back<br />

to one. The experience soured Mullin so<br />

much that he resigned from <strong>the</strong> FAB<br />

and attended a NATCA meeting several<br />

months later with about ten o<strong>the</strong>r<br />

controllers. When <strong>the</strong> call went out<br />

for someone to lead <strong>the</strong> effort, Mullin<br />

remembered <strong>the</strong> accident and figured:<br />

Why not?<br />

“I thought <strong>the</strong> best thing for this agency<br />

would be a viable internal voice,” he says. In a flash,<br />

he was <strong>the</strong> de facto Southwest Region representative.<br />

Initially, <strong>the</strong> soft-spoken Mullin talked to controllers<br />

reluctantly. The crowds, already a tough sell<br />

in a state where “right to work” is a euphemism for<br />

“anti-union,” sensed his timidity and gave him a cool<br />

reception. His home answering machine recorded<br />

several threats of violence and a Bible verse. The cultural<br />

difference from his teenage summers as a union<br />

steelworker in Philadelphia was stark.<br />

Consequently, Mullin avoided <strong>the</strong> word<br />

“union.” Instead, he used metaphors such as <strong>the</strong><br />

The AFL-CIO holds an Article 20 hearing to determine whe<strong>the</strong>r AFGE<br />

or MEBA should organize NATCA. MEBA, which had organized PATCO<br />

controllers, ultimately prevails.<br />

American Medical <strong>Association</strong>, American Bar <strong>Association</strong>,<br />

and Mo<strong>the</strong>rs <strong>Against</strong> Drunk Driving to<br />

describe <strong>the</strong> new organization and what it could do.<br />

“The fear factor was sky high,” he recalls.<br />

Omaha TRACON controller Dan Brandt ran<br />

into similar sentiments while helping<br />

to organize in America’s<br />

breadbasket. Many people<br />

equated unions with Jimmy<br />

Hoffa and <strong>the</strong> Teamsters.<br />

The meat packers<br />

had gone on strike<br />

when Brandt showed<br />

up in Sioux City, Iowa,<br />

and a union member had<br />

just been murdered. The homicide<br />

unnerved <strong>the</strong> controllers.<br />

“People are getting killed,” <strong>the</strong>y said with<br />

alarm.<br />

“You’re not a meat packer. You’re an air traffic<br />

controller,” Brandt countered. “That’s a big difference.<br />

It all depends on how you run <strong>the</strong> union.”<br />

Cullison tutored Mullin (and o<strong>the</strong>rs) on <strong>the</strong><br />

phone every night and smiled with satisfaction as<br />

his spokesman matured in front of audiences. “You<br />

could look at people’s eyes and watch to see if <strong>the</strong>y<br />

were persuaded,” Cullison says. “If <strong>the</strong>y believed you<br />

and how credible <strong>the</strong>y believed he was.”<br />

Mullin racked up thousands of miles on his


10-year-old Honda Civic hatchback as spring and<br />

summer 1986 passed in a blur. He met with controllers,<br />

placed leaflets on cars, and tested o<strong>the</strong>r, less traditional,<br />

organizing methods, such as renting a bus<br />

to ferry controllers to a horse track in Shreveport,<br />

Louisiana.<br />

Cullison ran into a crowd playing softball one<br />

afternoon in Corpus Christi, Texas. He rented a<br />

pickup, filled <strong>the</strong> bed with ice and beer, and parked<br />

near <strong>the</strong> exit gate when <strong>the</strong> game ended.<br />

Thirsty players happily accepted <strong>the</strong> refreshments—and<br />

union flyers.<br />

During a meeting in a hotel near<br />

Kansas City <strong>Air</strong>port, a slender controller<br />

with a quick smile named John Carr<br />

sat in <strong>the</strong> audience. After Cullison’s presentation,<br />

Carr asked, “At <strong>the</strong> end of <strong>the</strong><br />

day, why should we have a union?”<br />

“Let me tell you a little story,”<br />

Cullison responded. “It’s about a neighborhood.<br />

All <strong>the</strong> houses in <strong>the</strong> neighborhood<br />

were just beautiful except for<br />

this one vacant lot. It was overgrown<br />

with weeds and trash and rats. One of<br />

<strong>the</strong> neighbors decided if we each kick in<br />

a couple of bucks, we could turn it into<br />

a park. Everybody could share.<br />

“He went door to door and everybody<br />

pitched in. They got <strong>the</strong> trash re-<br />

23<br />

Sep.<br />

Seventy-two delegates attend NATCA’s founding convention at <strong>the</strong> Chicago-O’Hare<br />

Ramada Hotel, including provisional representatives from<br />

each of NATCA’s nine regions. John Thornton announces that NATCA has<br />

moved. They exterminated <strong>the</strong> pests. They mowed<br />

<strong>the</strong> grass. They hauled off <strong>the</strong> refrigerators and old<br />

tires. They put in playground equipment and a basketball<br />

hoop and some benches for <strong>the</strong> old people.<br />

Everybody said, ‘This is <strong>the</strong> most beautiful park<br />

we’ve ever seen.’<br />

“Then a couple of neighbors moved out and a<br />

couple moved in. About a year later, <strong>the</strong> same neighbor<br />

decides <strong>the</strong>y need to take up ano<strong>the</strong>r collection<br />

The neighborhood: Doc Cullison’s fable about homeowners who improve a local<br />

park and <strong>the</strong>n let it fall into disrepair perfectly conveyed <strong>the</strong> essence of solidarity.<br />

Chapter 3: A Long and <strong>Wind</strong>ing Road<br />

NATCA archives<br />

collected more than 4,200 signatures calling for an election on whe<strong>the</strong>r to<br />

form a union. However, <strong>the</strong> group plans to ga<strong>the</strong>r more signatures before<br />

filing <strong>the</strong>m with <strong>the</strong> FLRA to help ensure a “big win.”<br />

81


John F.<br />

Thornton<br />

Acting Director<br />

of Free Flight Program<br />

2001 — Pre s e n t<br />

Op e r a t i n g in i t i a l s: JT<br />

HOm e t O w n : Atlantic City, New Jersey<br />

sp O u s e / CHildre n:<br />

Ginny / Michelle (married to Shawn<br />

Daniels); granddaughter: Amanda<br />

Ot Her tr i v i a:<br />

John, Ginny, and Michelle “starred”<br />

in a 1976 PATCO film about a day<br />

in <strong>the</strong> life of a controller<br />

in t e r e s t s:<br />

Philly sports, reading, <strong>the</strong> beach<br />

Peter Cutts<br />

ATC FACiliTies<br />

Cu r r e n t:<br />

pr e v i O u s: DCA<br />

FAA Free Flight<br />

Tower/TRACON<br />

John F. Thornton joined <strong>the</strong> <strong>Air</strong> Force in 1965<br />

with no intention of becoming an air traffic controller.<br />

Computers were <strong>the</strong> nouveau wave, leading<br />

him to pester his career counselor about training.<br />

But <strong>the</strong> waiting list for school meant he’d have to<br />

endure a year of menial tasks such as KP duty and<br />

collecting roadside trash. When Thornton learned<br />

about <strong>the</strong> alternatives, he promptly “chose” ATC as<br />

a profession.<br />

The newness of it all made him apprehensive<br />

until <strong>the</strong> intricacies of <strong>the</strong> job jelled one sunny day<br />

at Little Rock AFB and he realized “it was what I<br />

was deemed to be.” His eight years in <strong>the</strong> military<br />

also included duty at McGuire and Dover AFBs as<br />

well as Phan Rang <strong>Air</strong> Base in Vietnam.<br />

As Congress held Watergate hearings in<br />

<strong>the</strong> summer of 1973, Thornton started as a civilian<br />

controller at Washington <strong>National</strong> Tower/<br />

TRACON. Still in training when elected facility<br />

rep, he also served as a voting representative at<br />

several PATCO conventions.<br />

He walked out in 1981, hoping to gain a<br />

better retirement and shorter workweek in a profession<br />

where many of his colleagues retired on<br />

medical disability.<br />

Among a handful of controllers who were<br />

jailed for <strong>the</strong>ir actions, Thornton credits his family<br />

for helping him survive <strong>the</strong> ordeal. His wife,<br />

Ginny, was “a rock” and his daughter loyally sup-<br />

Pr e v i o u s uN i oN Po s iT i oN s / AC h i e v e m e N T s<br />

PATCO fac rep at DCA; NATCA nat’l. organizer;<br />

NATCA sr. dir. of legislative affairs 1988-95; helped<br />

avert Russian ATC strike as AFL-CIO special envoy.<br />

hir e d<br />

June<br />

1973<br />

ported him in public. Worried that her classmates<br />

might say something hurtful, Thornton advised<br />

Michelle against wearing a “PATCO on strike”<br />

T-shirt to school in a neighborhood where many<br />

controllers crossed <strong>the</strong> picket line. “I don’t feel<br />

bad,” she replied. “They feel bad.”<br />

Despite <strong>the</strong> pain and damage of <strong>the</strong> walkout,<br />

his association with controllers was far from over.<br />

Two years later, <strong>the</strong>y sought Thornton’s help in<br />

his new role as a labor organizer for <strong>the</strong> American<br />

Federation of Government Employees. Recognizing<br />

<strong>the</strong>ir needs were legitimate, he quietly healed<br />

personal wounds and immersed himself in a nationwide<br />

effort that culminated with a new union.<br />

After certification, Thornton directed NATCA’s<br />

legislative affairs for seven years.<br />

“My work with NATCA was some of <strong>the</strong><br />

most rewarding I’ve had in my life,” says Thornton,<br />

who is justifiably proud of <strong>the</strong> successor that he<br />

helped to create. “NATCA is a very smart organization.<br />

They think everything is possible and <strong>the</strong>y go<br />

after it.”<br />

Thornton left <strong>the</strong> union in 1995, but continued<br />

to represent controllers’ interests. For <strong>the</strong><br />

past five years, he has participated in <strong>the</strong> FAA’s<br />

Free Flight program, a collection of computerized<br />

tools designed to automate certain ATC functions.<br />

In late 2001, <strong>the</strong> agency promoted him to acting<br />

director of <strong>the</strong> program.


to paint <strong>the</strong> playground equipment and make sure<br />

<strong>the</strong> lawn gets mowed and <strong>the</strong> trash gets picked up.<br />

Well, some of <strong>the</strong> new neighbors said: ‘Why should<br />

I contribute? That park was here when I moved in.<br />

I don’t have to pay for it. It’s always been part of my<br />

life.’ So <strong>the</strong>y didn’t kick<br />

in any money.<br />

“By and by, more<br />

people move in and decide<br />

<strong>the</strong> park has always<br />

been a part of my life and<br />

is something I’ve got coming<br />

to me. Pretty soon, it<br />

looks just like it was <strong>the</strong><br />

very first time <strong>the</strong>y found<br />

it.<br />

“That’s why you<br />

need <strong>the</strong> union, John. I’m<br />

asking you for ten bucks<br />

to fix <strong>the</strong> playground,<br />

okay? Do you want to fix<br />

it or don’t you?”<br />

“Where do I sign<br />

up?” Carr said.<br />

As soon as he returned to Kansas City Tower/<br />

TRACON, Carr manned a table in <strong>the</strong> break room to<br />

hand out pledge cards. Managers followed a typical<br />

pattern and looked askance at his involvement. “You<br />

know when that effort fails, <strong>the</strong>y’re going to fire you,”<br />

1987<br />

5<br />

Jan.<br />

“<br />

You really can’t underestimate<br />

that first step <strong>the</strong>y took<br />

because <strong>the</strong>y were going up<br />

against a government that had<br />

just fired 11,000 people who<br />

did <strong>the</strong> same job <strong>the</strong>y did.<br />

<strong>the</strong>y’d say. “They’ll find a reason to fire you just like<br />

<strong>the</strong>y fired those o<strong>the</strong>r boys.”<br />

Carr wasn’t intimidated nor were o<strong>the</strong>rs drumming<br />

up support for NATCA, even as <strong>the</strong>y struggled<br />

just to get inside some facilities. Managers usually relented<br />

as soon as <strong>the</strong> controllers<br />

reminded <strong>the</strong>m<br />

about <strong>the</strong> Civil Service<br />

Reform Act, which guaranteed<br />

workers <strong>the</strong> right<br />

— John Thornton<br />

to organize.<br />

O’Hare TRACON<br />

controller Joseph Bellino,<br />

drawing on experience<br />

he gained while serving<br />

in <strong>the</strong> Army in Vietnam<br />

and as a police officer in<br />

McHenry, Illinois, relied<br />

on ano<strong>the</strong>r trick.<br />

At facilities that<br />

used numbered keypads<br />

for door locks, Bellino<br />

applied powdered de-<br />

odorant to <strong>the</strong> keys and waited until someone<br />

punched <strong>the</strong> code to open <strong>the</strong> door. The missing<br />

powder on certain keys made it easy to determine<br />

<strong>the</strong> correct numbers.<br />

“We had a lot of great people step up,” Thornton<br />

says. “You really can’t underestimate that first<br />

NATCA files an election petition with <strong>the</strong> FLRA to be <strong>the</strong> sole bargaining<br />

agent for all operational GS-2152 air traffic controllers. The proposed<br />

Chapter 3: A Long and <strong>Wind</strong>ing Road<br />

union needed 3,750 signatures—30 percent of <strong>the</strong> work force—but<br />

submits 5,800, or 46 percent.<br />

83


84<br />

19xx<br />

<strong>Against</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>Wind</strong><br />

1986<br />

Founding Convention<br />

Regional Representatives<br />

Among those attending NATCA’s<br />

founding convention in September<br />

1986 were <strong>the</strong> nine interim regional representatives,<br />

who had been elected or appointed<br />

during <strong>the</strong> preceding two years:<br />

Alaskan: Joe Dunigan from<br />

Anchorage Tower/TRACON served as<br />

regional rep and Anchorage Center controller<br />

Will Faville Jr. assisted him as his<br />

alternate. However, Faville, who checked<br />

out as an FPL just three weeks before<br />

<strong>the</strong> convention, was <strong>the</strong> only controller<br />

from Alaska to attend. As a result, he<br />

signed <strong>the</strong> MEBA affiliation agreement<br />

and represented <strong>the</strong> region on votes for<br />

<strong>the</strong> interim constitution and initial dues.<br />

He took over officially when Dunigan<br />

stepped down shortly after <strong>the</strong> union was<br />

certified in 1987.<br />

Central: Like many o<strong>the</strong>rs in <strong>the</strong><br />

region, Jim Poole from Cedar Rapids<br />

Tower/TRACON did not get involved in<br />

organizing until 1986. During <strong>the</strong> spring<br />

and summer, however, he visited every<br />

facility in <strong>the</strong> region, often accompanied<br />

by Doc Cullison. Poole was elected<br />

regional representative at a meeting in<br />

August. He knew he’d be transferring to<br />

Chicago Center in October, however, so<br />

�<br />

Dan Brandt from Omaha TRACON was<br />

elected first alternate and Kansas City<br />

Center controller Ray Spickler was voted<br />

second alternate.<br />

Eastern: Joe O’Brien from New<br />

York TRACON served as <strong>the</strong> original regional<br />

rep during <strong>the</strong> AATCC organizing<br />

drive, but stepped down due to family<br />

pressures. At a pre-convention caucus in<br />

August 1986, controllers elected Steve<br />

Bell, also from New York TRACON, as<br />

regional rep and Dave Pearson from Harrisburg<br />

Tower/TRACON in Pennsylvania<br />

as his alternate.<br />

Great Lakes: Fred Gilbert, an early<br />

activist from AATCC days at Chicago<br />

Center, served as regional rep. His alternate<br />

was Cleveland Center controller<br />

Scott Lawless.<br />

New England: Howie Barte, who<br />

now worked at Providence Tower, was<br />

elected regional rep in November 1984.<br />

Dave Landry, ano<strong>the</strong>r PATCO member<br />

who refused to strike at Lebanon Tower<br />

in New Hampshire (believed to be <strong>the</strong><br />

only facility in <strong>the</strong> region where no one<br />

walked out), served as Barte’s alternate.<br />

Northwest Mountain: Gary Molen<br />

from Salt Lake Center had served as re-<br />

gional rep since 1985. Seattle Center controller<br />

David Brown became his alternate<br />

(until he quit <strong>the</strong> FAA in June 1987 to<br />

publicize his biography of rodeo cowboy<br />

Chris LeDoux, titled Gold Buckle Dreams).<br />

The FAA rehired Brown in 1991.<br />

Sou<strong>the</strong>rn: Dennis Delaney from<br />

Pensacola Tower/TRACON served as<br />

regional rep after Lee Riley nominated<br />

him for <strong>the</strong> position. Riley, who helped<br />

start <strong>the</strong> movement at Atlanta Center, had<br />

taken over as regional rep from Daytona<br />

Beach controller Dan Keeney. When<br />

Delaney was elected, Riley became his<br />

alternate.<br />

Southwest: Ed Mullin from Love<br />

Field in Dallas was named regional rep at<br />

a meeting in early 1986. Houston Center<br />

controller Dennis O’Brien served as<br />

Mullin’s alternate.<br />

Western-Pacific: Jim McCann<br />

from Chino Tower in California served as<br />

<strong>the</strong> original de facto regional rep. At <strong>the</strong><br />

national NATCA meeting in March 1986,<br />

attended by Rep. Mineta, controllers<br />

elected Los Angeles TRACON controller<br />

Karl Grundmann as regional rep and<br />

Richard Bamberger from Lindbergh Field<br />

in San Diego as his alternate.


step <strong>the</strong>y took because <strong>the</strong>y were going up against<br />

a government that had just fired 11,000 people who<br />

did <strong>the</strong> same job <strong>the</strong>y did.”<br />

Founding Convention<br />

At a ballroom inside <strong>the</strong> Chicago-<br />

O’Hare Ramada Inn on September 23, 1986,<br />

Thornton stood behind a podium and welcomed<br />

seventy-two controller delegates and<br />

assorted dignitaries to NATCA’s founding<br />

convention. Almost immediately, he roused<br />

<strong>the</strong> audience by informing <strong>the</strong>m that 4,200<br />

controllers had signed petitions for a national<br />

union—about 33 percent of <strong>the</strong> work force. In<br />

less than nine months, <strong>the</strong> new campaign had<br />

met its goal and NATCA would soon file for an<br />

election with <strong>the</strong> FLRA.<br />

Thornton <strong>the</strong>n articulated what many in<br />

<strong>the</strong> audience believed about <strong>the</strong>ir organization.<br />

“It is clear that, in <strong>the</strong> FAA’s book, controllers are<br />

to be seen and not heard,” he said. “NATCA is a<br />

new union. It is not a reincarnation of <strong>the</strong> past. Our<br />

goals and methods are different, and despite what<br />

our critics say, we are not condemned to repeat <strong>the</strong><br />

mistakes of <strong>the</strong> past.” 8<br />

Determined to chart a different course from its<br />

more militant predecessor, <strong>the</strong> preamble of NATCA’s<br />

proposed constitution explicitly vowed to abide “by<br />

1987<br />

30<br />

Jan.<br />

lawful means” in carrying out its mission. The clause<br />

formalized a no-strike pledge that <strong>the</strong> union had adopted<br />

two months earlier. The constitution included<br />

two o<strong>the</strong>r key differences.<br />

First, every controller would receive a<br />

ballot in national elections.<br />

And every facility was entitled<br />

to send a proportional<br />

number of delegates<br />

to conventions to vote on<br />

constitutional amendments<br />

and participate in<br />

o<strong>the</strong>r business. * PATCO<br />

had elected voting representatives<br />

to speak for<br />

large blocs of members<br />

when electing officers<br />

and changing <strong>the</strong> constitution.<br />

“You had a<br />

cadre of kingmakers<br />

out <strong>the</strong>re who could really play<br />

politics and force <strong>the</strong> union perhaps to do things it<br />

might not have done,” Thornton says now. “By having<br />

direct election of officers by <strong>the</strong> membership, you<br />

curb some of that.”<br />

Secondly, NATCA conventions would be held<br />

every two years. That way, <strong>the</strong> new union would reduce<br />

<strong>the</strong> amount of political fallout that influenced<br />

NATCA Sou<strong>the</strong>rn Regional Representative Dennis Delaney, New England<br />

Regional Rep Howie Barte, and national organizer John Thornton testify<br />

before <strong>the</strong> Senate Subcommittee on Aviation. They urge Congress to re-<br />

Chapter 3: A Long and <strong>Wind</strong>ing Road<br />

store immunity for controllers who report operational errors. They also<br />

urge Congress to release money in <strong>the</strong> <strong>Air</strong>port and <strong>Air</strong>way Trust Fund to<br />

hire more controllers and replace outdated equipment and software.<br />

85<br />

Founding convention program: Delegates<br />

to NATCA’s ga<strong>the</strong>ring in Chicago in<br />

September 1986 adopted an interim constitution.<br />

The preamble stated <strong>the</strong> union’s<br />

intention to abide “by lawful means.”<br />

* The formula stipulated one delegate for each<br />

facility with up to 100 union members. Larger<br />

facilities were entitled to ano<strong>the</strong>r delegate for<br />

every additional fifty members.


86<br />

1987<br />

<strong>Against</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>Wind</strong><br />

June 11, 1987<br />

This day in history: The culmination of NATCA’s campaign to represent air traffic controllers captured <strong>the</strong> attention of<br />

journalists from around <strong>the</strong> world. After <strong>the</strong> Federal Labor Relations Authority tallied <strong>the</strong> ballots—<strong>the</strong> vote passed by a<br />

70 percent margin—<strong>the</strong> news was announced at MEBA headquarters in Washington.<br />

Right: Confident of victory, regional reps filled out NATCA membership applications and FAA form 1187, which authorized<br />

payroll deductions for union dues, in <strong>the</strong> morning before <strong>the</strong> votes were counted. / NATCA archives<br />

2<br />

Feb.<br />

About thirty-five Eastern Region controllers discuss NATCA organizing<br />

and certification election strategy. Former PATCO President John Leyden<br />

tells <strong>the</strong> group that controllers need an organization to speak for <strong>the</strong>m on<br />

Capitol Hill. He says Congress wants to hear from <strong>the</strong> rank and file, not<br />

just managers. Howard Johannssen, president of <strong>the</strong> Professional <strong>Air</strong>ways<br />

Systems Specialists, urges <strong>the</strong> group not to relax its campaign drive.


24<br />

Mar.<br />

The FLRA schedules an election for May 6 through June 10 to decide<br />

whe<strong>the</strong>r NATCA will represent <strong>the</strong> nation’s controllers. The move comes<br />

after a consent meeting attended by NATCA, <strong>the</strong> FAA, and <strong>the</strong> FLRA.<br />

PATCO for several months before and after<br />

its annual ga<strong>the</strong>rings.<br />

Later that morning, a bespectacled<br />

Gene DeFries offered encouragement that<br />

appealed to <strong>the</strong> independent-minded controllers.<br />

“MEBA is going to fill your tank<br />

with gasoline and send you on your way,<br />

and we’ll follow you for a while with a tow<br />

truck in case you break down,” he said. “But<br />

we want you to run your organization.” 9<br />

NATCA took two formal steps that<br />

afternoon. Delegates unanimously approved<br />

an interim constitution and adopted<br />

initial membership dues of 1 percent<br />

of base pay.<br />

Many of <strong>the</strong> delegates were unaware<br />

that MEBA had tried to exert some influence<br />

already by mandating that Thornton<br />

be named executive director of NATCA in<br />

<strong>the</strong> draft constitution. Thornton had high<br />

hopes of leading NATCA, but <strong>the</strong> misstep<br />

was embarrassing for him. When MEBA<br />

lawyers drafted <strong>the</strong> constitution at headquarters<br />

before <strong>the</strong> convention, Thornton,<br />

Beth Thomas, and John Leyden all objected<br />

to including his name, telling DeFries <strong>the</strong><br />

move was heavy-handed.<br />

“If <strong>the</strong>y don’t want you, maybe we<br />

don’t want <strong>the</strong>m,” DeFries countered.<br />

Chapter 3: A Long and <strong>Wind</strong>ing Road<br />

87


88<br />

<strong>Against</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>Wind</strong><br />

For <strong>the</strong> record: John Thornton, left, and<br />

MEBA President Gene DeFries announce<br />

<strong>the</strong> favorable vote for <strong>the</strong> new union. At<br />

a reception that evening, a congressman<br />

put <strong>the</strong> event in perspective: “You people<br />

have no idea what you did. They [<strong>the</strong> FAA]<br />

never saw this coming.” / NATCA archives<br />

1987<br />

After Thornton explained <strong>the</strong> background to <strong>the</strong><br />

board members in Chicago, several walked off for a<br />

private discussion with DeFries. Some felt MEBA was<br />

acting presumptuously. O<strong>the</strong>rs worried that Thornton’s<br />

PATCO background would send <strong>the</strong> wrong message<br />

to <strong>the</strong> FAA and<br />

o<strong>the</strong>r organizations.<br />

There was also<br />

strong sentiment to<br />

have an active controller<br />

lead <strong>the</strong> new<br />

union.<br />

D e F r i e s<br />

agreed to remove<br />

Thornton’s name<br />

from <strong>the</strong> constitution<br />

as director.<br />

Instead, <strong>the</strong> board<br />

added a clause retaining<br />

Thornton as national coordinator until<br />

NATCA held a formal election for officers.<br />

On <strong>the</strong> second day of <strong>the</strong> convention, NATCA<br />

legally cemented its relationship with MEBA—but not<br />

without a surprise.<br />

After lunch, board members were told to report<br />

to a conference room. Thornton, DeFries, and ano<strong>the</strong>r<br />

individual stood near a table with documents<br />

spread out on it.<br />

“Before we can go any fur<strong>the</strong>r, we need to take<br />

May May<br />

17<br />

The FAA begins using <strong>the</strong> <strong>Air</strong>craft Situation Display at its Central<br />

Flow Control Facility. The equipment provides a real-time<br />

visual display of all aircraft flying IFR in <strong>the</strong> nation.<br />

29<br />

a minute so you guys can sign <strong>the</strong>se affiliation agreements,”<br />

DeFries said.<br />

As he explained <strong>the</strong> resources that MEBA<br />

could offer, <strong>the</strong> controllers read <strong>the</strong> papers and<br />

<strong>the</strong>ir eyes widened. A promissory note obligated<br />

<strong>the</strong> union to reimburse<br />

MEBA for organizing expenses<br />

when its finances<br />

permitted. By that point,<br />

<strong>the</strong> loan amounted to<br />

$500,000 (it would climb<br />

to $1.5 million within <strong>the</strong><br />

next year). The second<br />

agreement stipulated a<br />

quarterly affiliation fee<br />

amounting to a steep 15<br />

percent of <strong>the</strong> dues that<br />

NATCA collected from<br />

each member—double<br />

<strong>the</strong> industry average.<br />

Most board members had been under <strong>the</strong> impression<br />

that NATCA would not have to repay <strong>the</strong><br />

money. They were also surprised that <strong>the</strong> affiliation<br />

fee would be so high, although MEBA assured <strong>the</strong>m<br />

<strong>the</strong> 15 percent would be reduced as NATCA membership<br />

increased.<br />

The provisions so angered Eastern Regional<br />

Representative Steve Bell that he stormed out of<br />

<strong>the</strong> room.<br />

The FAA commissions <strong>the</strong> first Host computer system at<br />

Seattle Center. The new equipment replaces IBM’s aging 9020<br />

mainframe computers.


Shaking his head, Gary Molen signed <strong>the</strong> papers,<br />

commenting, “Well, it’s <strong>the</strong>ir money.”<br />

“What’s <strong>the</strong> big deal?” Dan Brandt said with<br />

a shrug.<br />

One by one, <strong>the</strong>y each stepped up and scribbled<br />

<strong>the</strong>ir name, including Bell after he cooled down<br />

and returned to <strong>the</strong> room a few minutes later. But <strong>the</strong><br />

incident left some of <strong>the</strong> controllers with a lingering<br />

mistrust of MEBA and Thornton.<br />

Even as NATCA held its convention, FAA Administrator<br />

Engen steadfastly maintained that few<br />

controllers were unhappy. “I have been to every air<br />

traffic facility ... and I haven’t found strong support<br />

for a union,” he told USA Today. “This is a very vocal<br />

minority that probably stems from PATCO.” 10<br />

Yet signatures continued to pour in. When<br />

NATCA filed its national petition with <strong>the</strong> FLRA on<br />

January 5, 1987, <strong>the</strong>y totaled 5,800, far more than <strong>the</strong><br />

3,750 needed.<br />

The final tally represented 46 percent of <strong>the</strong><br />

work force. New England outpaced <strong>the</strong> o<strong>the</strong>r regions<br />

with signatures from more than 71 percent of its<br />

controllers. Reflecting <strong>the</strong> region’s strong anti-union<br />

sentiment, a mere 18 percent had signed petitions in<br />

<strong>the</strong> Southwest.<br />

The solid showing in <strong>the</strong> Nor<strong>the</strong>ast was due in<br />

large measure to Howie Barte’s efforts marshaling his<br />

contacts in <strong>the</strong> field. Barte was so relentless in pursuing<br />

<strong>the</strong> new union that he once called ano<strong>the</strong>r con-<br />

11<br />

June<br />

troller on Thanksgiving, forgetting it was a holiday.<br />

When <strong>the</strong> controller reminded him, Barte quickly<br />

apologized and hung up.<br />

The FLRA approved <strong>the</strong> petition in March<br />

and scheduled a mail-in vote for all controllers during<br />

May and early<br />

June. This time,<br />

<strong>the</strong> FAA did not<br />

appeal <strong>the</strong> decision.<br />

A Union<br />

at Last<br />

More than 80 percent of all controllers vote in NATCA’s certification<br />

election. Seventy percent approve <strong>the</strong> union as <strong>the</strong>ir sole bargaining agent.<br />

MEBA President Gene DeFries characterizes <strong>the</strong> results as a “victory for<br />

Washington, D.C., awoke to warm, sunny<br />

skies on <strong>the</strong> morning of Thursday, June 11, 1987. The<br />

pleasant, though humid, wea<strong>the</strong>r matched <strong>the</strong> upbeat<br />

mood of NATCA’s regional representatives as <strong>the</strong>y<br />

bantered at MEBA headquarters. A few bloodshot<br />

eyes betrayed early revelers who’d begun celebrating<br />

<strong>the</strong> night before.<br />

John Thornton had told a reporter he estimated<br />

that 70 percent of controllers would vote in favor of<br />

<strong>the</strong> union. The accuracy of his prediction would be<br />

tested shortly when ballot counting commenced.<br />

Confident of victory, <strong>the</strong> nine board members filled<br />

out a NATCA membership application and FAA form<br />

1187 to authorize payroll deductions for union dues.<br />

They piled into taxicabs, rode to FLRA head-<br />

Chapter 3: A Long and <strong>Wind</strong>ing Road<br />

NATCA archives<br />

all air traffic controllers who have carried <strong>the</strong> nation’s air traffic system on<br />

<strong>the</strong>ir backs for nearly six years with excessive overtime and stress.” Charter<br />

members begin signing membership and dues deduction forms.<br />

89


90<br />

<strong>Against</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>Wind</strong><br />

Special recognition: NATCA issued gold<br />

cards and charter member pins to <strong>the</strong><br />

more than 3,000 controllers who joined in<br />

<strong>the</strong> first year after union certification.<br />

1987<br />

19<br />

quarters not far across town, and ga<strong>the</strong>red with FAA<br />

officials in a large conference room. Numerous large<br />

bags stuffed with ballots were clustered around several<br />

tables occupied by FLRA staff members. As <strong>the</strong><br />

tabulating began, agency and union volunteers removed<br />

<strong>the</strong> ballots from <strong>the</strong>ir envelopes using electric<br />

letter openers supplied by MEBA to expedite<br />

<strong>the</strong> process. Repeated murmurs<br />

of “yes” and “no” started rebounding<br />

throughout <strong>the</strong><br />

room. Once counted, <strong>the</strong><br />

workers bundled <strong>the</strong> ballots<br />

in packets of fifty and<br />

stacked <strong>the</strong>m on two tables<br />

at one end of <strong>the</strong> room.<br />

Watching from<br />

<strong>the</strong> sidelines, Gary Molen<br />

paced while puffing<br />

nervously on a cigarette.<br />

A comment from his facil- i -<br />

ty manager, who’d spoken with Molen just before he<br />

flew to Washington, came to mind: “When you guys<br />

lose it, I want to be sure we have an all-hands meeting<br />

and we’ll shake hands. There’s no hard feelings<br />

and we’ll try to work things out.”<br />

But Molen knew it was an empty gesture and<br />

he dreaded a difficult relationship should <strong>the</strong> vote<br />

for a union fail. He listened to <strong>the</strong> FLRA workers at<br />

<strong>the</strong> closest table and winced while <strong>the</strong>y repeated “no”<br />

June July<br />

more often than “yes.”<br />

“This doesn’t look good,” he said. Still pacing,<br />

Molen lit ano<strong>the</strong>r cigarette. “Oh, God, this doesn’t<br />

look good.”<br />

Standing nearby, Karl Grundmann finally snapped:<br />

“Would you shut up. You’re driving me crazy.”<br />

Ed Mullin was preoccupied with similar<br />

thoughts. An anonymous telephone caller had told<br />

him before he left for D.C., “It’s going to be a long ride<br />

home if this doesn’t work out.” Mullin responded:<br />

“You’ve been wrong every step of <strong>the</strong> way. My bet is<br />

you’re wrong now.” Never<strong>the</strong>less, he felt unsettled as<br />

he watched <strong>the</strong> counting proceed.<br />

Morning edged into afternoon without a formal<br />

lunch break and <strong>the</strong> stacks on <strong>the</strong> “yes” table gradually<br />

mounted. In time, <strong>the</strong>y dwarfed those on <strong>the</strong><br />

“no” table. The controllers smiled and nudged each<br />

o<strong>the</strong>r while <strong>the</strong> FAA managers grew increasingly<br />

subdued. Eighty-four percent of <strong>the</strong> work force cast<br />

ballots. After <strong>the</strong> last one was counted, <strong>the</strong> tally stood<br />

at 7,494 to 3,275—a margin of 70 percent, exactly as<br />

Thornton had predicted.<br />

Thornton and <strong>the</strong> board members shook<br />

hands, hugged each o<strong>the</strong>r, and tried to keep mum<br />

about <strong>the</strong> victory as <strong>the</strong>y shouldered past a thicket of<br />

reporters outside <strong>the</strong> building. The official announcement<br />

would be made at MEBA headquarters. But <strong>the</strong>y<br />

couldn’t contain <strong>the</strong>ir ear-to-ear grins and Barte discreetly<br />

gave one reporter a thumbs-up signal.<br />

The FLRA officially certifies NATCA as a union. FAA Administrator Donald Engen leaves office after serving<br />

since April 10, 1984.<br />

2


Back at MEBA’s offices, <strong>the</strong>y joined o<strong>the</strong>r controllers<br />

who’d been anxiously awaiting <strong>the</strong> results.<br />

DeFries and Thornton each spoke into a forest of<br />

microphones to announce <strong>the</strong> historic news to a mob<br />

of reporters and television camera crews. Afterward,<br />

controllers, FAA officials, o<strong>the</strong>r dignitaries, and journalists<br />

milled about a reception on <strong>the</strong> second floor.<br />

The FAA managers wore gold NATCA pins in a show<br />

of respect but, privately, <strong>the</strong>y were stunned <strong>the</strong> union<br />

had garnered so much support.<br />

During <strong>the</strong> celebration, a member of Congress<br />

approached an exhausted Mullin, who was sitting in<br />

a corner nursing a drink. “You people have no idea<br />

what you did,” <strong>the</strong> politician said. “They never saw<br />

this coming.” Reflecting on <strong>the</strong> accomplishment now,<br />

Mullin agrees. “To do it after an apocalyptic event but<br />

before Reagan left <strong>the</strong> White House, and during an<br />

anti-union decade with Pepsi-generation people was<br />

quite astounding,” he says.<br />

8<br />

July<br />

NTSB Chairman Jim Burnett tells <strong>the</strong> Senate Appropriations Subcommittee<br />

on Transportation that <strong>the</strong> FAA should implement an improved controller<br />

feedback program. He says operational errors for April and May<br />

The FLRA certified <strong>the</strong> election results on<br />

June 19. Donald Engen, who presided over <strong>the</strong> FAA<br />

throughout NATCA’s formation, had announced<br />

<strong>the</strong> previous March that he intended to return to<br />

<strong>the</strong> private sector. Two weeks after certification, he<br />

left office. President Reagan and his administration<br />

would occupy <strong>the</strong> White House for ano<strong>the</strong>r nineteen<br />

months. Once again, <strong>the</strong>y had to deal with a labor<br />

organization representing air traffic controllers, less<br />

than six years after crushing its predecessor.<br />

1. Hockstader, Lee. 1984. <strong>Controllers</strong> seek new union at Leesburg center. The<br />

Washington Post. 30 May, final edition.<br />

2. Smith, Philip. 1981. Three in PATCO given 10-day terms. The Washington<br />

Post. 12 December, final edition.<br />

3. Ibid.<br />

4. Shifrin, Carole. 1984. Union launches program to organize controllers. Aviation<br />

Week & Space Technology. 9 July.<br />

5. Ibid.<br />

6. Witkin, Richard. 1985. Pilots planning to form union for controllers. The New<br />

York Times. 29 April.<br />

7. MEBA archives.<br />

8. NATCA archives. Founding convention transcript.<br />

9. Ibid.<br />

10. Adams, Marilyn, and Spahn, Holly. 1986. <strong>Air</strong> controllers see if union revival<br />

will fly. USA Today. 23 September.<br />

Chapter 3: A Long and <strong>Wind</strong>ing Road<br />

1987 were 10 percent higher than 1986. Reports of near midair collisions<br />

for <strong>the</strong> first five months of 1987 rose 39 percent.<br />

91


“<br />

Imagine walking<br />

into an empty office<br />

space. That’s where<br />

<strong>the</strong>y started.<br />

— Former MEBA President<br />

Alexander “Doc” Cullison<br />

Labor of love: Adell Humphreys, NAT-<br />

CA’s director of administration, pieced<br />

toge<strong>the</strong>r sixty-two logos to create a wallsized<br />

quilt, which hangs in <strong>the</strong> local union<br />

office at Oakland Center. / Steve Tuttle


Chapter 4<br />

The House That NATCA Built<br />

Nearly 300 delegates packed <strong>the</strong> Phoenix Ballroom of <strong>the</strong> Hyatt Regency<br />

Atlanta, seated in nine regional clusters. Among those on <strong>the</strong><br />

dais at NATCA’s second national convention in late January 1988<br />

was John Thornton. Once again, he found himself in a swirl of debate about<br />

his role with <strong>the</strong> union.<br />

Hoping to preserve a place for Thornton, New<br />

England Regional Representative Howie Barte had<br />

introduced a constitutional amendment to create a<br />

chief executive officer position. Barte argued that hiring<br />

a professionally qualified CEO would eliminate<br />

<strong>the</strong> specter of national politics, which had already<br />

permeated <strong>the</strong> convention. The CEO—PATCO started<br />

with a similar corporate-type structure—would<br />

be answerable to <strong>the</strong> <strong>National</strong> Executive Board, ensuring<br />

that controllers established <strong>the</strong> union’s goals<br />

and policies.<br />

Thornton was a natural candidate for <strong>the</strong> position.<br />

He’d held <strong>the</strong> job under <strong>the</strong> title of national<br />

organizer since MEBA hired him in December 1985<br />

and had been involved in <strong>the</strong> organizing campaign<br />

since <strong>the</strong> earliest days with AFGE. Thornton also<br />

racked up sixteen years of experience as a controller<br />

with <strong>the</strong> <strong>Air</strong> Force and FAA before he was fired in<br />

<strong>the</strong> strike.<br />

But many delegates believed NATCA<br />

would have more credibility if its members<br />

ran <strong>the</strong>ir union. “We want an organization<br />

of, by, and for air traffic controllers,”<br />

Western-Pacific Regional Rep<br />

Karl Grundmann said, a sentiment that<br />

struck a chord throughout <strong>the</strong> ballroom.<br />

Those who applauded Grundmann’s<br />

stance wanted to completely disassociate<br />

from PATCO. Many feared that NAT-<br />

CA would become ano<strong>the</strong>r radical organization<br />

and were adamantly opposed to Thornton running<br />

<strong>the</strong>ir new union.<br />

Deciding <strong>the</strong>ir destiny: Karl Grundmann<br />

spoke for many by arguing that controllers<br />

should run <strong>the</strong> new union. / NATCA archives


94<br />

<strong>Against</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>Wind</strong><br />

NATCA archives<br />

Legacy of <strong>the</strong> strike: John Thornton, left, confers with MEBA President Gene De-<br />

Fries, right, and NATCA General Counsel Bill Osborne at <strong>the</strong> union’s Atlanta convention<br />

in 1988. Thornton’s PATCO background dashed his hopes of becoming president.<br />

* NATCA retained a professional parliamentarian<br />

to monitor its proceedings in Atlanta.<br />

Central Regional Representative Dan Brandt<br />

handled <strong>the</strong> duties during <strong>the</strong> 1990 convention<br />

and Howie Barte has served as parliamentarian<br />

at every subsequent ga<strong>the</strong>ring.<br />

1987<br />

22<br />

July<br />

“John’s loyalty<br />

and his contribution<br />

to NATCA were unparalleled.<br />

Nobody<br />

can deny that,” says<br />

Steve Bell, <strong>the</strong> Eastern<br />

regional rep at<br />

<strong>the</strong> time. “But <strong>the</strong>re<br />

was no way, no way<br />

we could campaign<br />

and build a union<br />

by electing a PAT-<br />

CO guy as <strong>the</strong> new<br />

president.”<br />

A healthy dose<br />

of wariness about<br />

Thornton’s relationship<br />

with MEBA also<br />

existed. For <strong>the</strong> contingent<br />

from New<br />

York, parochialism came into play, as well. Bell had<br />

emerged as a leading candidate for president in <strong>the</strong><br />

upcoming national election.<br />

After delegates voted down Barte’s CEO proposal,<br />

Barry Krasner introduced two constitutional<br />

amendments aimed at barring Thornton from <strong>the</strong><br />

presidency he sought. One resolution defined an<br />

active member as a certified controller or a developmental<br />

in a training program. The second limited <strong>the</strong><br />

The Aviation Safety Commission, created by Congress in 1986 to develop<br />

recommendations on improving air safety, holds its first day of hearings.<br />

NATCA national organizer John Thornton presents a six-point improve-<br />

right to vote or hold office to active members.<br />

Krasner, who had taken over as <strong>the</strong> local<br />

president at New York TRACON from Bell, was very<br />

familiar with Robert’s Rules of Order and would later<br />

earn a reputation for running conventions with a deft<br />

hand. * But he became tongue-tied while simultaneously<br />

trying to write and announce one of <strong>the</strong> resolutions.<br />

“Wait, wait, wait,” he stammered, trying to be<br />

diplomatic. “What I’m trying to do—”<br />

Thornton leaned toward a microphone and<br />

remarked, “Barry, we all know what you’re trying<br />

to do.”<br />

The measures passed, but some felt badly for<br />

Thornton. Northwest Mountain Regional Rep Gary<br />

Molen, who dismissed <strong>the</strong> anti-PATCO sentiment as<br />

pettiness, nearly came to tears watching <strong>the</strong> drama<br />

play out. “He’s <strong>the</strong> one who got us going and we owed<br />

him something,” Molen says now.<br />

To that end, <strong>the</strong> Atlanta delegates bestowed<br />

Thornton with <strong>the</strong> union’s first honorary lifetime<br />

membership in appreciation of his contributions.<br />

Their recognition moved Thornton and he understood<br />

<strong>the</strong> controllers’ desire to run NATCA. But <strong>the</strong><br />

snub over <strong>the</strong> presidency still hurt.<br />

During <strong>the</strong> four-day convention, delegates wrestled<br />

over a variety of organizational issues and came<br />

to grips with politics. One proposal would establish a<br />

weighted scale for <strong>National</strong> Executive Board members,<br />

giving two votes each to <strong>the</strong> four largest regions and<br />

ment plan. Key elements include immunity for controllers who report<br />

operational errors, increasing FPL controller ranks, addressing equipment<br />

problems, and ending <strong>the</strong> FAA’s contract tower program.


one each to <strong>the</strong> remaining five. In a fiery speech to <strong>the</strong><br />

delegates, Kansas City Center controller Ray Spickler,<br />

from <strong>the</strong> four-state Central Region, contended <strong>the</strong><br />

divisive move would pit large facilities and regions<br />

against small ones. Delegates rejected <strong>the</strong> measure.<br />

They also considered a Sou<strong>the</strong>rn Region resolution<br />

to consolidate NATCA’s nine regions, which<br />

mirrored <strong>the</strong> FAA’s, into seven, as PATCO had done. *<br />

“We were really looking for an efficient organization.<br />

It didn’t make sense to have nine regions and it still<br />

doesn’t,” Krasner says now.<br />

Today, many agree that NATCA and <strong>the</strong> FAA<br />

would be better off with just three or four matching<br />

regions—or even a single national entity—to reduce<br />

overhead costs and foster more unity. “We’ve perfected<br />

<strong>the</strong> FAA model to an art form and we really need<br />

to stop doing that,” says Carol Branaman, who was<br />

elected Northwest Mountain Region vice president in<br />

2000. “If I had my way, we wouldn’t have a bunch of<br />

regional anything. It would be different.”<br />

But in 1988 in Atlanta, some delegates viewed<br />

<strong>the</strong> move as a power play among <strong>the</strong> larger regions.<br />

Representatives from Alaskan, Central, and New England—<strong>the</strong>y<br />

were loosely known as <strong>the</strong> Small Region<br />

Coalition—sent letters opposing <strong>the</strong> proposal to all facilities.<br />

“We feel that by limiting NATCA to only a few<br />

regions, all controllers will not get <strong>the</strong> proper representation<br />

<strong>the</strong>y deserve, and that <strong>the</strong>re will exist certain<br />

internal power structures that helped destroy PATCO,”<br />

22<br />

July<br />

T. Allan McArtor takes over as FAA administrator from Donald Engen,<br />

who resigned twenty days earlier. McArtor logged 200 combat missions<br />

in Vietnam, winning <strong>the</strong> Silver Star and Distinguished Flying Cross. He also<br />

Alaskan Regional Rep Will Faville Jr. wrote.<br />

The proposed amendment was withdrawn,<br />

though not before Barte threatened to pull New England<br />

delegates out of <strong>the</strong> convention.<br />

The First <strong>National</strong> Election<br />

Heavy lobbying ensued in <strong>the</strong> hotel’s bars and<br />

regional “war rooms,” which were making <strong>the</strong>ir first<br />

appearance at a NATCA function. The Small Region<br />

Chapter 4: The House that NATCA Built<br />

Honorary Lifetime Members<br />

FYI<br />

John F. Thornton 1988 NATCA nat’l. organizer, sr. leg. affairs director<br />

John F. Leyden 1992 PATCO president 1970-80<br />

James Breen 1994 New England regional representative 1988-92<br />

Robert D. Taylor 1994 Director of labor relations<br />

Richard Swauger 1996 <strong>National</strong> technology coordinator<br />

Cathy Meachum 2000 NATCA Charitable Foundation co-founder<br />

Emeritus Members<br />

Gary Molen 1994 Northwest Mountain Region VP emeritus<br />

Ed Mullin 1994 Southwest Region VP emeritus<br />

Barry Krasner 1996 <strong>National</strong> president emeritus<br />

Michael McNally 2000 <strong>National</strong> president emeritus<br />

flew with <strong>the</strong> <strong>Air</strong> Force Thunderbirds for two years. McArtor worked<br />

for Federal Express Corporation for eight years until his appointment as<br />

administrator.<br />

95<br />

* Under <strong>the</strong> proposal, New England Region<br />

would be consolidated into Eastern. Central<br />

and a renamed Western Region would absorb<br />

Northwest Mountain states, and several<br />

o<strong>the</strong>r realignments would occur west of <strong>the</strong><br />

Mississippi River. A new Pacific Region would<br />

include Alaska, Hawaii, and U.S. territories in<br />

<strong>the</strong> South Pacific.


96<br />

1987<br />

<strong>Against</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>Wind</strong><br />

7<br />

Sep.<br />

Coalition, joined by Northwest Mountain, hosted a<br />

combined hospitality suite. A fully stocked bar covered<br />

a credenza that ran <strong>the</strong> length of one wall. After<br />

<strong>the</strong> convention, Central Regional Rep Dan Brandt<br />

paid <strong>the</strong> hefty room and bar tab with a credit card.<br />

Thornton, who approved expense reports, gulped<br />

deeply before reimbursing Brandt.<br />

The upcoming national election dominated<br />

conversations in <strong>the</strong> war rooms. Nominations<br />

opened in ano<strong>the</strong>r week, voting would take place in<br />

<strong>the</strong> spring, and results would be tallied in July.<br />

Many union members viewed Steve Bell as <strong>the</strong><br />

heir apparent for president. Seven months before,<br />

on <strong>the</strong> day <strong>the</strong> FLRA tabulated <strong>the</strong> votes to certify<br />

NATCA, he’d announced his candidacy to <strong>the</strong> o<strong>the</strong>rs<br />

on <strong>the</strong> board. The 35-year-old preacher’s son was an<br />

inspirational speaker, had gained visibility during<br />

NATCA’s formation, and enjoyed a powerful political<br />

base rooted at New York TRACON.<br />

Karl Grundmann from Los Angeles TRACON<br />

had been perceived as a contender for political office<br />

as far back as NATCA’s founding convention.<br />

Tall, astute, and at ease in front of a crowd, 34-yearold<br />

Grundmann became Kelly Candaele’s leading<br />

spokesman during organizing on <strong>the</strong> West Coast.<br />

He was seen as a natural candidate for executive<br />

vice president.<br />

Fred Gilbert, an early NATCA stalwart from<br />

Chicago Center, and Ray Spickler, <strong>the</strong> Kansas City<br />

Eastern Regional Representative Steve Bell and o<strong>the</strong>r controllers<br />

in <strong>the</strong> New York area appear on behalf of NATCA in <strong>the</strong><br />

city’s traditional Labor Day parade.<br />

The Bell / Grundmann Ticket<br />

native of Maryland, Karl Grundmann<br />

A quit high school—”before I got asked to<br />

leave”—to join <strong>the</strong> Navy in 1977. He served as<br />

an aviation bosun’s mate at Lemoore Naval <strong>Air</strong><br />

Station, south of Fresno, where he befriended<br />

<strong>the</strong> tower crew and <strong>the</strong>n trained as an air<br />

traffic controller. After <strong>the</strong> FAA hired him two<br />

years later, he worked briefly at Sacramento<br />

Tower and was certifying at Burbank Tower/<br />

TRACON when <strong>the</strong> strike countdown began.<br />

As luck would have it, Lemoore needed<br />

radar controllers. Grundmann’s old commander<br />

called to offer him a civilian transfer<br />

to <strong>the</strong> Defense Department, a five-level bump<br />

on <strong>the</strong> GS pay scale if he accepted <strong>the</strong> job.<br />

Grundmann took <strong>the</strong> offer and subsequently<br />

sidestepped <strong>the</strong> difficult decision of whe<strong>the</strong>r<br />

to strike. Three weeks after <strong>the</strong> walkout, <strong>the</strong><br />

FAA rehired him at Burbank.<br />

“It was very uncomfortable for a while<br />

to walk past <strong>the</strong> picket line,” Grundmann<br />

says. “But I believed <strong>the</strong> FAA. All I heard was<br />

‘we’re going to take care of you.’ ”<br />

Before long, though, <strong>the</strong> ten-hour, sixday<br />

weeks began to grate. Grundmann also<br />

took exception to <strong>the</strong> FAA’s public pronouncements<br />

that <strong>the</strong> air traffic system was returning<br />

to normal. “All it would have taken would<br />

have been one major accident, one controller


Courtesy of Howie Barte<br />

Bicoastal running mates: Steve Bell, right, never formally<br />

acknowledged his unofficial ticket with Karl Grundmann.<br />

screw-up, and <strong>the</strong> whole thing would have<br />

come down. It was a house of cards.”<br />

Despite <strong>the</strong>se issues, Grundmann<br />

hadn’t seriously thought about organizing<br />

given that federal-sector unions were not<br />

permitted to strike. But when he transferred<br />

to Los Angeles TRACON in 1984,<br />

ano<strong>the</strong>r controller named George Stevens<br />

persuaded him to take a closer look.<br />

Kelly Candaele still recalls his first<br />

encounter with Grundmann at an organizing<br />

meeting in Anaheim. “He was a longhaired<br />

guy full of piss and vinegar,” Candaele<br />

says. “Reminded me of—not exactly a<br />

biker type. I came walking in <strong>the</strong> door and<br />

�<br />

he said, ‘Who are you?’ I had a tie on, so he<br />

knew I wasn’t a controller.”<br />

Grundmann listened to Candaele<br />

explain that controllers should think about<br />

organizing because <strong>the</strong>ir jobs involved<br />

high stakes. If a mistake occurred, a union<br />

would define a hierarchy of responsibility<br />

to help protect <strong>the</strong> workers. Candaele<br />

was quick to point out, though, that it was<br />

a decision <strong>the</strong> controllers needed to make<br />

on <strong>the</strong>ir own. “I knew that it was so tender<br />

during <strong>the</strong> initial period that I couldn’t<br />

come in and just say we’ll give you protection,”<br />

Candaele says.<br />

His words won Grundmann over.<br />

Not long after, NATCA held its March 1986<br />

national meeting in San Francisco. Though<br />

Grundmann had joined <strong>the</strong> NATCA drive<br />

only recently, <strong>the</strong> controllers elected him as<br />

Western-Pacific regional rep over Jim Mc-<br />

Cann from Chino Tower, who had served<br />

as <strong>the</strong> de facto rep.<br />

Under Candaele’s gentle tutelage,<br />

Grundmann trimmed his shoulder-length<br />

hair, replaced his jeans with a coat and tie,<br />

and quickly demonstrated a natural savvy<br />

in responding to controllers’ concerns<br />

about <strong>the</strong> new union.<br />

Before NATCA’s certification, Grund-<br />

Chapter 4: The House that NATCA Built<br />

mann and Bell befriended each o<strong>the</strong>r and<br />

forged an alliance. MEBA had assigned a<br />

member of its staff named Walter Browne<br />

to keep tabs on its fledgling affiliate.<br />

“Everybody felt he was <strong>the</strong>re as MEBA’s<br />

hit man,” Barry Krasner recalls. After <strong>the</strong><br />

disagreement over MEBA’s promissory note<br />

and steep affiliation fee, Browne’s appearance<br />

fur<strong>the</strong>r frayed <strong>the</strong> controllers’ faith in<br />

<strong>the</strong>ir funding organization.<br />

That lack of trust came to bear when<br />

Browne asked <strong>the</strong> interim regional reps<br />

whe<strong>the</strong>r <strong>the</strong>y could guarantee <strong>the</strong> vote<br />

for a union and if anyone was willing to<br />

quit <strong>the</strong> FAA and join MEBA as a full-time<br />

organizer. Bell and Grundmann talked<br />

about it, decided to offer <strong>the</strong>ir services, and<br />

met with Gene DeFries. When word of <strong>the</strong><br />

meeting reached <strong>the</strong> o<strong>the</strong>r NATCA board<br />

members, <strong>the</strong>y exchanged heated phone<br />

calls that were charged with political accusations.<br />

Very quickly, Bell and Grundmann<br />

abandoned <strong>the</strong> idea.<br />

Now, as Grundmann launched a<br />

campaign for executive vice president, he<br />

and Bell were widely regarded as a ticket.<br />

However, <strong>the</strong> New Yorker never formally<br />

acknowledged his West Coast counterpart<br />

as a running mate.<br />

97


98<br />

19xx<br />

<strong>Against</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>Wind</strong><br />

The Gilbert / Spickler Ticket<br />

Fred Gilbert joined <strong>the</strong> FAA in 1969<br />

and encountered his “first big lie”<br />

from <strong>the</strong> agency during orientation at<br />

Chicago Center. The academy in Oklahoma<br />

City, he was told, would teach Gilbert<br />

and <strong>the</strong> o<strong>the</strong>r new-hires how to think,<br />

speak, and act exactly alike. In Gilbert’s<br />

first class, however, he watched with<br />

incredulity and unease when two instructors<br />

nearly came to blows arguing about<br />

phraseology.<br />

After working as a controller for<br />

seven years, he was promoted to <strong>the</strong><br />

Great Lakes Regional Office and soon<br />

became associate administrator of <strong>the</strong><br />

<strong>Air</strong> <strong>Traffic</strong> and <strong>Air</strong>way Facilities <strong>National</strong><br />

Task Force.<br />

Gilbert returned to <strong>the</strong> boards<br />

after <strong>the</strong> strike, where his wariness over<br />

unions waned as he endured his ill-fated<br />

attempt to convene a national FAB conference<br />

and realized <strong>the</strong> committees were an<br />

FAA ploy “to placate Congress and controllers.”<br />

Seeing that little had changed,<br />

he joined <strong>the</strong> movement, was elected<br />

Great Lakes regional rep, and traveled<br />

extensively during organizing.<br />

Hoping to steer NATCA toward<br />

a more professional orientation than a<br />

�<br />

traditional labor bent, Gilbert threw<br />

his hat in <strong>the</strong> ring for president. Fellow<br />

Midwesterner Ray Spickler—who<br />

regarded Gilbert as being level-headed,<br />

decent, and likable—backed his candidacy.<br />

The youngest of <strong>the</strong> four top contenders,<br />

29-year-old Spickler grew up in<br />

Kansas City, attended Catholic schools,<br />

and studied chemistry for a while at<br />

Rockhurst University, a Jesuit institution.<br />

His chosen specialty did not inspire him,<br />

however, and <strong>the</strong> strike turned his attention<br />

to air traffic control. Spickler had no<br />

qualms about applying to <strong>the</strong> FAA several<br />

days after <strong>the</strong> walkout. He believed <strong>the</strong><br />

picketers broke <strong>the</strong> law and would not get<br />

<strong>the</strong>ir jobs back.<br />

By <strong>the</strong> summer of 1986, controllers<br />

at Kansas City Center were talking<br />

about a union, but only Spickler attended<br />

an organizing meeting near <strong>the</strong><br />

airport. Among <strong>the</strong> handful of o<strong>the</strong>rs<br />

present were Jim Poole and Dan Brandt.<br />

The group elected Poole as regional rep<br />

and Brandt as his alternate. Poole was<br />

transferring from Cedar Rapids Tower/<br />

TRACON to Chicago Center that fall,<br />

however, so Spickler was named second<br />

Gilbert / Courtesy of Howie Barte Spickler / NATCA archives<br />

alternate to prepare for <strong>the</strong> upcoming<br />

vacancy.<br />

After certification, talk turned to<br />

NATCA’s first national election. Spickler<br />

inherently distrusted Bell and Grundmann.<br />

The two men from <strong>the</strong> coasts<br />

“just hit me wrong,” Spickler says now,<br />

though he adds: “I came to view New<br />

Yorkers with a great deal of love and<br />

respect. They supply <strong>the</strong> union with a lot<br />

of energy.” He has also since resolved his<br />

differences with Grundmann.<br />

But o<strong>the</strong>rs shared Spickler’s suspicions<br />

at <strong>the</strong> time and fretted in particular<br />

about <strong>the</strong> Eastern Region’s influence.<br />

Spickler’s thoughts about running for executive<br />

vice president solidified in Atlanta<br />

after his speech opposing weighted voting<br />

on <strong>the</strong> <strong>National</strong> Executive Board attracted<br />

attention from delegates. Looking for a<br />

vice presidential candidate to give <strong>the</strong><br />

Midwest and smaller regions a greater<br />

voice, <strong>the</strong>y encouraged him to run.<br />

A week later, Spickler and Gilbert<br />

agreed to form a ticket.


Center controller who gained attention with his<br />

pointed speech about competition among regions,<br />

ran toge<strong>the</strong>r in opposition. They hoped <strong>the</strong>ir Midwestern<br />

roots would appeal to members as a more<br />

balanced ticket.<br />

However, Gilbert’s link to PATCO, his emphasis<br />

on professional issues over labor problems,<br />

and possibly his age—he was 42—worked against<br />

his bid for president. Ano<strong>the</strong>r factor may have been<br />

a joint campaign mailing. To save money, Spickler<br />

relied on third-class postage and <strong>the</strong> literature did<br />

not arrive in time for balloting. When <strong>the</strong> results<br />

were announced on July 18, 1988, Bell outpolled<br />

Gilbert nearly two-to-one out of more than 3,200<br />

votes cast.<br />

Likewise, Spickler trailed Grundmann<br />

in <strong>the</strong> race for executive vice<br />

president by about 200 votes. Nei<strong>the</strong>r<br />

won a majority, however, because<br />

of candidacies by two o<strong>the</strong>r<br />

controllers.<br />

Spickler campaigned hard<br />

in a runoff while Grundmann<br />

was hampered by a serious bicycle<br />

accident that knocked out<br />

all his teeth. He also suffered embarrassment,<br />

if not voter backlash, from a letter claiming<br />

Bell’s endorsement sent out by an overzealous<br />

campaign worker. Bell quickly disavowed <strong>the</strong> en-<br />

1987<br />

10<br />

dorsement and Spickler went on to win 63 percent<br />

of <strong>the</strong> runoff vote.<br />

First Steps<br />

Even before <strong>the</strong> Atlanta convention, NATCA<br />

began publicly asserting itself as a labor organization.<br />

Shortly after certification, <strong>the</strong> union joined AFGE in<br />

a lawsuit to prevent <strong>the</strong> Transportation Department<br />

from implementing random drug testing. Both unions<br />

contended <strong>the</strong> program violated Fourth Amendment<br />

protection from unreasonable search and seizure.<br />

Meanwhile, newly retained general counsel William<br />

Osborne demanded talks with <strong>the</strong> FAA to negotiate<br />

<strong>the</strong> rules based on NATCA’s rights under federal labor<br />

laws.<br />

Although a U.S. District Court denied an injunction<br />

sought by <strong>the</strong> unions against drug testing,<br />

NATCA immediately signed its first Memorandum<br />

of Understanding with <strong>the</strong> agency in<br />

October 1987. The agreement, which outlined<br />

testing and grievance procedures, would be included<br />

in <strong>the</strong> union’s first contract whenever it<br />

was negotiated.<br />

By <strong>the</strong> time Steve Bell arrived at NATCA<br />

headquarters in August 1988, <strong>the</strong> union was in <strong>the</strong><br />

midst of lobbying Congress on a key issue that had<br />

helped fuel <strong>the</strong> organizing effort. A bill by Rep. Barney<br />

Frank, a Democrat from Massachusetts, would<br />

Sep. Oct.<br />

The Senate Aviation Subcommittee begins <strong>the</strong> first of at least<br />

four hearings on an ill-fated bill that would remove <strong>the</strong> FAA<br />

from <strong>the</strong> Transportation Department.<br />

1<br />

Chapter 4: The House that NATCA Built<br />

FYI<br />

NATCA retained<br />

William W. Osborne Jr. as<br />

its first general counsel in<br />

August 1987. Osborne had<br />

been in private practice<br />

representing labor unions<br />

for eleven years.<br />

He also taught labor<br />

law at Georgetown<br />

University, The George<br />

Washington University and<br />

The Catholic University of<br />

America in Washington, as<br />

well as <strong>the</strong> George Meany<br />

Center for Labor Studies in<br />

Silver Spring, Maryland.<br />

“I’m very proud to have<br />

been on <strong>the</strong> 1989 union<br />

negotiating team that bargained<br />

<strong>the</strong> first post-PATCO<br />

agreement with <strong>the</strong> FAA<br />

and to have been one of <strong>the</strong><br />

signatories,” Osborne says.<br />

99<br />

Ray Spickler: The Kansas City Center<br />

delegate attracted attention at <strong>the</strong> Atlanta<br />

convention by speaking out against competition<br />

among <strong>the</strong> regions. / NATCA archives<br />

Transportation Secretary Elizabeth Dole leaves office after<br />

serving since February 7, 1983.


100<br />

1987<br />

<strong>Against</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>Wind</strong><br />

1988<br />

The First <strong>National</strong> Executive Board<br />

Although several interim regional representatives<br />

retained <strong>the</strong>ir seats, <strong>the</strong><br />

1988 election brought five new faces to <strong>the</strong><br />

board:<br />

Alaskan: Incumbent Will Faville Jr.<br />

from Anchorage Center handily beat Gordon<br />

Jones from Kodiak Tower.<br />

Central: Incumbent Dan Brandt from<br />

Omaha TRACON easily defeated Larry<br />

Clementz from St. Louis TRACON.<br />

Eastern: Steve Bell’s presidential bid<br />

left <strong>the</strong> field open in <strong>the</strong> region. New York<br />

TRACON controller Barry Krasner won a<br />

runoff election against Steve Van Houten<br />

from New York Center after cultivating <strong>the</strong><br />

support of voters who had backed Dave<br />

Pearson from Harrisburg Tower/TRACON<br />

in <strong>the</strong> first round.<br />

Great Lakes: Joseph Bellino, <strong>the</strong> first<br />

developmental at O’Hare Tower/TRACON<br />

to join PATCO and a longtime NATCA<br />

9<br />

Oct.<br />

�<br />

NATCA archives<br />

Band of bro<strong>the</strong>rs: NATCA’s first elected board took office in September 1988. The top two executives and nine regional<br />

representatives included, from left: Will Faville Jr., Alaskan; President Steve Bell; Jim Breen, New England; Joseph Bellino,<br />

Great Lakes; Barry Krasner, Eastern; Dan Brandt, Central; Executive Vice President Ray Spickler; Lee Riley, Sou<strong>the</strong>rn; Ed<br />

Mullin, Southwest; Gary Molen, Northwest Mountain. Not pictured: Western-Pacific Regional Rep Richard Bamberger.<br />

organizer, had taken over as alternate rep<br />

from Cleveland Center’s Scott Lawless before<br />

<strong>the</strong> election. He beat Mark Ward from<br />

Indianapolis Center and David Shuler from<br />

O’Hare Tower with 61 percent of <strong>the</strong> vote.<br />

New England: Providence Tower<br />

NATCA and FAA representatives sign an agreement regarding random<br />

drug testing. The Memorandum of Understanding provides for a grievance<br />

and arbitration procedure for controllers who are forced to undergo test-<br />

controller Howie Barte, who had served as<br />

<strong>the</strong> regional rep for nearly four years, lost<br />

to Jim Breen from Bradley Tower/TRACON.<br />

A former state trooper who helped establish<br />

<strong>the</strong> Connecticut State Police Union,<br />

Breen edged out Barte by seventeen votes<br />

ing. The signing follows a U.S. District Court ruling denying an injunction<br />

against testing sought by NATCA and AFGE.


with heavy support from Boston Center, <strong>the</strong><br />

region’s largest facility.<br />

Northwest Mountain: Incumbent Gary<br />

Molen from Salt Lake Center easily withstood<br />

a challenge by Robert Fletcher from Denver<br />

Center.<br />

Sou<strong>the</strong>rn: Pensacola Tower/TRACON<br />

controller Dennis Delaney was unable to win<br />

a majority over challengers Lee Riley from<br />

Atlanta Center and Tim Leonard from Miami<br />

Center. Riley, who served as Delaney’s alternate<br />

on <strong>the</strong> provisional board, triumphed in<br />

a runoff election thanks to healthy backing<br />

from his facility.<br />

Southwest: Incumbent Ed Mullin from<br />

Dallas Love Field ran unopposed.<br />

Western-Pacific: Karl Grundmann’s<br />

alternate, Richard Bamberger from San Diego<br />

Lindbergh Tower, held back challenges from<br />

three o<strong>the</strong>r candidates.<br />

immediately substitute <strong>the</strong> government for federal<br />

employees as <strong>the</strong> defendant in civil lawsuits.<br />

For years, accident victims’ next of kin had<br />

periodically sued controllers, costing <strong>the</strong>m thousands<br />

of dollars in legal fees and hampering <strong>the</strong>ir<br />

ability to buy and sell real estate and obtain loans<br />

until <strong>the</strong> government stepped in.<br />

Many controllers signed petitions for NATCA<br />

after five of <strong>the</strong>ir colleagues at New York TRACON<br />

were named in a lawsuit stemming from <strong>the</strong> midair<br />

collision over Cliffside Park, New Jersey, in 1985.<br />

In a concerted lobbying campaign, John<br />

Thornton spoke with Frank’s staff several times and<br />

enlisted support from<br />

MEBA, which earmarked<br />

political action committee<br />

money for <strong>the</strong> tort<br />

reform bill.<br />

NATCA welcomed<br />

<strong>the</strong> financial help. Although<br />

<strong>the</strong> union had<br />

formed constitution,<br />

finance and safety committees,<br />

no PAC existed<br />

yet. NATCA also joined<br />

a coalition of federal-sector<br />

unions formed by <strong>the</strong><br />

Public Employees Department<br />

of <strong>the</strong> AFL-CIO<br />

Nov. Dec.<br />

18<br />

NATCA’s provisional Executive Board votes to hold national<br />

elections. February 1, 1988, is <strong>the</strong> opening date for nominations<br />

for president, vice president, and regional representatives.<br />

3<br />

Chapter 4: The House that NATCA Built<br />

101<br />

NATCA archives<br />

Leading <strong>the</strong> PAC: NATCA retained John Thornton as senior director of legislative<br />

affairs and, in 1989, director of its new Political Action Committee.<br />

James H. Burnley takes over as transportation secretary. Burnley,<br />

former deputy secretary, also served as general counsel and<br />

as associate deputy attorney general in <strong>the</strong> Justice Department.


102<br />

1987<br />

<strong>Against</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>Wind</strong><br />

1988 Election<br />

Results<br />

�<br />

Incumbents served on <strong>the</strong><br />

provisional Executive Board<br />

9<br />

Dec.<br />

President<br />

Votes Percent<br />

Steve Bell Eastern New York TRACON 1,948 60.4<br />

Fred Gilbert Great Lakes Chicago Center 1,138 35.3<br />

Joseph Perrone New England Bradley Twr./TRACON 94 2.9<br />

John Saludin Eastern Albany Twr./TRACON 46 1.4<br />

Executive Vice President<br />

Ray L. Spickler Central Kansas City Center 1,163 36.6 1,828 63.2<br />

Karl Grundmann Western-Pacific L.A. TRACON 1,375 43.2 1,065 36.8<br />

Richard Bolton Southwest Okla. City Twr./TRA. 427 13.4<br />

Timothy Stinson New England Boston Center 218 6.8<br />

Regional Representatives<br />

Alaskan<br />

Will Faville Jr. / incumbent Anchorage Center 60 85.7<br />

Gordon P. Jones<br />

Central<br />

Kodiak Tower 10 14.3<br />

Dan Brandt / incumbent Omaha TRACON 111 66.5<br />

Larry Clementz<br />

Eastern<br />

St. Louis TRACON 56 33.5<br />

Barry Krasner New York TRACON 245 36.2 330 56.2<br />

Steve Van Houten New York Center 256 37.8 257 43.8<br />

Dave Pearson Harrisburg Twr./TRA. 176 26.0<br />

Union representatives from all fifty-three Southwest Region facilities meet<br />

in Dallas to share experiences and initiate a regional “self-training mode.”<br />

Runoff<br />

Votes<br />

Runoff<br />

Percent<br />

FAA representatives from <strong>Air</strong> <strong>Traffic</strong>, Labor Management Relations, and<br />

Human Resources also attend.


Great Lakes<br />

Joseph M. Bellino Chicago TRACON 303 61.1<br />

Mark Ward Indianapolis Center 127 25.6<br />

David A. Shuler<br />

New England<br />

Chicago O’Hare Tower 66 13.3<br />

James Breen Bradley Tower/TRACON 119 53.8<br />

Howie Barte / incumbent<br />

Northwest Mountain<br />

Providence Tower 102 46.2<br />

Gary Molen / incumbent Salt Lake Center 165 68.2<br />

Robert Fletcher<br />

Sou<strong>the</strong>rn<br />

Denver Center 77 31.8<br />

F. Lee Riley Atlanta Center 192 29.6 355 56.6<br />

Dennis Delaney / incumbent Pensacola Tower 277 42.7 273 43.4<br />

Tim Leonard<br />

Southwest<br />

Miami Center 180 27.7<br />

Ed Mullin / incumbent Dallas Love Field Tower 293 99.1<br />

Write-ins<br />

Western-Pacific<br />

Various 3 0.9<br />

Richard Bamberger San Diego Tower 213 53.1<br />

Owen Bridgeman Phoenix TRACON 78 19.4<br />

Kenneth Moen Reno Tower/TRACON 62 15.4<br />

Benjamin Pappa Jr. Los Angeles Center 49 12.1<br />

1988<br />

26<br />

Jan.<br />

Votes Percent<br />

Nearly 300 delegates attend NATCA’s second biennial convention at <strong>the</strong><br />

Hyatt Regency Hotel in Atlanta. Major issues adopted include: establishing<br />

Constitution, Finance, and Safety committees, composed of one member<br />

Runoff<br />

Votes<br />

Chapter 4: The House that NATCA Built<br />

Runoff<br />

Percent<br />

103<br />

from each region; defining an “active” member as a controller who has<br />

been certified in <strong>the</strong> preceding two years or a developmental in a training<br />

program; limiting <strong>the</strong> right to vote or hold office to “active” members.


R. Steve<br />

Bell<br />

Training Specialist<br />

1998 — Pr e s e n t<br />

Op e r a t i n g in i t i a l s: SB, RB, BS<br />

HO m e t O w n : Baltimore<br />

sp O u s e / CHildre n:<br />

Carrie / Jeff, Randy, Tim,<br />

Colleen, Christin, Shawn<br />

Ot Her tr i v i a:<br />

Lives in a house built circa 1765<br />

in t e r e s t s:<br />

History, sailing<br />

Stan Barough<br />

ATC FACiliTies<br />

Cu r r e n t:<br />

pr e v i O u s: P50, N90<br />

OFF<br />

ONT<br />

ATCSCC Command Ctr.<br />

TRACONs<br />

TRACON<br />

Tower/TRACON<br />

Steve Bell’s vision of NATCA has always hovered<br />

on <strong>the</strong> horizon. “That vision is <strong>the</strong> creation of<br />

a twenty-first century labor organization,” he says.<br />

“A union that understands systemic approaches,<br />

understands <strong>the</strong> complexities of systems, and one<br />

that truly does collaborate to <strong>the</strong> greatest extent<br />

possible to reach consensus with management.<br />

That’s what we organized this union on.”<br />

Even as Bell preached <strong>the</strong> need for NATCA<br />

in <strong>the</strong> early days, he advocated collaboration with<br />

<strong>the</strong> FAA and embraced Quality Through Partnership<br />

during his presidency. Since transferring to<br />

<strong>the</strong> Command Center in October 1998, he is often<br />

on <strong>the</strong> road trying to motivate people to think outside<br />

<strong>the</strong> box and see labor-management relations in<br />

a new light.<br />

“The problem has never been people in <strong>the</strong><br />

FAA. The problem has always been <strong>the</strong> structure,”<br />

he says. “The paramilitary structure comes to us<br />

from Rome and has primary dysfunctions built<br />

into it that don’t allow people at <strong>the</strong> bottom of <strong>the</strong><br />

pyramid to bubble up good ideas into <strong>the</strong> organization.”<br />

Part of Bell’s perception of <strong>the</strong> agency stems<br />

from his diverse ATC experience. After nine years<br />

as a controller in <strong>the</strong> <strong>Air</strong> Force, he worked at a privately<br />

run tower in Mesa, Arizona, before <strong>the</strong> FAA<br />

hired him at Ontario Tower/TRACON in 1982. He<br />

<strong>the</strong>n worked in radar rooms in Omaha and New<br />

Pr e v i o u s NATCA Po s iT i oN s / AC h i e v e m e N T s<br />

<strong>National</strong> president 1988-91; Eastern provisional<br />

regional rep 1986-88; Western-Pacific Region QTP<br />

coordinator; New York TRACON local president.<br />

hir e d<br />

April<br />

1982<br />

York, before his election as president, and in Phoenix<br />

from 1991 to 1998.<br />

Bell discovered a new world at <strong>the</strong> Command<br />

Center. Acknowledging that he previously<br />

gave little thought to airplanes beyond <strong>the</strong> range of<br />

his scope, he now regards traffic management as<br />

“<strong>the</strong> wave of <strong>the</strong> future.”<br />

While Bell keeps looking forward in <strong>the</strong><br />

profession, <strong>the</strong> past also fascinates him. A Civil<br />

War history buff, he walks across <strong>the</strong> battlefields of<br />

Antietam and Gettysburg with <strong>the</strong> same familiarity<br />

as Gen. Grant and Robert E. Lee.<br />

He and his wife, Carrie, live in <strong>the</strong> rolling<br />

hills outside Charles Town, West Virginia, in a<br />

colonial-style house built about <strong>the</strong> time <strong>the</strong> British<br />

Parliament passed <strong>the</strong> Stamp Act of 1765, infuriating<br />

American colonists. In <strong>the</strong> barn behind <strong>the</strong>ir<br />

home—and elsewhere on <strong>the</strong> property—a variety<br />

of animals claim residence, including eleven head<br />

of sheep, a donkey, golden retriever, miniature<br />

schnauzer, and two cats. The couple also owns<br />

a sailboat, which <strong>the</strong>y someday hope to steer<br />

through <strong>the</strong> Panama Canal and along <strong>the</strong> West<br />

Coast.<br />

Meanwhile, Bell remains passionate about<br />

his vision for NATCA. “How else will we get<br />

<strong>the</strong>re?” he says. “Until I die or I leave <strong>the</strong> FAA or<br />

I leave <strong>the</strong> union, I’m going to keep plugging that<br />

way.”


to campaign for <strong>the</strong> bill. By fall, <strong>the</strong> Senate passed<br />

a companion measure, which President Reagan<br />

signed into law a month later.<br />

NATCA’s first significant legislative victory<br />

came as Bell and Spickler joined a skeletal national<br />

office staff on <strong>the</strong> eighth floor of MEBA headquarters<br />

at 444 North Capitol Street in Washington.<br />

Besides Thornton and Osborne, Richard<br />

Gordon Jr. served as director of labor relations<br />

and Tony Dresden handled public<br />

affairs.<br />

“They had to create new space where<br />

none had been as far as developing <strong>the</strong><br />

whole organization. Their space at MEBA<br />

headquarters grew as <strong>the</strong>y grew,” Doc Cullison<br />

says. “But that was <strong>the</strong> sort of thankless job that<br />

Steve and Ray did—to create <strong>the</strong> environment. The<br />

things you take for granted.”<br />

Such as hiring a bookkeeper, receptionist, secretaries,<br />

and o<strong>the</strong>r staff members, leasing and buying<br />

office equipment, establishing lines of communication<br />

with union members and <strong>the</strong> FAA, and negotiating<br />

with <strong>the</strong> agency. Indeed, Bell and Spickler were<br />

forced to spend a good deal of time and energy on<br />

infrastructure during <strong>the</strong>ir three-year reign.<br />

With President Bell on <strong>the</strong> scene, Thornton’s<br />

title of executive director posed a dilemma for outsiders<br />

who might be confused about <strong>the</strong> group’s<br />

leadership. Joe Kilgallon, a consultant whom NATCA<br />

1988<br />

Apr.<br />

and PATCO retained periodically, devised a solution.<br />

Thornton was named to <strong>the</strong> newly created position of<br />

senior director for legislative affairs.<br />

Among <strong>the</strong> new faces appearing at <strong>the</strong> national<br />

office was a stylishly dressed, fun-loving woman<br />

named Frances Alsop,<br />

whom Spickler hired as<br />

<strong>the</strong> union’s comptroller<br />

in May 1989. NATCA<br />

had seen two previous<br />

bookkeepers come<br />

and go, but Alsop<br />

would remain with <strong>the</strong><br />

union for twelve years<br />

until she passed away in<br />

August 2001.<br />

Fellow employees and NATCA members were<br />

largely unaware of Alsop’s lengthy illness until her<br />

death, which took away a vibrant personality and a<br />

gold mine of institutional history.<br />

A year after Alsop joined NATCA, Adell Humphreys,<br />

a tall woman with flowing blonde hair and<br />

an easy smile, came onboard. More than a decade<br />

earlier, Humphreys had been secretary for PATCO’s<br />

director of operations until she moved on when <strong>the</strong><br />

job lost its challenge. Humphreys had met Thornton<br />

during her PATCO days and <strong>the</strong>y kept in touch<br />

throughout <strong>the</strong> Eighties.<br />

In April 1990, he called to let her know about<br />

A joint NATCA-FAA labor-management training course, called “Partners<br />

in Problem Solving,” begins. Three-day sessions are held in <strong>the</strong> regions<br />

throughout <strong>the</strong> spring and summer.<br />

Chapter 4: The House that NATCA Built<br />

105<br />

Frances Alsop: The union’s longtime<br />

comptroller was a vivacious presence at<br />

NATCA headquarters until she passed<br />

away in August 2001. / NATCA archives


Adell<br />

Humphreys<br />

Director of<br />

Administration<br />

niC k n a m e : Adelli<br />

1992 — Pr e s e n t<br />

HO m e t O w n : Quantico, Virginia<br />

Ot Her tr i v i a:<br />

Attended more <strong>National</strong> Execu-<br />

tive Board meetings than anyone in<br />

NATCA<br />

in t e r e s t s:<br />

Peter Cutts<br />

Quilting, sewing, gourmet cooking,<br />

music<br />

NATCA FACiliTies<br />

Cu r r e n t:<br />

pr e v i O u s:<br />

NO <strong>National</strong> Office<br />

While <strong>the</strong> <strong>National</strong> Executive Board is in flux<br />

every three years and has evolved through<br />

five administrations, one of <strong>the</strong> few constants<br />

at headquarters is Adell Humphreys. Officially<br />

known as <strong>the</strong> union’s director of administration,<br />

her professional touch graces everything from <strong>the</strong><br />

prosaic to <strong>the</strong> strategic.<br />

Humphreys learned about <strong>the</strong> nuances of air<br />

traffic controllers when she worked for PATCO’s<br />

director of operations. More than a decade later,<br />

NATCA astutely grasped <strong>the</strong> benefits of her skills<br />

and knowledge. “Adell’s qualifications were outstanding,”<br />

former Executive Vice President Ray<br />

Spickler says.<br />

With lightning-fast fingers, Humphreys<br />

has documented <strong>the</strong> deliberations at monthly<br />

NEB meetings since 1990. As <strong>the</strong> union grew, her<br />

responsibilities did, too. They were secretarial in<br />

nature at first—she earned <strong>the</strong> nickname “Adelli”<br />

for faithfully ordering in lunch at NEB ga<strong>the</strong>rings—but<br />

Humphreys deftly demonstrated her<br />

ability to manage executive affairs.<br />

She has coordinated schedules for all of<br />

NATCA’s presidents, from <strong>the</strong> era of Day-Timers<br />

to <strong>the</strong> latest PalmPilot. Convention delegates vote<br />

on which cities to hold <strong>the</strong> union’s biennial ga<strong>the</strong>rings,<br />

but Humphreys oversees <strong>the</strong> selection of hotel<br />

and meeting sites.<br />

And she inherited <strong>the</strong> “title” of landlord<br />

with <strong>the</strong> purchase of <strong>the</strong> Krasner Building in<br />

2000, supervising initial renovations and ongoing<br />

Pr e v i o u s NATCA Po s iT i oN s / AC h i e v e m e N T s<br />

Received <strong>the</strong> Barry Krasner Award for Distinguished<br />

Service, presented by New York TRACON,<br />

in 2000.<br />

hir e d<br />

May<br />

1990<br />

maintenance.<br />

Juggling <strong>the</strong> move to <strong>the</strong> new headquarters<br />

while preparing for <strong>the</strong> Anchorage convention<br />

made <strong>the</strong> first three months of 2000 a chaotic time<br />

for Humphreys. Yet she handled <strong>the</strong> additional<br />

workload like a veteran controller expertly reeling<br />

in planes during an arrival rush. Little wonder,<br />

perhaps, given that she devotes much of her life to<br />

NATCA.<br />

She considers <strong>the</strong> union her family—aside<br />

from doting on two nieces, Ashley and Kendall.<br />

The lasting association contrasts with a<br />

childhood marked by fleeting friendships as Humphreys<br />

moved among various Marine Corps bases<br />

across <strong>the</strong> country, a time when playing <strong>the</strong> flute<br />

and violin cultivated an early love of music. These<br />

days, her tastes favor Bruce Springsteen, who she<br />

believes “is truly <strong>the</strong> king of all music.”<br />

The union has even benefited from her<br />

primary recreational passion. In 1998, she lovingly<br />

quilted an attractive potpourri of sixty-two NAT-<br />

CA logos taken from various shirts. <strong>Controllers</strong><br />

contributed several thousand dollars to a Political<br />

Action Fund raffle for <strong>the</strong> privilege of owning <strong>the</strong><br />

quilt, which now hangs in <strong>the</strong> local union office at<br />

Oakland Center.<br />

O<strong>the</strong>r wall-sized quilts grace Humphreys’ office<br />

at headquarters, along with <strong>the</strong> Barry Krasner<br />

Award for Distinguished Service. “It meant so very,<br />

very much to me to be honored by <strong>the</strong> men and<br />

women I work for,” she says.


a job at NATCA. By this time, she was happily employed<br />

as <strong>the</strong> administration manager for <strong>the</strong> data<br />

processing department of a bank in Alexandria,<br />

Virginia.<br />

But <strong>the</strong> position of executive assistant to <strong>the</strong><br />

president sounded appealing, too. Sitting once again<br />

in PATCO’s old offices, adorned with <strong>the</strong> same garish<br />

metallic wallpaper and red plush carpet, she felt comfortable<br />

enough to advise Bell and Spickler against<br />

running a newspaper ad for <strong>the</strong> job.<br />

“You’ll get a ton of applications,” Humphreys<br />

warned. Then she pitched her strengths. “I know <strong>the</strong><br />

kind of people that we’re talking about. I’ve worked<br />

with air traffic controllers. I know what I’m getting<br />

into here.”<br />

Afterward, she chatted with a friend about<br />

her interview. Exhibiting a characteristic sense of<br />

fairness, Humphreys noted that it was bad business<br />

practice to hire <strong>the</strong> first person to walk through <strong>the</strong><br />

door for a job without talking to more candidates.<br />

“If <strong>the</strong>y offer it to me, I’ll tell <strong>the</strong>m <strong>the</strong>y<br />

should consider o<strong>the</strong>r applicants,<br />

too,” she told her friend.<br />

“Are you nuts?” he exclaimed.<br />

“If <strong>the</strong>y call you up<br />

and offer <strong>the</strong> job, you take it!<br />

You don’t tell <strong>the</strong>m to interview<br />

more people.”<br />

The phone rang within an<br />

1988<br />

22<br />

June<br />

hour and Humphreys took her friend’s advice—as<br />

well as NATCA’s offer. Three months later, a colleague<br />

left to have a baby and Humphreys added office manager<br />

and assistant to <strong>the</strong> executive vice president to<br />

her responsibilities.<br />

Today, her title is director of administration, a<br />

generic description that masks <strong>the</strong> far reach of her<br />

involvement in everything from responding to distressed<br />

members on <strong>the</strong> telephone to booking several<br />

hundred hotel rooms for conventions and o<strong>the</strong>r union<br />

functions. Regardless of <strong>the</strong> title, union members and<br />

<strong>the</strong> rest of <strong>the</strong> national office staff simply consider her<br />

<strong>the</strong> all-knowing, ever-capable Adell.<br />

Barry Krasner describes Humphreys as “<strong>the</strong><br />

beginning and <strong>the</strong> end of NATCA. She’s <strong>the</strong> one constant.<br />

She holds it all toge<strong>the</strong>r.” Krasner remains in<br />

awe of her many talents, least of all a more pedestrian<br />

skill. “Adell types faster than you can talk. We<br />

would finish a five-day board meeting and as I said,<br />

‘This meeting is adjourned,’ she would hand me <strong>the</strong><br />

minutes. Finished. Including, ‘This meeting is<br />

adjourned.’ ”<br />

By <strong>the</strong> end of 1990, NATCA’s<br />

headquarters staff numbered a dozen<br />

or so, including two full-time lawyers<br />

to help Bill Osborne handle <strong>the</strong> mounting<br />

pile of grievances and o<strong>the</strong>r legal<br />

issues. James Morin, a PATCO controller<br />

from LaGuardia Tower, earned a law<br />

John Thornton, NATCA’s senior director of legislative affairs, testifies<br />

before <strong>the</strong> House Aviation Subcommittee in favor of an independent FAA.<br />

Although Thornton credits <strong>the</strong> agency with making progress under Admin-<br />

Chapter 4: The House that NATCA Built<br />

107<br />

Tool of <strong>the</strong> trade (above): Adell Humphreys’<br />

five-year anniversary plaque is<br />

framed by a gift from President Barry<br />

Krasner when he left office. / Japphire<br />

James Morin (left): Hired in 1989, <strong>the</strong> former<br />

LaGuardia Tower controller served<br />

as general counsel for NATCA throughout<br />

<strong>the</strong> 1990s. / Courtesy of Howie Barte<br />

istrator T. Allan McArtor, he says, “There is no reason that <strong>the</strong> FAA must<br />

carry <strong>the</strong> DoT’s bureaucratic anchor around its neck forever.”


108<br />

<strong>Against</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>Wind</strong><br />

Susan Tsui Grundmann (right): When<br />

NATCA’s current general counsel joined<br />

<strong>the</strong> union’s staff in 1990, she recalls that<br />

“we were like a small family.” / NATCA archives<br />

Cheryl Cannon (far right): She has<br />

handled <strong>the</strong> union’s growing switchboard<br />

while watching <strong>the</strong> national office staff<br />

triple in <strong>the</strong> past decade. / Peter Cutts<br />

1988<br />

23<br />

degree from Hofstra University in Hempstead, New<br />

York, after <strong>the</strong> strike and practiced with a private firm<br />

specializing in aviation law until he joined NATCA in<br />

1989. He would serve as<br />

<strong>the</strong> union’s general<br />

counsel for a decade.<br />

Susan Tsui, a graduate<br />

of <strong>the</strong> Georgetown<br />

University<br />

Law Center, came<br />

to <strong>the</strong> union in December<br />

1990 from<br />

<strong>the</strong> Sheet Metal<br />

Workers <strong>National</strong><br />

Benefit Fund.<br />

Early in 1991,<br />

NATCA hired a part-time<br />

receptionist named Cheryl Cannon. She eventually<br />

switched to full time and remains <strong>the</strong> first NATCA<br />

employee that most visitors see when <strong>the</strong>y walk<br />

into headquarters. The growing staff also included<br />

NATCA’s first director of safety and technology. Joel<br />

Hicks, who’d worked at TRACONs in New York, Chicago<br />

and Oakland, California, had been one of <strong>the</strong><br />

activists involved in organizing NATCA during <strong>the</strong><br />

mid-1980s.<br />

Since <strong>the</strong>n, NATCA’s national office staff has<br />

tripled in response to <strong>the</strong> evolving needs of <strong>the</strong> union.<br />

Where Tony Dresden once grappled single-handedly<br />

June Aug.<br />

The FAA commissions <strong>the</strong> twentieth Host computer system at<br />

Salt Lake Center.<br />

15<br />

with <strong>the</strong> monthly newslet- t e r<br />

and media inquiries,<br />

C om mu n ic a t ion s<br />

Director Courtney<br />

Portner and three<br />

o<strong>the</strong>r people handle<br />

that work and<br />

much more now.<br />

Richard Gordon,<br />

<strong>the</strong> union’s first director<br />

of labor relations,<br />

enjoyed <strong>the</strong> help<br />

of an assistant. But with<br />

<strong>the</strong> mushrooming growth in<br />

bargaining units, <strong>the</strong> Labor Relations Department has<br />

swelled to nine people, plus a full-time liaison, under<br />

<strong>the</strong> direction of Bob Taylor. (Gordon left NATCA<br />

in 1996 to start a consulting firm, working with <strong>the</strong><br />

FAA, The MITRE Corporation, and o<strong>the</strong>r clients.)<br />

Like Humphreys, Tsui has grown up with <strong>the</strong><br />

union personally and professionally. She married<br />

Karl Grundmann in 1994 and was promoted to general<br />

counsel in 2000. Tsui Grundmann recalls that in<br />

those early days “we were like a small family.” E-mail<br />

and <strong>the</strong> Web were not in <strong>the</strong> public realm yet and<br />

few committees existed. As a result, members in need<br />

often turned to headquarters, where <strong>the</strong> phones rang<br />

almost nonstop.<br />

“You had to do it all. It was exhausting,” she<br />

President Steve Bell announces <strong>the</strong> establishment of a ten-member<br />

contract negotiation team for <strong>the</strong> union.


says. But <strong>the</strong> employees were happy “doing <strong>the</strong>ir best<br />

to keep <strong>the</strong> child alive.”<br />

While <strong>the</strong> lack of personnel made every day<br />

a scramble, it created a close-knit atmosphere that<br />

included moments of whimsy. One favorite activity<br />

involved a visit to Wilma Gisala in <strong>the</strong> Membership<br />

Department. Gisala read palms and had a knack<br />

for accurate predictions, including one premonition<br />

about a union member who won a car and Tsui’s<br />

impending marriage to a controller. A few diehards<br />

called in for daily readings.<br />

Out in <strong>the</strong> field, regional representatives<br />

and <strong>the</strong> union’s locals<br />

faced <strong>the</strong> same daunting task of<br />

starting from scratch. “Watching<br />

<strong>the</strong> whole system develop<br />

was like watching a tree<br />

come to life,” says Christine<br />

Neumeier, who worked with<br />

Ed Mullin during NATCA’s<br />

organizing days and has been<br />

<strong>the</strong> administrative assistant<br />

for <strong>the</strong> Southwest Region office<br />

since 1992.<br />

When Neumeier signed on,<br />

<strong>the</strong> office consisted of a small, windowless<br />

space in one of Dallas Love Field’s largely<br />

empty terminals. Only later did NATCA expand its<br />

quarters to include a bathroom and badly needed<br />

Sep. Sep.<br />

12<br />

NATCA’s new <strong>National</strong> Executive Board meets for <strong>the</strong> first<br />

time since <strong>the</strong> election in its offices on <strong>the</strong> eighth floor of MEBA<br />

headquarters in Washington, D.C.<br />

29<br />

storage areas. “We were so covered up with file cabinets,”<br />

Neumeier says, adding that <strong>the</strong> furniture “was<br />

one step above a garage sale.”<br />

As with headquarters, <strong>the</strong> telephone served as<br />

a primary communications link in <strong>the</strong> field. “There<br />

was no e-mail, pagers, cell phones, etcetera,” says<br />

Terri Jeffries, who also joined NATCA in 1992 as administrative<br />

assistant for <strong>the</strong> Sou<strong>the</strong>rn Region office.<br />

Simply obtaining a bulletin board to post union<br />

material in FAA facilities was often a fight. Many<br />

controllers set up offices in <strong>the</strong>ir homes because<br />

managers refused to give <strong>the</strong>m space at work. The<br />

first Atlanta Center union office consisted of a<br />

tiny desk and wall phone in <strong>the</strong> men’s locker<br />

room. Files for <strong>the</strong> New York Center local<br />

resided in <strong>the</strong> trunk of Michael McNally’s<br />

red Toyota Corolla hatchback. Members<br />

held meetings in <strong>the</strong>ir living rooms and<br />

basements until management ceded <strong>the</strong><br />

second guard shack at <strong>the</strong> center, which<br />

was spacious enough for three people.<br />

“They gave me that because it leaked<br />

like a sieve,” McNally recalls. “But it did have<br />

a bathroom, so I was excited.”<br />

For a couple of years before and after certification,<br />

<strong>the</strong> local at New York TRACON enjoyed<br />

<strong>the</strong> use of a room at <strong>the</strong> Public Employees Federation<br />

branch office in Hauppauge on Long Island. The largess<br />

came through Michael Sheedy’s fa<strong>the</strong>r, a union<br />

Chapter 4: The House that NATCA Built<br />

NATCA presents <strong>the</strong> union’s first contract proposal to <strong>the</strong><br />

FAA. The proposed agreement contains about eighty articles.<br />

109<br />

Richard Gordon: NATCA’s first labor relations<br />

director left <strong>the</strong> union in 1996 and<br />

formed a consulting firm. / NATCA archives


110<br />

1989<br />

<strong>Against</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>Wind</strong><br />

FYI<br />

officer. When TRACON management finally permitted<br />

NATCA an office at <strong>the</strong> facility, <strong>the</strong>y stationed<br />

a beat-up desk behind a radarscope in <strong>the</strong> control<br />

room with a phone shared by all controllers. Local<br />

President Joe Fruscella had to buy a lamp and light<br />

bulbs.<br />

Today, NATCA occupies two offices: one for <strong>the</strong><br />

membership and ano<strong>the</strong>r for its ten-member Executive<br />

Board. Virtually every o<strong>the</strong>r local in <strong>the</strong> country<br />

also has an office and at least one computer.<br />

As <strong>the</strong> locals established <strong>the</strong>mselves, membership<br />

edged upward. About 6,000 controllers—44<br />

percent of <strong>the</strong> work force—belonged to <strong>the</strong> union<br />

when <strong>the</strong> first <strong>National</strong> Executive Board took office.<br />

By early 1989, membership exceeded 50 percent. David<br />

C. Abbott from Billings Tower/TRACON in Montana<br />

put NATCA over <strong>the</strong> halfway mark by becoming<br />

its 6,859 th member.<br />

Membership milestones during NATCA’s early years<br />

Date Members No. in Unit Percent<br />

October 31, 1988 6,000 13,200 45<br />

February 2, 1989 6,859 13,717 51<br />

July 26, 1990 8,610 14,000 62<br />

October 19, 1990 10,600 14,000 75<br />

13<br />

Jan. Feb.<br />

NATCA and <strong>the</strong> FAA reach tentative agreement on <strong>the</strong>ir first<br />

contract. The three-year pact includes seventy-seven articles.<br />

2<br />

About 2,000 more<br />

joined during <strong>the</strong><br />

summer of 1990,<br />

thanks to concerted<br />

efforts from an<br />

organizing committee<br />

headed by<br />

Atlanta Center’s<br />

Rick Woolbright,<br />

before <strong>the</strong> union instituted<br />

an initiation fee.<br />

The fee—equal to one year of dues, or 1 percent of a<br />

controller’s base pay—was temporarily waived during<br />

a few o<strong>the</strong>r organizing drives during <strong>the</strong> 1990s.<br />

Membership broke <strong>the</strong> 10,000 mark within three<br />

years of certification and gradually increased to 82<br />

percent by 2002.<br />

In its eagerness to attract recruits, NATCA<br />

stumbled early on with a program designed to refund<br />

a member’s lifetime dues upon retirement. Trish Gilbert,<br />

a newly hired Houston Center controller, had<br />

no union background but joined NATCA because<br />

<strong>the</strong> innovative program called <strong>the</strong> O.N.E. Dues Back<br />

Trust appealed to her.<br />

Executive Board member Ed Mullin, ever on <strong>the</strong><br />

lookout for ways to boost membership in his difficult<br />

Southwest Region, proposed <strong>the</strong> plan after hearing<br />

that seven o<strong>the</strong>r unions participated in it. Skeptical<br />

that it sounded too good to be true, he sought advice<br />

Tower controller David C. Abbott in Billings, Montana,<br />

becomes <strong>the</strong> union’s 6,859 th member. For <strong>the</strong> first time since<br />

NATCA was certified, membership exceeds 50 percent.


from a couple of associates who declared <strong>the</strong> trust to<br />

be sound. O<strong>the</strong>r board members were leery. Several<br />

thought it sounded like a pyramid scheme. But <strong>the</strong>y<br />

never<strong>the</strong>less approved it as a membership benefit in<br />

<strong>the</strong> fall of 1988.<br />

Their fears proved correct a year later. The<br />

plan’s promoters claimed that NATCA’s initial contribution<br />

would be 5.35 percent of dues and never<br />

exceed 10 percent. However, consultant Joe Kilgallon<br />

discovered <strong>the</strong> union would need to allocate at<br />

least 20 percent to make <strong>the</strong> plan financially viable.<br />

An embarrassed NATCA sued and was able to recover<br />

all contributions as well as most of its legal<br />

and actuarial costs.<br />

Ano<strong>the</strong>r Mullin proposal has lived a long and<br />

useful life. Early on, he successfully persuaded <strong>the</strong><br />

board to set aside 6 percent of income as a contingency<br />

fund. Known as <strong>the</strong> “Southwest Rule,” Mullin’s<br />

budgetary foresight proved invaluable in 1998. By<br />

<strong>the</strong>n, <strong>the</strong> fund had swelled to $800,000 and enabled<br />

NATCA to avoid going into debt as it spent heavily to<br />

finish a facility reclassification project and complete<br />

its third contract with <strong>the</strong> agency. That same year, <strong>the</strong><br />

Southwest Rule was reduced to 4 percent of income.<br />

Although dues revenue grew as membership<br />

climbed, NATCA’s first two years were awash in red<br />

ink, forcing <strong>the</strong> union to borrow ano<strong>the</strong>r $400,000<br />

from MEBA in July 1989. Regional reps using a common<br />

credit card occasionally had to dig for o<strong>the</strong>r<br />

6<br />

means of payment when merchants rejected <strong>the</strong><br />

union plastic.<br />

Spickler, who was in charge of finances, grew<br />

so concerned about expenses that he finally told Bell,<br />

“Nobody can buy a paper clip in this office unless I<br />

approve it.” Bell instituted “mini-minutes”—summaries<br />

of <strong>National</strong> Executive Board meetings reduced<br />

on a photocopier to save paper. Those with less than<br />

perfect eyesight could barely read <strong>the</strong>m.<br />

Aside from <strong>the</strong> additional loan, MEBA agreed<br />

to halve its 15 percent affiliation fee for six months<br />

shortly after <strong>the</strong> first <strong>National</strong> Executive Board took<br />

Feb. Feb.<br />

Samuel Skinner takes over as transportation secretary from<br />

James H. Burnley. Skinner, an Illinois lawyer, served as chairman<br />

of <strong>the</strong> state’s Regional Transportation Authority.<br />

17<br />

Chapter 4: The House that NATCA Built<br />

NATCA archives<br />

Paying off <strong>the</strong> debt: Strapped for cash in its early years, NATCA’s finances quickly improved. In October 1995, President<br />

Barry Krasner, right, and Executive Vice President Michael McNally presented MEBA with a final loan payment.<br />

111<br />

FAA Administrator T. Allan McArtor leaves office after serving<br />

since July 22, 1987.


Ray<br />

Spickler<br />

<strong>Air</strong> <strong>Traffic</strong> Control<br />

Specialist<br />

1982 — Pr e s e n t<br />

niC k n a m e / Op e r a t i n g in i t i a l s:<br />

Maj. Ksang / SP<br />

ho m e T o w N : Kansas City<br />

FO r m e r sp O u s e / CHildre n:<br />

Jayne / Shannon, Stevie<br />

Ot Her tr i v i a:<br />

NATCA archives<br />

Owns a Harley-Davidson Fat Boy ®<br />

in t e r e s t s:<br />

Guitar, Little League baseball coach,<br />

active in church<br />

ATC FACiliTies<br />

Cu r r e n t:<br />

pr e v i O u s: MCI<br />

IAD<br />

ZKC Center<br />

Tower<br />

Tower/TRACON<br />

Ray Spickler dreamed of being a “top gun” pilot<br />

while growing up in Kansas City. When <strong>the</strong><br />

U.S. Naval Academy did not accept him and he<br />

could not obtain an ROTC scholarship, he studied<br />

chemistry in college. Meanwhile, his interest in<br />

aviation simmered beneath <strong>the</strong> surface.<br />

Spickler applied to be a controller after <strong>the</strong><br />

strike and jumped at <strong>the</strong> chance to attend <strong>the</strong><br />

academy in 1982. He was assigned to Kansas City<br />

Center, where working conditions were better<br />

than many facilities. Never<strong>the</strong>less, talk about a<br />

new union blossomed when managers implemented<br />

a major reorganization with little worker input.<br />

It was an eye-opening experience for Spickler,<br />

who soon found himself attending organizing<br />

meetings and serving as alternate Central regional<br />

representative.<br />

After certification, Spickler mounted a successful<br />

campaign for executive vice president,<br />

and subsequently relocated to Washington. His<br />

wife, Jayne, accompanied him and <strong>the</strong>y quickly<br />

found an apartment—albeit a little too hastily, in<br />

retrospect.<br />

Enchanted by <strong>the</strong> bucolic campus of The<br />

Catholic University of America, <strong>the</strong> couple didn’t<br />

notice <strong>the</strong> “war zone” a few blocks away. The two<br />

Midwesterners were taken aback that <strong>the</strong> neighborhood<br />

grocery checker worked <strong>the</strong> cash register<br />

from behind bulletproof glass. They moved again a<br />

short while later.<br />

Pr e v i o u s NATCA Po s iT i oN s / AC h i e v e m e N T s<br />

Executive vice president 1988-91; Central provisional<br />

alt. regional rep 1986-88; Nat’l. QTP Steering<br />

Committee member; first ZKC local president.<br />

hir e d<br />

April<br />

1982<br />

Spickler’s new duties left him little personal<br />

time. He and President Steve Bell had <strong>the</strong> substantial<br />

task of setting up NATCA’s national office<br />

virtually from scratch while juggling o<strong>the</strong>r pressing<br />

issues, such as <strong>the</strong> union’s first contract. They<br />

were also cognizant of <strong>the</strong> PATCO legacy. Spickler<br />

recalls having to “walk a tight line” to represent<br />

members while not appearing overly strident. “We<br />

both really did believe in trying to collaborate with<br />

<strong>the</strong> agency.”<br />

Although Spickler lost his bid for re-election<br />

in 1991, his disappointment was short-lived. “It’s<br />

hard to turn around and walk away from that,” he<br />

says. But <strong>the</strong> change enabled him to enjoy more<br />

time with his children. Shannon was born four<br />

months before he left office and Stevie arrived in<br />

January 1993.<br />

Spickler went to work at Dulles Tower/<br />

TRACON and transferred to Kansas City Tower<br />

in 1994 before returning to Kansas City Center<br />

two years later. While he has stayed involved by<br />

participating in various local positions and a work<br />

group on Article 87/88 issues, he also believes in<br />

balancing work with his private life. Active in his<br />

church, he coaches his son’s Little League team<br />

and plays guitar, a self-taught skill.<br />

“I’m proud to have been a part of NATCA’s<br />

history and to play a small role,” Spickler says.<br />

“Thanks to <strong>the</strong> members who gave me <strong>the</strong> opportunity.”


office. In March 1990, Bell and Spickler approached<br />

MEBA again and negotiated <strong>the</strong> fee down to 7.5 percent<br />

permanently, saving NATCA $200,000 a year.<br />

MEBA also agreed to forgive about $250,000 in debts<br />

and consolidated eight o<strong>the</strong>r loans into one promissory<br />

note to be paid at 6 percent interest instead of<br />

<strong>the</strong> previous average of 8.8 percent. The restructured<br />

debt represented ano<strong>the</strong>r $50,000 in annual savings.<br />

“They were good to us,” Spickler says. “They<br />

just wanted to see us get organized again. They<br />

wanted to be able to say <strong>the</strong>y were <strong>the</strong> ones who did<br />

it again.”<br />

MEBA’s accommodating attitude continued<br />

with Spickler’s successor, Joseph Bellino, who renegotiated<br />

<strong>the</strong> $1.9 million loan once more for a threeyear<br />

term at 3 percent interest. By October 1995,<br />

NATCA wrote a final check for $34,975.09 to close<br />

out <strong>the</strong> debt, having saved nearly $1 million in interest<br />

and accelerated repayment by ten years.<br />

Spreading <strong>the</strong> Word<br />

The strike had ended seven years earlier and a<br />

different generation of controllers stood at <strong>the</strong> helm<br />

of <strong>the</strong> new union. But it took time for NATCA to<br />

break <strong>the</strong> ice with <strong>the</strong> agency’s top-level managers,<br />

some of whom regarded <strong>the</strong> upstart group warily.<br />

“The FAA people <strong>the</strong>y were dealing with had been<br />

<strong>the</strong>re when PATCO was <strong>the</strong>re,” Doc Cullison notes.<br />

1989<br />

18<br />

“So, this wasn’t exactly <strong>the</strong> most conducive environment<br />

for labor relations.”<br />

As with all relationships, personalities were<br />

key. Bell preached collaboration. Spickler’s philosophy<br />

was to believe in someone until <strong>the</strong>y betrayed his<br />

trust. The agency’s deputy associate administrator for<br />

air traffic, Norbert “Nobby” Owens, believed in collaboration,<br />

too, and was helping to start an innovative<br />

program called Success Through Partnership at<br />

New York Center. Joseph Noonan, <strong>the</strong> FAA’s director<br />

of labor and employee relations, could be hard-nosed<br />

but he preferred dealing with a single entity ra<strong>the</strong>r<br />

than thousands of individual controllers.<br />

Collectively, those attitudes began to thaw a<br />

chilly divide of contentiousness.<br />

But even as NATCA took its first tentative<br />

steps with <strong>the</strong> agency, union members struggled over<br />

<strong>the</strong> direction of <strong>the</strong>ir organization. When NATCA<br />

formed a steering committee to develop a joint labormanagement<br />

cooperative with <strong>the</strong> FAA, it proved to<br />

be a seminal charge for <strong>the</strong> group.<br />

“This steering committee brought out some big<br />

differences within NATCA on what our basic issues<br />

should be—traditional LMR or ‘new’ initiatives,” says<br />

committee member Anthony Coiro from South Bend<br />

Tower/TRACON in Indiana.<br />

Collaboration was a hard sell in those early<br />

days. After <strong>the</strong> agency denied NATCA’s proposed<br />

memorandum to provide 100 percent official time for<br />

Apr. Apr.<br />

NATCA members ratify <strong>the</strong>ir first contract with <strong>the</strong> FAA by a<br />

vote of 3,920 to 748, more than a 5-to-1 ratio.<br />

19<br />

Chapter 4: The House that NATCA Built<br />

113<br />

The strike had ended<br />

seven years earlier and<br />

a different generation<br />

of controllers stood at<br />

<strong>the</strong> helm of <strong>the</strong> new<br />

union. But it took time<br />

for NATCA to break <strong>the</strong><br />

ice with <strong>the</strong> agency’s<br />

top-level managers.<br />

According to NATCA’s first financial report, <strong>the</strong> union had assets<br />

of $319,772 and liabilities of $1,941,564, including principal<br />

and interest of $1.7 million owed to MEBA, on August 31, 1988.


114<br />

<strong>Against</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>Wind</strong><br />

Getting to yes: Labor Relations Director<br />

Bob Taylor developed a different procedure<br />

for settling disputes that has saved<br />

NATCA and <strong>the</strong> FAA money while also<br />

cutting down on arbitrations. / Japphire<br />

1989<br />

1<br />

regional representatives to carry out <strong>the</strong>ir union duties,<br />

Bell urged <strong>the</strong> committee not to “jump ship and<br />

become a strictly confrontational union.”<br />

When Bell and Spickler ran for re-election in<br />

1991, <strong>the</strong>y cited <strong>the</strong> regional representatives’ request<br />

for $200,000 to clear up a backlog of arbitrations<br />

and noted that some wanted to spend even more.<br />

They urged less emphasis on grievances and “greater<br />

employee involvement in management decisions and<br />

resolution of problems at <strong>the</strong> facility level.” They<br />

argued this was a way to save money that could be<br />

May June<br />

NATCA President Steve Bell and FAA Acting Administrator<br />

Robert E. Whittington sign <strong>the</strong> union’s first collective bargaining<br />

agreement, which takes effect immediately.<br />

18<br />

put back into studying facility reclassification, safety<br />

and technology issues, legislative action, and member<br />

benefits.<br />

Such lofty goals competed with reality for <strong>the</strong><br />

young union. In <strong>the</strong> field, controllers were still growing<br />

accustomed to <strong>the</strong>ir new roles as union representatives<br />

while dealing with facility managers who did<br />

not always subscribe to <strong>the</strong> notion of collaboration.<br />

In that regard, <strong>the</strong> local reps were clamoring<br />

for help. Some schooled <strong>the</strong>mselves in labor law, but<br />

<strong>the</strong>re was a clear need for formal training. Central<br />

Regional Representative Dan Brandt approached FAA<br />

Division Manager Ed Newburn, who suggested <strong>the</strong>y<br />

attend joint classes conducted by <strong>the</strong> FLRA. At least<br />

two sessions were held, although some in <strong>the</strong> FAA<br />

feared it would set a precedent for contract negotiations<br />

scheduled to begin soon.<br />

Using instructional materials from <strong>the</strong> classes,<br />

Brandt and Kansas City Center controllers Mark<br />

Kutch and Michael Putzier held training sessions for<br />

o<strong>the</strong>r reps. Joseph Bellino conducted similar classes<br />

in <strong>the</strong> Great Lakes Region, as did o<strong>the</strong>rs elsewhere.<br />

NATCA launched an official program in October<br />

1989 under a contract with <strong>the</strong> George Meany<br />

Center for Labor Studies in Silver Spring, Maryland.<br />

The weeklong course covered federal-sector labor<br />

relations, management rights, unfair labor practices,<br />

disciplinary and adverse actions, grievance and arbitration<br />

preparation, and a briefing on <strong>the</strong> union’s first<br />

The FAA launches a five-year Pay Demonstration Project providing<br />

a bonus of up to 20 percent at eleven hard-to-staff facilities<br />

in <strong>the</strong> New York, Chicago, Los Angeles, and Oakland areas.


Chapter 4: The House that NATCA Built<br />

Training <strong>the</strong> Troops Greg Llafet / Peter Cutts<br />

�<br />

The three dozen controllers seated in<br />

a Las Vegas hotel meeting room were<br />

ready to relax. They’d spent <strong>the</strong> past<br />

week poring over a ream of information<br />

about labor-management relations and<br />

<strong>the</strong> union’s contract with <strong>the</strong> FAA. Weariness<br />

from <strong>the</strong> intense training session<br />

competed with a desire to race back to<br />

<strong>the</strong>ir facilities and put this newfound<br />

knowledge into practice. Conversations<br />

buzzed at tables throughout <strong>the</strong> room.<br />

Several participants impatiently eyed <strong>the</strong><br />

exit doors, yearning for a cocktail and<br />

one more crack at <strong>the</strong> casinos.<br />

Rising from his chair, a longtime<br />

facility representative announced with<br />

conviction: “I’m glad you’ve all learned<br />

<strong>the</strong> contract. But I’m here to tell you that<br />

being a fac rep will present you with<br />

moral choices. It is a moral issue.”<br />

Everyone fell silent while <strong>the</strong>y<br />

absorbed <strong>the</strong> import of his hard-earned<br />

wisdom. The contract might be black and<br />

white, but <strong>the</strong> day-to-day process of carrying<br />

out its provisions could lead <strong>the</strong>m<br />

into a gray morass.<br />

Labor Relations Director Bob Taylor,<br />

primary instructor at <strong>the</strong> weeklong<br />

Facility Representative and Leadership<br />

Training course, addressed <strong>the</strong> dilemma<br />

with a philosophy he espouses<br />

at every seminar: “Be honest, be fair, but<br />

firm. Good, bad or indifferent, if you say<br />

you will do something, see it through, no<br />

matter how politically incorrect it may<br />

be. On <strong>the</strong> o<strong>the</strong>r hand, when <strong>the</strong> employer<br />

makes a commitment, make <strong>the</strong>m<br />

deliver. With that, you can walk away<br />

knowing you did your best with respect<br />

and dignity. Always have <strong>the</strong> courage to<br />

stand tall, to do it right.”<br />

The facility rep course, which has<br />

been available to NATCA members up to<br />

eight times a year since 1989, forms <strong>the</strong><br />

bedrock of educating <strong>the</strong> union’s local<br />

presidents and o<strong>the</strong>r activists. The curriculum<br />

covers <strong>the</strong> gamut of labor-management<br />

relations: workers’ rights under<br />

federal law; unfair labor practice charges;<br />

grievance procedures; conduct and discipline;<br />

midterm bargaining; leadership<br />

survival skills; and more.<br />

Taylor and a variety of NATCA<br />

activists and staff members taught <strong>the</strong><br />

course through <strong>the</strong> 1990s. When NATCA<br />

hired Greg Llafet as its training coordinator<br />

(now director of training) in 1999,<br />

he took over responsibility for schedul-<br />

ing, course materials, hotel<br />

arrangements, all on-site<br />

duties, and teaching <strong>the</strong> leadership<br />

module. Llafet held a similar position<br />

with <strong>the</strong> <strong>Air</strong>craft Owners and Pilots <strong>Association</strong><br />

<strong>Air</strong> Safety Foundation and has<br />

a background in adult education and<br />

corporate training.<br />

Four people now augment Taylor<br />

and Llafet to offer specialized knowledge<br />

on different sections of <strong>the</strong> curriculum.<br />

President John Carr typically provides an<br />

overview and encourages <strong>the</strong> audience<br />

to conduct <strong>the</strong>mselves with trust, honor,<br />

and integrity—sentiments codified in <strong>the</strong><br />

preamble of <strong>the</strong> union’s 1998 contract<br />

with <strong>the</strong> FAA. Summarizing NATCA’s<br />

growth and accomplishments, he drives<br />

home <strong>the</strong> point that “without labor relations<br />

all <strong>the</strong> rest of this is a club.”<br />

Taylor covers that realm using a<br />

no-nonsense, street-smart style he acquired<br />

from working in several positions<br />

with <strong>the</strong> International <strong>Association</strong> of Machinists<br />

and Aerospace Workers, including<br />

Sou<strong>the</strong>rn Region general chairman,<br />

before joining NATCA in 1991. Quoting<br />

chapter and verse from <strong>the</strong> United States<br />

Code and labor authority rulings, he<br />

115


116<br />

<strong>Against</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>Wind</strong><br />

contract, which had been adopted <strong>the</strong> previous May.<br />

The training also included mock negotiating sessions,<br />

an invaluable component for new union reps,<br />

many of whom had little relevant experience o<strong>the</strong>r<br />

than haggling over <strong>the</strong> price of a car or house.<br />

Classes were also held at MEBA’s training<br />

facilities in Easton, Maryland, until <strong>the</strong> mid-1990s,<br />

Japphire<br />

Fac rep training: NATCA conducts up to eight weeklong sessions a year to teach its rank and file about labor-management<br />

relations and leadership skills. The union also offers several advanced courses and has begun Web-based training.<br />

1989<br />

30<br />

June<br />

Retired Navy Adm. James B. Busey IV takes over as FAA administrator<br />

from T. Allan McArtor, who resigned 4½ months earlier. Busey won <strong>the</strong><br />

Navy Cross for combat missions in Vietnam. During his 37-year military<br />

when NATCA assumed responsibility. Staff members<br />

from headquarters initially taught <strong>the</strong> course, which<br />

was expanded to include sections on local finances,<br />

organizing, safety and technology, <strong>National</strong> Transportation<br />

Safety Board issues, and such. A year later,<br />

<strong>the</strong> regions began teaching <strong>the</strong> class with help from<br />

<strong>the</strong> national office.<br />

Meanwhile, Labor Relations Director Bob<br />

Taylor and David Sandbach, a recent addition to<br />

his staff, worked with Cary R. Singletary, a Florida<br />

attorney who specialized in mediation, to develop<br />

basic and advanced arbitration courses. To help convey<br />

concepts of arbitration advocacy, <strong>the</strong>y wrote and<br />

produced a 40-minute video that is still used today.<br />

Several years later, <strong>the</strong>y inaugurated an advanced<br />

facility rep course that included ano<strong>the</strong>r video on<br />

negotiations.<br />

In late 1997, labor relations training was transferred<br />

back to headquarters. <strong>Controllers</strong> James “Ajax”<br />

Kidd, Chris Su<strong>the</strong>rland, and Rodney Turner—with<br />

help from o<strong>the</strong>r activists and Hea<strong>the</strong>r Timme at headquarters—developed<br />

a basic facility rep curriculum<br />

using material <strong>the</strong>y’d been teaching in <strong>the</strong> Eastern<br />

and Sou<strong>the</strong>rn regions for years. Shortly after <strong>the</strong>y<br />

launched <strong>the</strong> new national course in <strong>the</strong> spring of<br />

1998, which was more comprehensive and consistent<br />

than various classes conducted by <strong>the</strong> regions, <strong>the</strong><br />

Labor Relations Department took <strong>the</strong> reins and has<br />

been teaching it ever since.<br />

career, he also served as vice chief of naval operations, commander-inchief<br />

of U.S. Naval Forces in Europe, and commander-in-chief of Allied<br />

Forces in Sou<strong>the</strong>rn Europe.


Training <strong>the</strong> Troops (continued)<br />

translates legal jargon into plain English,<br />

provides a liberal dose of practical tips,<br />

and often exhorts <strong>the</strong> students, “Do not<br />

fear this, people.”<br />

Andy Cantwell, considered a guru<br />

on <strong>the</strong> 1998 contract, explains every article<br />

of <strong>the</strong> agreement. Finance Committee<br />

Chairman Dale Wright covers money<br />

matters and Mike Hull, <strong>the</strong> current <strong>Air</strong><br />

<strong>Traffic</strong> Resources (ATX) liaison, brings<br />

<strong>the</strong> class up to date on ongoing negotiations,<br />

human resource issues, and technical<br />

projects.<br />

“They are true experts in <strong>the</strong>ir<br />

fields,” Llafet says. “No one talks to my<br />

class unless <strong>the</strong>y have worn <strong>the</strong> shoes.”<br />

Since Llafet took over training,<br />

NATCA revived its Advanced Representation<br />

course. The union also offers a oneday<br />

seminar for liaisons and technical<br />

representatives who deal with <strong>the</strong> FAA,<br />

training for leaders of new bargaining<br />

units that don’t yet have a contract with<br />

<strong>the</strong> agency, and two arbitration advocacy<br />

courses. The overall curriculum represented<br />

a $300,000 investment in 2001.<br />

NATCA also created an external<br />

�<br />

program in cooperation with <strong>the</strong> George<br />

Meany Center <strong>National</strong> Labor College in<br />

Silver Spring, Maryland. Participants can<br />

earn a bachelor’s degree by completing<br />

five courses that supplement <strong>the</strong>ir work<br />

and union leadership experience, and<br />

technical and labor training.<br />

In early 2002, Llafet launched an<br />

initiative to provide Web-based instruction<br />

by posting <strong>the</strong> Formal Discussions<br />

module on NATCA’s site. Many segments<br />

of <strong>the</strong> basic facility rep course are also<br />

available online for reference.<br />

Although <strong>the</strong> training provides a<br />

firm grounding in traditional labor-management<br />

procedures, it also emphasizes<br />

working relationships with <strong>the</strong> FAA. This<br />

philosophy, coupled with a new process<br />

called Alternate Dispute Resolution, has<br />

helped to significantly reduce grievance<br />

arbitrations.<br />

During 1998 contract negotiations,<br />

more than 900 grievances were pending.<br />

Typically, most are resolved before going<br />

to arbitration. Even so, Taylor successfully<br />

pushed for an expedited arbitration<br />

process, which was written into <strong>the</strong><br />

Chapter 4: The House that NATCA Built<br />

contract. He also sought a way to settle<br />

disputes under less adversarial conditions<br />

by inventing procedures for ADR.<br />

Aside from faster resolution of<br />

grievances, Taylor lauds <strong>the</strong> program for<br />

providing substantial cost savings. Arbitrations<br />

usually cost $5,000 to $8,000<br />

or more, depending on <strong>the</strong> length of<br />

<strong>the</strong> hearing. With ADR, a mediator can<br />

handle five to eight grievances a day for<br />

about $2,000.<br />

The savings stem from ADR’s accelerated<br />

and simplified procedures. At<br />

traditional arbitration hearings, witnesses<br />

representing <strong>the</strong> union and management<br />

may testify for days. Under ADR, each<br />

side receives about fifteen minutes to<br />

present its case. Based on <strong>the</strong> testimony,<br />

a mediator renders an advisory opinion<br />

that both sides are encouraged to accept.<br />

If ei<strong>the</strong>r party forces <strong>the</strong> issue to arbitration,<br />

<strong>the</strong> ultimate loser pays all expenses<br />

arising from <strong>the</strong> dispute.<br />

Since NATCA and <strong>the</strong> agency<br />

formally adopted ADR three years ago,<br />

arbitrations have declined 44 percent to<br />

just ten cases in 2001.<br />

117


118<br />

1989<br />

<strong>Against</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>Wind</strong><br />

The NATCA Voice<br />

When Bryan Thompson transferred to<br />

Chicago TRACON around Thanksgiving<br />

1993, he heard <strong>the</strong> standard directive<br />

issued to all new arrivals: Don’t talk to<br />

<strong>the</strong> journeymen controllers.<br />

“There’s nothing you can say about<br />

what it is we do that will have any impact<br />

or that <strong>the</strong>y want to hear,” management told<br />

him. “If it looks like you might get checked<br />

out and get to stay here, <strong>the</strong>n <strong>the</strong>y’ll probably<br />

want to get to know you. In <strong>the</strong> meantime,<br />

you’re probably not going to make it<br />

so don’t bo<strong>the</strong>r.”<br />

Thompson, who’d worked as a controller<br />

for more than eleven years in Lafayette,<br />

Louisiana, and at <strong>the</strong> Marine Corps<br />

<strong>Air</strong> Station in Beaufort, South Carolina,<br />

bristled over <strong>the</strong> outcast treatment. He<br />

also brushed it off. Thompson had been<br />

involved with <strong>the</strong> union in Lafayette, where<br />

he served as <strong>the</strong> NATCA facility rep, and<br />

12<br />

July<br />

�<br />

did not intend to sit on <strong>the</strong> sidelines in<br />

Chicago.<br />

Instead, he approached Ray Gibbons<br />

and John Carr, <strong>the</strong> local’s president<br />

and vice president, respectively, to<br />

offer his photography and design skills.<br />

Coincidentally, <strong>the</strong> union was resurrecting<br />

a facility newsletter called Intentionally<br />

Left Blank. Articles in previous issues<br />

had been cobbled toge<strong>the</strong>r with scissors<br />

and paste, and duplicated on a photocopier.<br />

Gibbons and Carr, who wanted a<br />

more professional appearance, welcomed<br />

Thompson’s help.<br />

During <strong>the</strong> next year, Thompson<br />

edited and published Intentionally Left<br />

Blank every two months or so. The issues<br />

contained an eclectic mix of news articles,<br />

soapbox columns, historical perspectives,<br />

cartoons, top ten lists, and o<strong>the</strong>r offbeat<br />

tidbits. Thompson designed <strong>the</strong> pages using<br />

An arbitrator rules that NATCA local presidents may leave <strong>the</strong> facility on<br />

official time to perform representational duties. The decision grew out of<br />

three cases in which facility reps had been denied such permission.<br />

an Amiga computer, and worked with a local<br />

shop to duplicate and collate <strong>the</strong>m into<br />

a newsletter.<br />

“If I had to move or some big event<br />

was taking place, <strong>the</strong> publishing got pushed<br />

back a bit because <strong>the</strong>re was nobody to<br />

slough it off on,” he says.<br />

The experience provided a firm foundation<br />

for Thompson’s next venture. In <strong>the</strong><br />

fall of 1994, Great Lakes Vice President Jim<br />

Poole decided to launch a regional newsletter.<br />

Veronica Green from Flint Tower/<br />

TRACON in Michigan volunteered to lead<br />

<strong>the</strong> effort, but she had no background in<br />

print production and gratefully accepted<br />

Thompson’s help.<br />

From <strong>the</strong> beginning, <strong>the</strong> co-editors<br />

sought to create a publication written<br />

entirely by controllers. Their philosophy<br />

was embodied in <strong>the</strong> title of <strong>the</strong> inaugural<br />

32-page issue in March 1995: The NATCA


Voice. Thompson’s involvement<br />

fulfilled an artistic craving (he<br />

also plays <strong>the</strong> baritone and<br />

tenor saxophone).<br />

“<strong>Air</strong> traffic control is<br />

an art form,” he says. “But<br />

it’s an art form that, when<br />

you’re done, <strong>the</strong>re isn’t<br />

anything for you to see. I<br />

like <strong>the</strong> creativeness of <strong>the</strong><br />

o<strong>the</strong>r stuff.”<br />

Each monthly edition<br />

was sent to every<br />

facility in <strong>the</strong> nation with<br />

<strong>the</strong> goal of sharing information<br />

about common issues. By<br />

August, Green had transferred<br />

to Tamiami, Florida, leaving<br />

more of <strong>the</strong> editing to Thompson. Funding<br />

was also in jeopardy. Far from letting<br />

The NATCA Voice fold, however, Thompson<br />

19<br />

July<br />

Bryan Thompson / Frank Flavin<br />

envisioned even broader national<br />

distribution to provide<br />

an alternative forum to<br />

<strong>the</strong> officially sanctioned<br />

newsletter produced at<br />

headquarters.<br />

Executive Vice<br />

President Michael Mc-<br />

Nally saw <strong>the</strong> merit and<br />

provided money that enabled<br />

Thompson and his<br />

crew to publish <strong>the</strong> first<br />

grass-roots national edition<br />

in February 1996. The<br />

union funding was unusual<br />

given that some of <strong>the</strong> articles<br />

in The Voice attacked NATCA’s<br />

leadership as well as <strong>the</strong> FAA.<br />

“It has allowed <strong>the</strong> membership a<br />

place to voice <strong>the</strong>ir opinions,” Thompson<br />

says. “The NATCA Voice has issues in it that<br />

A United <strong>Air</strong>lines DC-10 suffers total hydraulic failure after one of its engine<br />

fans breaks apart and damages <strong>the</strong> aircraft’s control system. Capt. Al<br />

Haynes and his crew fly <strong>the</strong> plane to <strong>the</strong> airport in Sioux City, Iowa, where<br />

Chapter 4: The House that NATCA Built<br />

are important to <strong>the</strong>m.”<br />

Plagued by several years of budget<br />

battles, The Voice enjoyed firmer financial<br />

footing after delegates at <strong>the</strong> 1998 convention<br />

voted to allocate $44,000 annually<br />

for <strong>the</strong> newsletter. Even that amount<br />

has become insufficient in <strong>the</strong> face of<br />

<strong>the</strong> union’s growing family of bargaining<br />

units. Circulation has climbed to 7,500,<br />

with distribution to some 385 air traffic<br />

control facilities and o<strong>the</strong>r interested parties<br />

around <strong>the</strong> world.<br />

Income has been supplemented with<br />

advertisements, which are coordinated by<br />

longtime Voice staff member Jeff Parrish.<br />

Money is also derived from The NATCA<br />

Shop, an online venture that stemmed from<br />

a desire among some controllers for quality<br />

jackets bearing <strong>the</strong> union’s logo.<br />

“People liked <strong>the</strong>m and wanted<br />

<strong>the</strong>m,” Thompson says. “Next thing you<br />

a crash landing kills 110 of <strong>the</strong> 269 people onboard. Canadian controllers<br />

help <strong>the</strong>ir U.S. colleagues deal with traumatic stress, which ultimately<br />

leads to a formal program known as Critical Incident Stress Debriefing.<br />

119


120<br />

1989<br />

<strong>Against</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>Wind</strong><br />

The NATCA Voice (continued)<br />

know, we started selling a couple of polo<br />

shirts.” Over time, <strong>the</strong> shop’s<br />

inventory has expanded<br />

to include a variety<br />

of clothing and<br />

accessories.<br />

In <strong>the</strong> fall<br />

of 1996, The NAT-<br />

CA Voice launched<br />

a Web site to augment<br />

its print edition,<br />

and both efforts have<br />

received several awards<br />

from <strong>the</strong> International<br />

Labor Communications <strong>Association</strong>.<br />

The Voice has also supported<br />

unions outside <strong>the</strong><br />

profession, such as raising thousands<br />

of dollars for workers who<br />

staged a 5½-year strike at Detroit’s two<br />

28<br />

�<br />

Cutting edge: Stories in The NATCA Voice take<br />

<strong>the</strong> FAA and <strong>the</strong> union’s leadership to task. The<br />

alternative publication began as a Great Lakes<br />

Region newsletter in March 1995 (center).<br />

Sep. Oct.<br />

NATCA creates a Political Action Committee, which collects<br />

$21,163 in contributions during its first election cycle.<br />

metropolitan newspapers.<br />

But at its core are <strong>the</strong> articles—and<br />

cartoons from Brian Fallon and<br />

Mike “Iggy” Irving—that<br />

may run counter to<br />

conventional wisdom.<br />

Although a committee<br />

composed of three<br />

<strong>National</strong> Executive Board<br />

members and <strong>the</strong> union’s<br />

general counsel reviews each<br />

edition, Thompson has never<br />

been told to withdraw an article.<br />

“My job is to print <strong>the</strong> stuff<br />

that nobody else is getting to see,”<br />

he says. “We’re an alternative news<br />

source.”<br />

The union holds its first weeklong facility representative training<br />

class at <strong>the</strong> George Meany Center for Labor Studies in Silver<br />

Spring, Maryland.


NATCA hired a training coordinator in 1999<br />

and has continued to refine and expand its educational<br />

program. Some 400 participants annually take<br />

advantage of seven different courses offered multiple<br />

times a year. Many more benefit from o<strong>the</strong>r classes<br />

taught at <strong>the</strong> regional and local level using instructional<br />

material from headquarters.<br />

The union’s commitment to ongoing education<br />

has resulted in a platoon of activists so well versed in<br />

labor law and negotiating tactics that “<strong>the</strong> FAA is very<br />

envious,” Kidd says. “I’ve been told directly by managers<br />

at <strong>the</strong> local, regional, and headquarters level<br />

that our training is so much better than <strong>the</strong>irs.<br />

They would die to get ours.”<br />

As NATCA took shape, getting <strong>the</strong> word<br />

out to members proved to be ano<strong>the</strong>r challenge.<br />

Most regions and several facilities published<br />

newsletters, but pagers for local and<br />

regional representatives buzzed and beeped<br />

constantly. After returning home from dining<br />

out with his wife, Linda, Brandt would<br />

walk straight to an answering machine loaded<br />

with a backlog of messages. He realized a computer<br />

bulletin board would be a boon to cutting<br />

down on unnecessary communication.<br />

Brandt hooked up with <strong>the</strong> late Scott Davies, a<br />

San Diego controller who was savvy with computers,<br />

and <strong>the</strong>y looked around for a place to host <strong>the</strong>ir textbased<br />

bulletin board service. The late John Galipault,<br />

17<br />

Oct.<br />

A 7.1-magnitude earthquake strikes <strong>the</strong> Bay Area during a<br />

World Series game. Tower cab windows break at San Francisco<br />

and San Jose airports, but controllers remain on position.<br />

who founded <strong>the</strong> respected Aviation Safety Institute,<br />

agreed to give <strong>the</strong>m computer space on an aging 8088<br />

PC. In time, <strong>the</strong>y moved to CompuServe and formed<br />

an aviation special interest group for <strong>the</strong> union.<br />

Several years later, <strong>the</strong> controllers temporarily<br />

transferred <strong>the</strong>ir online activities to Genie before returning<br />

to <strong>the</strong> AFL-CIO section on CompuServe in<br />

1996. In September, Chicago Center’s Doug Holland<br />

and Tim Kuhl from Springfield, Illinois, Tower/TRA-<br />

CON provided <strong>the</strong> first comprehensive online coverage<br />

of a convention. Transcripts of <strong>the</strong><br />

discussions, online live chats, and<br />

photos were posted throughout<br />

<strong>the</strong> proceedings in Pittsburgh.<br />

With Internet usage<br />

starting to explode, Holland<br />

spearheaded a move<br />

to create a BBS on <strong>the</strong><br />

Web. O<strong>the</strong>r activists aided<br />

<strong>the</strong> effort, including Gordon<br />

Baker, Bryan Thompson,<br />

and Ed Morris, an Omaha<br />

Tower controller who had<br />

formed ano<strong>the</strong>r e-mail listserv. The<br />

group lacked funding, but New York Center controller<br />

Leo Kremer came to <strong>the</strong> rescue by providing space<br />

on his Internet hosting company’s servers.<br />

At <strong>the</strong> time, <strong>the</strong> union’s online community<br />

1990<br />

8<br />

Jan.<br />

Chapter 4: The House that NATCA Built<br />

121<br />

Rodney Turner: The Sou<strong>the</strong>rn Region VP,<br />

who is renowned for sharing information<br />

with members, helped activists gain NEB<br />

approval for a <strong>National</strong> Communications<br />

Committee in 1999. / NATCA archives<br />

Randy Schwitz from Atlanta Center takes over as Sou<strong>the</strong>rn regional<br />

representative from Lee Riley, who steps down to devote<br />

attention to his ATC duties and a trucking business he owns.


122<br />

1990<br />

<strong>Against</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>Wind</strong><br />

FYI<br />

Heard on <strong>the</strong> <strong>Air</strong>waves<br />

<strong>Controllers</strong> are rarely at a loss for words and <strong>the</strong>ir sharp wit can lead to interesting<br />

exchanges on <strong>the</strong> radio. The following actual transmissions appeared as part<br />

of an occasional feature in <strong>the</strong> Chicago TRACON newsletter Intentionally Left Blank<br />

during <strong>the</strong> mid-1990s:<br />

Controller: “The traffic at nine o’clock is gonna do a little Linda Ronstadt on you.”<br />

Pilot: “Linda Ronstadt? What’s that?”<br />

Controller: “Well, sir, <strong>the</strong>y’re gonna ‘Blue Bayou.’ ”<br />

� � �<br />

Controller: “Sure you can have eight miles behind <strong>the</strong> heavy—<strong>the</strong>re’ll be a United<br />

trijet between you and him.”<br />

� � �<br />

Pilot: “The first officer says he’s got you in sight.”<br />

Controller: “Roger. The first officer’s cleared for a visual approach runway two-seven<br />

right. You continue on that one-eighty heading and descend to three thousand.”<br />

� � �<br />

Pilot: “Approach, what’s <strong>the</strong> tower [radio frequency]?”<br />

Controller: “A big, tall building with glass all around it, but that’s not important<br />

right now.”<br />

25<br />

Jan.<br />

An Avianca 707 crashes on Long Island, New York, after running out of<br />

fuel while waiting to land at Kennedy <strong>Air</strong>port. The accident kills seventythree<br />

of <strong>the</strong> 158 people onboard <strong>the</strong> plane. In its probable cause report,<br />

remained minuscule compared with a membership<br />

numbering close to 12,000 (though its activity<br />

outpaced larger unions in <strong>the</strong> AFL-CIO). On a<br />

busy day, perhaps twenty users would exchange<br />

messages on NATCAnet. One of those who logged<br />

on was Doug Laughter from Salt Lake Center, who<br />

quickly joined <strong>the</strong> move to expand <strong>the</strong> union’s Web<br />

presence.<br />

Initially, <strong>the</strong> communications activists were<br />

stymied by a lack of support from <strong>the</strong> national office.<br />

Financial backing was nonexistent, even though<br />

nearly 1,000 members were using <strong>the</strong> Web site and<br />

BBS by <strong>the</strong> end of 1998.<br />

Limited technical knowledge at headquarters<br />

also hindered <strong>the</strong>ir plans. At <strong>the</strong> convention in September,<br />

two computers were sent to Seattle to disseminate<br />

information for controllers who couldn’t<br />

attend. Unfortunately, <strong>the</strong> PCs lacked modems.<br />

Laughter unwittingly saved <strong>the</strong> day by bringing his<br />

PC from home as a backup.<br />

The activists grew increasingly frustrated. “All<br />

<strong>the</strong> people in <strong>the</strong> field who were doing communications<br />

work didn’t have a voice in communications,”<br />

Thompson says.<br />

They found an influential ally in Rodney<br />

Turner, who was serving his first term as Sou<strong>the</strong>rn<br />

Region vice president and embraced open communication<br />

with <strong>the</strong> membership. His detailed weekly<br />

updates of union activities, which he dubbed “Rod-<br />

<strong>the</strong> NTSB cites <strong>the</strong> flight crew’s failure to manage <strong>the</strong> plane’s fuel load and<br />

declare an emergency to controllers. The board also notes that lack of<br />

standardized terminology for fuel emergencies was a contributing cause.


ney Vision,” were widely read by NATCA members<br />

and FAA managers.<br />

“I’ve always been one who told my membership<br />

that what I knew, <strong>the</strong>y would know,” he says. “Communication<br />

is one of <strong>the</strong> most important things that<br />

we need to continually improve upon.”<br />

With Turner’s support, <strong>the</strong> activists now had<br />

<strong>the</strong> ear of <strong>the</strong> Executive Board and <strong>the</strong>y crafted a<br />

proposal to create a <strong>National</strong> Communications Committee.<br />

In February 1999, Thompson and Morris attended<br />

an NEB meeting to make <strong>the</strong>ir pitch. Board<br />

members agreed with <strong>the</strong>ir recommendation and<br />

empowered <strong>the</strong> new group with oversight on most<br />

communications issues between <strong>the</strong> national office<br />

and <strong>the</strong> membership. *<br />

This included merging <strong>the</strong> Web-based BBS and<br />

a very active listserv—a boon to bringing <strong>the</strong> union’s<br />

Mar.<br />

MEBA agrees to lower <strong>the</strong> union’s affiliation fee from 15 percent to 7.5<br />

percent of dues income—an annual savings of $200,000. MEBA also<br />

forgives about $250,000 in debts and consolidates eight o<strong>the</strong>r debts into<br />

members and leadership toge<strong>the</strong>r in a consolidated<br />

online venue—and fur<strong>the</strong>r development of <strong>the</strong> Web<br />

site, which national office staff members had been<br />

working on with help from an outside contractor.<br />

“We felt we could build a better product at no cost to<br />

NATCA,” says Laughter, who by now served as NAT-<br />

CAnet administrator.<br />

Thompson, a Chicago TRACON controller<br />

who is also managing editor of an alternative newsletter<br />

called The NATCA Voice, redesigned <strong>the</strong> site by<br />

creating public and members-only areas. By early<br />

2002, union information available on <strong>the</strong> Web had<br />

multiplied exponentially and about 2,200 members<br />

were exchanging an average of 125 messages a day on<br />

more than seventy-five forums.<br />

Plans were also under way to unveil a completely<br />

revamped site in <strong>the</strong> summer.<br />

Chapter 4: The House that NATCA Built<br />

one promissory note to be paid at 6 percent interest instead of <strong>the</strong> previous<br />

average of 8.8 percent. The restructured debt saves <strong>the</strong> union about<br />

$4,200 a month in interest.<br />

123<br />

* A previous standing Communications Committee<br />

was disbanded in late 1997 after <strong>the</strong><br />

union acted on most of its recommendations<br />

and transferred ongoing duties to NATCA<br />

headquarters.


“Never<br />

leave anything<br />

on <strong>the</strong> table if you<br />

can get it now.<br />

— Barry Krasner,<br />

<strong>the</strong> negotiator<br />

It’s a deal: President Steve Bell, right, and<br />

chief FAA negotiator Ray Thoman tentatively<br />

agreed on NATCA’s first contract in<br />

January 1989. / Courtesy of Anthony Coiro


Chapter 5<br />

The Art of <strong>the</strong> Deal<br />

Seated on one side of a long table in a narrow hotel conference room in<br />

Washington, D.C., Ray Thoman, <strong>the</strong> FAA’s deputy director of labor and<br />

employee relations, slid a proposed collective bargaining agreement<br />

across to a clean-shaven, fair-haired man with wire-rimmed glasses.<br />

NATCA President Steve Bell let <strong>the</strong> proposal<br />

rest on <strong>the</strong> table and looked Thoman in <strong>the</strong> eye. Barry<br />

Krasner and union contract team Co-Chairman Mark<br />

Kutch, who flanked Bell, watched and waited. This<br />

meeting on November 16, 1988, represented <strong>the</strong> first<br />

bargaining talks between a controllers’ union and <strong>the</strong><br />

agency in more than seven years. NATCA had rehearsed<br />

this moment, and Bell responded on cue.<br />

“Thank you very much,” he said. “We know<br />

how hard you must have worked on this. We’d like<br />

to work off ours.” Bell <strong>the</strong>n slid a thicker document<br />

across <strong>the</strong> table.<br />

Thoman, broad-shouldered with black hair<br />

and a graying beard, smiled politely. “I thank you for<br />

your efforts. It was obviously a lot of work,” he said.<br />

“But it is a sophomoric attempt because of your lack<br />

of expertise in this area.” 1<br />

Thoman’s comment was not entirely off <strong>the</strong><br />

mark. The NATCA reps in <strong>the</strong> room, including Bell,<br />

were controllers—not businessmen. Never<strong>the</strong>less,<br />

<strong>the</strong>y clearly understood <strong>the</strong> historic nature of this<br />

ga<strong>the</strong>ring and <strong>the</strong>ir responsibility of helping to ensure<br />

<strong>the</strong> well being of more than 13,000 families.<br />

They’d prepared as if this were <strong>the</strong> Super Bowl.<br />

The union’s ten-member contract team had<br />

been carefully chosen to represent a balance of terminals<br />

and centers across <strong>the</strong> regions. They’d attended<br />

a two-day seminar on negotiating skills conducted<br />

by <strong>the</strong> American Arbitration <strong>Association</strong>. They’d<br />

also spent two intensive weeks at MEBA’s expansive,<br />

colonial-style training facility in Easton, Maryland,<br />

working up proposals.<br />

NATCA’s first contract: Built on <strong>the</strong><br />

foundation of PATCO’s last agreement, <strong>the</strong><br />

1989 pact also broke new ground.


126<br />

1990<br />

<strong>Against</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>Wind</strong><br />

16<br />

Apr.<br />

Nearly 500 delegates attend NATCA’s third biennial convention at The<br />

Desert Inn in Las Vegas. After an emotional debate, delegates overwhelmingly<br />

approve a resolution asking President Bush to allow fired controllers<br />

Courtesy of Anthony Coiro (upper left); NATCA archives (lower left, above)<br />

Setting <strong>the</strong> stage: NATCA’s first contract team spent two weeks at MEBA’s<br />

training facility in Easton, Maryland, preparing for negotiations. Kansas City<br />

Center controller Mark Kutch, left, and President Steve Bell, above, cochaired<br />

<strong>the</strong> ten-member team. Eight o<strong>the</strong>rs served as resource specialists.<br />

to apply for new positions in <strong>the</strong> FAA, which Bush refuses to do. A resolution<br />

to increase union dues by one-half percent is voted down.


While <strong>the</strong>y were <strong>the</strong>re, <strong>the</strong>y listened to advice<br />

from PATCO’s ousted president, John Leyden.<br />

Unrealistic expectations from <strong>the</strong> last contract<br />

proposal, which Robert Poli and company<br />

shared with <strong>the</strong> membership, had led to widespread<br />

discontent, Leyden told <strong>the</strong>m. Determined not to<br />

repeat history, <strong>the</strong> NATCA team solicited suggestions<br />

from members, but did not reveal its starting<br />

position.<br />

Aided by eight resource specialists, <strong>the</strong> contract<br />

team spent many a late night digging through<br />

PATCO archives, Office of Personnel Management<br />

regulations, FAA orders, grievance files and arbitration<br />

transcripts, private-sector entitlements, and<br />

federal-sector contracts for all bargaining units.<br />

Their voluminous research culminated in a<br />

comprehensive proposal containing eightytwo<br />

articles. Team members <strong>the</strong>n ranked<br />

<strong>the</strong>m numerically by importance and plotted<br />

<strong>the</strong> articles on a grid.<br />

Sitting at <strong>the</strong> negotiating table, Bell remained<br />

confident and poised. Ignoring Thoman’s remark, he<br />

began to outline <strong>the</strong> union’s proposal. Parts of <strong>the</strong><br />

document traced <strong>the</strong>ir roots to PATCO’s 1978 contract,<br />

including provisions for mandatory breaks after<br />

two hours on position, reinstatement of immunity<br />

for controllers who reported operational errors,<br />

and official release of union representatives for NTSB<br />

accident investigations.<br />

May July<br />

10<br />

The FAA announces that Hampton University in Virginia has<br />

been awarded a contract to develop a controller training program.<br />

Graduates can apply to <strong>the</strong> FAA as developmentals.<br />

10<br />

O<strong>the</strong>r sections were new, such as <strong>the</strong> union’s<br />

right to conduct midterm bargaining—a significant<br />

enhancement—and guaranteed leave for prenatal<br />

care. Workplace articles related to prime time leave<br />

(during summers and holidays) and a<br />

uniform dress code were aimed at addressing<br />

inconsistent policies. *<br />

The agency forbade tape recordings<br />

of <strong>the</strong> negotiations. As a<br />

result, team member Anthony Coiro<br />

filled a hefty stack of yellow legal<br />

pads with scribbled notes to<br />

create a “bargaining history.”<br />

In <strong>the</strong> event of subsequent<br />

grievance arbitrations, <strong>the</strong><br />

notes could prove invaluable<br />

in establishing <strong>the</strong> parties’ intentions<br />

while <strong>the</strong>y were formulating<br />

<strong>the</strong> contract language.<br />

One notable gain for <strong>the</strong><br />

union involved reporting immunity.<br />

NASA created <strong>the</strong> Aviation<br />

Safety Reporting System in 1975<br />

to allow controllers, pilots, and<br />

o<strong>the</strong>rs to document errors within<br />

ten days of an incident without<br />

fear of penalty (except in cases of gross negligence<br />

or criminal activity). The system was designed to<br />

document common mistakes, which could help lead<br />

Chapter 5: The Art of <strong>the</strong> Deal<br />

127<br />

Hard-won victory: Beth Thomas, who<br />

helped organize controllers, rejoined <strong>the</strong><br />

FAA after certification and was a contract<br />

team resource person. / NATCA archives<br />

* The final contract included all of <strong>the</strong>se provisions.<br />

Ruling on a lawsuit originally filed by NATCA, <strong>the</strong> Ninth U.S.<br />

Circuit Court of Appeals upholds <strong>the</strong> FAA’s random drug testing<br />

program for <strong>the</strong> aviation industry.


128<br />

<strong>Against</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>Wind</strong><br />

Signed, sealed, and delivered: FAA and union representatives are<br />

all smiles after adopting <strong>the</strong> contract. <strong>Controllers</strong> worked without<br />

a formal pact for nearly eight years until NATCA’s first agreement<br />

became effective May 1, 1989. Union members on <strong>the</strong> team included:<br />

President Steve Bell; Co-Chairman Mark Kutch, Kansas City Center;<br />

1990<br />

NATCA archives<br />

Richard Bamberger, San Diego Tower; Don Carlisle, Washington<br />

Center; Paul Cascio, Seattle TRACON; Anthony Coiro, South Bend<br />

Tower/TRACON; Art Joseph, Miami Center; Lonnie Kramer, Corpus<br />

Christi Tower/TRACON; Barry Krasner, New York TRACON; William<br />

Osborne Jr., general counsel; and eight resource specialists.<br />

to procedures to avoid <strong>the</strong>m. <strong>Controllers</strong>, who could<br />

lose <strong>the</strong>ir jobs if <strong>the</strong>y were involved in three operational<br />

errors—“deals”—within 2½ years, considered<br />

<strong>the</strong> program critical because various managers handled<br />

mistakes differently.<br />

NATCA and <strong>the</strong> agency had been working to<br />

Aug. Sep.<br />

3<br />

In a “Walk for Safety,” NATCA national office staff members<br />

and more than 120 controllers from around <strong>the</strong> nation picket in<br />

front of Washington Center to protest continued low staffing. 1<br />

reinstate <strong>the</strong> policy for controllers,<br />

which FAA Administrator<br />

Langhorne Bond had canceled in<br />

1980, before negotiations began.<br />

However, Thoman insisted <strong>the</strong><br />

provision was non-negotiable<br />

and did not belong in <strong>the</strong> contract.<br />

Barry Krasner suggested<br />

<strong>the</strong>y include it “for educational<br />

purposes.” Thoman ultimately<br />

agreed, which ensured that <strong>the</strong><br />

agency could not unilaterally<br />

change or abolish <strong>the</strong> policy because<br />

<strong>the</strong> union could contest<br />

<strong>the</strong> move by filing a grievance.<br />

The two sides reached tentative<br />

agreement by mid-January<br />

1989. NATCA members spent<br />

most of <strong>the</strong> grueling two months<br />

during negotiations in <strong>the</strong> Washington<br />

area, far from <strong>the</strong>ir families.<br />

Yet, <strong>the</strong> process went easier<br />

than expected. Coiro recalls that<br />

it was “tentative and strangely predetermined. We all<br />

needed a good contract. No one was able to bring<br />

<strong>the</strong>ir ‘side’ to a showdown and we knew it.”<br />

NATCA’s first effort differed from PATCO’s<br />

final contract in several ways. The agency negotiated<br />

<strong>the</strong> right to change controllers’ schedules within one<br />

A new Transportation Department policy takes effect, banning<br />

smoking at FAA facilities, although designated smoking areas are<br />

permitted.


week. Under PATCO, it had been three weeks. And<br />

developmentals had to check out on at least two control<br />

positions before receiving FAM trip privileges;<br />

PATCO trainees received <strong>the</strong> benefit immediately.<br />

NATCA made one significant improvement<br />

over PATCO. The FAA<br />

agreed to grant regional<br />

representatives 50 percent<br />

of official time off<br />

to conduct <strong>the</strong>ir duties.<br />

PATCO board members<br />

who took leave to serve<br />

<strong>the</strong> union did so without<br />

pay from <strong>the</strong> agency.<br />

“The contract is not<br />

a panacea. However, it goes<br />

well beyond a start,” Great<br />

Lakes Regional Representative<br />

Joseph Bellino said. 2<br />

Half of <strong>the</strong> union<br />

contract team joined Bell and Spickler on different segments<br />

of a tour to twenty-three cities to sell <strong>the</strong> pact to<br />

<strong>the</strong> rank and file. The group found itself repeatedly defending<br />

a clause that appeared frequently throughout<br />

<strong>the</strong> document: “if operational conditions permit.” <strong>Controllers</strong><br />

worried that <strong>the</strong> phrase diluted <strong>the</strong>ir rights. But<br />

without it—in connection with guaranteed breaks, for<br />

example—an arbitrator could rule that <strong>the</strong> article in<br />

question was unenforceable and, <strong>the</strong>refore, void.<br />

“<br />

The contract is not<br />

a panacea. However, it goes<br />

well beyond a start.<br />

— Great Lakes Regional Rep Joseph Bellino<br />

The costly briefing tour helped educate <strong>the</strong> members.<br />

But with little cash to spare in <strong>the</strong> union, it drew<br />

criticism from some who accused NATCA’s top officers<br />

of wasting thousands of dollars on what <strong>the</strong>y dubbed<br />

“Steve and Ray’s Excellent Adventure,” paraphrasing <strong>the</strong><br />

title from a popular Hollywood<br />

film that year.<br />

Regardless, union<br />

members overwhelmingly<br />

approved of <strong>the</strong><br />

contract. The three-year<br />

pact took effect May 1,<br />

1989, after <strong>the</strong>y ratified<br />

it by a vote of 3,920 to<br />

748—a margin of 84<br />

percent. Subsequent contracts<br />

would streng<strong>the</strong>n<br />

and expand controllers’<br />

rights. For now, NATCA<br />

founders and activists<br />

who’d spent more than five years creating <strong>the</strong>ir union<br />

and securing its first collective bargaining agreement<br />

basked in an enormous sense of accomplishment.<br />

Power Struggles<br />

“Steve and Ray’s Excellent Adventure” was one<br />

of many skirmishes over money and control that<br />

beset <strong>the</strong> first <strong>National</strong> Executive Board. Having run<br />

Oct. Jan.<br />

An initiation fee takes effect after a major organizing drive in<br />

which more than 2,000 controllers join NATCA. Membership is 1991<br />

19<br />

about 10,600—or more than 70 percent of <strong>the</strong> work force.<br />

13<br />

Chapter 5: The Art of <strong>the</strong> Deal<br />

129<br />

The negotiators: President Steve Bell,<br />

right, and Ray Thoman, <strong>the</strong> FAA’s deputy<br />

director of labor and employee relations,<br />

went head to head during talks on <strong>the</strong><br />

union’s first contract. / Stan Barough<br />

An 8 percent pay raise called an “interim geographic adjustment”<br />

is given to 5,933 FAA employees at facilities in <strong>the</strong> New<br />

York, Los Angeles, and San Francisco areas.


130<br />

<strong>Against</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>Wind</strong><br />

New NATCA logo (above): Steve Bell’s<br />

move to redesign <strong>the</strong> union’s visual identity<br />

riled regional reps and members.<br />

Steve and Ray (right): Executive Vice<br />

President Ray Spickler, left, stood by Steve<br />

Bell when <strong>the</strong> president came under criticism.<br />

Spickler’s loyalty derailed his bid for<br />

re-election in 1991. / NATCA archives<br />

1991<br />

1<br />

Feb.<br />

<strong>the</strong>ir regions largely autonomously, board members<br />

now had to adjust to a different power structure.<br />

“We were all new,” says Gary Molen, <strong>the</strong> Northwest<br />

Mountain regional rep. “We wanted Bell and those<br />

guys to jump.”<br />

They took Bell to task for having little or no say<br />

on everything from hiring new employees to buying<br />

fax machines for each region (<strong>the</strong> reps couldn’t live<br />

without <strong>the</strong>m after a few months) to retaining an elderly<br />

woman as parliamentarian at a board meeting<br />

(a one-time appearance stemming from Bell’s impatience<br />

with Robert’s Rules of Order).<br />

A history buff, Bell maintained that <strong>the</strong> most<br />

successful U.S. presidents were those who led decisively.<br />

He defends his style by pointing out he was<br />

elected to get NATCA up and running. The board’s<br />

time was better spent on addressing regional and<br />

national issues ra<strong>the</strong>r than focusing on infrastructure.<br />

“If we’d sat <strong>the</strong>re<br />

and argued,” he<br />

says now, “we’d<br />

never have gotten<br />

anything<br />

done.”<br />

Several<br />

board members<br />

gave Bell<br />

more latitude<br />

than o<strong>the</strong>rs. But<br />

A US<strong>Air</strong> 737 landing at LAX <strong>Air</strong>port crashes into a Sky West Metroliner<br />

positioned on <strong>the</strong> runway awaiting takeoff clearance. The nighttime accident<br />

kills all twelve aboard <strong>the</strong> commuter plane and twenty-two aboard<br />

when <strong>the</strong>y discovered that NATCA had paid a public<br />

relations firm about $20,000 to revamp <strong>the</strong> union’s<br />

logo, <strong>the</strong>y all revolted.<br />

The new look, which appeared on promotional<br />

materials for <strong>the</strong> 1990 convention, consisted solely of<br />

<strong>the</strong> word “NATCA” in a streamlined typeface. The letter<br />

“A” was positioned above <strong>the</strong> o<strong>the</strong>rs, which some<br />

observers referred to as “<strong>the</strong> excited A.” While a few<br />

controllers considered <strong>the</strong> original old-fashioned,<br />

most regarded any changes akin to redesigning <strong>the</strong><br />

U.S. flag.<br />

The board and members at large believed <strong>the</strong><br />

logo was <strong>the</strong>ir identity and quickly called for<br />

its reinstatement. A subsequent board also<br />

toyed with updating <strong>the</strong> logo and failed.<br />

Changing it was “like <strong>the</strong> third rail of<br />

NATCA politics,” President John Carr<br />

says now. The original logo remains to<br />

this day.<br />

<strong>National</strong> Executive Board members<br />

were also perturbed when Bell and Spickler<br />

borrowed ano<strong>the</strong>r $400,000 from MEBA in<br />

<strong>the</strong> US<strong>Air</strong> flight. Two weeks later, <strong>the</strong> FAA amends procedures to prohibit<br />

planes from holding at runway/taxiway intersections at night or when <strong>the</strong><br />

intersection is not visible from <strong>the</strong> tower.


July 1989 to tide <strong>the</strong> union over. While<br />

<strong>the</strong>y understood <strong>the</strong> financial need, <strong>the</strong><br />

lack of consultation was a sore spot. Even<br />

so, <strong>the</strong> clashes amounted to little more<br />

than an inevitable byproduct of a young<br />

association finding its sea legs.<br />

“None of us had ei<strong>the</strong>r <strong>the</strong> experience<br />

or <strong>the</strong> wherewithal to get <strong>the</strong> job<br />

done,” Bell says. “We all came from a<br />

controller background and were well<br />

versed in moving airplanes, not an infant<br />

organization in <strong>the</strong> birth-pangs of its<br />

evolution.”<br />

Power struggles and politics were<br />

not Bell’s only problems. Just as <strong>the</strong> Las<br />

Vegas convention began in April 1990,<br />

Karin Bell informed her husband she<br />

wanted a divorce.<br />

“It kicked <strong>the</strong> legs right out from under him,”<br />

Spickler recalls.<br />

So much so that Bell did not feel up to chairing<br />

<strong>the</strong> proceedings. As soon as <strong>the</strong> opening session ended,<br />

he turned to a friend from New York TRACON,<br />

whom he perceived to be “a gifted negotiator and a<br />

gifted communicator”—Barry Krasner. Speaking privately<br />

in Krasner’s room, Bell asked him to run <strong>the</strong><br />

convention, sidestepping his second-in-command.<br />

Despite Krasner’s position as Eastern regional<br />

representative and his work on <strong>the</strong> contract team, he<br />

Apr. May<br />

4<br />

The FAA finishes transferring more than 600,000 square miles<br />

of oceanic airspace from Miami and Boston centers to New<br />

York Center.<br />

1<br />

NATCA archives<br />

1990 convention: President Bell passed over Ray Spickler and asked Barry Krasner<br />

to conduct most of <strong>the</strong> proceedings. Dan Brandt, right, served as parliamentarian.<br />

was “scared to death” of <strong>the</strong> podium. But he warmed<br />

to <strong>the</strong> task nicely during <strong>the</strong> first two days before<br />

handing <strong>the</strong> gavel to Spickler, who’d approached Bell<br />

and insisted that <strong>the</strong> executive vice president should<br />

rightfully conduct <strong>the</strong> proceedings.<br />

Krasner’s skill came from a mixture of street<br />

smarts he learned while growing up in Flushing,<br />

New York—“you take out <strong>the</strong> biggest guy first”—and<br />

a keen familiarity with Robert’s Rules of Order. He<br />

first read <strong>the</strong> book when New York TRACON formed<br />

a constitution and continued to review it before every<br />

Chapter 5: The Art of <strong>the</strong> Deal<br />

Aviation safety inspectors vote to organize as a bargaining unit<br />

of <strong>the</strong> Professional <strong>Air</strong>ways Systems Specialists. On May 10,<br />

PASS is certified for <strong>the</strong> 1,913 FAA workers.<br />

131


Barry<br />

Krasner<br />

<strong>Air</strong> <strong>Traffic</strong> Control<br />

Specialist<br />

1982 — Pr e s e n t<br />

Op e r a t i n g in i t i a l s: XO<br />

HOm e t O w n : New York City<br />

sp O u s e / CHildre n:<br />

Sallie / Michael, Bryan<br />

Mindy; grandson: Drew<br />

Ot Her tr i v i a:<br />

Owns an extensive collection of<br />

stuffed frogs<br />

in t e r e s t s:<br />

Wine, trout fishing<br />

NATCA archives<br />

ATC FACiliTies<br />

Cu r r e n t:<br />

pr e v i O u s:<br />

N90 TRACON<br />

After six years at NATCA’s helm, Barry Krasner<br />

dismayed many members by going back to <strong>the</strong><br />

boards. One controller lamented that <strong>the</strong> union’s<br />

second president had been <strong>the</strong> best <strong>the</strong>y would<br />

ever elect. Krasner shook his head and responded:<br />

“If that’s <strong>the</strong> case, we might as well fold our doors<br />

right now. Everybody after me should be better<br />

than me. O<strong>the</strong>rwise, we’ve learned nothing.”<br />

His down-to-earth attitude comes from contemplating<br />

life at 35,000 feet. “I spend a lot of time<br />

on airplanes looking out <strong>the</strong> window and seeing<br />

nothing but clouds,” he says. “You start thinking<br />

on a different level.”<br />

Growing up with NATCA has also framed<br />

his outlook. While serving as Eastern regional rep<br />

in <strong>the</strong> late 1980s, Krasner frequently stretched <strong>the</strong><br />

telephone cord out of his cramped office—space<br />

donated by ano<strong>the</strong>r union—to pace in a hallway<br />

during conversations.<br />

“That’s when you really had to believe and<br />

fight. There was no luxury <strong>the</strong>n,” he says. Today,<br />

NATCA’s seven-story headquarters in Washington,<br />

D.C., bears his name.<br />

Like many union activists, Krasner’s commitment<br />

involved significant personal sacrifice.<br />

The demands extended to his new wife, Sallie<br />

Sullivan, a veteran bank manager who works in<br />

NATCA’s Eastern Region office now. His presidency<br />

began just eight months after <strong>the</strong>ir wedding.<br />

Pr e v i o u s NATCA Po s iT i oN s / AC h i e v e m e N T s<br />

<strong>National</strong> president 1991-97; Eastern regional rep<br />

1988-91; chief contract negotiator; NMI president;<br />

nat’l. president emeritus; N.Y. TRACON president.<br />

hir e d<br />

Jan.<br />

1982<br />

Throughout his tenure, she lived in New York to be<br />

near her son and family while he commuted home<br />

on weekends.<br />

On <strong>the</strong> job, Krasner’s razor-sharp negotiating<br />

skills were tempered by an offbeat sense of<br />

humor. A stuffed armadillo stared down visitors to<br />

his office from atop a curio cabinet. Softening his<br />

sentry’s demeanor one year, he transformed <strong>the</strong><br />

stubby creature into <strong>the</strong> Pope-adillo. The next year<br />

<strong>the</strong> animal evolved into a Santa-dillo. An exotic<br />

collection of more than two-dozen stuffed frogs<br />

rounded out <strong>the</strong> menagerie.<br />

After leaving office in 1997, Krasner returned<br />

to <strong>the</strong> birthplace of his FAA career: New York<br />

TRACON’s LaGuardia sector. He now spends most<br />

nights at <strong>the</strong> couple’s home on a peaceful two acres<br />

in central Long Island, where <strong>the</strong> armadillo and<br />

stuffed frogs have been quarantined to a recreation<br />

room to preserve decorum elsewhere in <strong>the</strong> house.<br />

NATCA still benefits from Krasner’s talents.<br />

As <strong>the</strong> union’s chief negotiator, he has spent <strong>the</strong><br />

past few years wrapping up numerous contracts for<br />

a growing roster of bargaining units.<br />

Once asked what inscription he’d prefer on<br />

his tombstone, Krasner said simply, “He made a<br />

difference.” While content with his NATCA accomplishments,<br />

he remains restless. “When you jump<br />

<strong>the</strong> last hurdle, your only two choices are to find<br />

ano<strong>the</strong>r hurdle or die.”


convention. His mastery of handling <strong>the</strong> proceedings<br />

earned him such fame that he began to hold seminars<br />

for delegates.<br />

On stage, Krasner was in his element. “I like<br />

arguing with a thousand people at a time,” he says<br />

with his characteristic laugh.<br />

There was plenty of opportunity. Convention<br />

delegates considered some 100 constitutional<br />

amendments and resolutions. Despite backing from<br />

a majority of <strong>the</strong> <strong>National</strong> Executive Board, <strong>the</strong>y declined<br />

to increase dues by a half percent. However,<br />

delegates agreed to impose an initiation fee for new<br />

members equal to one year of dues, which took effect<br />

<strong>the</strong> following October. Newly hired trainees were<br />

granted a six-month grace period.<br />

After listening to a heartfelt speech by John<br />

Leyden, <strong>the</strong> delegates also voted by more than a<br />

three-to-one margin to urge <strong>the</strong> Bush administration<br />

to allow controllers fired in <strong>the</strong> 1981 strike to reapply<br />

for new positions in <strong>the</strong> FAA.<br />

Krasner had gone to Las Vegas intending to<br />

announce his candidacy for executive vice president.<br />

He and his campaign manager, Bernie Reed from Bay<br />

TRACON, had prepared buttons and printed flyers to<br />

slip beneath <strong>the</strong> doors to delegates’ rooms.<br />

After Bell approached him, however, Krasner<br />

hid <strong>the</strong> paraphernalia beneath <strong>the</strong> bed in his room,<br />

fearing it would look like a setup. As it turned out,<br />

his exposure on <strong>the</strong> podium may have been Krasner’s<br />

1991<br />

20<br />

May<br />

most effective campaign tool.<br />

“There’s a really good possibility Barry would<br />

never have become president of this union had that<br />

not happened,” Spickler maintains.<br />

When Krasner hit <strong>the</strong> campaign trail <strong>the</strong> following<br />

January—during a honeymoon in Las Vegas<br />

with his second wife, Sallie—he sought <strong>the</strong> presidency.<br />

A changing of <strong>the</strong> guard seemed likely.<br />

By now, <strong>the</strong> board’s frustration had been compounded<br />

by Bell’s long absences <strong>the</strong> previous summer<br />

while he tried<br />

to mend fences with<br />

Karin. For Krasner,<br />

<strong>the</strong> decision to run<br />

against his friend<br />

was a difficult one.<br />

His change of heart<br />

arose over a separate<br />

financial matter<br />

stemming from<br />

a dinner with Bell<br />

and Leyden that<br />

occurred before <strong>the</strong><br />

Vegas convention.<br />

During an<br />

Eastern Region pre-<br />

convention caucus<br />

in Atlantic City,<br />

Bell invited Barry<br />

NATCA and <strong>the</strong> FAA reach agreement on alternative work schedules,<br />

which enable controllers to complete an 80-hour work period in less than<br />

ten days.<br />

Chapter 5: The Art of <strong>the</strong> Deal<br />

133<br />

NATCA archives<br />

Friends and foes: Barry Krasner, left, and Steve Bell formed a personal bond at New<br />

York TRACON during <strong>the</strong> mid-1980s. Dissatisfaction with Bell’s leadership, however,<br />

drove Krasner to campaign for president in <strong>the</strong> 1991 election and defeat Bell.


134<br />

<strong>Against</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>Wind</strong><br />

Tallying <strong>the</strong> vote: <strong>Controllers</strong> cast ballots by mail in NATCA’s national<br />

elections, held every three years. The union pays a salary to its<br />

1991<br />

23<br />

Oct.<br />

and Sallie Krasner to <strong>the</strong> casual get-toge<strong>the</strong>r with <strong>the</strong><br />

former PATCO president, who was a speaker at <strong>the</strong><br />

day’s event. The Krasners had ano<strong>the</strong>r commitment<br />

and stopped by just long enough for drinks. Later,<br />

Construction begins on Sou<strong>the</strong>rn California TRACON in San Diego,<br />

which will consolidate five approach control facilities, including Los<br />

Angeles, San Diego, Burbank, Ontario, and Coast (covering <strong>the</strong> Pacific<br />

NATCA archives<br />

president and executive vice president, who serve on leave from <strong>the</strong><br />

FAA without pay. Regional VPs conduct <strong>the</strong>ir duties on official time.<br />

when <strong>the</strong> <strong>National</strong> Executive Board questioned Bell’s<br />

expensive tab, he claimed <strong>the</strong> meeting involved NAT-<br />

CA business and asked Krasner for confirmation. Put<br />

on <strong>the</strong> spot, Krasner agreed.<br />

“When I realized that I’d<br />

blindly stood behind him so<br />

he could explain himself to <strong>the</strong><br />

Executive Board I couldn’t live<br />

with myself anymore,” Krasner<br />

says, adding it was “<strong>the</strong> defining<br />

moment when I decided to run<br />

against him.”<br />

Executive Vice President<br />

Spickler sympathized with<br />

some of <strong>the</strong> unhappiness over<br />

Bell, but he remained loyal to<br />

his partner. “I just felt that Steve<br />

was really <strong>the</strong> best guy for <strong>the</strong><br />

job and I was going to hang with<br />

what I believed, regardless of <strong>the</strong><br />

political cost,” he says now.<br />

The two formed a ticket,<br />

which many believe killed<br />

Spickler’s chances for re-election<br />

against a challenge by<br />

Joseph Bellino, <strong>the</strong> Great Lakes<br />

regional rep.<br />

Bellino became a controller<br />

at O’Hare Tower in 1968.<br />

coast north to San Luis Obispo). The new facility will become <strong>the</strong> nation’s<br />

third consolidated TRACON. Two o<strong>the</strong>rs—New York TRACON on Long<br />

Island and Bay TRACON at Oakland <strong>Air</strong>port—have operated for years.


When John Leyden visited O’Hare looking for members<br />

to join <strong>the</strong> newly formed PATCO, Bellino was <strong>the</strong><br />

first trainee to sign up. But he was forced to retire a<br />

few years before <strong>the</strong> strike on medical disability. He<br />

believed <strong>the</strong> agency acted without just cause and spent<br />

seven years fighting on<br />

his own for reinstatement.<br />

When he wasn’t working<br />

as a McHenry, Illinois, po-<br />

liceman or at o<strong>the</strong>r jobs,<br />

he spent hours in <strong>the</strong> library<br />

researching <strong>the</strong> law<br />

on employees’ rights.<br />

Bellino hit a breakthrough<br />

in his case when<br />

he wrote to <strong>the</strong> American<br />

Medical <strong>Association</strong><br />

to prepare for a hearing<br />

with <strong>the</strong> FAA and discovered<br />

that <strong>the</strong> doctor<br />

who’d issued his medical<br />

disqualification was not<br />

board certified at <strong>the</strong> time. After Bellino informed<br />

<strong>the</strong> agency, he was quickly allowed back on <strong>the</strong> job<br />

in 1984 with full seniority.<br />

He soon joined <strong>the</strong> drive for election petition<br />

signatures and mounted an effort to obtain extra<br />

money for understaffed O’Hare Tower/TRACON,<br />

which culminated with <strong>the</strong> Pay Demonstration<br />

Nov.<br />

Project in 1989 that covered seven air traffic control<br />

facilities. He also served as <strong>the</strong> Great Lakes alternate<br />

regional rep under Jim Poole before his election to <strong>the</strong><br />

<strong>National</strong> Executive Board in 1988.<br />

In <strong>the</strong> election of 1991, seven board members<br />

endorsed Krasner, helping<br />

him defeat Bell with<br />

60 percent of <strong>the</strong> vote.<br />

Bellino beat Spickler by<br />

“<br />

an equally large margin.<br />

Afterward, Bell transferred<br />

to Phoenix TRA-<br />

CON, where he raised<br />

eyebrows by quitting <strong>the</strong><br />

union for a few weeks<br />

over a travel voucher dispute.<br />

He later moved to<br />

<strong>the</strong> FAA Command Center<br />

in Herndon, Virginia,<br />

as a traffic management<br />

specialist and trainer.<br />

“His leadership<br />

qualities were strong-willed,” says former New England<br />

Regional Rep Jim Breen. “He was what <strong>the</strong> union needed<br />

to get started. Beyond <strong>the</strong> first term, we needed to get out<br />

of an organizational mode and into an operating mode.”<br />

Spickler went to Dulles Tower/TRACON and<br />

later transferred to Kansas City Tower as a supervisor<br />

(<strong>the</strong> only way <strong>the</strong> agency would pay for his move)<br />

Everybody wanted <strong>the</strong> world.<br />

In two-and-a-half years, you<br />

can’t deliver that. We didn’t<br />

even have an office staff.<br />

[Bell] started this and got<br />

everything going.<br />

— Former President Michael McNally<br />

NATCA and <strong>the</strong> FAA formally agree to implement Quality Through Partnership.<br />

This program is intended as a collaborative labor-management<br />

relationship that creates “an environment where employees are empow-<br />

Chapter 5: The Art of <strong>the</strong> Deal<br />

ered to participate in decisions that affect <strong>the</strong>ir work lives.” QTP <strong>National</strong><br />

Coordinator Michael McNally initially oversees <strong>the</strong> program for NATCA,<br />

followed by Bill Murphy from Kansas City Center.<br />

135


136<br />

<strong>Against</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>Wind</strong><br />

Labor-management training: The FAA<br />

and union members initially attended classes<br />

that evolved into an ongoing program<br />

known as Quality Through Partnership.<br />

1991<br />

to live near his extended family. But he grew disenchanted<br />

with management and returned to Kansas<br />

City Center about eighteen months later.<br />

Michael McNally, who later served as executive<br />

vice president and president, believes NATCA’s<br />

first two top officers were “doomed to go down. The<br />

first ones out of <strong>the</strong> box always are. The expectations<br />

are too high. They’re green. They’re brand new. It’s<br />

just coming at <strong>the</strong>m too fast. Everybody wanted <strong>the</strong><br />

world. In two-and-a-half years, you can’t deliver that.<br />

We were barely a union. We didn’t even have an office<br />

staff. Steve built <strong>the</strong> office staff. He hired <strong>the</strong><br />

talent. He got us an office. He started this and got<br />

everything going.”<br />

The Age of Collaboration<br />

Even before Bell became president, he and<br />

o<strong>the</strong>rs in NATCA advocated collaboration with <strong>the</strong><br />

agency, eschewing traditional, contentious labor-management<br />

relations in favor of a partnership philosophy<br />

that was permeating many organizations at <strong>the</strong> time.<br />

Despite <strong>the</strong> FAA’s steadfastly intolerant reputation, a<br />

notable segment in <strong>the</strong> agency hoped to avoid a repeat<br />

of 1981 and embraced cooperation, too.<br />

With backing from T. Allan McArtor, who’d<br />

taken over as FAA administrator from Donald Engen,<br />

those attitudes dovetailed in March 1988 with<br />

a training course called “Labor and Management:<br />

Dec. Dec.<br />

FAA Administrator James B. Busey IV leaves office after serving<br />

since June 30, 1989.<br />

4<br />

16<br />

Partners in Problem Solving.” The curriculum was<br />

designed to jointly teach facility managers and union<br />

representatives about <strong>the</strong>ir rights and responsibilities<br />

as well as techniques in communicating and resolving<br />

differences.<br />

During <strong>the</strong> three-day classes, controllers and<br />

managers switched roles to better understand problems<br />

and perspectives from <strong>the</strong> o<strong>the</strong>r side. <strong>Controllers</strong><br />

learned what it was like to defend policies <strong>the</strong>y<br />

did not personally support, while managers found<br />

reasons to file grievances. About 1,000 managers<br />

and facility reps attended <strong>the</strong> course throughout <strong>the</strong><br />

spring and summer.<br />

The one-time sessions paved <strong>the</strong> way for a<br />

more formal, ongoing program whose path began<br />

at New York Center. Like some o<strong>the</strong>rs, local President<br />

Michael McNally worried about a PATCO II. “I<br />

didn’t want to be involved in a union if it was going<br />

to be radical,” he says.<br />

He, too, saw <strong>the</strong> need to “stop butting heads”<br />

and encourage more harmonious relationships.<br />

McNally approached <strong>the</strong> facility’s deputy manager,<br />

Jim Buckles, and <strong>the</strong> two developed a collaborative,<br />

committee-oriented program called Success Through<br />

Partnership.<br />

Initially, both sides were resistant. “Management<br />

hated it,” McNally recalls. “To <strong>the</strong>m, it was a<br />

raid on <strong>the</strong>ir authority. They thought it was all going<br />

downhill. Letting <strong>the</strong> monkeys run <strong>the</strong> zoo.” Union<br />

Transportation Secretary Samuel Skinner leaves office after<br />

serving since February 6, 1989.


1992<br />

1991<br />

The Second <strong>National</strong> Executive Board<br />

Mirroring <strong>the</strong> first election, five<br />

new members joined <strong>the</strong> board<br />

in 1991:<br />

Alaskan: Sam Rich beat incumbent<br />

Will Faville Jr. (both were<br />

from Anchorage Center). Faville<br />

went on to become NATCA’s third<br />

safety and technology director.<br />

Central: Incumbent Dan<br />

Brandt from Omaha TRACON did<br />

not win a majority and waived a<br />

runoff against Michael Putzier from<br />

Kansas City Center.<br />

Eastern: Incumbent Barry<br />

Krasner’s run for president left<br />

<strong>the</strong> field open. Although Michael<br />

McNally from New York Center<br />

outpolled Tim Haines from Pittsburgh<br />

Tower, nei<strong>the</strong>r won a majority.<br />

Haines edged past McNally in a<br />

runoff.<br />

Great Lakes: In <strong>the</strong> absence<br />

of incumbent Joseph Bellino, who<br />

won election for executive vice<br />

president, Jim Poole from Chicago<br />

Center beat Chuck Owens from<br />

Bismarck Tower/TRACON in North<br />

Dakota. Poole had briefly served as<br />

Central regional rep on <strong>the</strong> interim<br />

board.<br />

New England: Incumbent<br />

Jim Breen from Bradley Tower/<br />

TRACON withstood a second challenge<br />

by Howie Barte from Providence<br />

Tower to retain his seat for<br />

ano<strong>the</strong>r term.<br />

Northwest Mountain: Incumbent<br />

Gary Molen from Salt Lake<br />

Center retained his seat for a second<br />

term against challenges by contract<br />

team member Paul Cascio from<br />

Seattle TRACON and James Brawner<br />

Feb. Feb.<br />

5<br />

President Barry Krasner, Contract Committee Co-Chairman<br />

Bernie Reed, and Labor Relations Director Richard Gordon<br />

present <strong>the</strong> union’s second contract proposal to <strong>the</strong> FAA.<br />

24<br />

�<br />

Chapter 5: The Art of <strong>the</strong> Deal<br />

from Denver TRACON.<br />

Sou<strong>the</strong>rn: Incumbent Randy<br />

Schwitz ran unopposed. Schwitz,<br />

from Atlanta Center, took over from<br />

fellow center controller Lee Riley<br />

when he stepped down in January<br />

1990 to devote more attention to a<br />

trucking business he owned with<br />

his bro<strong>the</strong>r, Bill.<br />

Southwest: Incumbent Ed<br />

Mullin from Dallas Love Field ran<br />

unopposed for a second term.<br />

Western-Pacific: Rick Bamberger<br />

from Lindbergh Field in<br />

San Diego lost his re-election bid.<br />

Karl Grundmann from Los Angeles<br />

TRACON, who was defeated by Ray<br />

Spickler for executive vice president<br />

in <strong>the</strong> union’s 1988 election, beat<br />

Owen Bridgeman from Phoenix<br />

TRACON in a runoff.<br />

137<br />

Andrew H. Card Jr. takes over as transportation secretary from<br />

Samuel Skinner. Card, who served in <strong>the</strong> Massachusetts Legislature,<br />

was deputy chief of staff under President Bush.


138<br />

1992<br />

<strong>Against</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>Wind</strong><br />

1991 Election<br />

Results<br />

�<br />

* Brandt waived a runoff election to<br />

Putzier.<br />

** Schwitz joined <strong>the</strong> NEB in January<br />

1990 after Lee Riley stepped down.<br />

27<br />

May<br />

President<br />

Barry Krasner Eastern Regional representative 3,720 59.9<br />

Steve Bell / incumbent Eastern New York TRACON 2,494 40.1<br />

Executive Vice President<br />

Joseph M. Bellino Great Lakes Regional representative 3,803 61.6<br />

Ray L. Spickler / incumbent Central Kansas City Center 2,370 38.4<br />

Regional Representatives<br />

Votes Percent<br />

Alaskan<br />

Sam Rich Anchorage Center 87 64.9<br />

Will Faville Jr. / incumbent<br />

Central<br />

Anchorage Center 47 35.1<br />

Michael Putzier Kansas City Center 134 40.8<br />

Dan Brandt * / incumbent Omaha TRACON 113 34.3<br />

Mark Kutch<br />

Eastern<br />

Kansas City Center 82 24.9<br />

Tim Haines Pittsburgh Tower 397 36.8 576 54.0<br />

Michael McNally New York Center 449 41.6 490 46.0<br />

Deborah Ann Katz Washington Center 234 21.6<br />

NATCA’s fourth biennial convention is held at <strong>the</strong> Hilton Palacio del Rio in<br />

San Antonio. Delegates vote to modify Article IX, Section 7, of <strong>the</strong> union’s<br />

constitution to allow a majority attending conventions to change dues<br />

Runoff<br />

Votes<br />

Runoff<br />

Percent<br />

ra<strong>the</strong>r than a majority of <strong>the</strong> membership; <strong>the</strong>y <strong>the</strong>n approve raising dues<br />

to 1.5 percent. Delegates also approve an honorary lifetime membership<br />

for former PATCO President John F. Leyden.


Votes Percent<br />

Great Lakes<br />

Jim Poole Chicago Center 594 52.6<br />

Chuck Owens<br />

New England<br />

Bismarck TRACAB 536 47.4<br />

Jim Breen / incumbent Bradley Tower/TRACON 212 55.6<br />

Howie Barte<br />

Northwest Mountain<br />

Providence Tower 169 44.4<br />

Gary Molen / incumbent Salt Lake Center 262 56.0<br />

Paul Cascio Seattle TRACON 135 28.8<br />

James Brawner<br />

Sou<strong>the</strong>rn<br />

Denver TRACON 71 15.2<br />

Randy Schwitz / incumb. **<br />

Southwest<br />

Atlanta Center 1,189 100.0<br />

Ed Mullin / incumbent<br />

Western-Pacific<br />

Dallas Love Field Tower 581 100.0<br />

Karl Grundmann Los Angeles TRACON 332 45.1 424 56.9<br />

Owen Bridgeman Phoenix TRACON 230 31.2 321 43.1<br />

Rick Bamberger / incumbent San Diego Tower 175 23.7<br />

June Aug.<br />

27<br />

Thomas C. Richards takes over as FAA administrator. Richards<br />

served in <strong>the</strong> Korean and Vietnam wars. He later served on <strong>the</strong><br />

President’s Commission on Aviation Security and Terrorism.<br />

24<br />

Runoff<br />

Votes<br />

Runoff<br />

Percent<br />

Chapter 5: The Art of <strong>the</strong> Deal<br />

In its sweep through sou<strong>the</strong>rn Florida, Hurricane Andrew forces<br />

Miami International, Fort Lauderdale Executive, West Palm<br />

Beach, Tamiami, and Key West airports to temporarily close.<br />

139


Joseph M.<br />

Bellino<br />

<strong>Air</strong> <strong>Traffic</strong> Control<br />

Specialist<br />

1968 — Pr e s e n t<br />

Op e r a t i n g in i t i a l s: MB, NC<br />

HOm e t O w n : Chicago; McHenry, Illinois<br />

CHildre n:<br />

Anna; granddaughter: Marissa<br />

Ot Her tr i v i a:<br />

Vietnamese interpreter and sign<br />

language interpreter in <strong>the</strong> past<br />

in t e r e s t s:<br />

Stan Barough<br />

Blue-green water, white sand<br />

beaches, Internet business, rental<br />

properties<br />

ATC FACiliTies<br />

Cu r r e n t:<br />

pr e v i O u s: ORD<br />

RFD<br />

C90 TRACON<br />

Tower<br />

Tower<br />

Joseph M. Bellino has always lived life on <strong>the</strong><br />

front lines. Before starting as a controller at<br />

O’Hare Tower in 1968, he served in <strong>the</strong> Army’s<br />

125th ATC Company in Vietnam. He was also assigned<br />

to <strong>the</strong> 101st <strong>Air</strong>borne and 1st Infantry setting<br />

up landing and drop zones. Shrewdly, he bought a<br />

monkey named Johnny to guard him.<br />

“When you sleep in <strong>the</strong> jungle with a monkey<br />

tied to your wrist, not even <strong>the</strong> invisible man<br />

can sneak up on you,” Bellino says. Johnny had a<br />

mischievous streak, however, such as <strong>the</strong> time he<br />

picked Gen. William Westmoreland’s pocket.<br />

Bellino’s tenacity and ethical nature have<br />

characterized his involvement in organized labor<br />

for more than three decades. During a seven-year<br />

fight to overturn his forced medical disability<br />

retirement, he learned enough about <strong>the</strong> law to<br />

become an astute negotiator who could cite federal<br />

regulations as fluently as sports fans reel off statistics<br />

for <strong>the</strong>ir favorite team. Whe<strong>the</strong>r he was testifying<br />

before Congress, bargaining with <strong>the</strong> FAA or<br />

filing an insurance claim for a controller injured in<br />

an auto accident, Bellino always relied on stacks of<br />

documentation and sound oral arguments.<br />

He is motivated by an “eternal” distrust of<br />

<strong>the</strong> government. After <strong>the</strong> birth of his daughter,<br />

Anna, Bellino discovered he’d been contaminated<br />

with Agent Orange in Vietnam. Medical prob-<br />

Pr e v i o u s NATCA Po s iT i oN s / AC h i e v e m e N T s<br />

Executive vice president 1991-94; Great Lakes<br />

regional rep 1988-91; O’Hare Tower and TRACON<br />

local president (multiple terms).<br />

hir e d<br />

Sept.<br />

1968<br />

lems that could be attributed to <strong>the</strong> toxic defoliant<br />

prevented him from having more children.<br />

“The government knew <strong>the</strong> dangers of dioxin.<br />

We didn’t,” he says. “My continuing lack of trust<br />

in governmental activities has never proven to be<br />

without merit.”<br />

After <strong>the</strong> FAA reinstated him in 1984 as if<br />

he never left <strong>the</strong> agency, Bellino did not intend to<br />

re-enlist in <strong>the</strong> labor movement. “I was so happy<br />

to have my job back,” he says. “But <strong>the</strong> agency<br />

had become even more of an ogre than before. I<br />

couldn’t stand it.”<br />

Life as an activist can entail protracted<br />

discussions in bars, but Bellino does not drink<br />

alcohol. Instead, he prefers to read or research issues<br />

online, often into <strong>the</strong> wee hours. Despite his<br />

preference for such low-key activities, “colorful” is<br />

<strong>the</strong> word most often used by those who know him.<br />

Colleagues rib Bellino about his height—he<br />

stands just 5 feet, 4 inches—yet an equally toughnosed<br />

“adversary” at <strong>the</strong> FAA measured him differently.<br />

Joseph Noonan, <strong>the</strong> agency’s director of<br />

labor and employee relations when Bellino served<br />

as executive vice president, once introduced him to<br />

a group of managers, eliciting a comment about his<br />

stature.<br />

“You think Bellino’s short?” Noonan responded.<br />

“The longer he talks, <strong>the</strong> taller he gets.”


Course on cooperation: NATCA and <strong>the</strong> FAA underwent recurrent<br />

training on Quality Through Partnership. This class included four re-<br />

members believed <strong>the</strong> program diluted <strong>the</strong>ir power<br />

as a labor organization.<br />

But, over time, people saw benefits to STP<br />

and it eventually caught <strong>the</strong> attention of high-ranking<br />

managers at headquarters. The experiment migrated<br />

to New York TRACON and by 1991 evolved<br />

into Quality Through Partnership, which McNally<br />

directed as <strong>the</strong> union’s national QTP coordinator.<br />

Under <strong>the</strong> program, groups of managers and union<br />

members had to agree on issues before <strong>the</strong>y could be<br />

implemented. Decisions were binding; nei<strong>the</strong>r side<br />

1992<br />

Oct.<br />

NATCA archives<br />

gional vice presidents, from left: Michael Putzier, Central; Jim Poole,<br />

Great Lakes; Rich Phillips, Southwest; and Joe Fruscella, Eastern.<br />

could appeal to <strong>the</strong> FLRA.<br />

The agency created a training video to introduce<br />

QTP and committed substantial money for sessions<br />

at all of its facilities. Acceptance came slowly for<br />

some—and not at all for o<strong>the</strong>rs—who were uncomfortable<br />

with this “new” way of thinking. Referring to<br />

QTP as “drinking <strong>the</strong> Kool-Aid,” participants on both<br />

sides felt it undermined <strong>the</strong>ir authority.<br />

“I always viewed <strong>the</strong> agency as <strong>the</strong> enemy, not<br />

a friend. I didn’t see <strong>the</strong> collaborative thing working,”<br />

says Bill Otto, a controller at St. Louis TRACON who<br />

NATCA’s recently formed Reclassification Committee, chaired by Eastern<br />

Region Vice President Tim Haines, meets for <strong>the</strong> first time to discuss ways<br />

to change <strong>the</strong> classification system for air traffic facilities. The union hires<br />

Chapter 5: The Art of <strong>the</strong> Deal<br />

141<br />

Dick Swauger, a former PATCO member, and consultant Joe Kilgallon to<br />

work on <strong>the</strong> project. Both men were involved in PATCO’s reclassification<br />

effort in <strong>the</strong> mid-1970s, which resulted in higher pay for busy facilities.


142<br />

<strong>Against</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>Wind</strong><br />

1992/93<br />

later served as Central Region vice president. “QTP<br />

gave us a façade of working toge<strong>the</strong>r, but tough issues<br />

we never really worked on toge<strong>the</strong>r.”<br />

Paul Williams, a former facility rep at Washington<br />

Center, says QTP<br />

“took away one of our<br />

biggest weapons.”<br />

Williams acknowledges<br />

that cooperative<br />

relationships are possible.<br />

But he also believes<br />

“consensus negates<br />

leadership.” Under QTP’s<br />

committee structure,<br />

one person—ei<strong>the</strong>r in<br />

management or with <strong>the</strong><br />

union—could undermine<br />

a decision everyone else<br />

thought was fine. “It’s led<br />

to a lot of weak decisions,<br />

watered-down decisions,<br />

half-hearted language.”<br />

O<strong>the</strong>rs looked at collaboration differently.<br />

Carol Branaman, who served in leadership roles<br />

with PATCO and was elected NATCA’s Northwest<br />

Mountain Region vice president in 2000, contends<br />

<strong>the</strong> program opened doors for <strong>the</strong> union.<br />

“Everyone maligns QTP, but it was a huge leap<br />

for <strong>the</strong> FAA,” she says. “In many ways, it gave <strong>the</strong><br />

Nov. Jan.<br />

T. Craig Lasker from Boston Center takes over as New England<br />

Region vice president for Jim Breen, who retired as a controller<br />

after suffering a mild stroke and vision loss.<br />

“<br />

Everyone maligns QTP, but it<br />

was a huge leap for <strong>the</strong> FAA.<br />

In many ways, it gave <strong>the</strong><br />

union tremendous influence<br />

that it never had before.<br />

union tremendous influence that it never had before.<br />

It was <strong>the</strong> first time <strong>the</strong>y acknowledged <strong>the</strong> union<br />

had a role in everything that affected <strong>the</strong> facility.”<br />

Barry Krasner notes that <strong>the</strong> law allows both<br />

sides to engage in protracted<br />

disputes over grievances<br />

that can take years to resolve.<br />

QTP provided a way<br />

to settle <strong>the</strong>m faster. Bill<br />

— Northwest Mountain Region<br />

VP Carol Branaman<br />

20<br />

Murphy from Kansas City<br />

Center, who succeeded Mc-<br />

Nally as national QTP coordinator<br />

in 1994, says it came<br />

down to common sense. “If<br />

you beat up someone, what<br />

are you going to get back?<br />

You’ll get beat up.”<br />

Aided by follow-up<br />

training sessions, <strong>the</strong> tenor<br />

of labor relations in <strong>the</strong><br />

FAA gradually improved—<br />

though not everywhere.<br />

But in 1996, QTP was among nine agency programs<br />

totaling $29 million that were cut by <strong>the</strong> Republicancontrolled<br />

Congress as part of its “Contract With<br />

America” to balance <strong>the</strong> budget.<br />

“QTP was not a failure. It left its mark,” says<br />

Howie Barte, who continues to believe in collaboration.<br />

“Where it was successful, it’s still successful.<br />

FAA Administrator Thomas C. Richards leaves after serving<br />

since June 27, 1992. Transportation Secretary Andrew H. Card<br />

Jr. resigns after serving since February 24, 1992.


Where it wasn’t successful, it<br />

never had a chance.”<br />

The program is carried on<br />

in practice at some facilities.<br />

The Second Contract<br />

While QTP ga<strong>the</strong>red<br />

steam and Krasner and Bellino<br />

took up residence in Washington<br />

as <strong>the</strong> union’s second<br />

president and executive vice<br />

president in September 1991,<br />

preparations were already under<br />

way for negotiations on <strong>the</strong> second<br />

contract.<br />

Before leaving office, Bell<br />

had appointed Bernie Reed from<br />

Bay TRACON as team chairman<br />

(he’d served as a resource<br />

person on <strong>the</strong> first contract).<br />

Washington Center’s Paul Williams<br />

and Rodney Turner from Nashville Metro<br />

Tower/TRACON, both of whom had helped Bell with<br />

his unsuccessful campaign, were also on <strong>the</strong> team.<br />

After <strong>the</strong> election, <strong>the</strong> members ga<strong>the</strong>red at<br />

<strong>Air</strong>lie Center, a retreat in eastern Virginia, to brief<br />

<strong>the</strong> new administration. Reed, Turner, and Williams<br />

assumed Krasner would ask <strong>the</strong>m to step aside so<br />

Jan. Apr.<br />

21<br />

Federico F. Peña takes over as transportation secretary. A chief<br />

booster behind <strong>the</strong> new Denver <strong>Air</strong>port, Peña served as <strong>the</strong><br />

city’s mayor and was also elected to <strong>the</strong> Colorado Legislature. 5<br />

that he could appoint his own people. Turner offered<br />

to resign.<br />

But in a move indicative of Krasner’s sense of<br />

cooperation and political savvy, he asked everyone to<br />

stay. Reed was particularly astonished. Due to a miscommunication,<br />

he’d dropped his support for Krasner<br />

during <strong>the</strong> campaign and joined <strong>the</strong> Bell camp. Kras-<br />

Chapter 5: The Art of <strong>the</strong> Deal<br />

143<br />

NATCA archives<br />

The 1993 contract team: Presidents Bell<br />

and Krasner both selected members, who<br />

included, bottom row from left: Bruce<br />

Means; Mike Motta; Jay Keeling; Rob<br />

Stephenson; Co-Chairman Bernie Reed;<br />

and Ken Brissenden. Top row from left:<br />

Lonnie Kramer; Joe Fruscella; Mark Kutch;<br />

President Barry Krasner; Paul Williams;<br />

Rodney Turner; Labor Relations Director<br />

Richard Gordon; and Duane Dupon.<br />

The union relocates from suite 845 at MEBA headquarters, 444<br />

North Capitol Street, to its own leased offices in suite 701 at<br />

1150 17 th Street NW, both in Washington, D.C.


144<br />

<strong>Against</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>Wind</strong><br />

Team building: President Krasner favored<br />

<strong>the</strong> exercises to help contract teams and<br />

<strong>National</strong> Executive Boards form a bond<br />

and learn to work toge<strong>the</strong>r. / NATCA archives<br />

1993<br />

ner <strong>the</strong>n set a tone of partnership by arranging teambuilding<br />

exercises at <strong>Air</strong>lie Center to help <strong>the</strong> group<br />

forge a bond before negotiations started, a particularly<br />

effective way to get <strong>the</strong> Bell and Krasner supporters<br />

working toge<strong>the</strong>r.<br />

Like <strong>the</strong>ir counterparts three years earlier, <strong>the</strong><br />

contract team knew all too well how much was riding<br />

on <strong>the</strong>ir efforts and grasped <strong>the</strong> enormity of <strong>the</strong><br />

task ahead. Their commitment played out in distinct<br />

contrast to <strong>the</strong> FAA negotiators.<br />

While union members toiled sixteen hours a<br />

day and spent two weeks a month on <strong>the</strong> road during<br />

bargaining talks, <strong>the</strong> agency’s representatives largely<br />

regarded <strong>the</strong> process as a 9-5 job. At hotels where <strong>the</strong><br />

two teams met, <strong>the</strong> walls of NATCA’s caucus room<br />

were papered with lists of contract provisions and<br />

proposals, broken down into those <strong>the</strong>y absolutely<br />

needed, ones that would be nice to have, and giveaways.<br />

Paul Williams regularly collected <strong>the</strong> trash<br />

and took it home to prevent <strong>the</strong> FAA team from scavenging<br />

hints about <strong>the</strong>ir strategy. The agency rarely<br />

used its caucus room.<br />

“We’re volunteer workers,” Krasner says. “It’s a<br />

whole lot easier to work airplanes than it is to do this<br />

union stuff. We do it because we believe. And, if you<br />

believe, you don’t walk away at five o’clock.”<br />

Bargaining talks began in March 1992 and ended<br />

with tentative agreement fourteen months later.<br />

During <strong>the</strong> latter part of <strong>the</strong> year, as <strong>the</strong> FAA fought<br />

Apr. Aug.<br />

28<br />

NATCA begins briefing <strong>the</strong> membership on its tentative, fouryear<br />

contract with <strong>the</strong> FAA. Article 83 of <strong>the</strong> new pact gives<br />

locals <strong>the</strong> right to determine <strong>the</strong>ir own seniority policy.<br />

1<br />

NATCA’s second contract with <strong>the</strong> FAA takes effect after 92<br />

percent of voting members approve it.


Congress over <strong>the</strong> budget, its negotiators told NATCA<br />

<strong>the</strong>y weren’t sure when <strong>the</strong>y’d be able to meet again<br />

due to cost cutting. Relishing <strong>the</strong> chance to show <strong>the</strong><br />

union’s foresight, Krasner told <strong>the</strong>m: “Look, we just<br />

got a half percent dues increase. If you want, we can<br />

lend you money to continue to negotiate.”<br />

Federal law prohibited <strong>the</strong> two sides from<br />

Aug. Aug.<br />

10<br />

David Hinson takes over as FAA administrator. A Navy pilot,<br />

Hinson flew for Northwest <strong>Air</strong>lines and was an instructor for<br />

United <strong>Air</strong>lines. He was also a founder of Midway <strong>Air</strong>lines.<br />

12<br />

bargaining over salary and benefits, but <strong>the</strong> second<br />

contract included language guaranteeing a 5 percent<br />

“operational differential.” Congress had established<br />

<strong>the</strong> premium in 1982 to recognize <strong>the</strong> efforts of controllers<br />

who stayed on <strong>the</strong> job during <strong>the</strong> strike. O<strong>the</strong>r<br />

provisions streng<strong>the</strong>ned and expanded <strong>the</strong> first<br />

contract, such as mandating split urine specimens<br />

Chapter 5: The Art of <strong>the</strong> Deal<br />

President Clinton announces that controllers fired for participating<br />

in <strong>the</strong> 1981 PATCO strike may reapply for employment<br />

with <strong>the</strong> FAA.<br />

145<br />

Contract caucus: The walls of hotel<br />

rooms where <strong>the</strong> NATCA team met during<br />

negotiations were plastered with prospective<br />

provisions. / Courtesy of Bernie Reed


146<br />

<strong>Against</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>Wind</strong><br />

NATCA’s second contract: Among o<strong>the</strong>r<br />

provisions, <strong>the</strong> 1993 agreement guaranteed<br />

<strong>the</strong> 5 percent operational differential<br />

paid to controllers, which had been at <strong>the</strong><br />

whim of Congress. / NATCA archives<br />

* During a visit to Barnstable Tower in Hyannis,<br />

Massachusetts, a highly desirable area of<br />

Cape Cod not far from <strong>the</strong> Kennedy family’s<br />

summer home, Bellino discovered that<br />

housing costs forced controllers to commute<br />

long distances to work. He vowed to obtain<br />

pay demo for Hyannis, too, but <strong>the</strong> site was<br />

dropped when Congress got involved.<br />

1993<br />

20<br />

Sep.<br />

for drug testing to allow rechecks in<br />

case of false positive results. One new<br />

article outlined critical incident stress<br />

debriefing procedures for controllers<br />

involved in a traumatic event.<br />

“Collective bargaining has<br />

changed over <strong>the</strong> last twelve years. It<br />

is no longer a game of unions going<br />

to management, asking for more, and<br />

receiving it,” Krasner said at <strong>the</strong> time.<br />

“Nowadays, unions have to fight to<br />

maintain <strong>the</strong> rights <strong>the</strong>y currently<br />

have, in addition to making gains.” 3<br />

Members took that sentiment<br />

to heart with a ratification vote of 92<br />

percent. The four-year contract became<br />

effective on August 1, 1993.<br />

The U.S. Postal Service and Federal Deposit<br />

Insurance Corporation negotiated with <strong>the</strong>ir federal-sector<br />

unions over pay, but o<strong>the</strong>rwise bargaining<br />

talks about money were extremely rare. Yet, to a certain<br />

degree, NATCA had successfully circumvented<br />

that limitation. In addition to <strong>the</strong> congressionally<br />

mandated 5 percent operational differential that<br />

<strong>the</strong> union built into its latest contract, about 2,100<br />

controllers enjoyed a 20 percent bonus as part of a<br />

five-year Pay Demonstration Project.<br />

The premium was designed to attract and retain<br />

controllers at hard-to-staff facilities known in<br />

More than 250 members participate in “Lobby Week”—<strong>the</strong> union’s<br />

inaugural effort to educate <strong>the</strong> rank and file about working with Congress.<br />

As a result of controller lobbying, <strong>the</strong> number of sponsors for H.R. 2663<br />

<strong>the</strong> profession as “<strong>the</strong> Magnificent<br />

Seven:” Chicago Center;<br />

O’Hare Tower/TRACON; New<br />

York Center and TRACON; Los<br />

Angeles Tower/TRACON; Coast<br />

TRACON in Santa Ana; and Bay<br />

TRACON in Nor<strong>the</strong>rn California.<br />

Flight Standards district offices in<br />

Los Angeles, Teterboro, New Jersey,<br />

and Farmingdale and Valley<br />

Stream, New York, also received<br />

<strong>the</strong> bonus. 4<br />

The campaign for pay<br />

demo, as it was commonly<br />

known, began in Chicago before<br />

NATCA was even certified<br />

as a union. Joseph Bellino, who<br />

was reinstated at O’Hare in 1984 following wrongful<br />

dismissal for a medical issue, returned to find<br />

just twenty-seven journeymen controllers. That was<br />

down from about forty who staffed <strong>the</strong> facility in <strong>the</strong><br />

late 1970s. His frustration over working conditions<br />

soon launched him on a mission to garner extra pay<br />

to compensate <strong>the</strong> O’Hare controllers for forced overtime<br />

and provide a carrot that would attract o<strong>the</strong>rs. *<br />

Bellino found a receptive ear in <strong>the</strong> office of<br />

Democratic Illinois Sen. Paul Simon. After a series<br />

of calls between Simon and FAA officials, a meeting<br />

was arranged in October 1985 between Jerry McDer-<br />

increases from ten to forty-one. The <strong>Air</strong> <strong>Traffic</strong> Controller Incentive and<br />

Retention Act includes premium pay for working Sundays and boosts <strong>the</strong><br />

controller operational differential from 5 percent to 15 percent.


Follow <strong>the</strong> Money<br />

During <strong>the</strong> early 1990s, a grievance<br />

filed by Cleveland Center facility rep<br />

Pat Forrey involving Sunday premium<br />

pay led to a settlement of more than $20<br />

million, <strong>the</strong> largest with <strong>the</strong> FAA to date.<br />

The issue involved controllers who<br />

arrived for work at 11:45 p.m. Sunday for<br />

a midnight shift. The agency maintained<br />

that <strong>the</strong> controllers chose to start work<br />

early for <strong>the</strong>ir Monday shift under flexible<br />

scheduling rules and did not deserve <strong>the</strong><br />

extra pay. However, <strong>the</strong> Comptroller General,<br />

<strong>the</strong> head of <strong>the</strong> General Accounting<br />

Office, concluded that <strong>the</strong> flexible schedule<br />

issue was irrelevant. The employees<br />

worked part of Sunday and, according to<br />

<strong>the</strong> union’s contract, were entitled to <strong>the</strong><br />

differential, which amounted to about<br />

$650,000.<br />

As <strong>the</strong> case evolved, NATCA’s<br />

grievance expanded to include controllers<br />

who’d been denied <strong>the</strong> premium pay for<br />

taking annual and sick leave on Sundays.<br />

The $19.5 million settlement covered<br />

nearly seven years dating to November<br />

1986 (Congress later passed a law prohibiting<br />

<strong>the</strong> extra pay).<br />

When <strong>the</strong> FAA’s hefty check arrived<br />

at union headquarters, it was en-<br />

�<br />

dorsed to Executive Vice President Joseph<br />

Bellino ra<strong>the</strong>r than to NATCA. The check<br />

also posed ano<strong>the</strong>r issue: It was well<br />

above federal deposit insurance limits.<br />

Bellino and comptroller Frances Alsop<br />

agreed <strong>the</strong>y’d have to parcel <strong>the</strong> money<br />

out in different bank accounts across <strong>the</strong><br />

country until NATCA calculated how<br />

much each controller should receive.<br />

Demonstrating his characteristic<br />

sense of humor, Bellino created fictitious<br />

names for <strong>the</strong> accounts: Grand Cayman<br />

Local 1, Grand Cayman Local 2,<br />

etc. An auditor who stumbled across <strong>the</strong><br />

wealthy Caribbean “local” immediately<br />

approached Bellino.<br />

“Are <strong>the</strong>re controllers in <strong>the</strong> Grand<br />

Cayman Islands?” he asked suspiciously.<br />

Unable to resist, Bellino deadpanned:<br />

“No, I don’t think <strong>the</strong>re are. But<br />

we’ve got a local <strong>the</strong>re.”<br />

The auditor appeared confused.<br />

“Well, we’ve got some $19.5 million in<br />

<strong>the</strong>se Grand Cayman locals.”<br />

“It’s a pretty rich local,” Bellino<br />

acknowledged.<br />

“What do you mean? Where did it<br />

come from?”<br />

“I don’t know.”<br />

Chapter 5: The Art of <strong>the</strong> Deal<br />

NATCA archives<br />

Up his sleeve: When NATCA won a back pay settlement<br />

and banked <strong>the</strong> money before disbursing it to<br />

controllers, Joseph Bellino unnerved an auditor by<br />

creating a fictitious local in <strong>the</strong> Cayman Islands.<br />

The auditor persisted. “Who’s in<br />

this local?”<br />

“Barry Krasner is <strong>the</strong> VP. I’m<br />

<strong>the</strong> president. He’s <strong>the</strong> president of <strong>the</strong><br />

union. I’m <strong>the</strong> president of <strong>the</strong> local. John<br />

Thornton is <strong>the</strong> secretary-treasurer. We<br />

have one member and that’s Will Faville.”<br />

“Where’d you get this money?”<br />

“I don’t know. Does it matter?”<br />

The auditor was not amused and<br />

insisted that Bellino transfer <strong>the</strong> money<br />

out of <strong>the</strong> accounts as soon as possible.<br />

NATCA planned to do just that, of<br />

course, and mailed <strong>the</strong> entire $19.5 million<br />

to controllers a few months later.<br />

147


148<br />

<strong>Against</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>Wind</strong><br />

Joseph Bellino: The O’Hare TRACON<br />

controller led a campaign that resulted<br />

in 20 percent more pay for controllers at<br />

seven hard-to-staff facilities. / Stan Barough<br />

1993<br />

29<br />

Sep.<br />

mott, who was a member of <strong>the</strong> senator’s staff, and Ed<br />

Bears from agency headquarters. Bellino was invited<br />

to present <strong>the</strong> controllers’ proposal, which essentially<br />

amounted to a request for more money.<br />

For Bellino, that posed one critical question:<br />

How much? On <strong>the</strong> flight from Chicago<br />

to Washington, figures swirled in his<br />

head. The controllers wanted 5 percent,<br />

so should he ask for 9 percent, hoping to<br />

split <strong>the</strong> difference? What about 7 percent<br />

or 8 percent? His uncertainty kept him<br />

awake that night at <strong>the</strong> hotel.<br />

At <strong>the</strong> meeting <strong>the</strong> next day, McDermott<br />

laid it out to Bears. “What we’re looking for<br />

here, Ed, is something for O’Hare.”<br />

“If you controllers wanted more money, you<br />

should never have taken jobs in <strong>the</strong> government sector,”<br />

Bears snapped irritably. Then he turned to Bellino<br />

and demanded to know <strong>the</strong> bottom line.<br />

“We want twenty percent more,” Bellino<br />

blurted. Realizing he’d responded impulsively—Bellino<br />

swears he doesn’t know where <strong>the</strong> figure came<br />

from—he quickly adopted a poker face.<br />

Bears looked shocked. “You know about it,<br />

don’t you?”<br />

Bellino fought back a look of puzzlement. He had<br />

no idea what Bears meant. Instead, he bluffed. “Yeah,<br />

of course we know about it, Ed. What do you think<br />

we’re doing here? Just because you’re at headquarters<br />

The FAA agrees to pay $19.5 million in back premium pay to controllers<br />

who took annual and sick leave on Sundays. The grievance, filed Novem-<br />

doesn’t mean <strong>the</strong> rest of <strong>the</strong> country is stupid.”<br />

McDermott interjected and asked what <strong>the</strong>y<br />

were talking about. Bears proceeded to describe a relatively<br />

new Pay Demonstration Project<br />

that compensated scientists with a<br />

20 percent bonus for working at<br />

<strong>the</strong> China Lake Naval Weapons<br />

Center in <strong>the</strong> Mojave<br />

Desert, a hard-to-staff facility<br />

like O’Hare.<br />

It took Congress until<br />

1989 to enact <strong>the</strong> same differential<br />

for controllers. By <strong>the</strong>n, Michael<br />

McNally in New York, Bernie Reed<br />

on <strong>the</strong> West Coast, and o<strong>the</strong>rs had gotten involved to<br />

help expand <strong>the</strong> list of facilities to <strong>the</strong> Magnificent<br />

Seven. Bay TRACON controllers particularly appreciated<br />

<strong>the</strong> extra money due to <strong>the</strong> area’s exorbitant cost<br />

of living, and <strong>the</strong>y joined NATCA in droves.<br />

“People saw that <strong>the</strong> union was doing something<br />

for <strong>the</strong>m,” Reed says. When he later stepped<br />

down as facility rep, <strong>the</strong> membership presented him<br />

with what remains a prized possession—a gavel with<br />

<strong>the</strong> inscription: “To Bernie Reed. You accomplished<br />

100 plus 20 percent.”<br />

Even though controllers at <strong>the</strong> Magnificent<br />

Seven were happy, pay demo rankled many o<strong>the</strong>rs<br />

and created an awkward dilemma for <strong>the</strong> union.<br />

NATCA’s leadership warily embraced <strong>the</strong> hefty pre-<br />

ber 20, 1992, covered nearly a seven-year period beginning November 20,<br />

1986. Subsequently, Congress passes a law outlawing <strong>the</strong> extra pay.


mium while pointing out its drawbacks. Testifying<br />

at an Office of Personnel Management hearing before<br />

<strong>the</strong> FAA implemented pay demo, <strong>the</strong>n-Executive Vice<br />

President Ray Spickler acknowledged that <strong>the</strong> chosen<br />

facilities deserved <strong>the</strong> extra money. But he also raised<br />

<strong>the</strong> issue of divisiveness.<br />

Thousands of o<strong>the</strong>r controllers “have been left<br />

out in <strong>the</strong> cold. The perception at <strong>the</strong>se facilities is<br />

that <strong>the</strong>y were not selected because <strong>the</strong>y lack <strong>the</strong><br />

visibility or political clout to get <strong>the</strong>m on <strong>the</strong> FAA’s<br />

‘A List,’ ” he said. “We trust that Congress and <strong>the</strong><br />

American public do not believe for one moment that<br />

<strong>the</strong> Pay Demonstration Project is anything more than<br />

a Band-Aid on a hemorrhage.” 5<br />

Pay demo was extended by Congress in 1994<br />

and was later replaced by a program known as Controller<br />

Incentive Pay that provided variable differentials<br />

to facilities based upon <strong>the</strong> local cost of living.<br />

Going for <strong>the</strong> Gold<br />

Oct. Oct.<br />

The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office issues a full federal registration<br />

for <strong>the</strong> NATCA logo, with its distinctive control tower<br />

and radar sweep.<br />

2<br />

Despite <strong>the</strong> significance of pay demo, <strong>the</strong> program<br />

was far from comprehensive and its longevity<br />

hinged on <strong>the</strong> whims of Congress. The 5 percent operational<br />

differential also landed in <strong>the</strong> cross hairs<br />

when Capitol Hill took aim at balancing <strong>the</strong> budget<br />

during <strong>the</strong> mid-1990s. * These issues prompted<br />

NATCA more than ever to pursue an agenda of negotiating<br />

pay with <strong>the</strong> agency.<br />

The goal had eluded unionized<br />

controllers for a quarter century. But<br />

several factors came into play throughout<br />

<strong>the</strong> Nineties that put <strong>the</strong> brass ring<br />

within reach.<br />

O<strong>the</strong>r than legislative action by<br />

Congress, <strong>the</strong> only way <strong>the</strong> union could<br />

change pay for all controllers was through<br />

an appeal to <strong>the</strong> Office of Personnel<br />

Management, which had <strong>the</strong> authority to<br />

declare government occupations unique<br />

and remove <strong>the</strong>m from <strong>the</strong> standard<br />

General Schedule—or GS scale. But persuading<br />

<strong>the</strong> agency and OPM to agree to<br />

Chapter 5: The Art of <strong>the</strong> Deal<br />

* In what became an annual rite for several<br />

years, heavy NATCA lobbying helped to<br />

preserve <strong>the</strong> 5 percent premium.<br />

149<br />

Bay TRACON: Given <strong>the</strong> Bay Area’s steep<br />

cost of living, facility rep Bernie Reed<br />

worked to ensure that <strong>the</strong> TRACON was<br />

included among pay demo sites. / Japphire<br />

Longtime NATCA activist and Northwest Mountain Region Vice<br />

President Gary Molen retires from <strong>the</strong> FAA. James Ferguson of<br />

Salt Lake Center replaces Molen on <strong>the</strong> Executive Board.


150<br />

<strong>Against</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>Wind</strong><br />

Tim Haines: NATCA tapped him in 1990<br />

to head a comprehensive facility and pay<br />

reclassification project, which was put into<br />

effect in <strong>the</strong> 1998 contract. / Peter Cutts<br />

* Van Nuys ranked as <strong>the</strong> fifteenth-busiest<br />

control tower in <strong>the</strong> nation during 2000.<br />

<strong>Controllers</strong> handled 483,000 takeoffs and<br />

landings—more than San Francisco (23 rd ),<br />

LaGuardia (25 th ), and Kennedy (35 th ), among<br />

o<strong>the</strong>rs.<br />

1993<br />

31<br />

Dec.<br />

such a momentous change would be difficult, at best,<br />

and proposing an alternative pay system represented<br />

a Herculean task.<br />

The FAA linked <strong>the</strong> GS scale to a five-tier facility<br />

ranking based solely on traffic volume. High-density<br />

TRACONs were rated Level V while small VFR<br />

towers were considered Level I. However, several<br />

inequities plagued <strong>the</strong> system.<br />

<strong>Controllers</strong> at en route centers, which adhered<br />

to a separate three-tier scale, could<br />

earn no more money than<br />

those at <strong>the</strong> busiest terminal<br />

facilities. Most towers<br />

were capped at Level IV,<br />

regardless of how much<br />

traffic <strong>the</strong>y handled. Van<br />

Nuys Tower in Sou<strong>the</strong>rn<br />

California, which<br />

swarmed with general<br />

aviation traffic, was<br />

limited to Level II and<br />

ranked lower than some<br />

radar towers that were not<br />

as busy. * A few towers, such<br />

as San Francisco and <strong>the</strong> three<br />

New York airports, had been elevated<br />

to Level V due to political influence and <strong>the</strong><br />

difficulty of staffing <strong>the</strong>m, even though <strong>the</strong>ir traffic<br />

did not justify <strong>the</strong> higher ranking.<br />

Five years after its first financial statement, NATCA reports assets of $2.5<br />

million and liabilities of $1.6 million, including principal and interest of<br />

$747,765 owed to MEBA.<br />

In <strong>the</strong> fall of 1990, President Steve Bell and<br />

Barry Krasner, <strong>the</strong>n <strong>the</strong> Eastern regional rep, approached<br />

Tim Haines and directed him to create a<br />

classification standard that would eliminate <strong>the</strong> disparities.<br />

“It was an unsaid thing, though, that somehow<br />

pay would be attached to it,” says Haines, who was <strong>the</strong><br />

Pittsburgh Tower facility rep at <strong>the</strong> time and would win<br />

election as Eastern regional rep <strong>the</strong> next year.<br />

Lack of money stalled progress for a while as<br />

did lack of interest. When <strong>the</strong> union invited <strong>the</strong> FAA<br />

to join its effort, agency managers declined. Even<br />

many controllers dismissed <strong>the</strong> project, thinking<br />

<strong>the</strong> FAA would never agree to a new standard or<br />

find <strong>the</strong> money to pay for it. “Probably <strong>the</strong> biggest<br />

problem throughout this whole thing was<br />

<strong>the</strong> general feeling that it would never happen,”<br />

Haines recalls.<br />

But in <strong>the</strong> fall of 1992, <strong>the</strong> <strong>National</strong> Executive<br />

Board allowed Haines to appoint one person<br />

from each region and committed enough<br />

money to retain consultant Joe Kilgallon and<br />

Dick Swauger, a controller who’d been fired in<br />

<strong>the</strong> strike. Both men had worked on PATCO’s<br />

reclassification project in <strong>the</strong> 1970s. Committee<br />

members were selected to create an equal representation<br />

of large and small terminal facilities and centers.<br />

From <strong>the</strong> start, everyone agreed <strong>the</strong> current standard<br />

was overly simplistic.<br />

“We wanted to make it more realistic and in-


corporate volume, complexities, knowledge, skills,<br />

and ability to do <strong>the</strong> job,” says committee member Pat<br />

Forrey, who was <strong>the</strong> facility rep at Cleveland Center.<br />

For <strong>the</strong> next eighteen months, <strong>the</strong> group traveled<br />

every three to four weeks to more than 200<br />

sites to observe air traffic<br />

operations and collect<br />

mountains of information.<br />

They interviewed<br />

more than a thousand<br />

controllers about runway<br />

configurations, <strong>the</strong> types<br />

of planes <strong>the</strong>y handled,<br />

and facility-specific issues.<br />

They ga<strong>the</strong>red traffic<br />

counts, studied aeronautical<br />

charts, and reviewed<br />

Letters of Agreement that<br />

outlined procedures with<br />

o<strong>the</strong>r facilities.<br />

Notebooks containing<br />

all <strong>the</strong> data filled<br />

several long shelves at <strong>the</strong> national office. Heeding<br />

a suggestion from Kilgallon and Swauger, <strong>the</strong> group<br />

purposefully waited to review PATCO’s reclassification<br />

project to avoid being swayed by its conclusions.<br />

“It was some of <strong>the</strong> best advice we got,” says<br />

committee member Mike Coulter, <strong>the</strong> facility rep at<br />

Denver Tower. “We didn’t fall into <strong>the</strong> trap of just<br />

31<br />

Dec.<br />

“<br />

We wanted to make it more<br />

realistic and incorporate<br />

volume, complexities,<br />

knowledge, skills, and ability<br />

to do <strong>the</strong> job.<br />

taking over where PATCO left off, although our findings<br />

were very similar. The issues hadn’t changed.”<br />

The wearisome process of acquiring information<br />

was relatively easy compared with <strong>the</strong> challenge<br />

of devising a standard that included myriad complex<br />

factors. After producing a<br />

document that ran more<br />

than 100 pages, <strong>the</strong> committee<br />

<strong>the</strong>n had to decide<br />

— Reclassification Committee<br />

member Pat Forrey<br />

All airliners with more than thirty passenger seats flying in U.S. airspace<br />

must now be equipped with <strong>the</strong> <strong>Traffic</strong> Alert/Collision Avoidance System.<br />

Early on, TCAS suffers from many false alerts that cause numerous near<br />

how to weight <strong>the</strong> factors<br />

to rank <strong>the</strong> facilities fairly.<br />

While Coulter taught himself<br />

how to use a spreadsheet<br />

program and plugged in <strong>the</strong><br />

numbers, Haines, Forrey,<br />

and Cam Maltby from Nantucket<br />

Tower wrangled for<br />

hours over <strong>the</strong> formula.<br />

“We were operating in<br />

a pure environment,” Maltby<br />

says. “We didn’t really know<br />

what putting a facility into a<br />

particular grouping would do to <strong>the</strong>ir pay. We were<br />

working on <strong>the</strong> concept that we had <strong>the</strong> ‘right’ facilities<br />

toge<strong>the</strong>r.”<br />

At <strong>the</strong> 1994 convention in Tampa, Florida, <strong>the</strong><br />

committee unveiled a proposal that assigned facilities<br />

to one of seven categories and expanded <strong>the</strong> FAA’s<br />

five-tier scale to fourteen levels. The first three grades<br />

Chapter 5: The Art of <strong>the</strong> Deal<br />

misses due to pilot unfamiliarity and lack of controller involvement during<br />

product development. The incidents subside as pilots become familiar with<br />

TCAS and controllers help programmers working on software updates.<br />

151


152<br />

1994<br />

<strong>Against</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>Wind</strong><br />

1994<br />

The Third <strong>National</strong> Executive Board<br />

Along with Executive Vice President Michael<br />

McNally, four new regional vice<br />

presidents joined <strong>the</strong> board in 1994:<br />

Alaskan: Jerry Whittaker from<br />

Anchorage TRACON beat incumbent Sam<br />

Rich from Anchorage Center.<br />

Central: Incumbent Michael Putzier<br />

from Kansas City Center ran unopposed for<br />

a second term.<br />

Eastern: Incumbent Tim Haines<br />

from Pittsburgh Tower, who was now leading<br />

<strong>the</strong> union’s Reclassification Committee,<br />

chose not to run for re-election. Joe Fruscella,<br />

president of <strong>the</strong> local at New York<br />

TRACON for <strong>the</strong> past six years, ran unopposed.<br />

Great Lakes: Incumbent Jim Poole<br />

from Chicago Center held back a challenge<br />

by Cleveland Center facility rep Pat Forrey<br />

to retain his seat for a second term.<br />

New England: Incumbent T. Craig<br />

17<br />

Jan.<br />

Lasker ran unopposed.<br />

Lasker,<br />

from Boston<br />

Center, took over<br />

for Jim Breen<br />

after he suffered<br />

a mild stroke<br />

and accompanying<br />

vision loss in<br />

<strong>the</strong> fall of 1992,<br />

which forced<br />

him to retire<br />

as a controller<br />

and leave <strong>the</strong><br />

bargaining unit.<br />

Breen contin-<br />

�<br />

ued to work for <strong>the</strong> FAA as an automation<br />

specialist, a category of workers he helped<br />

to organize as a new NATCA bargaining<br />

unit in 2000.<br />

Northwest Mountain: Incumbent<br />

A 6.6-magnitude earthquake in Sou<strong>the</strong>rn California briefly closes Los<br />

Angeles International <strong>Air</strong>port. <strong>Wind</strong>ows in <strong>the</strong> Van Nuys tower cab break,<br />

but <strong>the</strong> airport continues to operate until a temporary tower is activated.<br />

NATCA archives<br />

The new regime: President Krasner’s second board, which took office in September 1994,<br />

included, front row from left: James Ferguson, Northwest Mountain; Joe Fruscella, Eastern;<br />

Jim Poole, Great Lakes; Rich Phillips, Southwest; and Randy Schwitz, Sou<strong>the</strong>rn. Back row<br />

from left: Jerry Whittaker, Alaskan; Owen Bridgeman, Western-Pacific; Krasner; Michael<br />

Putzier, Central; Executive Vice President Michael McNally; and Craig Lasker, New England.<br />

James Ferguson ran unopposed. Ferguson,<br />

from Salt Lake Center, took over for Gary<br />

Molen when he retired in <strong>the</strong> fall of 1993.<br />

Molen’s involvement on <strong>the</strong> board spanned<br />

more than eight years, dating back to <strong>the</strong>


days of AATCC organizing.<br />

Sou<strong>the</strong>rn: Incumbent Randy Schwitz<br />

from Atlanta Center ran unopposed for his<br />

second full term.<br />

Southwest: Ed Mullin, who had served<br />

on <strong>the</strong> board since joining <strong>the</strong> NATCA organizing<br />

drive in 1986, chose not to run<br />

for re-election. Mullin’s two alternates campaigned<br />

for his seat—along with Tulsa Tower<br />

controller Dennis Hartney, who garnered just<br />

9.5 percent of <strong>the</strong> vote. In a runoff vote, Rich<br />

Phillips from Houston Center narrowly won<br />

a majority over longtime Fort Worth Center<br />

President Bill Shedden.<br />

Western-Pacific: Incumbent Karl<br />

Grundmann from Los Angeles TRACON<br />

chose not to run for re-election. After losing<br />

a runoff vote to Grundmann in 1991, Owen<br />

Bridgeman from Phoenix TRACON campaigned<br />

again and defeated Bernie Reed from<br />

Bay TRACON.<br />

2<br />

Feb.<br />

The FAA announces that twenty-five Level I VFR control towers will be<br />

contracted out per year in 1994, 1995 and 1996, plus several more in 1997.<br />

The agency has been contracting out towers since 1982. By <strong>the</strong> end of<br />

covered controllers in training. Facilities were ranked<br />

ATC-4 through -12, leaving two higher grade-levels<br />

for future air travel growth. Soon after <strong>the</strong> convention,<br />

several FAA managers came onboard to form a<br />

joint workgroup. Although <strong>the</strong> two sides would refine<br />

<strong>the</strong> standard over <strong>the</strong> next two years, it remained essentially<br />

true to NATCA’s original proposal.<br />

The agency’s interest was piqued when <strong>the</strong><br />

Clinton administration announced a plan in May<br />

1993 to create a quasi-governmental entity called <strong>the</strong><br />

U.S. <strong>Air</strong> <strong>Traffic</strong> Services Corporation. The nonprofit<br />

USATS, <strong>the</strong> latest in a series of proposals to reform<br />

<strong>the</strong> FAA, would derive its income from fees paid by<br />

airlines and o<strong>the</strong>r commercial users ra<strong>the</strong>r than relying<br />

on Congress for funding.<br />

Two elements of <strong>the</strong> USATS proposal appealed<br />

to NATCA. The union hoped that removing <strong>the</strong> <strong>Air</strong>port<br />

and <strong>Air</strong>way Trust Fund from <strong>the</strong> general budget<br />

would ease <strong>the</strong> FAA’s financial constraints. That, in<br />

turn, could help expedite long-awaited modernization<br />

projects and eliminate what had become an annual<br />

union fight in Congress to retain <strong>the</strong> 5 percent<br />

operational differential. NATCA also liked USATS<br />

provisions allowing for a personnel and pay system<br />

that was not locked to <strong>the</strong> GS scale.<br />

USATS never got off <strong>the</strong> ground. However,<br />

parts of <strong>the</strong> plan resurfaced two years later, when<br />

NATCA found itself confronting a historic opportunity<br />

and <strong>the</strong> most serious threat to its existence since<br />

Chapter 5: The Art of <strong>the</strong> Deal<br />

1993, private firms were running thirty facilities. In 1994, NATCA and <strong>the</strong><br />

FAA agree to implement <strong>the</strong> Direct Placement Program, which ensures<br />

that affected controllers can transfer to <strong>the</strong> facility of <strong>the</strong>ir choice.<br />

153


154<br />

1994<br />

<strong>Against</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>Wind</strong><br />

1994 Election<br />

Results<br />

�<br />

* Lasker joined <strong>the</strong> NEB in November<br />

1992 after Jim Breen retired.<br />

** Ferguson joined <strong>the</strong> NEB in October<br />

1993 after Gary Molen retired.<br />

15<br />

Apr.<br />

President<br />

Barry Krasner / incumbent Eastern New York TRACON 4,868 70.9<br />

F. Lee Riley Sou<strong>the</strong>rn Atlanta Center 1,966 28.7<br />

Write-ins Various Various 26 0.4<br />

Executive Vice President<br />

Michael McNally Eastern New York Center 5,401 82.3<br />

Clayton J. Hanninen Great Lakes DuPage Tower 1,098 16.7<br />

Write-ins Various Various 65 1.0<br />

Regional Vice Presidents<br />

Votes Percent<br />

Alaskan<br />

Jerry Whittaker Anchorage TRACON 60 44.2 73 51.4<br />

Sam Rich / incumbent Anchorage Center 58 42.6 69 48.6<br />

Richard H. Potzger<br />

Central<br />

Anchorage Center 18 13.2<br />

Michael Putzier / incumbent Kansas City Center 235 83.0<br />

Write-ins<br />

Eastern<br />

Various 48 17.0<br />

Joe Fruscella New York TRACON 1,200 96.0<br />

Write-ins Various 50 4.0<br />

The <strong>Air</strong> <strong>Traffic</strong> Control System Command Center begins operations at<br />

a new facility in Herndon, Virginia. Size and technological constraints<br />

prompted <strong>the</strong> move from FAA headquarters in Washington, D.C.<br />

Runoff<br />

Votes<br />

Runoff<br />

Percent


Great Lakes<br />

Jim Poole / incumbent Chicago Center 683 52.8<br />

Pat Forrey Cleveland Center 600 46.4<br />

Write-ins<br />

New England<br />

Various 10 0.8<br />

T. Craig Lasker / incumb. * Boston Center 315 93.0<br />

Write-ins<br />

Northwest Mountain<br />

Various 24 7.0<br />

James Ferguson / incumb. ** Salt Lake Center 415 95.2<br />

Write-ins<br />

Sou<strong>the</strong>rn<br />

Various 21 4.8<br />

Randy Schwitz / incumbent Atlanta Center 1,221 92.9<br />

Write-ins<br />

Southwest<br />

Various 94 7.1<br />

Rich Phillips Houston Center 381 50.1<br />

Bill Shedden Fort Worth Center 302 39.7<br />

Dennis Hartney Tulsa Tower 72 9.5<br />

Write-ins<br />

Western-Pacific<br />

Various 5 0.7<br />

Owen Bridgeman Phoenix TRACON 451 52.6<br />

Bernie Reed Bay TRACON 400 46.7<br />

Write-ins Various 6 0.7<br />

19<br />

Apr.<br />

More than 400 delegates attend NATCA’s fifth biennial convention at <strong>the</strong><br />

Hyatt Regency Westshore in Tampa. A proposal to establish a national<br />

seniority system is defeated. The delegates approve honorary lifetime<br />

Votes Percent<br />

Runoff<br />

Votes<br />

Runoff<br />

Percent<br />

Chapter 5: The Art of <strong>the</strong> Deal<br />

memberships—<strong>the</strong> union’s third and fourth—for former New England<br />

Region Vice President Jim Breen and Labor Relations Director Robert D.<br />

Taylor.<br />

155


156<br />

<strong>Against</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>Wind</strong><br />

Fighting for its life: NATCA hired Ken<br />

Montoya as its second legislative affairs director.<br />

The union’s fate hinged on his first<br />

mission: lobbying Congress to restore key<br />

workers’ rights. Stacy Trigler, left, later<br />

became his assistant. / NATCA archives<br />

1994<br />

3<br />

May<br />

certification.<br />

The Double-Edged Sword<br />

In mid-November 1995, Congress passed an<br />

annual appropriations act for <strong>the</strong> FAA that required<br />

<strong>the</strong> agency to implement a new personnel system and<br />

procurement procedures by April 1, 1996. To give <strong>the</strong><br />

FAA freedom to reinvent itself, Congress exempted it<br />

from <strong>the</strong> vast majority of a thicket of regulations<br />

contained in Title 5 of <strong>the</strong> United States<br />

Code. As a result, <strong>the</strong> agency could<br />

legally negotiate pay for <strong>the</strong> first<br />

time, among many o<strong>the</strong>r potential<br />

changes.<br />

However, part of <strong>the</strong><br />

statutes that vanished included<br />

Chapter 71 of Title<br />

5, a crucial section granting<br />

federal workers <strong>the</strong> right to<br />

union representation and<br />

collective bargaining. “Chapter<br />

71 is <strong>the</strong> heart and soul<br />

of employee rights,” says Bob<br />

Taylor, director of labor relations.<br />

“Without that, we wouldn’t exist.”<br />

In a one-two punch, Congress stripped away<br />

what little remaining authority <strong>the</strong> agency’s unions<br />

had to negotiate by directing <strong>the</strong> FAA to work “in<br />

The Clinton administration announces a plan to create <strong>the</strong> United States<br />

<strong>Air</strong> <strong>Traffic</strong> Services corporation to operate, maintain, and modernize <strong>the</strong><br />

air traffic control system. The nonprofit concern, covering 38,000 FAA<br />

consultation” with <strong>the</strong>m. This deceptively simple<br />

phrase gave <strong>the</strong> agency a free rein to merely announce<br />

sweeping changes before unilaterally implementing<br />

<strong>the</strong>m, unfettered by <strong>the</strong> wishes of its workers.<br />

The dichotomy reflected conflicting agendas<br />

in Washington. The Democratic Clinton administration<br />

was pleased to salvage a portion of its USATS<br />

plan with “FAA reform.” Republicans, who had just<br />

won majorities in both houses of Congress, took<br />

<strong>the</strong> opportunity to severely limit <strong>the</strong> power of <strong>the</strong><br />

agency’s unions.<br />

“The Republicans were looking for something<br />

and <strong>the</strong> administration was looking for something,<br />

but <strong>the</strong>y were coming at it from two different points<br />

of view,” says Ken Montoya, a former aide to Sen. Paul<br />

Simon who joined NATCA as its legislative affairs director<br />

in January 1996.<br />

Now, unless <strong>the</strong> unions could persuade Congress<br />

to reinstate Chapter 71 rights before <strong>the</strong> April 1<br />

deadline for FAA reform, <strong>the</strong>y would lose <strong>the</strong>ir raison<br />

d’être. Although FAA management assured NATCA<br />

that it would continue to bargain in good faith, <strong>the</strong><br />

union was taking no chances. “We do not exist because<br />

<strong>the</strong>y allow us to exist,” <strong>the</strong>n-President Krasner<br />

says. “We exist because we have a right to exist.”<br />

Just when NATCA was hitting its stride in <strong>the</strong><br />

workplace and <strong>the</strong> aviation community at large, its<br />

fate rested on <strong>the</strong> ability of Montoya and o<strong>the</strong>rs to<br />

lobby Congress and <strong>the</strong> White House.<br />

employees, would bring in revenue by levying fees on commercial aviation.<br />

NATCA supports <strong>the</strong> proposal, but it is never implemented.


As Washingtonians shivered through <strong>the</strong> first<br />

few months of 1996, NATCA fought two battles. On<br />

one front, <strong>the</strong> union sought to include language restoring<br />

workers’ rights in a continuing resolution, <strong>the</strong><br />

only way it could get legislation enacted in time. Congress<br />

was passing a series<br />

of <strong>the</strong> bills to prevent <strong>the</strong><br />

government from shutting<br />

down while it ar-<br />

gued over balancing <strong>the</strong><br />

budget.<br />

The o<strong>the</strong>r front entailed<br />

streng<strong>the</strong>ning <strong>the</strong><br />

“in consultation” phraseology<br />

to “shall negotiate.”<br />

Even if Chapter 71 rights<br />

were reinstated, <strong>the</strong> FAA<br />

could still develop procedures<br />

before bargaining<br />

with its unions over<br />

putting <strong>the</strong>m into effect.<br />

The new language would<br />

obligate <strong>the</strong> agency to involve its workers throughout<br />

<strong>the</strong> process.<br />

To expand its lobbying fight, NATCA joined<br />

forces with <strong>the</strong> FAA’s two o<strong>the</strong>r major unions—<strong>the</strong><br />

<strong>National</strong> <strong>Association</strong> of <strong>Air</strong> <strong>Traffic</strong> Specialists and<br />

<strong>the</strong> Professional <strong>Air</strong>ways Systems Specialists—to<br />

form <strong>the</strong> Aviation Labor Coalition. At <strong>the</strong> same time,<br />

3<br />

June<br />

“<br />

We’re scabs in some of your<br />

eyes … but, by God, we are<br />

a union again. Good, bad or<br />

indifferent. And <strong>the</strong>y’re about<br />

to kill us one more time.<br />

Michael McNally, who’d won election as executive<br />

vice president in 1994, launched ano<strong>the</strong>r offensive<br />

by turning to <strong>the</strong> AFL-CIO for help.<br />

Occupying MEBA’s seat at <strong>the</strong> mid-February<br />

meeting of <strong>the</strong> Executive Council in Bal Harbour,<br />

Florida, McNally faced <strong>the</strong><br />

eighty members and <strong>the</strong>ir<br />

staffs ga<strong>the</strong>red around a<br />

long, rectangular table.<br />

— Executive Vice President<br />

Michael McNally<br />

Citing lengthy delays and cost overruns of about $1.5 billion, FAA Administrator<br />

David Hinson cancels most of <strong>the</strong> Advanced Automation System<br />

project. However, he allows <strong>the</strong> Display System Replacement project to<br />

Technically, as a MEBA affiliate,<br />

NATCA did not have<br />

<strong>the</strong> authority to speak at <strong>the</strong><br />

proceedings. Breaking protocol,<br />

he introduced himself,<br />

spelled out <strong>the</strong> threat to <strong>the</strong><br />

FAA’s unions, and asked for<br />

help. The council members<br />

were surprised; this had not<br />

been on <strong>the</strong> agenda. McNally<br />

was whisked away to speak<br />

with Richard Trumka, <strong>the</strong><br />

AFL-CIO’s newly elected<br />

secretary-treasurer.<br />

Walking down a hall, Trumka said, “We have<br />

to find a room.” They pushed open a door and stepped<br />

inside <strong>the</strong> hotel kitchen. To <strong>the</strong> accompaniment of<br />

clanging pots and pans, McNally outlined again what<br />

was happening in Washington. Vice President Linda<br />

Chavez-Thompson showed up and escorted McNally<br />

Chapter 5: The Art of <strong>the</strong> Deal<br />

157<br />

In a one-two punch,<br />

Congress stripped<br />

away what little<br />

remaining authority<br />

<strong>the</strong> agency’s unions<br />

had to negotiate.<br />

move forward at <strong>the</strong> nation’s twenty-one en route centers. DSR consists<br />

of 20-inch-square color monitors powered by IBM RISC-6000 computers,<br />

but it does not offer new functionality.


158<br />

<strong>Against</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>Wind</strong><br />

Working <strong>the</strong> Hill: Grass-roots legislative<br />

activism helped save <strong>the</strong> union during<br />

NATCA’s battle to regain key rights taken<br />

away by Congress in 1995. / NATCA archives<br />

1994<br />

back into <strong>the</strong> meeting.<br />

President John Sweeney stopped <strong>the</strong> proceedings<br />

and McNally explained once more. “We’re scabs<br />

in some of your eyes. I understand that’s what we<br />

look like to you,” he said. “But, by God, we are a<br />

union again. Good, bad or indifferent. And <strong>the</strong>y’re<br />

about to kill us one more time. And if <strong>the</strong>y kill us this<br />

time, whe<strong>the</strong>r we’re scabs or not, o<strong>the</strong>rs in this room<br />

are going to go down, as well.”<br />

Sweeney said: “We will take care of this, Mr.<br />

McNally.”<br />

For <strong>the</strong> first time since <strong>the</strong> strike in 1981, a<br />

U.S. president became involved in an air traffic control<br />

labor issue. During a White House<br />

meeting brokered by <strong>the</strong> Clinton administration,<br />

Montoya and Krasner pleaded<br />

<strong>the</strong>ir case with <strong>the</strong> secretary of <strong>the</strong> Cabinet<br />

and representatives from <strong>the</strong> FAA,<br />

Transportation Department, and Office of<br />

Management and Budget.<br />

Although <strong>the</strong> Clinton administration<br />

agreed to insist on reinstating <strong>the</strong> workers’<br />

rights, NATCA <strong>the</strong>n ran into a stumbling<br />

block with <strong>the</strong> chairman of <strong>the</strong> Senate Appropriations<br />

Committee. Oregon Republican<br />

Mark Hatfield refused to include Chapter<br />

71 language in a continuing resolution<br />

without <strong>the</strong> approval of Sen. John McCain,<br />

an Arizona Republican who chaired <strong>the</strong><br />

June Sep.<br />

15<br />

The FAA commissions twin control towers at Dallas-Fort<br />

Worth International <strong>Air</strong>port, making DFW <strong>the</strong> only airport in<br />

<strong>the</strong> world to have three working towers.<br />

26<br />

Commerce Committee.<br />

This presented yet ano<strong>the</strong>r dilemma—as well<br />

as <strong>the</strong> chance for victory on NATCA’s second front.<br />

McCain was drafting <strong>the</strong> FAA Reauthorization Act<br />

of 1996, which outlined <strong>the</strong> parameters of agency<br />

reform, and he demanded union support for his bill<br />

before giving Hatfield <strong>the</strong> green light. NATCA liked<br />

many provisions of <strong>the</strong> act—with one key exception.<br />

It included <strong>the</strong> same “in consultation” provision as<br />

<strong>the</strong> FAA reform measure that Congress had passed<br />

<strong>the</strong> previous fall.<br />

After McCain’s staff verbally agreed to change<br />

<strong>the</strong> language to “shall negotiate,” Montoya and <strong>the</strong><br />

union’s <strong>National</strong> Legislative<br />

Committee endorsed<br />

<strong>the</strong> reauthorization<br />

bill. But as <strong>the</strong><br />

April 1 deadline loomed<br />

ever closer, McCain had<br />

still not given Hatfield<br />

his approval to include<br />

Chapter 71 rights in a<br />

continuing resolution.<br />

By mid-March,<br />

Krasner decided time<br />

was running out and<br />

turned up <strong>the</strong> heat. In<br />

a page sent to <strong>the</strong> nine<br />

regional vice presidents,<br />

More than 250 participants attend <strong>the</strong> union’s second annual<br />

“Lobby Week.”


he instructed <strong>the</strong>m to “let McCain feel <strong>the</strong> pain.” Krasner<br />

included McCain’s phone and fax numbers. Board<br />

members forwarded <strong>the</strong> information to hundreds of<br />

facility representatives. The local union presidents, reinforced<br />

by an army of grass-roots activists organized<br />

by <strong>the</strong> <strong>National</strong> Legislative Committee, quickly jammed<br />

<strong>the</strong> senator’s phone lines.<br />

“They shut down McCain’s office with incoming<br />

calls,” Montoya recalls.<br />

At <strong>the</strong> eleventh hour, McCain gave his okay to<br />

Hatfield. On <strong>the</strong> afternoon of Friday, March 29, <strong>the</strong><br />

last business day before NATCA would lose its very<br />

essence, Congress passed a continuing resolution that<br />

included three special items: aid for Bosnia, Midwest<br />

flood relief, and restoration of Chapter 71 rights.<br />

Montoya awaited <strong>the</strong> outcome while pacing in<br />

a staff room in <strong>the</strong> Hart Senate Office Building. The<br />

moment he saw a fax showing <strong>the</strong> approved resolution,<br />

he called Krasner.<br />

“It’s done,” he said.<br />

Shortly after, NATCA pagers across <strong>the</strong> nation<br />

started beeping.<br />

“It was <strong>the</strong> most beautiful of all beautiful turns<br />

of events,” says Ruth Marlin, who served as chairwoman<br />

of <strong>the</strong> <strong>National</strong> Legislative Committee in<br />

1996 and was later elected executive vice president.<br />

“We effectively used <strong>the</strong> legislation designed to cripple<br />

us to get everything we ever wanted.”<br />

McCain’s FAA Reauthorization Act became<br />

Oct. Oct.<br />

The FAA develops a structured system for implementing Critical<br />

Incident Stress Debriefing, which was provided for under<br />

Article 74 of <strong>the</strong> 1993 NATCA/FAA contract.<br />

law <strong>the</strong> following October. As his staff members had<br />

promised, it included <strong>the</strong> “shall negotiate” language.<br />

During <strong>the</strong> four months that NATCA fought for<br />

its survival on Capitol Hill, <strong>the</strong> union simultaneously<br />

engaged in ano<strong>the</strong>r massive effort to help reinvent<br />

<strong>the</strong> FAA under <strong>the</strong> congressionally mandated reform.<br />

Along with NAATS and PASS—<strong>the</strong> o<strong>the</strong>r two groups<br />

in <strong>the</strong> Aviation Labor Coalition—NATCA and <strong>the</strong><br />

agency created task forces to discuss virtually every<br />

aspect of personnel procedures, from pay and leave<br />

policies to training to disciplinary actions.<br />

Information from <strong>the</strong>se meetings at agency<br />

headquarters flowed into a command post at <strong>the</strong><br />

end of a maze of corridors on <strong>the</strong> second floor of<br />

<strong>the</strong> Mayflower Hotel, two blocks from <strong>the</strong> national<br />

office. The “back room” was crammed with tables,<br />

computers, a photocopier, and a crew consisting of<br />

NATCA members Carol Branaman, Jon Ramsden,<br />

Joe Trainor, and <strong>the</strong>n-Labor Relations Director<br />

Richard Gordon.<br />

They consolidated <strong>the</strong> data, researched employee<br />

practices at o<strong>the</strong>r companies, and prepared<br />

proposals for a new FAA. All of <strong>the</strong>ir material was<br />

collected in a thick, black notebook known as “<strong>the</strong><br />

football,” which someone monitored at all times. The<br />

football never left <strong>the</strong> room.<br />

The group submitted several dozen suggested<br />

reforms to <strong>the</strong> union and disbanded on April 1. Krasner,<br />

McNally, and Montoya spent <strong>the</strong> summer hag-<br />

Chapter 5: The Art of <strong>the</strong> Deal<br />

159<br />

NATCA members<br />

prepared proposals<br />

for a new FAA. All<br />

of <strong>the</strong>ir material was<br />

collected in a thick<br />

black notebook known<br />

as “<strong>the</strong> football,” which<br />

someone monitored at<br />

all times.<br />

Former Western-Pacific Region Vice President Karl Grundmann<br />

starts work as a liaison at FAA headquarters. This new program<br />

enables NATCA to better represent its interests in <strong>the</strong> agency.


160<br />

<strong>Against</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>Wind</strong><br />

NATCA archives<br />

A fortuitous pairing: President Michael McNally and FAA<br />

Administrator Jane Garvey both took office in 1997. They developed<br />

a good relationship that resulted in an unprecedented pay<br />

agreement and improved worker-management cooperation.<br />

1994<br />

Oct.<br />

The Stars Align<br />

gling with <strong>the</strong> agency over which<br />

proposals to include in McCain’s<br />

FAA Reauthorization Act.<br />

More than thirty were adopted,<br />

but <strong>the</strong> most significant by<br />

far enabled <strong>the</strong> FAA to abandon <strong>the</strong><br />

standard GS pay scale, negotiate with<br />

NATCA, and implement its own pay<br />

system.<br />

“Removing <strong>the</strong>mselves from<br />

<strong>the</strong> GS scale was a quantum step<br />

forward,” says John Leyden, who<br />

had tried to attain <strong>the</strong> same goal for<br />

PATCO two decades earlier.<br />

With <strong>the</strong> legal framework in<br />

place at last, NATCA and <strong>the</strong> FAA<br />

now had to translate <strong>the</strong> momentous<br />

reform into reality. Two individuals<br />

were about to emerge who would<br />

prove to be key in closing <strong>the</strong> deal<br />

of a lifetime.<br />

In 1994, Barry Krasner ran for re-election as<br />

president and easily fended off a challenge from<br />

Lee Riley, <strong>the</strong> Sou<strong>the</strong>rn regional rep who served<br />

on <strong>the</strong> first <strong>National</strong> Executive Board for about<br />

eighteen months before stepping down. During<br />

At <strong>the</strong> FAA’s request, RTCA Inc. begins to study a concept known as Free<br />

Flight. By using new technology and procedures, this concept would enable<br />

pilots at high altitudes to fly to <strong>the</strong>ir destination more directly ra<strong>the</strong>r<br />

Krasner’s second term, NATCA racked up a number<br />

of major accomplishments.<br />

The union paid off its debt to MEBA, instituted<br />

full-time liaisons at FAA headquarters to participate<br />

in safety and technical projects, asserted its political<br />

influence to dodge <strong>the</strong> Chapter 71 bullet and retain<br />

<strong>the</strong> 5 percent operational differential, and was now<br />

heading into contract talks involving pay. Krasner<br />

was widely revered among <strong>the</strong> rank and file for his<br />

eloquence, savvy, and sharp negotiating skills. Many<br />

believed he would run for office again.<br />

But having spent <strong>the</strong> first six years of his marriage<br />

to Sallie away from home, Krasner was ready<br />

to return to New York. He made his decision public<br />

in a poignant speech at <strong>the</strong> 1996 convention in<br />

Pittsburgh, telling New York TRACON facility rep<br />

Phil Barbarello to “dust off my headset” and warning<br />

Sallie, who was sitting in <strong>the</strong> audience, to “get your<br />

clo<strong>the</strong>s out of my closet because I’m coming home.”<br />

The following spring, McNally, Riley, Joseph<br />

Bellino, and Bill “Blackie” Blackmer from Washington<br />

Center all sought <strong>the</strong> top office. During his term<br />

as executive vice president, Bellino had successfully<br />

pushed for higher salaries for <strong>the</strong> union’s top two<br />

officers and, consequently, had chosen not to run<br />

again in 1994 to avoid charges of impropriety. Now,<br />

Bellino, McNally, and Riley each received about onethird<br />

of <strong>the</strong> vote while Blackmer trailed far behind.<br />

In a runoff election, McNally picked up many Riley<br />

than following established airways. <strong>Controllers</strong> would provide clearances<br />

only to ensure safety and prevent congestion.


supporters and won.<br />

One month before McNally took over <strong>the</strong> helm<br />

from Krasner in September 1997, <strong>the</strong> FAA’s fourteenth<br />

administrator moved into her office at agency<br />

headquarters. Ending a revolving door policy that<br />

had afflicted <strong>the</strong> FAA’s executive suite since its inception<br />

in 1958, <strong>the</strong> Senate appointed Jane Garvey to an<br />

unprecedented five-year term.<br />

A former director of Logan International <strong>Air</strong>port<br />

in Boston, Garvey came to <strong>the</strong> FAA after serving<br />

in <strong>the</strong> two top positions at <strong>the</strong> Federal Highway<br />

Administration for more than four years. Bright and<br />

sincere, she was a firm believer in collaboration and<br />

soon endeared herself to controllers by listening to<br />

<strong>the</strong>ir concerns and demonstrating that <strong>the</strong> agency<br />

valued <strong>the</strong>ir input. The sharp difference from previous<br />

administrators floored <strong>the</strong> work force, which<br />

considered Garvey a breath of fresh air.<br />

Houston Center controller Trish Gilbert, who<br />

sits on <strong>the</strong> <strong>National</strong> Legislative Committee and has<br />

actively organized new members and o<strong>the</strong>r bargaining<br />

units, echoes a widely held sentiment when she<br />

says Garvey “realizes that you can get more from<br />

people when you respect <strong>the</strong>m ra<strong>the</strong>r than try to<br />

control <strong>the</strong>m.”<br />

Garvey credits her parents for instilling that<br />

attitude. “My mom was a great teacher and she listened<br />

to people, brought <strong>the</strong>m forward through persuasion<br />

ra<strong>the</strong>r than coercion,” she says. Garvey also<br />

28<br />

Nov.<br />

U.S. District Court Judge Ann Aldrich dismisses NATCA’s lawsuit to<br />

prevent <strong>the</strong> contracting out of 111 Level I VFR towers. The judge cites case<br />

law supporting government contracts to private employers—essentially<br />

understands her limitations in technical knowledge<br />

and isn’t shy about seeking guidance from o<strong>the</strong>rs. “I<br />

always think I have something I can learn.”<br />

The new administrator and McNally met for<br />

<strong>the</strong> first time that fall. Over <strong>the</strong> next few years, <strong>the</strong>y<br />

established a lasting rapport and an unparalleled<br />

Chapter 5: The Art of <strong>the</strong> Deal<br />

Fourteen administrators have directed <strong>the</strong> FAA since its inception in 1958<br />

1 Elwood R. Quesada Nov. 1, 1958 – Jan. 20, 1961<br />

2 Najeeb E. Halaby March 3, 1961 – July l, 1965<br />

3 William F. McKee July l, 1965 – July 31, 1968<br />

4 John H. Shaffer March 24, 1969 – March 14, 1973<br />

5 Alexander P. Butterfield March 14, 1973 – March 31, 1975<br />

6 John L. McLucas Nov. 24, 1975 – April l, 1977<br />

7 Langhorne M. Bond May 4, 1977 – Jan. 20, 1981<br />

8 J. Lynn Helms April 22, 1981 – Jan. 31, 1984<br />

9 Donald D. Engen April 10, 1984 – July 2, 1987<br />

10 T. Allan McArtor July 22, 1987 – Feb. 17, 1989<br />

11 James B. Busey IV June 30, 1989 – Dec. 4, 1991<br />

12 Thomas C. Richards June 27, 1992 – Jan. 20, 1993<br />

13 David R. Hinson Aug. 10, 1993 – Nov. 9, 1996<br />

14 Jane F. Garvey Aug. 4, 1997 – Aug. 4, 2002 *<br />

FYI<br />

* Appointed to a five-year term<br />

agreeing that air traffic control is not “inherently governmental”—and<br />

rules that <strong>the</strong> union lacks standing to press its claim against <strong>the</strong> FAA and<br />

Transportation Department. NATCA appeals <strong>the</strong> decision.<br />

161


Michael<br />

McNally<br />

<strong>Air</strong> <strong>Traffic</strong> Control<br />

Specialist<br />

1982 — Pr e s e n t<br />

Op e r a t i n g in i t i a l s: XO<br />

HOm e t O w n : New York City<br />

CHildre n:<br />

Shannon, Erin<br />

NATCA archives<br />

ATC FACiliTies<br />

Cu r r e n t:<br />

pr e v i O u s:<br />

ZNY Center<br />

Michael McNally always had his eyes in <strong>the</strong><br />

sky. He graduated from <strong>the</strong> specialized Aviation<br />

High School in Queens, New York, and joined<br />

<strong>the</strong> <strong>Air</strong> Force. He wanted to become a military<br />

controller, but was stymied by a ten-month waiting<br />

list. Instead, he learned electronics and applied to<br />

<strong>the</strong> FAA after leaving <strong>the</strong> service. Hired in 1982,<br />

McNally found <strong>the</strong> academy exciting and hoped to<br />

settle in happily at New York Center.<br />

Realities of <strong>the</strong> post-strike workplace soon<br />

tempered his dream. Training became an ordeal<br />

when a supervisor sexually harassed a married<br />

woman at <strong>the</strong> facility. McNally verified her allegations<br />

and endured harsh reprisals from <strong>the</strong> supe.<br />

He survived after ano<strong>the</strong>r manager took McNally<br />

under his wing and certified him as a journeyman.<br />

Like his colleagues, however, McNally <strong>the</strong>n grew<br />

weary of working six-day weeks to keep pace with<br />

skyrocketing traffic.<br />

Consequently, he willingly heeded <strong>the</strong> call<br />

when former PATCO controller Ed Day, newcomer<br />

Steve Bell, and o<strong>the</strong>rs talked about ano<strong>the</strong>r union.<br />

After NATCA was certified, McNally served for<br />

four years as New York Center’s first elected president.<br />

His union perspective was founded on a<br />

desire to work cooperatively with management. A<br />

receptive manager agreed with that philosophy,<br />

and <strong>the</strong> two laid <strong>the</strong> groundwork for what became<br />

a major labor-management initiative in <strong>the</strong> early<br />

Pr e v i o u s NATCA Po s iT i oN s / AC h i e v e m e N T s<br />

<strong>National</strong> president 1997-2000; executive vice president<br />

1994-97; national QTP coordinator; national<br />

president emeritus; N.Y. Center local president.<br />

hir e d<br />

Jan.<br />

1982<br />

1990s known as Quality Through Partnership.<br />

McNally’s vision of collaboration continued<br />

during his term as executive vice president. He encouraged<br />

expansion of a budding roster of NATCA<br />

liaisons and technical representatives, which<br />

boosted controller influence in FAA projects while<br />

saving <strong>the</strong> agency time and money.<br />

His election as president in 1997 came shortly<br />

after NATCA won <strong>the</strong> right to legally bargain<br />

over pay. The union was also finishing a massive<br />

project to restructure facility and pay classifications.<br />

Hoping to negotiate a compensation package<br />

that fairly represented controller workloads,<br />

McNally understood <strong>the</strong> need for cooperation more<br />

than ever. His successful talks with FAA Administrator<br />

Jane Garvey fur<strong>the</strong>r solidified <strong>the</strong> labor-management<br />

partnership in a contract that rewarded<br />

controllers with substantially larger paychecks.<br />

Although some union members accused<br />

McNally of not communicating enough, he defends<br />

his style as a necessary strategy. “I would have<br />

tipped my hand,” he says. “I had to keep things<br />

close to <strong>the</strong> vest.”<br />

After nine years away from home, McNally<br />

left office in 2000 to spend more time with his<br />

wife, Maria, and two daughters. Coming on <strong>the</strong><br />

heels of <strong>the</strong> historic contract and direct affiliation<br />

with <strong>the</strong> AFL-CIO, he remains wistful about stepping<br />

down. “It’s <strong>the</strong> best job I ever did,” he says.<br />

“The hardest job I ever did.”


level of respect and trust between <strong>the</strong> agency and <strong>the</strong><br />

controller community.<br />

When President Krasner assembled <strong>the</strong> third<br />

contract team in early 1997, <strong>the</strong> chief negotiator<br />

turned to Bernie Reed again to serve as chairman.<br />

Like <strong>the</strong> previous group, <strong>the</strong> ten members who<br />

joined Krasner, Reed, and Labor Relations Director<br />

Bob Taylor engaged in team-building exercises before<br />

immersing <strong>the</strong>mselves in research and bargaining<br />

preparations. The pile of materials <strong>the</strong>y accumulated<br />

measured roughly five feet high by ten feet wide and<br />

was trucked to each meeting location.<br />

As in 1993, <strong>the</strong> walls of <strong>the</strong> NATCA hotel caucus<br />

room were plastered with lists of contract goals,<br />

proposed articles, and pending tasks. This time,<br />

laptop computers littered <strong>the</strong> tables. Team members<br />

took along a mini-refrigerator and brought in a pallet<br />

of soft drinks. During one negotiating stint, <strong>the</strong>y survived<br />

on pizzas from a nearby restaurant that offered<br />

a magnet with each delivery. By <strong>the</strong> time <strong>the</strong> controllers<br />

checked out of <strong>the</strong> hotel two weeks later, magnets<br />

blanketed <strong>the</strong> fridge.<br />

Although <strong>the</strong> lack of Title 5 restrictions enabled<br />

<strong>the</strong> two sides to talk about pay, existing law still prevented<br />

<strong>the</strong>m from negotiating health and retirement<br />

benefits. A new memorandum from <strong>the</strong> FLRA also<br />

imposed a significant burden—chiefly on <strong>the</strong> union.<br />

The parties were now subject to <strong>the</strong> FLRA’s “covered<br />

by” doctrine, which determined <strong>the</strong> validity of unfair<br />

1995<br />

labor practice charges based on one of three prongs.<br />

The most far-reaching prong stipulated that no<br />

charge could be filed if <strong>the</strong> parties “reasonably should<br />

have contemplated” <strong>the</strong> subject, even when it wasn’t<br />

explicitly spelled out in <strong>the</strong> contract. Given <strong>the</strong> vast<br />

array of workplace issues, this language sent shivers<br />

up <strong>the</strong> controllers’ spines.<br />

“Can you imagine having to reasonably contemplate<br />

everything?”<br />

team member<br />

John Carr says.<br />

“We were doing<br />

a contract<br />

literally with<br />

no net.”<br />

To protect<br />

<strong>the</strong> union, NAT-<br />

CA proposed to <strong>the</strong><br />

agency that <strong>the</strong>y abide<br />

by just one of <strong>the</strong> three prongs: If <strong>the</strong> contract “expressly<br />

contained” a subject in question, an unfair<br />

labor practice charge could not be filed. For anything<br />

not spelled out in <strong>the</strong> bargaining agreement, <strong>the</strong><br />

union would still be able to file charges.<br />

The agency’s Ray Thoman, who postured<br />

against Steve Bell and <strong>the</strong> first negotiating team, initially<br />

refused to sign <strong>the</strong> Memorandum of Understanding.<br />

But <strong>the</strong> FAA was interested in modifying<br />

<strong>the</strong> union’s national seniority policy, which had been<br />

Jan. Feb.<br />

10<br />

Ballots are counted in <strong>the</strong> election to organize traffic management<br />

coordinators, who vote 279 to 169 against joining NAT-<br />

CA. In May 2000, <strong>the</strong>y vote in favor of union representation.<br />

28<br />

Chapter 5: The Art of <strong>the</strong> Deal<br />

163<br />

Round Three: Bernie Reed, left, served as<br />

contract team chairman for a second time<br />

in 1997-98 while Barry Krasner assumed<br />

<strong>the</strong> role of chief negotiator. / NATCA archives<br />

Denver International <strong>Air</strong>port, occupying 53 square miles, begins<br />

operations during a snowstorm. The last major airport to open<br />

in <strong>the</strong> United States was Dallas-Fort Worth in 1974.


164<br />

1995<br />

<strong>Against</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>Wind</strong><br />

1997<br />

The Fourth <strong>National</strong> Executive Board<br />

With Michael McNally running<br />

for president, several candidates stepped<br />

forward to campaign for executive vice<br />

president in <strong>the</strong> 1997 election.<br />

They included: James R. “Randy”<br />

Schwitz, who’d represented <strong>the</strong> Sou<strong>the</strong>rn<br />

Region on <strong>the</strong> <strong>National</strong> Executive Board<br />

since 1990; James “Ajax” Kidd, a longtime<br />

Washington Center facility rep who<br />

helped lead <strong>the</strong> fight to increase staffing<br />

at <strong>the</strong> center, wrote <strong>the</strong> Eastern Region’s<br />

strategic plan in <strong>the</strong> early 1990s, and was<br />

a member of an FAA reform task force;<br />

Will Faville Jr., a former Alaskan regional<br />

rep and safety and technology director at<br />

headquarters who was working as a controller<br />

again at Muskegon Tower/TRACON<br />

in Michigan; and Larry “Bubba” Watson,<br />

an Atlanta Center controller.<br />

Schwitz outpolled Kidd by a mere<br />

eight votes. As with <strong>the</strong> presidential race,<br />

6<br />

Mar.<br />

�<br />

however, nei<strong>the</strong>r<br />

candidate attained a<br />

majority due to significant<br />

support for<br />

Faville. In a runoff,<br />

Schwitz pulled fur<strong>the</strong>r<br />

ahead to collect<br />

nearly 53 percent of<br />

<strong>the</strong> vote.<br />

Among <strong>the</strong><br />

regional vice presidents,<br />

six new faces<br />

joined <strong>the</strong> board:<br />

Alaskan:<br />

Incumbent Jerry<br />

Whittaker from Anchorage TRACON<br />

chose not to run for re-election. Ricky<br />

Thompson from Anchorage Center ran<br />

unopposed.<br />

Central: Bill Otto from St. Louis<br />

TRACON defeated incumbent Michael<br />

More than 400 participants attend NATCA’s third annual “Lobby Week.”<br />

NATCA archives<br />

Changing of <strong>the</strong> guard: In July 2000, <strong>the</strong> fourth <strong>National</strong> Executive Board dedicated<br />

NATCA’s new headquarters in Washington. The board included, from left: James<br />

Ferguson, Northwest Mountain; Gus Guerra, Western-Pacific; Jim D’Agati, Engineers &<br />

Architects; Ricky Thompson, Alaskan; Jim Poole, Great Lakes; Executive Vice President<br />

Randy Schwitz; President Michael McNally; Bill Otto, Central; Joe Fruscella, Eastern;<br />

Mike Blake, New England; Mark Pallone, Southwest; and Rodney Turner, Sou<strong>the</strong>rn.<br />

Putzier from Kansas City Center.<br />

Eastern: Incumbent Joe Fruscella<br />

from New York TRACON ran unopposed<br />

for a second term.<br />

Great Lakes: Incumbent Jim Poole<br />

from Chicago Center withstood a sig-


nificant challenge from <strong>the</strong> center’s longtime<br />

facility rep, Mark Scholl, and retained his seat<br />

for a third term.<br />

New England: Incumbent T. Craig<br />

Lasker from Boston Center chose not to run<br />

for re-election. Mike Blake, <strong>the</strong> facility rep at<br />

<strong>the</strong> center, ran unopposed.<br />

Northwest Mountain: Incumbent<br />

James Ferguson from Salt Lake Center held<br />

back a challenge by Reclassification Committee<br />

member Mike Coulter from Denver Tower<br />

to retain his seat for a second full term.<br />

Sou<strong>the</strong>rn: Rodney Turner from Nashville<br />

Metro Tower/TRACON beat Tim Leonard<br />

from Miami Center.<br />

Southwest: Mark Pallone from Dallas-Fort<br />

Worth TRACON defeated incumbent<br />

Rich Phillips from Houston Center.<br />

Western-Pacific: Gus Guerra from Oakland<br />

Center beat incumbent Owen Bridgeman<br />

from Phoenix TRACON.<br />

1<br />

May<br />

NATCA starts a program to award five $2,000 scholarships annually. May<br />

1 is <strong>the</strong> deadline for children of active members to submit a 500-word<br />

essay. NATCA subsequently announces <strong>the</strong> inaugural winners to be: Karen<br />

adopted a year before contract talks began. To remove<br />

a stumbling block—and avoid <strong>the</strong> potential of<br />

negotiating over <strong>the</strong> contract ad nauseam with <strong>the</strong><br />

union—Thoman agreed to <strong>the</strong> single-prong test after<br />

Krasner pledged to review <strong>the</strong> seniority issue at NAT-<br />

CA’s 1998 convention.<br />

“The doc trine was<br />

extremely damaging<br />

to unions<br />

in <strong>the</strong>ir effort to<br />

conduct midterm<br />

bargaining,” says<br />

Andy Cantwell,<br />

ano<strong>the</strong>r member<br />

of <strong>the</strong> team who<br />

helps te ach cont r act pro - visions<br />

at facility rep training sessions. “It’s my belief<br />

that this was one of <strong>the</strong> most significant achievements<br />

in <strong>the</strong> 1998 contract.”<br />

One of <strong>the</strong> union’s proposals prohibited contract<br />

team members from leaving <strong>the</strong> bargaining<br />

unit and going into management for <strong>the</strong> duration of<br />

<strong>the</strong> agreement. After <strong>the</strong> FAA rejected <strong>the</strong> article on<br />

<strong>the</strong> grounds that it concerned union business, <strong>the</strong><br />

members decided to affirm <strong>the</strong>ir allegiance ano<strong>the</strong>r<br />

way. Carr wrote <strong>the</strong> pledge on a cloth napkin at dinner<br />

one night. Each of <strong>the</strong> members <strong>the</strong>n scrawled<br />

<strong>the</strong>ir signatures on “<strong>the</strong> shroud” as it was passed<br />

around <strong>the</strong> table. *<br />

Chapter 5: The Art of <strong>the</strong> Deal<br />

Blittersdorf, Margaret L. Bullard, Melissa Lee Hambrick, Laura Caroline<br />

Hightower, and Brandy L. Smith. Chalmer Detling is recognized for best<br />

essay.<br />

165<br />

* Mark Hood from New York TRACON,<br />

keeper of “<strong>the</strong> shroud,” noted in 2000 that<br />

John Carr technically—and unwittingly—<br />

violated its precept when he was elected<br />

president. The union’s top two officers serve<br />

<strong>the</strong>ir terms while on leave without pay from<br />

<strong>the</strong> FAA.


166<br />

19xx<br />

<strong>Against</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>Wind</strong><br />

1997 Election<br />

Results<br />

�<br />

President<br />

Michael McNally Eastern Executive VP 2,233 35.6 3,465 61.4<br />

Joseph M. Bellino Great Lakes Chicago TRACON 1,994 31.7 2,175 38.6<br />

F. Lee Riley Sou<strong>the</strong>rn Atlanta Center 1,837 29.2<br />

Bill “Blackie” Blackmer Eastern Washington Center 183 2.9<br />

Write-ins Various Various 37 0.6<br />

Executive Vice President<br />

Randy Schwitz Sou<strong>the</strong>rn Regional VP 2,149 35.0 2,956 52.7<br />

James “Ajax” Kidd Eastern Washington Center 2,141 34.9 2,654 47.3<br />

Will Faville Jr. Great Lakes Muskegon Twr./TRACON 1,441 23.5<br />

Bubba Watson Sou<strong>the</strong>rn Atlanta Center 305 5.0<br />

Write-ins Various Various 96 1.6<br />

Regional Vice Presidents<br />

Votes Percent<br />

Alaskan<br />

Ricky Thompson Anchorage Center 90 92.8<br />

Write-ins<br />

Central<br />

Various 7 7.2<br />

Bill Otto St. Louis TRACON 180 65.2<br />

Michael Putzier / incumbent Kansas City Center 85 30.8<br />

Write-ins<br />

Eastern<br />

Various 11 4.0<br />

Joe Fruscella / incumbent New York TRACON 979 88.4<br />

Write-ins Various 129 11.6<br />

Runoff<br />

Votes<br />

Runoff<br />

Percent


Votes Percent<br />

Great Lakes<br />

Jim Poole / incumbent Chicago Center 507 45.9 644 56.3<br />

Mark Scholl Chicago Center 321 29.0 499 43.7<br />

Jim Green Detroit TRACON 269 24.3<br />

Write-ins<br />

New England<br />

Various 9 0.8<br />

Mike Blake Boston Center 193 79.4<br />

Write-ins<br />

Northwest Mountain<br />

Various 50 20.6<br />

James Ferguson / incumbent Salt Lake Center 289 63.0<br />

Mike Coulter Denver Tower 168 36.6<br />

Write-ins<br />

Sou<strong>the</strong>rn<br />

Various 2 0.4<br />

Rodney Turner Nashville Met. Twr./TRA. 758 53.8<br />

Tim Leonard Miami Center 617 43.8<br />

Write-ins<br />

Southwest<br />

Various 34 2.4<br />

Mark Pallone DFW TRACON 339 51.0<br />

Rich Phillips / incumbent Houston Center 315 47.4<br />

Write-ins<br />

Western-Pacific<br />

Various 11 1.6<br />

Gus Guerra Oakland Center 431 51.8<br />

Howie Rifas John Wayne Tower 229 27.5<br />

Owen Bridgeman / incumbent Phoenix TRACON 164 19.7<br />

Write-ins Various 8 1.0<br />

Runoff<br />

Votes<br />

Runoff<br />

Percent<br />

Chapter 5: The Art of <strong>the</strong> Deal<br />

167


168<br />

1995<br />

<strong>Against</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>Wind</strong><br />

Third contract team: NATCA spent a year negotiating with <strong>the</strong> FAA.<br />

Union members included, from left: Tim Kuhl; Labor Relations Director<br />

Bob Taylor; Phil Barbarello; Bruce Means; Eric Owens; Chris<br />

While <strong>the</strong> two sides hammered out 106 articles<br />

from <strong>the</strong> summer of 1997 to <strong>the</strong> summer of 1998,<br />

McNally worked on <strong>the</strong> pay component of <strong>the</strong> contract,<br />

which NATCA and <strong>the</strong> agency agreed to handle<br />

separately. By now, <strong>the</strong> Reclassification Committee<br />

had enlisted <strong>the</strong> help of Ed Mullin to provide economic<br />

justification for a raise. Mullin tracked airline<br />

stocks—“I knew what each of <strong>the</strong>m was worth to <strong>the</strong><br />

penny”—and ga<strong>the</strong>red o<strong>the</strong>r diverse information on<br />

aviation’s economic impact.<br />

“It’s actually <strong>the</strong> easiest argument I’ve ever<br />

made in my life,” he says. Although NATCA is one<br />

of <strong>the</strong> smallest federal-sector unions—representing<br />

just 15,000 controllers and 1,200 engineers and<br />

July Oct.<br />

21<br />

The FAA and Qantas finish <strong>the</strong> first test of <strong>the</strong> satellite-based<br />

Future <strong>Air</strong> Navigation System, designed to improve communications<br />

between controllers and pilots flying oceanic routes.<br />

1<br />

NATCA archives<br />

Boughn; President Michael McNally; Dan Fitas; FAA Administrator<br />

Jane Garvey; chief negotiator Barry Krasner; team Chairman Bernie<br />

Reed; Mark Hood; Carol Branaman; John Carr; and Andy Cantwell.<br />

architects at <strong>the</strong> time—its members “spin gold” by<br />

helping to support an industry that contributes $3.5<br />

trillion to <strong>the</strong> world’s economy, or 12 percent of its<br />

total gross output.<br />

Based on Mullin’s research and o<strong>the</strong>r factors,<br />

<strong>the</strong> committee established 5 percent as <strong>the</strong> minimum<br />

raise. Armed with this information, McNally approached<br />

staff members on <strong>the</strong> key Appropriations<br />

and Authorizing committees in Congress to let <strong>the</strong>m<br />

know <strong>the</strong> union’s bottom line. He and Legislative Affairs<br />

Director Ken Montoya also lobbied <strong>the</strong> White<br />

House to push reclassification along.<br />

Throughout <strong>the</strong> spring of 1998, McNally and<br />

Tony Herman, an attorney retained by <strong>the</strong> FAA<br />

NATCA pays off its loan to MEBA with a final check of<br />

$34,975.09. Overall, <strong>the</strong> union saved about $982,000 in interest<br />

and accelerated repayment by ten years.


from <strong>the</strong> prestigious firm of Covington & Burling,<br />

dickered over money. Although some union members<br />

argued in favor of an across-<strong>the</strong>-board raise for<br />

everyone, McNally refused to turn his back on <strong>the</strong><br />

concept of pay for performance and years of work by<br />

<strong>the</strong> Reclassification Committee.<br />

“There are a lot of controllers in <strong>the</strong> system today<br />

who believe that a controller is a controller<br />

is a controller. No matter how hard you<br />

work, no matter how difficult <strong>the</strong> job you<br />

do, we should all make <strong>the</strong> same amount of<br />

money,” McNally says. “I don’t believe that.<br />

I believe <strong>the</strong>re are logical steps of progression<br />

and of difficulty that should separate<br />

<strong>the</strong> different levels of work we do, and commensurate<br />

with that should be pay. I also believe<br />

<strong>the</strong>re are different parts of <strong>the</strong> country<br />

that have higher costs of living that should be<br />

recognized in order to drive people to those<br />

parts of <strong>the</strong> country. I don’t have <strong>the</strong> magical<br />

answer. But I know reclassification and CIP is<br />

a start in that direction.” *<br />

Many endorse McNally’s beliefs, including<br />

Haines, Forrey and John Leyden, who<br />

fought a similar battle with his PATCO brethren<br />

in <strong>the</strong> 1970s.<br />

“I always was a believer, and paid a heavy political<br />

price for it, that a controller is not a controller<br />

is a controller,” he says. When those who worked at<br />

15<br />

Nov.<br />

The appropriations bill funding <strong>the</strong> Transportation Department for fiscal<br />

1996 becomes law. Two sections of <strong>the</strong> bill mandate that <strong>the</strong> agency institute<br />

new personnel and procurement systems. To help <strong>the</strong> FAA imple-<br />

smaller facilities debated him on <strong>the</strong> issue, Leyden<br />

told <strong>the</strong>m to transfer to Chicago or New York, where<br />

<strong>the</strong>y could earn more money. “No one ever took me<br />

up on my offer,” he says, because <strong>the</strong>y “didn’t want to<br />

go to <strong>the</strong> pressure cooker.”<br />

Fur<strong>the</strong>r talks about money between NATCA<br />

a n d <strong>the</strong> FAA culminated one morning<br />

in early July at a hotel in<br />

Montréal. Seated in a glasswalled<br />

meeting room off <strong>the</strong><br />

lobby, McNally and Herman<br />

countered back and forth<br />

while Krasner and Garvey<br />

watched in silence. Herman<br />

offered $140 million in new<br />

money for pay raises. Saying<br />

<strong>the</strong>y couldn’t accept it, <strong>the</strong><br />

two union officials left <strong>the</strong><br />

room for a break.<br />

“I never in my life believed<br />

that someone would<br />

offer me $140 million and<br />

we would tell <strong>the</strong>m to take<br />

a walk,” Krasner said while<br />

strolling toward <strong>the</strong> lobby. They wandered<br />

into <strong>the</strong> gift shop, where Krasner bought a Cuban<br />

cigar, before returning to <strong>the</strong> meeting. Herman<br />

asked about <strong>the</strong> cigar as Krasner set it on <strong>the</strong> table.<br />

“That’s for when <strong>the</strong> fat lady sings,” he explained.<br />

Chapter 5: The Art of <strong>the</strong> Deal<br />

169<br />

NATCA’s third contract: The 1998 agreement<br />

was <strong>the</strong> first time a controllers’<br />

union negotiated pay with its employer.<br />

The new system tied wages to operational<br />

complexity as well as traffic counts.<br />

* CIP is a cost-of-living premium known as<br />

Controller Incentive Pay, which is awarded to<br />

some facilities based on <strong>the</strong>ir ranking in studies<br />

conducted by Runzheimer International.<br />

ment <strong>the</strong>se reforms, <strong>the</strong> bill exempts agency employees from key workers<br />

rights under Title 5 of <strong>the</strong> United States Code, effective April 1, 1996,<br />

which would strip <strong>the</strong> union of its powers as a labor group.


170<br />

1996<br />

<strong>Against</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>Wind</strong><br />

1<br />

McNally and Herman argued some more until<br />

<strong>the</strong> agency’s offer was up to $190 million and Mc-<br />

Nally had come down to $210 million.<br />

“Look, it’s $200 million,” Herman said at last.<br />

“That’s all <strong>the</strong>re is.”<br />

McNally finally<br />

agreed. After everyone<br />

shook hands, Krasner lit<br />

his cigar. “The fat lady<br />

has sung,” he said. In less<br />

than twenty minutes, <strong>the</strong><br />

historic deal had been<br />

closed, one that would<br />

compound into $1.6 billion<br />

over <strong>the</strong> life of <strong>the</strong><br />

five-year contract.<br />

The amount of<br />

money sparked some<br />

criticism in Congress, but<br />

Garvey is unapologetic.<br />

Noting that controllers<br />

work around <strong>the</strong> clock in<br />

<strong>the</strong> world’s most complicated<br />

air traffic system,<br />

she says, “I’m glad we’re<br />

paying <strong>the</strong>m that.”<br />

More importantly, Garvey wanted to send a<br />

clear message to controllers. Faced with concerns<br />

over <strong>the</strong> year 2000 computer bug and a pressing<br />

Jan. Mar.<br />

need to expedite <strong>the</strong> FAA’s lagging modernization<br />

program, she did not want contract negotiations to<br />

linger as a distracting issue.<br />

“We wanted <strong>the</strong> union in full partnership<br />

with us,” she says. “We wanted a common message<br />

that both sides could deliver<br />

to <strong>the</strong> Hill each year<br />

and that would provide<br />

predictability in budget-<br />

“<br />

ing—that would be costavoidance.”<br />

To help pay for<br />

<strong>the</strong> package, NATCA<br />

agreed to assume more<br />

duties that would enable<br />

<strong>the</strong> agency to whittle<br />

its supervisory ranks<br />

— FAA Administrator Jane Garvey<br />

through attrition for an<br />

estimated savings of $70<br />

million. Disbanding alternate<br />

work schedules,<br />

commonly known as<br />

AWS, was projected to<br />

save ano<strong>the</strong>r $60 million.<br />

Kansas City Center<br />

controllers led <strong>the</strong> drive<br />

for compressed workweeks and won a court ruling in<br />

1991 that permitted <strong>the</strong>m. However, <strong>the</strong> agency contended<br />

AWS cost more than regular scheduling, and<br />

We wanted <strong>the</strong> union in<br />

full partnership with us. We<br />

wanted a common message<br />

that both sides could deliver<br />

to <strong>the</strong> Hill each year and that<br />

would provide predictability<br />

in budgeting—that would be<br />

cost-avoidance.<br />

NATCA begins depositing $33,000 a month into a building fund. President Clinton signs a continuing resolution bill providing aid<br />

to Bosnia, Midwest flood relief, and restoration of Chapter 71<br />

29<br />

rights for air traffic controllers.


NATCA agreed to give it up at 24-hour facilities.<br />

The two sides also agreed on a controller<br />

work force of 15,000 in <strong>the</strong> first three years of <strong>the</strong><br />

contract, with growth of 2 percent in<br />

each of <strong>the</strong> last two years.<br />

Garvey considered <strong>the</strong><br />

contract historic in terms<br />

of <strong>the</strong> partnership it created.<br />

“We had to change<br />

<strong>the</strong> relationship between<br />

management and labor<br />

in order to meet <strong>the</strong> challenges,”<br />

she says. “It had<br />

been so adversarial and not<br />

productive.”<br />

Unlike <strong>the</strong> first two contracts,<br />

<strong>the</strong>re was no briefing trip to <strong>the</strong> regions to sell this<br />

one. It wasn’t necessary. The agreement took effect<br />

on September 1, 1998, after a 92 percent ratification<br />

vote. Pay reclassification did not kick in until<br />

<strong>the</strong> following summer because of <strong>the</strong> complexity<br />

of recalculating salaries for 15,000 controllers.<br />

However, NATCA released information in <strong>the</strong> fall<br />

of 1998 about <strong>the</strong> increases, which ranged up to<br />

30 percent.<br />

While most controllers were very pleased, a<br />

vocal minority tied up special phone lines at headquarters<br />

for a few weeks. McNally, Haines, Coulter,<br />

Forrey, and o<strong>the</strong>rs spent twelve to fourteen hours<br />

a day trying to explain <strong>the</strong> new scales and placate<br />

controllers who felt <strong>the</strong>y weren’t being compensated<br />

fairly.<br />

“When we turned <strong>the</strong> switch on, I<br />

felt I was <strong>the</strong> most hated individual in<br />

<strong>the</strong> country,” Haines says. “Everybody<br />

was measuring <strong>the</strong>mselves against each<br />

o<strong>the</strong>r.”<br />

McNally was dismayed by <strong>the</strong> reaction,<br />

too. But <strong>the</strong> complaints could not diminish<br />

his pride over <strong>the</strong> union’s enormous<br />

accomplishment. “We rocked <strong>the</strong>ir world,” he<br />

says. “And we did it in a way that I believe everybody<br />

gained. Everybody won.”<br />

1. Related by Anthony Coiro during an interview in January 2002.<br />

2. 1989. Executive Board applauds <strong>the</strong> tentative agreement. NATCA Newsletter.<br />

February.<br />

3. 1993. NATCA and FAA reach tentative contract agreement. NATCA News.<br />

May.<br />

4. Schmidt, William. 1989. <strong>Controllers</strong> at busy airports get 20 percent bonus.<br />

The New York Times. 19 June.<br />

5. 1988. NATCA testifies on DoT/FAA pay demonstration project. NATCA<br />

Newsletter. December.<br />

Chapter 5: The Art of <strong>the</strong> Deal<br />

171<br />

Michael McNally: NATCA’s third president<br />

closed <strong>the</strong> deal on a significant pay raise<br />

for controllers in <strong>the</strong> 1998 contract. “We<br />

rocked <strong>the</strong>ir world,” he says. / Steve Schneider<br />

May July<br />

Twenty-four participants attend a “mini” Lobby Week. NARI, a nonprofit offshoot of NATCA, holds kickoff ceremonies.<br />

This new group was created to ensure that human factors<br />

1<br />

30<br />

are considered in ATC research and development projects.


“ The easy stuff<br />

is over. Now<br />

<strong>the</strong> union has to<br />

look inside itself.<br />

— Former Southwest Region<br />

Vice President Ed Mullin<br />

A voice of one: During <strong>the</strong> latter half of<br />

<strong>the</strong> 1990s, NATCA expanded its presence<br />

on Capitol Hill with more lobbying and<br />

an annual legislative session attended by<br />

several hundred activists. / NATCA archives


Chapter 6<br />

Spreading Its Wings<br />

One day in <strong>the</strong> spring of 1989, an <strong>Air</strong>ways Facilities technician approached<br />

Mark Scholl and said simply, “I want to show you this.”<br />

Scholl, an area representative at Chicago Center, nodded and followed<br />

his colleague through <strong>the</strong> control room. A buzz of murmuring voices<br />

surrounded <strong>the</strong>m while <strong>the</strong>y passed controllers seated along four rows of<br />

radarscopes.<br />

The hubbub diminished as <strong>the</strong> two men ascended<br />

a stairway to <strong>the</strong> top of <strong>the</strong> two-story room.<br />

They opened a door to a dark chamber and <strong>the</strong> technician<br />

flipped a switch. Fluorescent lights flickered<br />

on, casting a ghostly glare over a maze of water pipes<br />

and ventilation ducts.<br />

The two men climbed more stairs and stepped<br />

onto a catwalk. Below <strong>the</strong>m, gray heaps of asbestos<br />

fibers, twelve to eighteen inches high, carpeted<br />

sections of ductwork and <strong>the</strong> control room ceiling.<br />

Overhead, <strong>the</strong>y could see bare sections of <strong>the</strong> metal<br />

roof where <strong>the</strong> toxic insulation material had flaked<br />

off. Sobered by <strong>the</strong> sight, Scholl returned later to take<br />

photographs and collect samples.<br />

When Scholl and facility rep Jim Poole alerted<br />

management, <strong>the</strong>y contended <strong>the</strong> building was safe<br />

and declined to do anything. NATCA’s first collective<br />

bargaining agreement would not be signed for<br />

ano<strong>the</strong>r few months and <strong>the</strong> young union was still<br />

learning how best to resolve its issues. Resorting to<br />

tactics that had proven effective in <strong>the</strong> past, Scholl<br />

and Poole turned to <strong>the</strong> news media and Congress.<br />

Local newspapers ran several articles about <strong>the</strong><br />

health hazard. Sen. Paul Simon, who’d helped institute<br />

<strong>the</strong> Pay Demonstration Project for controllers,<br />

and Rep. Dennis Hastert, a Republican from Illinois,<br />

got involved, too.<br />

“We learned that <strong>the</strong> agency was at <strong>the</strong> whim of<br />

NATCA archives<br />

Sen. Paul Simon: The Illinois Democrat<br />

aided controllers on pay and health issues.


174<br />

<strong>Against</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>Wind</strong><br />

Brian Fallon<br />

Drawing a perspective: New York TRACON controller Brian Fallon has highlighted many issues with his cartoons,<br />

which have appeared regularly in The NATCA Voice. He also draws a poster-sized illustration for most conventions.<br />

1996<br />

9<br />

Sep.<br />

Congress and <strong>the</strong> public, and that we could use that<br />

to our advantage,” Scholl says.<br />

Even with congressional interest, it took ano<strong>the</strong>r<br />

three years before <strong>the</strong> FAA formally agreed<br />

to remove <strong>the</strong> asbestos—an expensive, complicated<br />

NATCA holds its sixth biennial convention at <strong>the</strong> Pittsburgh Hilton and<br />

Towers. Delegates institute a national seniority policy and vote to allow<br />

NATCA to expand representation to o<strong>the</strong>r employee groups. MEBA Pres-<br />

project in a building where hundreds of employees<br />

worked around <strong>the</strong> clock handling about 6,000<br />

flights a day. Contractors built a steel superstructure<br />

to support a second dropped ceiling in <strong>the</strong> control<br />

room. Crews also erected a plastic canopy to shield<br />

workers during construction and set up monitoring<br />

equipment to issue warnings when air quality<br />

dropped below safe levels. <strong>Controllers</strong> on position<br />

wore breathing apparatus several times while <strong>the</strong><br />

second ceiling was installed.<br />

Asbestos affected all twenty-one of <strong>the</strong> agency’s<br />

en route centers, which had been built three decades<br />

earlier. Picketers outside Boston Center in Nashua,<br />

New Hampshire, wore protective suits and masks to<br />

call attention to <strong>the</strong> hazard. In Boston, Chicago and<br />

elsewhere, mold grew around air vents. Drip pans for<br />

air conditioning units leaked water onto radarscopes<br />

and supervisors’ desks.<br />

NATCA and <strong>the</strong> agency signed a Memorandum<br />

of Understanding in 1992 mandating <strong>the</strong> removal of<br />

asbestos from all <strong>the</strong> centers. The 1993 contract extended<br />

that same directive to terminal facilities. Before<br />

<strong>the</strong> work was completed at <strong>the</strong> centers, however,<br />

different control rooms were created in o<strong>the</strong>r parts of<br />

<strong>the</strong> buildings to accommodate <strong>the</strong> installation of new<br />

radarscopes during <strong>the</strong> latter part of <strong>the</strong> Nineties.<br />

The asbestos incident proved to be an object<br />

lesson for <strong>the</strong> Chicago Center controllers—and o<strong>the</strong>rs.<br />

They realized how much <strong>the</strong> news media could<br />

ident Alex Shandrowsky urges NATCA to stay with <strong>the</strong> union that helped<br />

<strong>the</strong> controllers organize. However, delegates vote to allow NATCA to<br />

consider affiliation with ano<strong>the</strong>r union.


help <strong>the</strong> public understand this hidden world and that<br />

Capitol Hill had <strong>the</strong> power to resolve <strong>the</strong>ir issues.<br />

A year after <strong>the</strong> asbestos discovery, <strong>the</strong> controllers<br />

relied on <strong>the</strong> media again<br />

to call attention to a less serious,<br />

yet annoying, problem:<br />

lack of chairs.<br />

Ironically, <strong>the</strong> FAA<br />

had recently replaced its<br />

old chairs. But <strong>the</strong> new<br />

ones, which were not as<br />

durable, frequently broke.<br />

Atlanta Center was thirtyone<br />

short of <strong>the</strong> number required<br />

for a normal day shift.<br />

At Chicago Center, Poole snared a supervisor’s<br />

chair to sit in front of a radarscope, which<br />

prompted a heated argument with his boss. O<strong>the</strong>r<br />

controllers perched on boxes and atop wastebaskets<br />

that were turned upside down.<br />

Alerted by Poole, USA Today ran a story. In<br />

response, furniture manufacturers offered to donate<br />

several hundred chairs and a local radio station conducted<br />

a “chair-a-thon.” 1<br />

CNN broadcast live from Chicago Center several<br />

years later on Thanksgiving Day and <strong>the</strong> weekly<br />

news magazines began printing stories about equipment<br />

breakdowns. The growing coverage “pushed<br />

<strong>the</strong> union into <strong>the</strong> realm of a player,” Scholl says.<br />

16<br />

Sep.<br />

The FAA awards a contract to Ray<strong>the</strong>on Company to develop and build<br />

<strong>the</strong> Standard Terminal Automation Replacement System for approach control<br />

facilities. STARS consists of color radar monitors, similar to <strong>the</strong> DSR<br />

Beyond <strong>the</strong>se disparate efforts, <strong>the</strong> concept of<br />

formalized lobbying crystallized in 1992 when two<br />

visionary controllers, Dee Green and Debbie Cunningham,<br />

recognized that <strong>the</strong> union’s ultimate boss<br />

was Congress—not <strong>the</strong> FAA. At <strong>the</strong> San Antonio<br />

convention, <strong>the</strong>y spoke passionately about <strong>the</strong><br />

need for grass-roots involvement in legislative<br />

affairs. Thus was born a far-reaching structure<br />

of facility legislative representatives, state coordinators,<br />

and a <strong>National</strong> Legislative Committee<br />

with an elected representative from<br />

each region. Green and Cunningham, respectively,<br />

served as <strong>the</strong> first two chairwomen of <strong>the</strong><br />

committee.<br />

“It wasn’t sufficient to have one or two people<br />

in Washington lobbying our cause,” says Alan Clendenin,<br />

who was chairman from 1997 to 2000.<br />

Indeed, <strong>the</strong> well-organized legion of activists<br />

responded immediately and overwhelmingly<br />

when Krasner issued his “let McCain feel <strong>the</strong> pain”<br />

directive during <strong>the</strong> Chapter 71 battle. The union’s<br />

Chapter 6: Spreading its Wings<br />

displays used in en route centers, as well as replacement computers and<br />

updated software. The new equipment will replace <strong>the</strong> aging Automated<br />

Radar Terminal System, which had been installed starting in 1965.<br />

175<br />

Lobby Week: The union launched an<br />

annual, weeklong program in 1993 to<br />

raise legislative awareness and provide an<br />

opportunity for members to meet <strong>the</strong>ir<br />

congressional representatives.


176<br />

1996<br />

<strong>Against</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>Wind</strong><br />

FYI<br />

One of <strong>the</strong> most celebrated and enduring trinkets that<br />

permeates NATCA’s biennial conventions concerns <strong>the</strong> union’s<br />

highest calling. Since Las Vegas in 1990, Alaskan controllers<br />

have populated each ga<strong>the</strong>ring with condoms as a reminder<br />

about safety.<br />

growing legislative savvy and influence also helped<br />

it close <strong>the</strong> deal on reclassification. “When we got<br />

down to crunch time, it was political pressure that<br />

turned those tides in our favor,” Clendenin says.<br />

In addition to creating <strong>the</strong> army of foot soldiers,<br />

Cunningham saw <strong>the</strong> need to teach <strong>the</strong>m how <strong>the</strong><br />

political system works. In 1993, she helped launch an<br />

annual “Lobby Week.” This effective program teaches<br />

<strong>the</strong> rank and file about <strong>the</strong> legislative process, introduces<br />

<strong>the</strong>m to <strong>the</strong>ir local representatives, and<br />

promotes ongoing activism. The face-to-face contact<br />

has proven to be extremely effective in cultivating<br />

relationships with Congress and opening doors in<br />

districts across <strong>the</strong><br />

country.<br />

Lobby Week,<br />

which attracts<br />

as many as 350<br />

controllers, was renamed<br />

NATCA in<br />

Washington in 1997<br />

when it evolved<br />

into a lobbying and<br />

training opportunity<br />

and, significantly,<br />

a high-profile political<br />

event. Key members<br />

of <strong>the</strong> House<br />

and Senate appear<br />

Nov. Dec.<br />

FAA Administrator David Hinson leaves office after serving<br />

since August 10, 1993.<br />

9<br />

5<br />

as guest speakers, influential staff members attend<br />

<strong>the</strong> congressional reception, and news organizations<br />

such as CNN and Aviation Daily cover <strong>the</strong> proceedings.<br />

The annual ga<strong>the</strong>ring also serves to educate<br />

participants about <strong>the</strong> union’s Political Action Committee<br />

fund. By spring 2002, nearly 5,000 members<br />

were contributing some $1 million to <strong>the</strong> fund every<br />

election cycle. “That shines just as bright as any of<br />

those specific legislative victories,” Clendenin says.<br />

“We’ve built it from nothing to one of <strong>the</strong> most influential<br />

in a labor organization in D.C.”<br />

Safety Above All<br />

As <strong>the</strong> decade progressed, NATCA expanded its<br />

influence in o<strong>the</strong>r arenas. Since its organizing days,<br />

one of <strong>the</strong> union’s missions had been to increase its<br />

voice in workplace issues, operating procedures, and<br />

new equipment to help ensure air safety. <strong>Controllers</strong><br />

were expected to deliver perfection on <strong>the</strong> job,<br />

yet <strong>the</strong>y often had little say in matters that affected<br />

<strong>the</strong>ir ability to meet such a high standard. Many who<br />

joined NATCA considered it a professional association<br />

as much as a labor union and worked to push it<br />

in that direction.<br />

By <strong>the</strong> early 1990s, controllers had highlighted<br />

staffing shortages and equipment problems to <strong>the</strong><br />

agency, Congress, and <strong>the</strong> news media on numerous<br />

The FAA installs <strong>the</strong> first Display System Replacement at Seattle<br />

Center.


occasions. In a yearlong effort, <strong>the</strong> safety committee<br />

at Dallas-Fort Worth Tower and TRACON documented<br />

numerous problems with <strong>the</strong> ARTS software,<br />

which displayed aircraft information on radarscopes.<br />

A contract provision entitled union members to join<br />

o<strong>the</strong>r industry representatives in NTSB accident investigations.<br />

NATCA had also established review<br />

committees to help oversee training and performance<br />

standards.<br />

But its role in <strong>the</strong> research and development<br />

of new technology remained<br />

slim to nonexistent.<br />

A classic example involved a<br />

computer onboard airliners known<br />

as <strong>the</strong> <strong>Traffic</strong> Alert/Collision Avoidance<br />

System. TCAS monitors traffic<br />

and instructs pilots to climb or descend<br />

if it senses a potential collision.<br />

Before TCAS was deployed in<br />

<strong>the</strong> late 1980s and early ’90s, however,<br />

controllers had very little input<br />

in its design and operation, even though<br />

<strong>the</strong> computer inserted a third element in <strong>the</strong><br />

critical equation of communications between pilots<br />

and controllers.<br />

With <strong>the</strong> advent of TCAS, cockpit crews sometimes<br />

received conflicting instructions from controllers<br />

and <strong>the</strong> computer. Early versions of <strong>the</strong> software<br />

generated targets for nonexistent planes on radar-<br />

1997<br />

14<br />

Feb.<br />

scopes. O<strong>the</strong>r problems resulted in frequent false<br />

alerts. Some of <strong>the</strong>se led to dangerous near misses<br />

when pilots deviated from <strong>the</strong>ir assigned altitude by<br />

as much as 1,000 feet. During a 4½-month period in<br />

1991, deviations occurred in 70 percent of <strong>the</strong> 590<br />

incidents that were reported. 2<br />

“It is like a puppy walking over a game of chess,<br />

destroying <strong>the</strong> board’s composition,” Executive Vice<br />

President Joseph Bellino<br />

said. “Every controller<br />

is executing a plan.<br />

When one plane<br />

deviates from its<br />

assigned space,<br />

it affects all <strong>the</strong><br />

aircraft under <strong>the</strong><br />

controller’s plan,<br />

making <strong>the</strong> controller<br />

scramble<br />

to develop ano<strong>the</strong>r<br />

plan in seconds.” 3<br />

NATCA was unable to<br />

halt deployment of <strong>the</strong> new equipment until <strong>the</strong><br />

bugs were fixed. But extensive field documentation<br />

by safety representatives helped TCAS manufacturers<br />

fine-tune <strong>the</strong> software and problems gradually<br />

diminished.<br />

The experience was not lost on <strong>the</strong> FAA. As<br />

frustrations mounted over poor communication, a<br />

Transportation Secretary Federico F. Peña leaves office after serving<br />

since January 21, 1993. Rodney E. Slater takes over. Slater, who previously<br />

directed <strong>the</strong> Federal Highway Administration, also served as assistant<br />

Chapter 6: Spreading its Wings<br />

177<br />

<strong>Traffic</strong> alert: NATCA Safety and Technology<br />

Director Will Faville Jr., left, and Ray<br />

Gibbons from Chicago TRACON testified<br />

at an international symposium in 1992<br />

(and before Congress a year earlier) about<br />

TCAS deployment problems. Gibbons, <strong>the</strong><br />

union’s national TCAS representative for<br />

terminals, and Greg Meyer, his counterpart<br />

for centers, led <strong>the</strong> effort to ga<strong>the</strong>r<br />

compelling statistics showing that early<br />

versions of <strong>the</strong> collision avoidance system<br />

adversely affected safety. / NATCA archives<br />

attorney general of Arkansas and as a member of <strong>the</strong>n-Gov. Bill Clinton’s<br />

staff.


178<br />

1997<br />

<strong>Against</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>Wind</strong><br />

Hurricane Andrew<br />

After <strong>the</strong> storm: The ferocious hurricane that slammed into<br />

sou<strong>the</strong>rn Florida and Louisiana on August 24, 1992, packed<br />

sustained winds of 125 knots, leaving fifteen people dead and<br />

250,000 homeless. NATCA members quickly donated food,<br />

clothing, generators, financial assistance, and more to help <strong>the</strong><br />

affected controllers and <strong>the</strong>ir families. / NATCA archives<br />

Feb. Feb.<br />

The <strong>National</strong> Labor Relations Board certifies NATCA as <strong>the</strong><br />

exclusive bargaining representative for its first contract tower.<br />

21<br />

27<br />

significant change occurred—<br />

albeit slowly. In <strong>the</strong> fall of 1994,<br />

<strong>the</strong> FAA invited a union liaison<br />

to work full time at agency<br />

headquarters on a trial basis to<br />

provide controller perspectives<br />

on technology and equipment.<br />

Never before had a NATCA<br />

member occupied an office at<br />

800 Independence Avenue. Several<br />

union technical representatives<br />

also became involved in<br />

projects full time.<br />

Karl Grundmann, who’d<br />

chosen not to run for re-election<br />

as Western-Pacific Region<br />

vice president, hung out <strong>the</strong> first<br />

shingle as a liaison. Working<br />

with Neil Planzer in <strong>the</strong> agency’s<br />

<strong>Air</strong> <strong>Traffic</strong> Requirements branch,<br />

Grundmann found himself privy<br />

to key budget information and<br />

attended meetings with Administrator<br />

David Hinson and o<strong>the</strong>r<br />

top-level managers that were<br />

previously off-limits to NATCA.<br />

“I was in places <strong>the</strong> FAA<br />

had never let <strong>the</strong> union in before,”<br />

he says.<br />

NATCA President Barry Krasner meets with MEBA President<br />

Alex Shandrowsky, notifying him of <strong>the</strong> union’s intent to terminate<br />

affiliation.


Both sides were feeling <strong>the</strong>ir way in <strong>the</strong> experiment.<br />

Grundmann essentially made up his job day<br />

by day. The agency’s longstanding top-down culture<br />

spawned a cool reception and a conference room of<br />

managers often drowned out Grundmann’s objections<br />

at meetings. Attitudes had not changed appreciably<br />

by <strong>the</strong> summer of 1996, when Darrell Meachum<br />

began working as a liaison with Planzer.<br />

“We felt a lot like window dressing,” says<br />

Meachum, who served as one of <strong>the</strong> original<br />

technology representatives in 1994 and is now<br />

<strong>the</strong> facility rep at Fort Worth Center. “We had<br />

to force ourselves into dialogues and discussions<br />

within <strong>the</strong> culture of <strong>the</strong> FAA and it<br />

wasn’t easy.”<br />

Part of <strong>the</strong> difficulty stemmed from a lack of<br />

formal recognition. Nei<strong>the</strong>r <strong>the</strong> union’s contract nor<br />

a Memorandum of Understanding with <strong>the</strong> agency<br />

covered <strong>the</strong> work of liaisons and technical representatives.<br />

“As a fac rep, you’re basically enforcing <strong>the</strong><br />

rules. As a liaison, <strong>the</strong>re are no rules to enforce,” Meachum<br />

says. “It was all about trying to influence decisions<br />

that would affect us for <strong>the</strong> next ten to twelve<br />

years.”<br />

Relationships slowly improved when it became<br />

apparent that union input during <strong>the</strong> development<br />

phase of projects could save time and money. O<strong>the</strong>r<br />

managers at headquarters voiced interest in having<br />

liaisons and technical representatives. Despite <strong>the</strong><br />

Apr. May<br />

20<br />

NATCA holds its annual “Lobby Week.” The ga<strong>the</strong>ring, which<br />

has evolved into a lobbying and training opportunity and highprofile<br />

political event, is renamed to “NATCA in Washington.” 28<br />

initial difficulties and ongoing differences of opinions,<br />

Meachum lauds Planzer for helping to ensure<br />

<strong>the</strong> survival of NATCA’s involvement.<br />

“If Neil had not stepped out <strong>the</strong>re and made a<br />

commitment to <strong>the</strong> union,” he says, “not<br />

only would <strong>the</strong> program not have existed,<br />

it would not have been successful.”<br />

The first major project in<br />

which NATCA members were<br />

centrally involved was called<br />

<strong>the</strong> Display System Replacement.<br />

DSR consisted of 20-inchsquare<br />

color radar displays and<br />

newer computers to replace antiquated<br />

scopes and mainframes at<br />

<strong>the</strong> en route centers. The equipment had<br />

been developed for <strong>the</strong> Advanced Automation System,<br />

an ambitious and enormously complicated venture<br />

started by <strong>the</strong> FAA in <strong>the</strong> early 1980s to overhaul<br />

its air traffic operations. Citing delays, multibilliondollar<br />

cost overruns and “seriously flawed” software,<br />

Administrator Hinson scrapped most of <strong>the</strong> program<br />

in June 1994. 4<br />

Yet aging equipment was older than some<br />

of <strong>the</strong> people using it and growing increasingly<br />

unreliable. The agency hoped to salvage some of<br />

its investment and partially modernize its centers<br />

by deploying <strong>the</strong> newer displays and computers<br />

Chapter 6: Spreading its Wings<br />

The union files a lawsuit against MEBA, seeking <strong>the</strong> right to<br />

disaffiliate. The action follows a letter from MEBA opposing<br />

disaffiliation and threatening legal action against NATCA.<br />

179<br />

Karl Grundmann: As NATCA’s first fulltime<br />

liaison to <strong>the</strong> FAA, he blazed <strong>the</strong> trail<br />

for providing union input on technology<br />

and equipment issues to management at<br />

agency headquarters. / NATCA archives


180<br />

<strong>Against</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>Wind</strong><br />

NATCA archives<br />

Controller involvement: Darrell Meachum from Fort Worth<br />

Center worked with <strong>the</strong> FAA to ensure <strong>the</strong> feasibility of deploying<br />

new radarscope displays in <strong>the</strong> agency’s en route centers.<br />

The displays were salvaged from a costly project known as AAS.<br />

1997<br />

17<br />

June<br />

without <strong>the</strong> software, which would have made flight<br />

strips obsolete. This presented a problem. The existing<br />

design of <strong>the</strong> new workstation, called <strong>the</strong> “sector<br />

suite,” now had to accommodate racks to hold flight<br />

strips—known as strip bays.<br />

That fall, while Grundmann began work as <strong>the</strong><br />

first liaison, <strong>the</strong> agency invited two controllers to its<br />

William J. Hughes Technical Center in Atlantic City,<br />

New Jersey, to evaluate a slightly modified sector<br />

suite. When Meachum and Scott Hanley from Kansas<br />

City Center saw a cardboard mockup, <strong>the</strong>y realized<br />

<strong>the</strong> strip bay would obscure controllers’ views of <strong>the</strong><br />

radar display.<br />

Working with <strong>the</strong> center’s engineers, Meachum<br />

and Hanley suggested redesigning <strong>the</strong> bay to reduce<br />

its size and make it curve like a ski<br />

slope so it could hold more strips.<br />

They also recommended repositioning<br />

<strong>the</strong> bay to avoid any visual obstructions.<br />

The modifications were<br />

minor enough that <strong>the</strong> basic sector<br />

suite would not have to be radically<br />

redesigned.<br />

As engineers set about making<br />

<strong>the</strong> changes, NATCA tried to<br />

persuade <strong>the</strong> agency to involve more<br />

controllers in this early development<br />

of DSR. The FAA declined, however,<br />

and when DSR arrived at Seattle<br />

NATCA files a petition with <strong>the</strong> FLRA to hold an election on whe<strong>the</strong>r<br />

<strong>the</strong> union can represent FAA engineers and architects. This would be<br />

NATCA’s first bargaining unit for non-controllers since it was established.<br />

Center in late 1996 <strong>the</strong> union realized it still wasn’t<br />

ready for prime time. One notable flaw involved<br />

drop-down menus that had been incorporated into<br />

<strong>the</strong> display. The menus covered up targets and aircraft<br />

information, which controllers needed to see at<br />

all times.<br />

A thirteen-member “Tiger Team” formed by<br />

NATCA created a punch list of items requiring attention.<br />

Before DSR was installed at <strong>the</strong> agency’s o<strong>the</strong>r<br />

twenty centers, most of <strong>the</strong> items were resolved.<br />

DSR’s successful deployment provided a significant<br />

boost to <strong>the</strong> FAA, which was under heavy<br />

fire for its creeping pace of modernization. The project<br />

showed what was possible when <strong>the</strong> agency and<br />

NATCA worked toge<strong>the</strong>r. With support from Michael<br />

McNally and Jane Garvey, both of whom embraced<br />

collaboration, <strong>the</strong> liaison program snowballed.<br />

Garvey’s building block approach to implementing<br />

components of new equipment, as opposed to<br />

<strong>the</strong> agency’s traditional method of waiting years to<br />

deploy one huge system, also spurred <strong>the</strong> growth of<br />

liaisons and technical reps.<br />

By spring 2002, twenty-eight people were involved<br />

full time in about sixty-five projects. Their<br />

participation ranged from strategic planning to design<br />

factors as detailed as <strong>the</strong> placement of a control<br />

button or <strong>the</strong> height of a shelf, which can have a<br />

significant effect on <strong>the</strong> ability of controllers to do<br />

<strong>the</strong>ir jobs.


19<br />

DSR brought new scopes and supporting<br />

PCs to en route centers.<br />

However, <strong>the</strong> programming language<br />

that relays information to controllers from<br />

radar sites and aircraft transponders remains<br />

etched in <strong>the</strong> Stone Age of computing.<br />

Ever since <strong>the</strong> FAA installed radar data<br />

processing computers at its centers in 1967,<br />

<strong>the</strong>y have run on a venerable, but obscure,<br />

language known as JOVIAL.<br />

Jules Schwartz, a programmer for<br />

System Development Corporation, wrote <strong>the</strong><br />

language for <strong>the</strong> U.S. <strong>Air</strong> Force. He dubbed it<br />

Our Own Version of <strong>the</strong> International Algebraic<br />

Language, but his moniker presented a<br />

problem.<br />

“In <strong>the</strong> late 1950s, society wasn’t quite<br />

as free thinking as it is today,” Schwartz wrote<br />

years later. “The name OVIAL seemed to have<br />

June<br />

From Sanskrit to Silicon<br />

NATCA holds a ten-year anniversary celebration, including a party at<br />

<strong>the</strong> U.S. Capitol. Florida Gov. Lawton Chiles declares June 19 <strong>Air</strong> <strong>Traffic</strong><br />

Control Day, as does Manassas, Virginia, Miami, Milwaukee, New York<br />

�<br />

a connotation relative to <strong>the</strong> birth process that<br />

did not seem acceptable to some people.” 6<br />

A colleague at System Development Corporation<br />

suggested JOVIAL as an alternative in<br />

honor of its inventor, Jules, and <strong>the</strong> name stuck.<br />

Aside from FAA computers, JOVIAL is<br />

used on a variety of weapons systems, including<br />

<strong>the</strong> B-52 Stratofortess, F/A-18 Hornet, UH-<br />

60 Blackhawk helicopter, and <strong>the</strong> advanced<br />

cruise missile. Work on replacing JOVIAL at<br />

<strong>the</strong> FAA’s en route centers was under way in<br />

2002.<br />

The ARTS system in TRACONs runs<br />

on ano<strong>the</strong>r arcane language called ULTRA.<br />

Programming is done painstakingly at <strong>the</strong> bit<br />

level—akin to using toothpicks to create each<br />

stroke of every letter in a sentence.<br />

ULTRA will fade into history when<br />

Unix-based STARS is deployed.<br />

Chapter 6: Spreading its Wings<br />

City, and Spokane, Washington. Many facilities hold open houses and<br />

o<strong>the</strong>r festivities.<br />

181


182<br />

1997<br />

<strong>Against</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>Wind</strong><br />

The level of manpower was a world away from<br />

<strong>the</strong> days when Joel Hicks, Amy Kaufman, and Will<br />

Faville Jr.—<strong>the</strong> union’s first three safety and technology<br />

directors—grappled with scores of projects.<br />

“We found that with every rock we turned<br />

over, we had many more issues scurry out from underneath,”<br />

Faville says.<br />

Brian Fallon<br />

Advanced Automation System: The FAA wasted about $1.5 billion in its ambitious plan to overhaul ATC.<br />

27<br />

June<br />

Eighteen controllers from radar towers across <strong>the</strong> nation meet in Chicago<br />

and form <strong>the</strong> NATCA Radar Tower Coalition to address common issues.<br />

During Faville’s tenure in <strong>the</strong> early 1990s,<br />

NATCA hired veteran Washington Center controller<br />

Jerry Tierney and former PATCO member Dick<br />

Swauger to help. Many facility safety representatives<br />

pitched in, too. But not until <strong>the</strong> liaison and technical<br />

rep program took hold within <strong>the</strong> agency, accompanied<br />

by a collaborative spirit, did <strong>the</strong> union begin to<br />

exercise real influence on equipment issues.<br />

Garvey sees no o<strong>the</strong>r choice. “We have a job to<br />

do that is so fundamentally important and critical to<br />

<strong>the</strong> economy and <strong>the</strong> American people that nothing<br />

short of our best efforts will do,” she says. Garvey<br />

credits <strong>the</strong> union with being a catalyst in keeping<br />

key projects on track, including a counterpart to<br />

DSR known as <strong>the</strong> Standard Terminal Automation<br />

Replacement System.<br />

Like its cousin at <strong>the</strong> centers, STARS includes<br />

a full-color display bright enough to be used in a<br />

lighted room and provides TRACON controllers with<br />

more than 200 digital maps (older scopes contained<br />

just five). The equipment can also accept information<br />

from multiple radar sites, a boon to facilities plagued<br />

by blind spots from mountainous terrain.<br />

In a repeat of DSR’s evolution, however, controllers<br />

were not involved until development was well under<br />

way. The union’s technical team on <strong>the</strong> STARS project<br />

had to argue for changes that, necessarily, delayed implementation.<br />

Among o<strong>the</strong>r issues, pop-up menus once<br />

again obscured critical information on <strong>the</strong> display.


In late 1999 and early 2000, STARS became<br />

operational at TRACONs in El Paso, Texas, and<br />

Syracuse, New York. Unlike previous FAA projects,<br />

controllers at <strong>the</strong> two test radar rooms worked<br />

closely with Ray<strong>the</strong>on Company and <strong>the</strong> union’s<br />

Computer-Human Interface<br />

workgroup to finish<br />

developing <strong>the</strong> product<br />

before it was to be in-<br />

stalled at some 185 o<strong>the</strong>r<br />

TRACONs.<br />

“NATCA took<br />

something that was<br />

unworkable and has<br />

brought about a piece<br />

of equipment that <strong>the</strong><br />

average controller can<br />

use with just three days<br />

of training,” says Doug<br />

Wicker, <strong>the</strong> project lead<br />

in El Paso.<br />

At <strong>the</strong> same time<br />

controllers gained influence<br />

at FAA headquarters, <strong>the</strong>y extended <strong>the</strong>ir<br />

reach globally by joining <strong>the</strong> International Federation<br />

of <strong>Air</strong> <strong>Traffic</strong> <strong>Controllers</strong>’ <strong>Association</strong>s in 1994.<br />

Composed of group membership from more than<br />

100 nations, IFATCA is a professional entity that<br />

represents air traffic controller issues to <strong>the</strong> Inter-<br />

4<br />

Aug.<br />

“<br />

NATCA took something that<br />

was unworkable and has<br />

brought about a piece of<br />

equipment that <strong>the</strong> average<br />

controller can use with just<br />

three days of training.<br />

national Civil Aviation Organization, which sets<br />

worldwide policies.<br />

The union’s interest in affiliating with IF-<br />

ATCA germinated over time. Executive Vice President<br />

Ray Spickler and Fernando Ospina from Fort<br />

Worth Center attended<br />

<strong>the</strong> group’s annual meeting<br />

in May 1989.<br />

“The most striking<br />

— Doug Wicker,<br />

STARS project lead at El Paso TRACON<br />

Jane Garvey takes over as FAA administrator. For <strong>the</strong> first time, <strong>the</strong> Senate<br />

appoints <strong>the</strong> agency’s chief to a five-year term, ending a revolving-door<br />

policy that had been in effect since <strong>the</strong> PATCO strike. Garvey has held a<br />

thing to me was <strong>the</strong> commonality<br />

of problems all<br />

controllers are facing,”<br />

Spickler wrote after <strong>the</strong><br />

ga<strong>the</strong>ring in Frankfurt,<br />

Germany. “There is as<br />

much we can learn from<br />

<strong>the</strong>m as <strong>the</strong>y from us.” 7<br />

A few years later,<br />

Safety and Technology<br />

Director Will Faville Jr.<br />

attended ano<strong>the</strong>r IFATCA<br />

meeting and applauded<br />

<strong>the</strong> group’s philosophy<br />

on computer issues. While <strong>the</strong> FAA and U.S. controllers<br />

worked on Computer-Human Interface—or<br />

CHI—problems, IFATCA reversed <strong>the</strong> emphasis.<br />

“They put <strong>the</strong> human before <strong>the</strong> computer,”<br />

Faville says. “It was clear to me that we needed that<br />

international help and support.”<br />

Chapter 6: Spreading its Wings<br />

number of public positions, including commissioner of <strong>the</strong> Massachusetts<br />

Department of Public Works, director of Logan International <strong>Air</strong>port in<br />

Boston, and acting administrator of <strong>the</strong> Federal Highway Administration.<br />

183


184<br />

1997<br />

<strong>Against</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>Wind</strong><br />

13<br />

Japphire<br />

Atlanta TRACON: The facility became operational in April 2001, and is one of a half<br />

dozen TRACONs that consolidate operations from several radar rooms.<br />

Martin Cole, a Washington Center controller<br />

who served as executive vice president technical of<br />

IFATCA from 1997 to 1999, agrees. “We work a predominant<br />

amount of <strong>the</strong> world’s air traffic,” he says.<br />

“To not have a voice in <strong>the</strong> global scene for aviation is<br />

something that wouldn’t sit well.”<br />

But <strong>the</strong> international association’s per capita<br />

dues structure was cost-prohibitive to NATCA, which<br />

represented <strong>the</strong> largest group of controllers in <strong>the</strong><br />

world. IFATCA was interested in having <strong>the</strong> United<br />

States onboard, however, and agreed to <strong>the</strong> union’s<br />

Aug. Aug.<br />

Ballots are counted from NATCA members, who vote 5,984 to<br />

60 in favor of breaking away from MEBA. The effective date is<br />

May 30, 1997, based on an out-of-court settlement with MEBA.<br />

15<br />

request to re-evaluate its dues. After a<br />

temporary cap was imposed, NATCA<br />

joined and helped <strong>the</strong> group create a<br />

three-tier scale based on a United Nations<br />

model.<br />

Cole’s involvement began after<br />

he was assigned to <strong>the</strong> FAA as one of<br />

NATCA’s original technical representatives.<br />

His project involved Data Link,<br />

which enables controllers and pilots to<br />

exchange text messages and o<strong>the</strong>r digital<br />

information.<br />

“I had no idea what Data Link<br />

was,” Cole recalls. When he arrived at<br />

FAA headquarters, his agency counterpart<br />

showed him two file cabinets of<br />

information and suggested he start reading.<br />

Over time, Cole became an expert<br />

and was <strong>the</strong> obvious choice to represent<br />

<strong>the</strong> United States on Data Link issues after <strong>the</strong> union<br />

joined IFATCA.<br />

The second meeting he attended nearly convinced<br />

him he’d made a mistake. Poverty in Dakar,<br />

Senegal, was prevalent and he confronted sanitation<br />

problems with <strong>the</strong> water and food during <strong>the</strong> twoweek<br />

conference.<br />

After waking up one morning at <strong>the</strong> Ngor<br />

Diarama Hotel, he heard a commotion and looked<br />

out <strong>the</strong> window of his room on <strong>the</strong> sixth floor. Armed<br />

About fifty controllers picket outside Boston Center to call<br />

attention to asbestos problems at <strong>the</strong> facility.


FYI<br />

NATCA formed <strong>the</strong> <strong>National</strong> Aviation Research<br />

Institute in 1996 as ano<strong>the</strong>r way to ensure<br />

that <strong>the</strong> union could exercise some influence in <strong>the</strong><br />

development of air traffic control technology.<br />

Mike Connor, <strong>the</strong> union’s former director of<br />

external operations, spearheaded <strong>the</strong> move to create<br />

<strong>the</strong> private, nonprofit group to give controllers<br />

a voice before functionality and design considerations<br />

of new systems are set in stone. Among<br />

its board of directors was former Rep. Norman<br />

Mineta.<br />

Within a year of its founding, five organizations<br />

had committed more than $1 million<br />

in grants to NARI, including <strong>the</strong> NASA Ames<br />

Research Center, Lockheed Martin, The MITRE<br />

Corporation, The Catholic University of America,<br />

and Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University. NARI<br />

and <strong>the</strong>se organizations have focused on advanced<br />

air traffic control systems and Free Flight, an FAA<br />

project aimed at automating certain air traffic functions<br />

by using computerized tools.<br />

“Today, controllers are given a piece of equipment<br />

and told, ‘Make this work,’ ” Connor said at<br />

<strong>the</strong> time. “NARI will change this mindset by placing<br />

human factors at <strong>the</strong> top of <strong>the</strong> priority list.” 5<br />

Sep. Nov.<br />

NATCA submits a written request to <strong>the</strong> AFL-CIO for direct<br />

affiliation with <strong>the</strong> labor organization.<br />

18<br />

10<br />

soldiers were spilling out of numerous trucks lined<br />

up in front of <strong>the</strong> building.<br />

Some ran into <strong>the</strong> lobby while o<strong>the</strong>rs formed<br />

a perimeter around <strong>the</strong> hotel. Cole, whose pounding<br />

heart took awhile to settle down, learned later that <strong>the</strong><br />

troops constituted security for a meeting of high-level<br />

government officials.<br />

At <strong>the</strong> end<br />

of his stay, Cole<br />

and a colleague,<br />

Delta <strong>Air</strong> Lines<br />

Capt. Terry Hanson,<br />

discovered<br />

that airlines serving<br />

Dakar overbook<br />

flights even more heavily than <strong>the</strong>ir U.S. counterparts.<br />

Several exasperating days passed while <strong>the</strong>y vainly<br />

tried to get home. When <strong>the</strong>y heard that an <strong>Air</strong> France<br />

charter flight was arriving to pick up Club Med patrons,<br />

<strong>the</strong> two dashed to <strong>the</strong> airport and pleaded for<br />

a pair of seats. But everyone from ticket agents to <strong>the</strong><br />

airline’s station manager shook <strong>the</strong>ir heads.<br />

Not long before <strong>the</strong> flight was scheduled<br />

to leave, Hanson noticed an attractive Senegalese<br />

woman near <strong>the</strong> ticket counter wearing a Club Med<br />

name-tag that read “Aby.” Hanson approached her<br />

and smiled. “Aren’t you named for <strong>the</strong> fourth wife of<br />

<strong>the</strong> prophet Mohammed, <strong>the</strong> youngest one, <strong>the</strong> most<br />

beautiful one, <strong>the</strong> one he loved <strong>the</strong> best?” he asked.<br />

Chapter 6: Spreading its Wings<br />

The FLRA certifies NATCA as <strong>the</strong> exclusive bargaining representative<br />

for 1,150 FAA engineers and architects. In October,<br />

<strong>the</strong> employees voted 498 to 141 in favor of joining NATCA.<br />

185<br />

Global connections: Randy Schwitz, left,<br />

and Jim Poole attended IFATCA’s conference<br />

in Montevideo, Uruguay, in 1995.<br />

NATCA member James Ferguson was<br />

elected deputy president of <strong>the</strong> international<br />

organization in 2001. / NATCA archives


186<br />

<strong>Against</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>Wind</strong><br />

Martin Cole: The Washington Center controller<br />

was a technical rep on Data Link,<br />

which led to his election as vice president<br />

technical of IFATCA. / Courtesy of Martin Cole<br />

1998<br />

The woman beamed. “Yes, I am. How could<br />

you possibly know that?”<br />

“I’ve read <strong>the</strong> Koran,” Hanson replied. He <strong>the</strong>n<br />

explained <strong>the</strong>ir plight and Aby excused herself to<br />

speak with <strong>the</strong> station manager. Minutes later, Hanson<br />

and Cole were sinking into <strong>the</strong>ir seats on <strong>the</strong><br />

flight and breathing long sighs of relief.<br />

A subsequent trip to Taipei, Taiwan, where<br />

Cole was elected executive vice president technical,<br />

went much smoo<strong>the</strong>r. In his new role, he once<br />

again endured a steep learning curve to absorb information<br />

about a wealth of projects besides Data<br />

Link. He also felt an added obligation to represent<br />

NATCA at its best to help set <strong>the</strong> stage for future<br />

U.S. involvement in <strong>the</strong> group.<br />

Although some members from o<strong>the</strong>r nations<br />

worried about <strong>the</strong> United States dominating decisions,<br />

<strong>the</strong>ir fears were allayed by<br />

Cole’s knowledgeable and<br />

even-handed manner.<br />

In 2001, James Ferguson,<br />

<strong>the</strong> former Northwest<br />

Mountain Region vice<br />

president, was elected deputy<br />

president of IFATCA.<br />

Two o<strong>the</strong>r union members<br />

serve on IFATCA committees.<br />

Barry Krasner is chairman<br />

of Standing Committee 6, which deals with con-<br />

Feb. Feb.<br />

19<br />

President Michael McNally, Executive VP Randy Schwitz and<br />

former General Counsel William Osborne Jr. appear before <strong>the</strong><br />

AFL-CIO Executive Council to request direct affiliation.<br />

22<br />

stitution and administrative policy. Southwest Region<br />

Vice President Mark Pallone is a member of Standing<br />

Committee 3, which is responsible for finance.<br />

NATCA sees its continuing representation in<br />

<strong>the</strong> international organization as an<br />

important element of its mission<br />

to help shape aviation policy.<br />

“If our voice isn’t heard<br />

out <strong>the</strong>re in <strong>the</strong> world, we’re<br />

going to have to bear <strong>the</strong><br />

brunt of <strong>the</strong>se ICAO regulations<br />

when <strong>the</strong>y come back<br />

though <strong>the</strong> FAA,” Cole says.<br />

“The U.S. view of air traffic<br />

control needs to be out <strong>the</strong>re.”<br />

Breaking Away<br />

While <strong>the</strong> union’s reputation and influence<br />

propelled it to new heights in <strong>the</strong> aviation industry,<br />

NATCA felt <strong>the</strong> weight of a ball and chain gripping its<br />

ankles in <strong>the</strong> house of labor. The union was growing<br />

increasingly disenchanted over its affiliation with <strong>the</strong><br />

Marine Engineers Beneficial <strong>Association</strong>.<br />

The union that had provided NATCA with<br />

manpower, political contacts, and $1.9 million to organize<br />

and prosper after certification was now sinking<br />

under dwindling membership, serious financial<br />

problems, and fallout from a racketeering trial. Five<br />

More than 250 participants attend “NATCA in Washington.”


top former officers, including Gene DeFries and Doc<br />

Cullison, were accused of collecting more than $2<br />

million in severance pay after MEBA merged with <strong>the</strong><br />

<strong>National</strong> Maritime Union<br />

in 1988. *<br />

These simmering issues<br />

pushed NATCA into<br />

action, but <strong>the</strong> indepen-<br />

dent-minded controllers<br />

had long set <strong>the</strong>ir sights<br />

on affiliating directly with<br />

<strong>the</strong> AFL-CIO. In <strong>the</strong>ir capacity<br />

as a MEBA affiliate,<br />

<strong>the</strong>y could not submit<br />

resolutions at AFL-CIO<br />

conventions without <strong>the</strong><br />

parent union’s permission.<br />

Money was ano<strong>the</strong>r<br />

issue. NATCA continued<br />

to pay 7.5 percent of its<br />

members’ dues to MEBA<br />

and didn’t believe it was<br />

getting much, if anything,<br />

in return.<br />

“NATCA’s always<br />

had this ego thing, and part of <strong>the</strong> ego thing is we stand<br />

on our own two feet,” Krasner says. “We always wanted<br />

to be directly affiliated with AFL-CIO.”<br />

Aware of NATCA’s dissatisfaction, MEBA Presi-<br />

Mar.<br />

“<br />

If our voice isn’t heard out<br />

<strong>the</strong>re in <strong>the</strong> world, we’re<br />

going to have to bear<br />

<strong>the</strong> brunt of <strong>the</strong>se ICAO<br />

regulations when <strong>the</strong>y come<br />

back through <strong>the</strong> FAA. The<br />

U.S. view of air traffic control<br />

needs to be out <strong>the</strong>re.<br />

— Martin Cole,<br />

former vice president technical of IFATCA<br />

The U.S. District Court vacates its decision from 1994 allowing <strong>the</strong> FAA to<br />

contract out Level I towers. The FAA does not appeal this decision. Subsequently,<br />

NATCA seeks a court order requiring <strong>the</strong> agency to dismantle its<br />

dent Alex Shandrowsky spoke at <strong>the</strong> September 1996<br />

convention in Pittsburgh, urging <strong>the</strong> union not to<br />

jump ship. But <strong>the</strong> delegates were not swayed and<br />

voted to allow NATCA<br />

to consider aligning with<br />

ano<strong>the</strong>r union.<br />

Krasner and William<br />

Osborne, NATCA’s<br />

outside counsel, met one<br />

last time with MEBA<br />

in late February 1997<br />

to fulfill <strong>the</strong> requirements<br />

of <strong>the</strong>ir affiliation<br />

agreement. Worried that<br />

MEBA would retaliate by<br />

putting <strong>the</strong> controllers’<br />

union in trusteeship and<br />

seize its assets, Osborne<br />

had already prepared a<br />

court injunction to prevent<br />

such action.<br />

The meeting ended<br />

badly after Shandrowsky<br />

announced that MEBA<br />

had unilaterally modi-<br />

fied its agreement with NATCA to make disaffiliation<br />

nearly impossible and to ensure that <strong>the</strong> controllers’<br />

union would forfeit its assets in <strong>the</strong> event it<br />

successfully broke away. Krasner replied that NATCA<br />

Chapter 6: Spreading its Wings<br />

187<br />

* DeFries, Cullison, and two o<strong>the</strong>rs were convicted<br />

of racketeering in July 1995. Cullison<br />

cooperated with authorities and received one<br />

year of unsupervised probation. DeFries was<br />

sentenced to sixty-three months in prison<br />

and fined $600,000 in January 1996, but his<br />

conviction was overturned on appeal. 8<br />

contract program. The court denies <strong>the</strong> union’s motion, but it orders <strong>the</strong><br />

agency to determine whe<strong>the</strong>r ATC services are “inherently governmental”<br />

or a “commercial activity,” in which case <strong>the</strong>y can be contracted out.


188<br />

1998<br />

<strong>Against</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>Wind</strong><br />

20<br />

Mar.<br />

intended to do so with or without MEBA’s approval<br />

and, on <strong>the</strong> way out of <strong>the</strong> meeting, directed Osborne<br />

to file <strong>the</strong> injunction immediately.<br />

Despite <strong>the</strong> protections afforded by <strong>the</strong> injunction,<br />

a cautious Krasner<br />

hired 24-hour armed<br />

guards to protect <strong>the</strong> national<br />

office in case MEBA<br />

decided to launch a raid.<br />

He also told employees<br />

to take home<br />

critical files. “I want<br />

nothing in this office that<br />

you think you’re going to<br />

need in case <strong>the</strong>y’re actually<br />

successful,” he said.<br />

“This union has to keep<br />

running.” About $3 million<br />

was shifted to different<br />

accounts to make it<br />

harder for MEBA to find.<br />

“Walking around<br />

my last days in office with armed guards and money<br />

spread out across <strong>the</strong> country was kind of spooky,”<br />

Krasner says now.<br />

During this time, AFL-CIO general counsel<br />

Jon Hiatt advised Osborne that <strong>the</strong> labor association<br />

would not be inclined to grant NATCA direct affiliation<br />

if <strong>the</strong> union broke away from MEBA. At Krasner’s<br />

The AFL-CIO Executive Council votes unanimously to accept NATCA as<br />

a direct affiliate to <strong>the</strong> union. Since <strong>the</strong> American Federation of Labor and<br />

direction, Osborne replied that NATCA intended to<br />

achieve independence and it believed direct AFL-<br />

CIO affiliation was best for both organizations. He<br />

added that, if NATCA was turned down, <strong>the</strong> union<br />

was prepared to live with<br />

that outcome.<br />

But <strong>the</strong> tense period<br />

passed without incident.<br />

As part of a court-<br />

“<br />

ordered settlement in<br />

— Former President Barry Krasner<br />

June 1997, NATCA asked<br />

its members to vote on <strong>the</strong><br />

issue of affiliation. Out of<br />

<strong>the</strong> 6,044 ballots cast, 99<br />

percent favored breaking<br />

away from MEBA.<br />

Having gained independence,<br />

NATCA now<br />

faced <strong>the</strong> formidable task<br />

of persuading <strong>the</strong> mighty<br />

AFL-CIO, which represented<br />

some thirteen million<br />

workers, to accept a union with less than 11,000<br />

members as a direct affiliate.<br />

Since <strong>the</strong> merger of <strong>the</strong> American Federation<br />

of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations<br />

in 1955, only twenty or so unions had achieved that<br />

honor. Indeed, AFL-CIO policy discouraged direct<br />

affiliations and <strong>the</strong>re were just sixty-two by <strong>the</strong> time<br />

Walking around my last<br />

days in office with armed<br />

guards and money spread<br />

out across <strong>the</strong> country was<br />

kind of spooky.<br />

Congress of Industrial Organizations merged in 1955, it has accepted just<br />

twenty direct affiliates.


NATCA approached <strong>the</strong> organization in early 1998.<br />

“The entire direction of <strong>the</strong> council and <strong>the</strong> AF<br />

of L-CIO was to bring existing organizations into bigger<br />

organizations, so this flew in <strong>the</strong> face of all of those<br />

resolutions that had been passed previously,” says John<br />

Leyden, who was director of <strong>the</strong> organization’s Public<br />

Employee Department and sat on its Executive Council.<br />

History provided both an obstacle for NATCA<br />

to overcome and a persuasive argument in favor of its<br />

recognition. A three-member special committee on<br />

AFL-CIO national charters expressed concern about<br />

<strong>the</strong> PATCO strike and its effect on organized labor.<br />

They wanted assurances from President McNally, Executive<br />

Vice President Randy Schwitz, and Osborne<br />

that NATCA did not intend to repeat history. But <strong>the</strong><br />

committee was also mindful of what NATCA had<br />

achieved during its short tenure.<br />

“Unquestionably, <strong>the</strong> mass discharge of <strong>the</strong><br />

PATCO strikers near <strong>the</strong> beginning of Ronald Reagan’s<br />

administration represented one of <strong>the</strong> most<br />

shameful acts of union-busting by our federal government<br />

in <strong>the</strong> past several decades,” <strong>the</strong> committee<br />

stated in its report.<br />

The panel credited NATCA and MEBA with<br />

helping to ensure that “<strong>the</strong> air traffic controllers’<br />

legacy has not been quietly forgotten, that it remains<br />

a symbol warning <strong>the</strong> labor movement against complacency<br />

and against forgetting that an attack on<br />

one union is an attack on all.”<br />

28<br />

Aug.<br />

NATCA and <strong>the</strong> FAA sign an unprecedented five-year, $1.6 billion collective<br />

bargaining agreement after negotiating for nearly a year. The new pact<br />

includes a ten-tier pay reclassification system that had been under devel-<br />

A month after NATCA appeared before <strong>the</strong><br />

committee to present its case, <strong>the</strong> AFL-CIO Executive<br />

Council agreed to accept <strong>the</strong> union as a direct<br />

affiliate. “It was <strong>the</strong> right thing to do. I think [AFL-<br />

CIO President John] Sweeney saw <strong>the</strong> wisdom,” says<br />

Leyden, who lobbied on NATCA’s behalf. “That’s going<br />

to be a monumental step for <strong>the</strong>m to stay in <strong>the</strong><br />

house of labor.”<br />

Bob Taylor, a frequent visitor at <strong>the</strong> George<br />

Meany Center for Labor Studies when NATCA held<br />

its facility rep training <strong>the</strong>re, often watched workers<br />

from o<strong>the</strong>r unions nearly come to blows with controllers<br />

over misunderstandings about PATCO and its<br />

successor.<br />

“With <strong>the</strong> direct affiliation,<br />

<strong>the</strong> distinction of NATCA<br />

as a scab union has been laid<br />

to rest,” he says.<br />

At a meeting later that<br />

spring in Las Vegas, <strong>the</strong> AFL-<br />

CIO presented NATCA with its<br />

cherished independent charter.<br />

McNally approached <strong>the</strong> podium to accept it<br />

and told Sweeney, “You understand how much this<br />

means to us.”<br />

“I understand,” Sweeney responded. “But I’ve<br />

got a big agenda, Mike. Make it quick.”<br />

McNally thanked <strong>the</strong> audience and said: “I understand<br />

you have a lot of important work to do here.<br />

Chapter 6: Spreading its Wings<br />

opment since 1992. Members voted 8,219 to 747 in favor of <strong>the</strong> contract, a<br />

92 percent margin. The contract takes effect September 15, 1998.<br />

189


James R.<br />

Schwitz<br />

<strong>Air</strong> <strong>Traffic</strong> Control<br />

Specialist<br />

1982 — Pr e s e n t<br />

Op e r a t i n g in i t i a l s: RV<br />

HOm e t O w n : Fayetteville, Georgia<br />

NATCA archives<br />

sp O u s e / CHildre n:<br />

Pamela / Taylor, Sam, Chad, Nicole<br />

Grandchildren: Breanna, Michael<br />

Ot Her tr i v i a:<br />

Longest-serving member of <strong>the</strong><br />

<strong>National</strong> Executive Board<br />

in t e r e s t s:<br />

Golf, skiing, riding his Harley<br />

ATC FACiliTies<br />

Cu r r e n t:<br />

pr e v i O u s:<br />

ZTL Center<br />

Randy Schwitz developed a kinship with aviation<br />

as a boy when he accompanied his dad, a<br />

controller, to work and discovered <strong>the</strong> challenging<br />

variety of <strong>the</strong> job. At home, he sat on a swing set<br />

watching planes thunder overhead after taking off<br />

from Hartsfield <strong>Air</strong>port in Atlanta. The family’s<br />

home bordered <strong>the</strong> south side of <strong>the</strong> field, leading<br />

to ano<strong>the</strong>r diversion when jetliners began flying.<br />

Scared by <strong>the</strong> screaming turbine engines, rats<br />

scurried from airport property into <strong>the</strong> back yard,<br />

where Schwitz and his fa<strong>the</strong>r picked <strong>the</strong>m off with<br />

.22-gauge rifles.<br />

As he grew older, Schwitz set his sights on<br />

becoming an orthodontist. But his career plans<br />

took a detour when he quit Georgia State University<br />

temporarily to earn money at a local General<br />

Motors plant in <strong>the</strong> early 1970s. Assembling<br />

Chevrolet trucks and Pontiac Grand Prix and Le<br />

Mans cars during <strong>the</strong> South’s sweltering summers<br />

opened his eyes to <strong>the</strong> need and value of labor<br />

unions. Four months after he was hired, <strong>the</strong> plant<br />

installed fans following a wildcat strike, providing<br />

welcome relief for <strong>the</strong> workers.<br />

Schwitz promptly joined <strong>the</strong> UAW and was<br />

soon elected steward of <strong>the</strong> body shop. The plant<br />

closed a few years later and he transferred to ano<strong>the</strong>r<br />

GM facility, where he continued as a union<br />

rep. However, <strong>the</strong> job’s mindless repetition eventually<br />

drove him to apply to <strong>the</strong> FAA and he<br />

Pr e v i o u s NATCA Po s iT i oN s / AC h i e v e m e N T s<br />

Exec. VP 1997-2000; Sou<strong>the</strong>rn Region VP 1990-97;<br />

ZTL fac rep 1988-90; negotiated liaisons and tech<br />

rep positions; spearheaded STARS, DSR programs.<br />

hir e d<br />

1982<br />

attended <strong>the</strong> academy in 1982 before starting work<br />

at Atlanta Center.<br />

By now, his fa<strong>the</strong>r was an assistant manager<br />

at Hartsfield. “They’re going to run all over you<br />

unless you form a new union,” he advised his son.<br />

Schwitz heeded <strong>the</strong> warning, participated in organizing,<br />

and became <strong>the</strong> center’s second facility rep<br />

after certification.<br />

In late 1989, he was appointed Sou<strong>the</strong>rn<br />

regional rep when his colleague, Lee Riley, stepped<br />

down.<br />

Schwitz traveled extensively during two<br />

more elected terms and lived in Washington while<br />

serving as executive vice president from 1997 to<br />

2000, earning recognition as a low-key manager<br />

with a sharp eye for finances. During his tenure<br />

with President Michael McNally, NATCA signed<br />

its historic 1998 contract and was granted direct<br />

affiliation with <strong>the</strong> AFL-CIO.<br />

The union also launched a public relations<br />

campaign that included a television commercial<br />

showing controllers at work. Schwitz and his<br />

young daughter, Taylor, appeared at <strong>the</strong> end of <strong>the</strong><br />

spot, along with <strong>the</strong> tag line, “We guide you home.”<br />

He rediscovered life back home after narrowly<br />

losing his bid for re-election. Besides spending<br />

much more time with his wife, Pamela, and <strong>the</strong>ir<br />

children, Schwitz has been able to enjoy regular<br />

rounds of golf with his fa<strong>the</strong>r.


1998<br />

5<br />

Sep.<br />

I want you to understand how important<br />

this is to us. In order to show how much<br />

it means to us, I guarantee that when<br />

your business is done your flights home<br />

are going to get out on time.”<br />

A Growing Family<br />

NATCA holds its seventh biennial convention at <strong>the</strong> Westin Hotel in Seattle.<br />

Delegates revise <strong>the</strong> national seniority system. Previously, members<br />

who went into staff or management positions lost all seniority; now, <strong>the</strong>y<br />

The direct affiliation came as NAT-<br />

CA began to embrace o<strong>the</strong>r FAA workers<br />

in <strong>the</strong> union. Interest in expanding<br />

membership dated<br />

to 1990, when<br />

NATCA unionizedcontrollers<br />

at Cherry<br />

Point Marine<br />

Corps <strong>Air</strong> Station.<br />

It had also<br />

recently started to reorganize towers run<br />

by private contractors. In 1994, NATCA<br />

stepped outside its active controller<br />

ranks for <strong>the</strong> first time by seeking to organize<br />

traffic management coordinators.<br />

Although 62 percent of <strong>the</strong> TMCs who<br />

voted rejected <strong>the</strong> move, <strong>the</strong>y later reconsidered<br />

and joined in May 2000. *<br />

The formal decision to expand representation<br />

occurred at <strong>the</strong> 1996 conven-<br />

Chapter 6: Spreading its Wings<br />

191<br />

Bob Taylor: NATCA’s labor relations director,<br />

a former Eastern <strong>Air</strong>lines employee<br />

and official with <strong>the</strong> International <strong>Association</strong><br />

of Machinists and Aerospace Workers,<br />

has seen <strong>the</strong> union’s bargaining units<br />

grow from two to twenty. / NATCA archives<br />

AFL-CIO charter: The labor organization<br />

prefers to absorb new unions as affiliates<br />

of existing entities. However, it granted<br />

NATCA direct affiliation in 1998. / Japphire<br />

* <strong>Traffic</strong> management coordinators are<br />

controllers who work in centers, TRACONs,<br />

towers, and <strong>the</strong> FAA’s Command Center.<br />

Their mission is to minimize airborne delays<br />

by monitoring <strong>the</strong> wea<strong>the</strong>r, runway capacity<br />

at major hub airports, and o<strong>the</strong>r factors.<br />

When necessary, <strong>the</strong> coordinators adjust<br />

traffic flows by temporarily holding planes at<br />

<strong>the</strong>ir point of departure, which is known as a<br />

“ground stop,” and through o<strong>the</strong>r means.<br />

will lose only <strong>the</strong> amount of time <strong>the</strong>y spend outside <strong>the</strong> bargaining unit.<br />

Delegates also allow <strong>the</strong> engineers and architects a seat on <strong>the</strong> <strong>National</strong><br />

Executive Board, and authorize <strong>the</strong> board to buy an office building.


192<br />

1998<br />

<strong>Against</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>Wind</strong><br />

NATCA archives<br />

Engineers and architects: NATCA’s second-largest bargaining unit joined <strong>the</strong> union in November 1997. Among<br />

<strong>the</strong> activists were, front row from left: Mike Martin; Mark McLauren; Curt Howe; and Pete Healy. Back row from<br />

left: controller/organizer Kevin Christy; Jim D’Agati; Tom Bayone; Jim Frascone; and Doug Hintz.<br />

30<br />

Oct.<br />

tion. By this time, <strong>the</strong> agency’s engineers and architects<br />

had broached <strong>the</strong> subject of affiliation with NATCA<br />

and <strong>the</strong> Professional <strong>Air</strong>ways Systems Specialists, which<br />

represents more than 11,000 technicians, safety inspectors,<br />

and o<strong>the</strong>r FAA workers. The engineers’ motivation<br />

sounded very familiar to NATCA.<br />

“We felt left out of most of <strong>the</strong> decision-making<br />

President Michael McNally and Rick White, NATCA technical representative<br />

on <strong>the</strong> STARS modernization program, testify in Congress. They say<br />

that, until recently, controllers were not consulted on <strong>the</strong> program and<br />

processes,” says Doug Hintz, who spent a decade with<br />

<strong>the</strong> U.S. Army Corps of Engineers before joining <strong>the</strong> FAA<br />

in 1991. “Most of us were becoming disenchanted.”<br />

Initial interest sprouted in <strong>the</strong> New England,<br />

Northwest Mountain, Sou<strong>the</strong>rn, and Southwest regions.<br />

Five engineers—Floyd Majors from Seattle,<br />

Mark McLauren from Boston, Hintz from Atlanta,<br />

and James Frascone and Garlon Jordan from Fort<br />

Worth—met NATCA and PASS representatives in<br />

<strong>the</strong> summer of 1995. On <strong>the</strong> basis of those encounters,<br />

<strong>the</strong> organizing group decided NATCA was <strong>the</strong>ir<br />

union of choice.<br />

“NATCA was much better organized,” Hintz<br />

says. The engineers also believed that <strong>the</strong>ir issues<br />

were less likely to conflict with those of a group composed<br />

predominantly of controllers.<br />

A year later, many o<strong>the</strong>r engineers began<br />

clamoring for union representation when <strong>the</strong> agency<br />

implemented a PASS proposal to reclassify those who<br />

did not wish to transfer to a regional office. This new<br />

job—called a GS-2101 engineering technician—represented<br />

a technical generalist position ra<strong>the</strong>r than<br />

an engineering specialty such as electronics or <strong>the</strong><br />

environment.<br />

The new position was aimed at enabling field<br />

engineers to move into management. But it rankled<br />

many who historically had served as technical managers<br />

and now faced <strong>the</strong> prospect of forfeiting <strong>the</strong>ir<br />

state licenses because <strong>the</strong>y would no longer be prac-<br />

<strong>the</strong> equipment is not suited to <strong>the</strong> way TRACON controllers do <strong>the</strong>ir job.<br />

STARS consists of color monitors, similar to <strong>the</strong> DSR displays in en route<br />

centers, which will replace aging radarscopes.


ticing engineers.<br />

With help from NATCA Southwest Region<br />

Vice President Rich Phillips, Great Lakes Region<br />

VP Jim Poole and Chicago Center controller<br />

Kevin Christy, <strong>the</strong> engineers mounted<br />

a nationwide organizing drive. In November<br />

1997, little more than a decade after NATCA<br />

was certified, <strong>the</strong> FAA’s 1,150 engineers and<br />

architects voted overwhelmingly to become <strong>the</strong><br />

union’s second major bargaining unit.<br />

Their decision led to <strong>the</strong> first expansion of<br />

NATCA’s <strong>National</strong> Executive Board. Pete Healy was<br />

appointed <strong>the</strong> first engineers vice president and invited<br />

to sit on <strong>the</strong> board as a non-voting member.<br />

After delegates at <strong>the</strong> 1998 convention approved a<br />

voting position, Jim D’Agati, <strong>the</strong> Great Lakes Region<br />

local president, won election to<br />

<strong>the</strong> NEB <strong>the</strong> next year.<br />

Some controllers<br />

feared <strong>the</strong> growth in<br />

representation would<br />

dilute <strong>the</strong>ir organization,<br />

but most saw it<br />

as a necessary evolution.<br />

“Look at China,”<br />

says Phillips, who<br />

also helped to organize<br />

traffic management coor-<br />

15<br />

Dec.<br />

DSR becomes operational at Seattle Center. After <strong>the</strong> equipment was<br />

installed in 1996, a thirteen-member NATCA “Tiger Team” determined<br />

that DSR was not deployable in its present configuration. Subsequently,<br />

dinators in 2000. “One thousand<br />

years ago, <strong>the</strong>y were <strong>the</strong> most<br />

advanced culture in <strong>the</strong> world.<br />

They built a big wall to keep<br />

everyone out. Look where <strong>the</strong>y<br />

are now. They’re still one thousand<br />

years ago and are now trying<br />

to catch up. We could do<br />

that—just be controllers—but<br />

<strong>the</strong>n we’d stagnate.”<br />

That was hardly <strong>the</strong> case after <strong>the</strong><br />

historic 1998 contract. Interest in affiliating with<br />

NATCA suddenly ballooned and <strong>the</strong> union found itself<br />

representing ano<strong>the</strong>r 3,500 FAA workers over <strong>the</strong><br />

next three years. <strong>Controllers</strong> continued to dominate<br />

<strong>the</strong> organization, followed by <strong>the</strong> engineers and architects.<br />

The FAA’s 950 staff-support specialists voted to<br />

join NATCA in late 2001, becoming its third-largest<br />

bargaining unit.<br />

As union membership and representation<br />

grew, so, too, did <strong>the</strong> national office in Washington.<br />

During NATCA’s first six years of existence,<br />

it occupied <strong>the</strong> same suite that PATCO<br />

had used at MEBA headquarters on North Capitol<br />

Street, near Union Station. To liven up <strong>the</strong><br />

offices, President Steve Bell brought in several<br />

brass lamps with pink shades and hanging beads<br />

evocative of <strong>the</strong> Civil War era.<br />

When Barry Krasner took over, <strong>the</strong> lamps gave<br />

Chapter 6: Spreading its Wings<br />

193<br />

Direct AFL-CIO<br />

affiliation came as<br />

NATCA began to<br />

embrace o<strong>the</strong>r workers<br />

in <strong>the</strong> union. In 1997,<br />

NATCA stepped<br />

outside its controller<br />

ranks for <strong>the</strong> first time.<br />

<strong>the</strong> union and <strong>the</strong> FAA corrected a punch list of issues before allowing <strong>the</strong><br />

system to go live.


194<br />

1998<br />

<strong>Against</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>Wind</strong><br />

FYI<br />

Besides representing 15,300 air traffic controllers,<br />

NATCA’s twenty bargaining units include some 4,700 o<strong>the</strong>r FAA and Defense<br />

Department workers and privately employed controllers (as of June 2002).<br />

Bargaining Unit Workers Certification Date<br />

<strong>Air</strong> <strong>Traffic</strong> Control Specialists 15,300 June 19, 1987<br />

Cherry Point Marine Corps <strong>Air</strong> Station 30 September 6, 1990<br />

Privately Employed ATC Specialists 110 February 21, 1997, and later<br />

Engineers and Architects 1,200 November 10, 1997<br />

Notice to <strong>Air</strong>men Office 10 March 23, 1999<br />

Budget and Financial Analysis 101 February 7, 2000<br />

Logistics, Finance, Acc’t., Info. Services Division 518 April 26, 2000<br />

Engineers (Oklahoma City / Atlantic City) 124 May 22 / July 14 / Sept. 28, 2000<br />

<strong>Traffic</strong> Management Coordinators 605 May 25, 2000<br />

31<br />

Automation Specialists 175 June 1, 2000<br />

Aerospace Medicine 30 August 23, 2000<br />

<strong>Air</strong>ports Division 263 August 31, 2000<br />

<strong>Air</strong>worthiness Engineers 13 September 8, 2000<br />

<strong>Air</strong>craft Certification 532 September 12, 2000<br />

Hawaii Department of Defense 12 October 26, 2000<br />

Dec.<br />

Hawaii <strong>National</strong> Guard 10 October 26, 2000<br />

Regional Counsel’s Office 50 January 4, 2001<br />

Staff Support Specialists 950 January 7, 2002<br />

Ten years after its first financial statement, NATCA reported assets of<br />

$2.7 million and liabilities of $1.3 million.<br />

way to a large bearskin rug strategically positioned<br />

so that visitors entering <strong>the</strong> president’s office looked<br />

directly into a mouth full of bared teeth. Krasner’s<br />

motif also included a stuffed armadillo, which he’d<br />

haggled over for forty-five minutes in Tijuana, Mexico,<br />

and an exotic collection of more than two-dozen<br />

stuffed frogs in strikingly au<strong>the</strong>ntic poses: shooting<br />

pool, strumming a ukulele, tending bar. A frog dancing<br />

atop a charred picnic table—a gift from Joseph<br />

Bellino—mimicked Krasner’s antics at a party.<br />

By April 1993, employees at headquarters were<br />

stumbling over each o<strong>the</strong>r. Space was so limited that<br />

Labor Relations Director Richard Gordon worked<br />

out of a converted closet in Krasner’s office. To gain<br />

breathing room, NATCA moved to much larger leased<br />

offices at 17 th and M streets on <strong>the</strong> nor<strong>the</strong>rn edge of<br />

downtown. Although ten-year leases were <strong>the</strong> norm,<br />

Krasner had his eye on <strong>the</strong> future and insisted on a<br />

seven-year term. He and many o<strong>the</strong>rs in <strong>the</strong> union<br />

envisioned owning a building.<br />

Delegates at <strong>the</strong> 1994 convention in Tampa<br />

took a step toward making <strong>the</strong>ir dream come true<br />

when <strong>the</strong>y agreed to transfer MEBA payments to a<br />

building fund after <strong>the</strong> loan was paid off. Starting in<br />

January 1996, <strong>the</strong>y deposited about $33,000 a month<br />

into <strong>the</strong> fund. Just two-and-a-half years later, convention<br />

delegates in Seattle approved releasing <strong>the</strong><br />

money to buy a building. The challenge was finding<br />

an affordable structure that provided enough space to


suit <strong>the</strong> union’s needs.<br />

Working with a real estate broker, Executive<br />

Vice President Randy Schwitz and Finance Committee<br />

Chairman Dale Wright scouted different<br />

sites. Given President Michael McNally’s belief that<br />

NATCA archives (left); Japphire (right)<br />

The menagerie: President Krasner’s office included an exotic collection<br />

of stuffed animals. An armadillo greeted visitors from atop a<br />

curio cabinet. A dancing frog mimicked Krasner’s antics at a party.<br />

1999<br />

23<br />

Feb.<br />

NATCA would not be taken as seriously with an address<br />

outside D.C., <strong>the</strong>y decided to concentrate <strong>the</strong>ir<br />

search within <strong>the</strong> capital.<br />

Never<strong>the</strong>less, a vacant lot at King Street and<br />

Diagonal Road in Alexandria, Virginia, first caught<br />

<strong>the</strong>ir eye because of its proximity to <strong>the</strong> Metro, a<br />

nearby hotel, and Old Town. However, ano<strong>the</strong>r buyer<br />

stepped in before NATCA could put down a deposit.<br />

Several older buildings were available in D.C., but<br />

<strong>the</strong>y were priced in <strong>the</strong><br />

$15 million range—out of<br />

<strong>the</strong> union’s reach.<br />

While walking<br />

around on his lunch hour<br />

one day in <strong>the</strong> summer of<br />

1999, Schwitz saw a “for<br />

sale” sign in front of a seven-story,<br />

white brick structure<br />

at 1325 Massachusetts<br />

Avenue. Located just<br />

off Thomas Circle, it was<br />

a mere three blocks from<br />

<strong>the</strong> union’s current offices.<br />

The American Society for<br />

Microbiology owned <strong>the</strong> building, which seemed<br />

perfect in terms of size and location, and NATCA<br />

bought it for $8.1 million. In a sense, <strong>the</strong> controllers<br />

were coming home. AFGE owned <strong>the</strong> offices during<br />

<strong>the</strong> mid-1980s while it directed <strong>the</strong> organizing drive<br />

On <strong>the</strong> basis of a court order, <strong>the</strong> FAA notifies NATCA that it has determined<br />

VFR control tower operations are a commercial activity that can<br />

be provided by private firms. The union files a second lawsuit and <strong>the</strong> two<br />

Chapter 6: Spreading its Wings<br />

195<br />

parties agree that no more towers will be contracted out until <strong>the</strong> courts<br />

resolve <strong>the</strong> matter.


196<br />

1999<br />

<strong>Against</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>Wind</strong><br />

23<br />

Mar.<br />

for AATCC.<br />

Schwitz, who handled many of <strong>the</strong> purchase<br />

decisions, says it was “probably <strong>the</strong> most scary thing I<br />

ever did.” The union had to wait until ano<strong>the</strong>r buyer’s<br />

purchase option expired<br />

before moving forward.<br />

Financing <strong>the</strong>n became<br />

an issue. Three banks<br />

that were vying for NAT-<br />

CA’s business repeatedly<br />

undercut each o<strong>the</strong>r’s offer.<br />

With <strong>the</strong> deadline to<br />

close <strong>the</strong> deal looming,<br />

Schwitz finally called <strong>the</strong><br />

banks’ representatives toge<strong>the</strong>r<br />

in his office.<br />

“Y’all sit in here<br />

toge<strong>the</strong>r and decide who<br />

wants our business,” he<br />

told <strong>the</strong>m. “I’m going to<br />

go outside and smoke<br />

a cigarette and drink a<br />

Pepsi. When I come back<br />

in, you tell me which one<br />

of you is going to do business<br />

with us because I’m not going to go back and<br />

forth between you anymore.” By <strong>the</strong> time Schwitz returned,<br />

a decision had been made.<br />

The union occupies <strong>the</strong> first, third, fourth, and<br />

The FLRA certifies NATCA as <strong>the</strong> exclusive bargaining representative for<br />

ten FAA workers who issue Notices to <strong>Air</strong>men.<br />

“<br />

Y’all sit in here toge<strong>the</strong>r<br />

and decide who wants<br />

our business. I’m going to<br />

go outside and smoke a<br />

cigarette. When I come<br />

back in, you tell me which<br />

one of you is going to do<br />

business with us.<br />

fifth floors of its headquarters, and has leased all <strong>the</strong> remaining<br />

space. Before occupying <strong>the</strong> building in February<br />

2000, NATCA spent two frenetic months and about<br />

$580,000 on renovations, including carpeting, dropped<br />

ceilings, telephones, and<br />

office furniture. New desks<br />

and o<strong>the</strong>r items for McNally<br />

and Schwitz did not arrive<br />

until <strong>the</strong> day before an<br />

— Executive Vice President<br />

Randy Schwitz<br />

open house in mid-July.<br />

“The two of <strong>the</strong>m<br />

camped out on tables for<br />

a few months,” recalls<br />

Adell Humphreys.<br />

As director of administration,<br />

she has<br />

overall responsibility for<br />

maintenance of a building<br />

constructed in <strong>the</strong><br />

mid-1960s. It is a role, she<br />

says, that makes her “feel<br />

like Bob Vila” as she frets<br />

about replacing <strong>the</strong> roof<br />

and heating and ventilation<br />

system, and listens<br />

to <strong>the</strong> wind whistling through <strong>the</strong> windows.<br />

To avoid liability issues, <strong>the</strong> union formed a<br />

separate entity called NATCA Membership Investments<br />

Incorporated to act as owner of <strong>the</strong> building.


29<br />

Apr.<br />

Schwitz, McNally, and Walter J. Boyne—a retired<br />

<strong>Air</strong> Force colonel, former director of <strong>the</strong> <strong>National</strong> <strong>Air</strong><br />

and Space Museum at <strong>the</strong> Smithsonian Institution,<br />

and prolific aviation author—constituted NMI’s first<br />

board of directors. Boyne soon resigned because of<br />

o<strong>the</strong>r commitments, and Krasner was appointed in<br />

his place. After McNally and Schwitz left at <strong>the</strong> end of<br />

<strong>the</strong>ir terms in <strong>the</strong> fall of 2000, Krasner appointed Ed<br />

Mullin and James Ferguson to <strong>the</strong> board. *<br />

The day after Krasner announced at <strong>the</strong> Pittsburgh<br />

convention that he would not seek re-election,<br />

delegates voted to dedicate to him any building <strong>the</strong><br />

union bought. In April 2000, Anchorage convention<br />

delegates paid homage to Michael McNally by christening<br />

<strong>the</strong> first-floor conference room with his name.<br />

Both men were moved by <strong>the</strong> honor. “I can’t think<br />

of a prouder moment than to have a building named<br />

after you while you’re still alive,” Krasner says. “That<br />

was pretty darn cool.”<br />

The Home Front<br />

NATCA and <strong>the</strong> FAA agree to a revised policy concerning familiarization<br />

trips. The replacement Article 23 provides for: six FAM trips per year,<br />

including one international (down from eight domestic and one interna-<br />

Even as NATCA grew and extended its outside<br />

influence, it grappled with several thorny internal issues<br />

throughout <strong>the</strong> 1990s. Early on, money created<br />

an intense conflict when <strong>the</strong> union wrestled over a<br />

second attempt to raise dues from 1 percent to 1.5<br />

percent at its convention in 1992.<br />

Despite <strong>the</strong> fact that NATCA did not pay off<br />

Chapter 6: Spreading its Wings<br />

197<br />

* To ensure autonomy, Krasner, Mullin, and<br />

Ferguson adopted a resolution giving <strong>the</strong> NMI<br />

board sole authority to appoint new members.<br />

The <strong>National</strong> Executive Board retains<br />

power to confirm appointees.<br />

tional); all FAMs on duty time; no more than two trips to <strong>the</strong> same airport<br />

(<strong>the</strong> previous limit was eight); FAMs used toward annual proficiency training<br />

requirements. The new agreement takes effect May 31, 1999.


198<br />

1999<br />

<strong>Against</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>Wind</strong><br />

10<br />

<strong>the</strong> MEBA loan until October 1995, it was no longer<br />

spending in <strong>the</strong> red. But its annual income of about $7<br />

million was stretched to <strong>the</strong> limit. Arbitrations were<br />

piling up, asbestos issues loomed, negotiating <strong>the</strong><br />

1993 contract would cost<br />

about $1 million, and <strong>the</strong><br />

union was outgrowing its<br />

cramped space at MEBA<br />

headquarters.<br />

NATCA publicized<br />

<strong>the</strong> need for raising dues<br />

before <strong>the</strong> convention.<br />

But nearly half of <strong>the</strong><br />

controllers back home<br />

sent <strong>the</strong>ir delegates to<br />

San Antonio with firm<br />

instructions to oppose<br />

any increase. “We were<br />

against it for <strong>the</strong> same<br />

reason we’re against taxes.<br />

It wasn’t clear enough<br />

what we were going to do<br />

with <strong>the</strong> money,” says Bill Otto, facility rep at St. Louis<br />

Tower and TRACON at <strong>the</strong> time. The issue became<br />

<strong>the</strong> talk of <strong>the</strong> convention in hotel bars and elevators,<br />

at Dick’s Last Resort along San Antonio’s famed River<br />

Walk, everywhere.<br />

Aside from membership sentiment, <strong>the</strong>re<br />

were several procedural obstacles. At <strong>the</strong> Las Vegas<br />

May July<br />

convention in 1990, when delegates first rejected an<br />

increase, <strong>the</strong>y approved Karl Grundmann’s constitutional<br />

amendment requiring a vote of <strong>the</strong> entire<br />

membership to change <strong>the</strong> dues structure. And<br />

standing convention<br />

rules stipulated that all<br />

adopted decisions took<br />

effect at <strong>the</strong> close of <strong>the</strong><br />

“<br />

convention. Both had to<br />

be changed before <strong>the</strong><br />

delegates could even consider<br />

raising dues.<br />

President Krasner<br />

always believed in an increase<br />

to enable NATCA<br />

“to grow as a union.”<br />

— Former President Barry Krasner He wanted to raise dues<br />

once and never change<br />

<strong>the</strong>m again—up or down.<br />

Deftly applying Robert’s<br />

Rules of Order and taking<br />

care to explain each step<br />

of <strong>the</strong> process to <strong>the</strong> delegates, Krasner first tackled<br />

<strong>the</strong> issue of modifying <strong>the</strong> standing convention rules<br />

so that amendments and resolutions would take effect<br />

immediately. This required a two-thirds majority.<br />

At virtually every convention, controllers seize<br />

on an issue <strong>the</strong>y believe demands a roll-call vote,<br />

known as a division of <strong>the</strong> house. In San Antonio,<br />

I can’t think of a prouder<br />

moment than to have a<br />

building named after you<br />

while you’re still alive. That<br />

was pretty darn cool.<br />

Nearly 300 participants attend “NATCA in Washington.” The union signs a purchase agreement with <strong>the</strong> American Society<br />

for Microbiology to buy its office building at 1325 Massachu-<br />

21<br />

setts Avenue NW in Washington, D.C., for $8.1 million.


changing <strong>the</strong> standing rules was it. Doors to <strong>the</strong> convention<br />

floor were locked and no one was allowed to<br />

enter or leave. One by one, delegates stepped up to a<br />

microphone and cast <strong>the</strong>ir ballots. The involved procedure<br />

took about an hour.<br />

Krasner, who established <strong>the</strong> rules for security<br />

and protocol during <strong>the</strong> vote, says, “I’ve always<br />

made it so painful <strong>the</strong>y never do it a second<br />

time.”<br />

Once <strong>the</strong> delegates approved <strong>the</strong> procedural<br />

change, Krasner knew <strong>the</strong> dues<br />

increase was assured. Next, by voice vote,<br />

<strong>the</strong>y adopted an amendment stating that<br />

dues could be changed by a majority of delegates<br />

attending a convention ra<strong>the</strong>r than<br />

<strong>the</strong> membership as a whole. Finally, <strong>the</strong>y<br />

raised <strong>the</strong> dues a half percent.<br />

At <strong>the</strong> convention’s closing banquet,<br />

Richard Gordon announced that he’d called<br />

<strong>the</strong> national office and told <strong>the</strong>m he wanted<br />

a facility rep training class scheduled for<br />

each month during <strong>the</strong> next four years. The<br />

room erupted in applause.<br />

“It’s one of <strong>the</strong> biggest reasons we’ve<br />

been able to do what we’ve done over <strong>the</strong><br />

past ten years,” say Pat Forrey, a delegate<br />

who returned to Cleveland Center and wrote a detailed<br />

memo explaining why he voted against his<br />

members’ wishes. Some were upset by <strong>the</strong> process,<br />

Sep. Dec.<br />

Jim D’Agati beats Pete Healy by a vote of 126 to 93 in a runoff<br />

election for Engineers and Architects vice president. Hurricane<br />

20<br />

Floyd delays <strong>the</strong> ballot tally for four days.<br />

but most accepted <strong>the</strong> rationale.<br />

Not all facilities were as understanding. Membership<br />

at Fort Worth Center plunged from 50 percent<br />

to 38 percent, <strong>the</strong> largest drop of any local in <strong>the</strong><br />

country (though it has since rebounded to 80 percent).<br />

Membership elsewhere suffered,<br />

too, but <strong>the</strong> resentment<br />

soon faded.<br />

The Bro<strong>the</strong>rhood<br />

Aside from <strong>the</strong> dues<br />

increase, ano<strong>the</strong>r emotional<br />

issue divided NATCA<br />

virtually from Day One:<br />

<strong>the</strong> union’s stance on rehiring<br />

<strong>the</strong> controllers who<br />

struck in 1981.<br />

At an organizing<br />

meeting in <strong>the</strong> fall of 1984,<br />

New York controllers argued<br />

strenuously in favor<br />

while those from Atlanta<br />

vehemently objected. A<br />

proposal to formally support<br />

rehiring passed by one<br />

vote. The issue came up at o<strong>the</strong>r organizing meetings,<br />

too. NATCA founders quickly learned to downplay<br />

<strong>the</strong> subject to most potential members, who were<br />

Chapter 6: Spreading its Wings<br />

199<br />

NATCA publicized <strong>the</strong><br />

need for raising dues<br />

before <strong>the</strong> convention.<br />

But nearly half of <strong>the</strong><br />

controllers back home<br />

sent <strong>the</strong>ir delegates to<br />

San Antonio with firm<br />

instructions to oppose<br />

any increase.<br />

The Early Display Configuration of STARS is installed in El Paso,<br />

Texas, for testing and evaluation. In January 2000, <strong>the</strong> prototype<br />

is also installed in Syracuse, New York.


200<br />

<strong>Against</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>Wind</strong><br />

PATCO rehires: Valerie and Bob Butterworth<br />

worked in <strong>the</strong> Bay Area at <strong>the</strong> time<br />

of <strong>the</strong> strike. Rehired in 1997, she is now<br />

a controller at San Diego Tower while he<br />

works at Sou<strong>the</strong>rn California TRACON.<br />

Both are members of NATCA. / Japphire<br />

* This changed when NATCA adopted a<br />

national seniority policy in 1996. Depending<br />

upon <strong>the</strong>ir length of service before 1981,<br />

some rehires were more senior than <strong>the</strong>ir<br />

post-strike colleagues.<br />

2000<br />

7<br />

Feb.<br />

skittish about ano<strong>the</strong>r radical union.<br />

After NATCA was certified, John Leyden<br />

attended <strong>the</strong> Las Vegas convention to speak<br />

on <strong>the</strong> issue. His presence stirred anew<br />

unease among <strong>the</strong> new generation of controllers.<br />

While Leyden stood by and listened,<br />

delegates heatedly wrangled over<br />

whe<strong>the</strong>r he should be permitted to address<br />

<strong>the</strong>m. Those in opposition largely<br />

respected Leyden, but <strong>the</strong>y were reluctant<br />

to provide him with a forum.<br />

“It measured us on how much <strong>the</strong> wounds<br />

were still open,” recalls <strong>the</strong>n-Southwest Regional<br />

Rep Ed Mullin, who left Las Vegas feeling unsettled<br />

by “<strong>the</strong> fragmentation and <strong>the</strong> degree of rancor.”<br />

Leyden was finally allowed to step up to <strong>the</strong><br />

podium after a roll-call vote.<br />

“These individuals are <strong>the</strong> same<br />

as you are,” he said in an impassioned<br />

speech. “They wanted to<br />

change <strong>the</strong> system. In many instances,<br />

through no fault of <strong>the</strong>ir<br />

own, <strong>the</strong>y lost <strong>the</strong>ir jobs.”<br />

Leyden described controllers<br />

who had suffered through<br />

divorces and committed suicide.<br />

Some lost <strong>the</strong>ir homes and were<br />

still struggling to make a living.<br />

He explained that <strong>the</strong> FAA would<br />

The FLRA certifies NATCA as <strong>the</strong> exclusive bargaining representative for<br />

280 workers in <strong>the</strong> Budget and Finance divisions at FAA headquarters.<br />

not fire <strong>the</strong> new breed to rehire<br />

<strong>the</strong> strikers and<br />

that <strong>the</strong>y wouldn’t<br />

lose <strong>the</strong>ir seniority.<br />

* He urged <strong>the</strong><br />

NATCA members<br />

to give <strong>the</strong>ir<br />

former brethren<br />

a chance.<br />

During a<br />

question-and-answer<br />

period, <strong>the</strong> toughest<br />

queries came from former PAT-<br />

CO members who had not struck. They spoke about<br />

<strong>the</strong> threats, acrimony, and confrontations at work<br />

that were common during <strong>the</strong> PATCO era. Leyden<br />

couldn’t answer point for point, but he said <strong>the</strong> former<br />

controllers had been in a union and should not<br />

be denied <strong>the</strong> chance to come back.<br />

After an emotional debate, <strong>the</strong> delegates voted<br />

by a three-to-one margin to urge President Bush to<br />

allow <strong>the</strong> fired controllers to apply for new job openings<br />

in <strong>the</strong> FAA. Like his Republican predecessor,<br />

Bush declined. But on August 12, 1993, Democratic<br />

President Clinton signed an executive order lifting<br />

<strong>the</strong> ban on <strong>the</strong> strikers.<br />

That fall, <strong>the</strong> FAA sent a questionnaire—commonly<br />

known as <strong>the</strong> ’93 List—to <strong>the</strong> last known<br />

addresses of <strong>the</strong> fired controllers. They were given a


limited time to reapply and about 5,000 did so. The<br />

agency responded deliberately, but rehired some 800,<br />

most since 1997. Passing certification again was not<br />

easy for all of <strong>the</strong>m, who were re-entering a young<br />

man’s profession and<br />

confronting traffic that<br />

had doubled since <strong>the</strong>y<br />

left more than fifteen<br />

years earlier.<br />

“I’ve watched PAT-<br />

CO bro<strong>the</strong>rs come in that<br />

door and what that did to<br />

<strong>the</strong>m is worse than what<br />

<strong>the</strong> strike did,” says Bob<br />

Butterworth, who walked<br />

out at Oakland Center<br />

in 1981 and now works<br />

at Sou<strong>the</strong>rn California<br />

TRACON in San Diego.<br />

“They remembered<br />

<strong>the</strong>mselves as being good<br />

at <strong>the</strong>ir jobs, but with<br />

all <strong>the</strong> additional traffic <strong>the</strong>se days and <strong>the</strong> fact that<br />

<strong>the</strong>y’re so much older now, it was crushing. They had<br />

to go back to <strong>the</strong>ir now-grown children and say <strong>the</strong>y<br />

were failures.”<br />

Even for those who succeeded, checking out<br />

could be a bumpy ride. Many rehires encountered<br />

<strong>the</strong> same insolent attitudes that first-time trainees<br />

23<br />

Feb.<br />

endured. They also discovered a more reserved work<br />

force shaped by different circumstances and times.<br />

“We were more like family,” says Jim Shearer, a striker<br />

who hired back in at Indianapolis Center and now<br />

works at Indianapolis<br />

Tower/TRACON.<br />

The clash of cultures<br />

and lack of un-<br />

“<br />

derstanding about history<br />

saddens people like<br />

Barry Krasner. “We forget<br />

all those who died before<br />

us,” he says. For controllers<br />

who remain opposed<br />

to rehires, he reminds<br />

<strong>the</strong>m: “They gave all<br />

<strong>the</strong>y had. You may not<br />

have agreed with <strong>the</strong>m<br />

going on strike, but you<br />

couldn’t have <strong>the</strong> contract<br />

you have, <strong>the</strong> pay<br />

raise you have, or <strong>the</strong> job<br />

you have if <strong>the</strong>y hadn’t died so you could live.”<br />

On a Monday morning in mid-September<br />

1995, Krasner found himself in an awkward meeting<br />

with a former PATCO controller—an individual<br />

who, like <strong>the</strong> rehires, had inspired heated emotions<br />

over <strong>the</strong> years. The encounter stemmed from a decision<br />

made at a <strong>National</strong> Executive Board session <strong>the</strong><br />

These individuals are <strong>the</strong><br />

same as you are. They wanted<br />

to change <strong>the</strong> system. In<br />

many instances, through no<br />

fault of <strong>the</strong>ir own, <strong>the</strong>y lost<br />

<strong>the</strong>ir jobs.<br />

— Former PATCO President John Leyden<br />

The union holds its second annual Legislative Conference Committee,<br />

attended by about seventy NATCA activists. Democratic Louisiana Rep.<br />

William Jefferson speaks out against privatization of <strong>the</strong> FAA.<br />

Chapter 6: Spreading its Wings<br />

201


202<br />

<strong>Against</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>Wind</strong><br />

Krasner found himself<br />

in an awkward<br />

meeting with a former<br />

PATCO controller—a<br />

man widely regarded<br />

as instrumental in<br />

NATCA’s creation—<br />

John Thornton.<br />

2000<br />

28<br />

Feb.<br />

previous week in Pittsburgh, where a protracted yet<br />

heartfelt discussion ensued concerning a man widely<br />

regarded as instrumental in NATCA’s creation—John<br />

Thornton.<br />

While acknowledging his contributions, several<br />

board members believed Thornton was out of his<br />

element as senior director<br />

of legislative affairs, a<br />

sentiment that had been<br />

growing over <strong>the</strong> past<br />

year. It culminated with<br />

<strong>the</strong> feeling that he wasn’t<br />

doing enough to block <strong>the</strong><br />

looming loss of Chapter<br />

71 rights. Congress was<br />

talking about stripping<br />

away FAA workers’ rights<br />

to union representation<br />

and collective bargaining<br />

in a Transportation<br />

Department appropriations bill it had introduced in<br />

July and would soon vote on <strong>the</strong> measure.<br />

The board members harped about his job performance<br />

and accused him of “dropping <strong>the</strong> ball.”<br />

Legislatively, “people weren’t happy with <strong>the</strong> direction<br />

we were going in,” Eastern Region Vice President<br />

Joe Fruscella says now.<br />

James Ferguson, <strong>the</strong> Northwest Mountain Region<br />

VP, agrees: “We felt like it was time for a change.<br />

The union moves into its newly purchased office building at 1325 Massachusetts<br />

Avenue NW in Washington, D.C. AFGE owned <strong>the</strong> structure<br />

“<br />

When I think of NATCA, I<br />

think of John.<br />

He had done excellent work, but <strong>the</strong>re were some<br />

mistakes being made.”<br />

Ano<strong>the</strong>r incident that tripped up Thornton and<br />

<strong>the</strong> 1988-91 <strong>National</strong> Executive Board concerned<br />

NATCA’s stance on a law known as <strong>the</strong> Wright<br />

Amendment. Named after former Texas Democratic<br />

Rep. James Wright, <strong>the</strong><br />

1979 law prohibited airlines<br />

at Love Field in Dallas<br />

from flying beyond<br />

<strong>the</strong> four states bordering<br />

— Former Executive Vice President<br />

Ray Spickler<br />

Texas, an anticompetitive<br />

limitation that helped to<br />

ensure success for <strong>the</strong><br />

new DFW <strong>Air</strong>port. Noting<br />

that Love Field and<br />

DFW are just eight miles<br />

apart, supporters justified<br />

<strong>the</strong> Wright Amendment<br />

on safety grounds.<br />

Their argument incensed Southwest Regional<br />

Rep Ed Mullin. “Chicago’s airports are busier. New<br />

York’s are closer. L.A.’s are more numerous,” he says.<br />

“It was strictly a marketing issue, but <strong>the</strong>y framed it<br />

as a safety issue.”<br />

When Congress considered repealing <strong>the</strong><br />

Wright Amendment a decade after it was enacted,<br />

Mullin persuaded <strong>the</strong> <strong>National</strong> Executive Board<br />

to publicly support <strong>the</strong> move. However, <strong>the</strong> union<br />

during <strong>the</strong> mid-1980s, and John Thornton briefly worked in <strong>the</strong> offices<br />

while organizing AATCC.


quickly back-pedaled in <strong>the</strong> face of irate reactions<br />

from key congressmen. Thornton did not believe<br />

NATCA should be fighting for <strong>the</strong><br />

issue, particularly while it was<br />

trying to build a presence on<br />

Capitol Hill. His position<br />

angered Mullin, who left<br />

<strong>the</strong> board a year before <strong>the</strong><br />

discussion about Thornton.<br />

Even so, simmering<br />

dissatisfaction lingered.<br />

U n w i t t i n g l y ,<br />

Thornton had not really<br />

ingratiated himself with Michael<br />

McNally, who had been<br />

elected executive vice president<br />

<strong>the</strong> previous year. Thornton had developed a close<br />

confidence with President Barry Krasner, a level of<br />

trust that McNally did not yet enjoy. At <strong>the</strong> meeting<br />

in Pittsburgh, Krasner tried to persuade <strong>the</strong> board<br />

not to take such drastic action, but a majority voted<br />

to remove Thornton. It was one of <strong>the</strong> few debates<br />

Krasner has ever lost and lent credence to those who<br />

contend that <strong>the</strong> union “eats our young.”<br />

“Politics gets involved,” Krasner says now. “You<br />

know that if you don’t have your entire board behind<br />

you, you’re going to fall apart. It’s not just a matter<br />

of removing John. They can remove me. They can<br />

ultimately do what <strong>the</strong>y want if you don’t have your<br />

26<br />

Apr.<br />

The FLRA certifies NATCA as <strong>the</strong> exclusive bargaining representative for<br />

274 FAA regional office employees in <strong>the</strong> Logistics, Finance, and Computer<br />

Support divisions.<br />

executive board behind you.”<br />

Krasner went home to Long Island, as he usually<br />

did on weekends, and agonized about what to<br />

do. Early Monday morning, he and McNally drove<br />

to Washington. While <strong>the</strong>y were on <strong>the</strong> road, Sallie<br />

Krasner awoke in bed, crying, and wrote out a<br />

speech that she paged to both men. “Please reconsider<br />

this,” she said. “Please don’t do this. Please<br />

think about what you’re doing.”<br />

Krasner listened to <strong>the</strong> page when he arrived<br />

at <strong>the</strong> national office, but <strong>the</strong> outcome was<br />

inevitable. The board’s decision astonished many<br />

members. “When I think about NATCA, I think<br />

about John,” says Ray Spickler. Michael Putzier,<br />

Central Region vice president at <strong>the</strong> time, likens <strong>the</strong><br />

action to “firing <strong>the</strong> founder.”<br />

Thornton was as shocked as anyone. “I thought<br />

it was obvious to <strong>the</strong>m I was doing good work for <strong>the</strong><br />

union and I was a believer in all this stuff,” he says.<br />

Over time, <strong>the</strong> wounds healed and he has grown<br />

philosophical. “You go through things, and if you<br />

don’t get over <strong>the</strong>m, you’ve crippled yourself.”<br />

Two months after Thornton left, NATCA hired<br />

Ken Montoya to lead <strong>the</strong> fight to regain Chapter 71<br />

rights. MEBA retained Thornton as its deputy director<br />

of legislative affairs, but he was laid off a few months<br />

later in a cost-cutting sweep and moved on to <strong>the</strong> <strong>National</strong><br />

Parks and Conservation <strong>Association</strong>. In 1997,<br />

he joined <strong>the</strong> FAA’s Free Flight program, an initiative<br />

Chapter 6: Spreading its Wings<br />

203<br />

John Thornton: After leaving NATCA, he<br />

became involved with <strong>the</strong> FAA’s Free Flight<br />

project and was named acting director of<br />

<strong>the</strong> program in late 2001. / NATCA archives


204<br />

19xx<br />

<strong>Against</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>Wind</strong><br />

NATCA Charitable Foundation<br />

Shortly before Christmas 2000, Darrell<br />

Meachum and a colleague hefted a<br />

dilapidated table up a flight of stairs to a<br />

two-bedroom apartment in a low-income<br />

suburb nor<strong>the</strong>ast of Fort Worth, Texas.<br />

Meachum, his wife, Cathy, and <strong>the</strong>ir<br />

volunteer helper had driven forty miles to<br />

retrieve <strong>the</strong> item from <strong>the</strong> donor’s outdoor<br />

porch. Its wea<strong>the</strong>r-beaten condition<br />

made <strong>the</strong>m shake <strong>the</strong>ir heads in dismay.<br />

Grime covered <strong>the</strong> white Formica top<br />

and splotches of rust were corroding <strong>the</strong><br />

metal trim and legs.<br />

It belonged in a dump.<br />

But <strong>the</strong> trio did <strong>the</strong>ir best to wipe off<br />

<strong>the</strong> dirt before setting out to deliver it to a<br />

single mo<strong>the</strong>r and her three young boys.<br />

They were one of several families “adopted”<br />

that holiday season by <strong>the</strong> NATCA<br />

Charitable Foundation, a nonprofit organization<br />

formed by <strong>the</strong> Meachums.<br />

While maneuvering <strong>the</strong> table into<br />

<strong>the</strong> apartment, <strong>the</strong>y noticed that <strong>the</strong> only<br />

furniture outside <strong>the</strong> bedrooms consisted<br />

of a shabby couch and a small television<br />

sitting atop a nightstand. They made<br />

three more trips to lug in a donated microwave,<br />

pots and pans, a laundry basket<br />

full of toiletries, and two armloads of<br />

�<br />

holiday gifts—under <strong>the</strong> ecstatic gazes of<br />

<strong>the</strong> youngsters and <strong>the</strong>ir mo<strong>the</strong>r.<br />

As soon as <strong>the</strong> table and four vinylpadded<br />

chairs were positioned in front<br />

of a window near <strong>the</strong> kitchen, <strong>the</strong> boys<br />

jumped onto <strong>the</strong>ir newfound seats. Beaming,<br />

<strong>the</strong>y set <strong>the</strong>ir hands on <strong>the</strong> table as if<br />

holding forks and knives.<br />

“Look, ma, a table,” <strong>the</strong>y exclaimed.<br />

“Can we have a meal at our table?”<br />

The mo<strong>the</strong>r was speechless.<br />

Such scenes are one of <strong>the</strong> most<br />

rewarding aspects of <strong>the</strong> NATCA Charitable<br />

Foundation. Cathy Meachum says<br />

recipients “inevitably are crying because<br />

<strong>the</strong>y’re so happy and we’re just beside<br />

ourselves.”<br />

Darrell Meachum, a Fort Worth<br />

Center controller, hoped to pool <strong>the</strong><br />

efforts of many NATCA locals that run<br />

charity fund-raisers and bring recognition<br />

to <strong>the</strong> profession when NCF was<br />

formed in August 1994. Originally<br />

incorporated in Texas, <strong>the</strong> organization<br />

expanded to Florida in 2001 and to Georgia<br />

<strong>the</strong> next year. The long-term goal is to<br />

make it a nationwide entity, but in measured<br />

steps to prevent a good idea from<br />

“crumbling under its own weight due to<br />

Courtesy of Cathy and Darrell Meachum<br />

Darrell and Cathy Meachum: The couple formed <strong>the</strong>ir<br />

foundation in 1994 and hope to expand it nationwide.<br />

poor implementation,” Meachum says.<br />

Far-flung expansion is something<br />

<strong>the</strong> skeptics never imagined possible<br />

when he envisioned <strong>the</strong> foundation.<br />

“They are amazed at how far we’ve come<br />

and how much we’ve accomplished,”<br />

Cathy Meachum says. “They didn’t think<br />

it was feasible to get a bunch of people to<br />

do all this work by volunteers only.”<br />

The absence of paid staff members<br />

enables NCF to donate nearly 96 percent<br />

of <strong>the</strong> money it raises. A core group of<br />

about twenty volunteers runs <strong>the</strong> organization,<br />

including satellite offices in Houston,<br />

Jacksonville, Florida, and Peachtree<br />

City, Georgia. In 2001, <strong>the</strong> foundation<br />

gave $43,000 to more than two dozen<br />

Continued on page 206


to automate certain air traffic functions through <strong>the</strong><br />

use of several computerized tools. Thornton was promoted<br />

to acting director of <strong>the</strong> program in late 2001.<br />

It’s About Time<br />

<strong>Controllers</strong> toil in an around<strong>the</strong>-clock<br />

profession. They refer to<br />

<strong>the</strong>ir constantly changing schedule<br />

as “<strong>the</strong> rattler” because it bounces<br />

<strong>the</strong>m between day and night like a<br />

baby’s toy. Days off, prime time annual<br />

leave, and o<strong>the</strong>r matters are determined<br />

by seniority. Consequently,<br />

<strong>the</strong> issue is dear to <strong>the</strong> heart of every<br />

controller.<br />

When NATCA organized during<br />

<strong>the</strong> mid-1980s, <strong>the</strong> issue of seniority cultivated<br />

interest among controllers who hoped <strong>the</strong> new<br />

union would give <strong>the</strong>m a say in <strong>the</strong>ir work schedules.<br />

At <strong>the</strong> time, each facility established its own<br />

policy.<br />

Some based seniority on controllers’ length of<br />

service at <strong>the</strong> facility ra<strong>the</strong>r than how long <strong>the</strong>y had<br />

worked for <strong>the</strong> FAA. The policy discouraged controllers<br />

from transferring to certain high-density operations,<br />

such as Chicago Center, because <strong>the</strong>y would<br />

lose all <strong>the</strong> time <strong>the</strong>y’d accrued.<br />

As a result, those facilities were chronically<br />

2000<br />

27<br />

Apr.<br />

understaffed and controllers frequently had to work<br />

overtime—although some enjoyed <strong>the</strong> extra pay and<br />

did not want to see it diminished under a national<br />

seniority policy.<br />

Support for such a change had been<br />

steadily brewing. Although delegates at <strong>the</strong><br />

1994 convention defeated a proposal to<br />

abolish local policies, <strong>the</strong> prickly issue<br />

arose again two years later in Pittsburgh.<br />

Fractious debate raged throughout<br />

<strong>the</strong> first day. Numerous controllers<br />

lined up at microphones urging<br />

<strong>the</strong> union to banish a disincentive for<br />

those seeking to move up <strong>the</strong> ranks<br />

and establish a fair system for everyone.<br />

“We had to stand up and make<br />

one policy for each and every controller<br />

to make it fair. It’s about time we<br />

had one policy,” said Barrett Byrnes, <strong>the</strong><br />

facility rep from Poughkeepsie Tower. 9<br />

However, an equally vocal contingent pleaded<br />

to retain control over <strong>the</strong>ir local policies. “Seniority<br />

was a tool fac reps were able to use against management,”<br />

New York TRACON facility rep Phil Barbarello<br />

said. “Now, this is a tool I no longer have.” 10<br />

Ano<strong>the</strong>r contentious issue involved specifics<br />

of <strong>the</strong> proposed national policy. Reflecting a disdain<br />

More than 800 delegates attend NATCA’s eighth biennial convention at<br />

<strong>the</strong> Egan Convention Center in Anchorage. Moves to revisit <strong>the</strong> seniority<br />

plan and dues structure are voted down. The delegates approve an honor-<br />

Chapter 6: Spreading its Wings<br />

205<br />

Convention credentials: Delegates wear<br />

official badges as well as a potpourri of<br />

o<strong>the</strong>r union trinkets. / NATCA archives<br />

ary lifetime membership for Cathy Meachum, a longtime associate member<br />

who created <strong>the</strong> NATCA Charitable Foundation with her husband,<br />

Darrell. The foundation raises about $17,000 at <strong>the</strong> convention.


206<br />

2000<br />

<strong>Against</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>Wind</strong><br />

NATCA Charitable Foundation (continued)<br />

�<br />

charities and families. NCF income has<br />

grown steadily since its inception—a total<br />

of $153,575 by <strong>the</strong> end of 2001—and<br />

focuses on areas that aren’t being met by<br />

o<strong>the</strong>r charities.<br />

One recipient has been a Dallasarea<br />

shelter for abused women, which<br />

regularly needs undergarments, towels,<br />

and art supplies for children, who often<br />

use creative outlets to deal with <strong>the</strong>ir<br />

emotional trauma. NCF also favors helping<br />

children who are disadvantaged,<br />

disabled and terminally ill, along with<br />

national charities such as <strong>the</strong> American<br />

Heart <strong>Association</strong>, Cystic Fibrosis <strong>Association</strong>,<br />

and Habitat for Humanity.<br />

Visiting terminally ill children and<br />

disadvantaged people surviving on <strong>the</strong><br />

edge of poverty can be uncomfortable,<br />

Darrell Meachum says. But, he adds, “You<br />

know that you’ve done something for <strong>the</strong><br />

good of <strong>the</strong> community and that you’ve<br />

given something back in <strong>the</strong> name of<br />

your profession and your union.”<br />

Cathy Meachum notes that persuading<br />

detail-oriented controllers to<br />

donate is sometimes a challenge. “They<br />

want to know <strong>the</strong> full picture before <strong>the</strong>y<br />

commit to anything,” she says. “But once<br />

<strong>the</strong>y see it, <strong>the</strong>y jump in full body. They<br />

are overwhelmingly generous.”<br />

Relying on her background running<br />

auctions for <strong>the</strong> American Cancer<br />

Society, Cathy Meachum planned a similar<br />

event for NCF’s first official function.<br />

Starting in 1996, <strong>the</strong> organization has<br />

also raised money through silent auctions<br />

at every NATCA convention.<br />

When Darrell was called to <strong>the</strong><br />

podium to announce <strong>the</strong> winner of <strong>the</strong><br />

raffle grand prize at <strong>the</strong> closing banquet<br />

that first year, <strong>the</strong>n-Executive Vice Presi-<br />

May May<br />

22<br />

The FLRA certifies NATCA as <strong>the</strong> exclusive bargaining representative<br />

for <strong>the</strong> FAA’s AOS-200/260 engineers in Oklahoma<br />

City.<br />

25<br />

dent Michael McNally introduced him as<br />

“Mr. Cathy Meachum.”<br />

At <strong>the</strong> biennial ga<strong>the</strong>ring in Anchorage<br />

in 2000, where <strong>the</strong> foundation raised<br />

more than $17,000, <strong>the</strong> union officially<br />

recognized her ongoing efforts with an<br />

honorary lifetime membership. It was <strong>the</strong><br />

first time NATCA bestowed <strong>the</strong> tribute<br />

on someone wholly outside <strong>the</strong> air traffic<br />

control profession (fellow lifetime member<br />

Bob Taylor is not a controller, but has<br />

worked for <strong>the</strong> union since 1991). Cathy<br />

Meachum, who’d been an associate member<br />

for seven years, is a dental hygienist.<br />

“I just couldn’t believe it,” she says.<br />

“That’s an honor beyond expression.”<br />

Web site: http://ncf.natca.net<br />

The FLRA certifies NATCA as <strong>the</strong> exclusive bargaining representative<br />

for <strong>the</strong> FAA’s 600 traffic management coordinators.


for management, one clause stated that controllers<br />

who had become temporary supervisors or worked<br />

in staff positions would lose all <strong>the</strong>ir seniority unless<br />

<strong>the</strong>y returned to <strong>the</strong> bargaining unit within a 30-day<br />

grace period.<br />

Never<strong>the</strong>less, a grounds well of support from<br />

smaller facilities helped<br />

pass <strong>the</strong> resolution for a<br />

national policy by a whisker.<br />

The roll-call vote of<br />

4,706 to 4,573 amounted<br />

to 50.7 percent approval.<br />

In a 5-4 regional split, Alaskan,<br />

Central, Great Lakes,<br />

New England and Sou<strong>the</strong>rn<br />

favored <strong>the</strong> change, while<br />

Eastern, Northwest Mountain,<br />

Southwest and Western-Pacific<br />

were opposed.<br />

Kevin Keener, a controller<br />

at Napa Tower in<br />

California, characterizes<br />

<strong>the</strong> outcome as “monumental”<br />

in terms of <strong>the</strong> power of small- and mediumsized<br />

facilities. “It was <strong>the</strong> first time it showed <strong>the</strong><br />

body that when you collectively get toge<strong>the</strong>r as a unit<br />

you have a voice,” he says.<br />

The FAA filed a grievance on <strong>the</strong> grounds that<br />

<strong>the</strong> union’s 1993 contract stipulated seniority would<br />

1<br />

June<br />

“<br />

We had to stand up and make<br />

one policy for each and every<br />

controller to make it fair. It’s<br />

about time we had one policy.<br />

be set at <strong>the</strong> local level. Contending that <strong>the</strong> locals<br />

were still controlling <strong>the</strong> policy—under direction<br />

from <strong>the</strong> national office—Krasner denied <strong>the</strong> grievance<br />

with great relish. In a rare role reversal, former<br />

Executive Vice President Joseph Bellino testified on<br />

behalf of <strong>the</strong> agency during an FLRA hearing on<br />

a separate unfair labor<br />

practice charge concerning<br />

<strong>the</strong> rights of nonmembers.<br />

— Poughkeepsie Tower facility rep<br />

Barrett Byrnes<br />

The FLRA certifies NATCA as <strong>the</strong> exclusive bargaining representative for<br />

<strong>the</strong> FAA’s 180 automation specialists (AOS 300/400).<br />

Bellino believed<br />

<strong>the</strong> NATCA delegates<br />

had adopted <strong>the</strong> policy<br />

illegally by not stating<br />

<strong>the</strong>y were speaking on<br />

behalf of all controllers<br />

ra<strong>the</strong>r than just union<br />

members. He based his<br />

argument on a case involving<br />

ano<strong>the</strong>r union, in<br />

which a non-member was<br />

prohibited from voting on<br />

<strong>the</strong> seniority policy.<br />

William Osborne argued for NATCA that <strong>the</strong><br />

contract authorized <strong>the</strong> union to determine seniority,<br />

its national policy was lawful, and that non-members<br />

had no right to vote. The administrative law judge<br />

ruled against NATCA, leaving <strong>the</strong> union in <strong>the</strong> difficult<br />

position of having to decide whe<strong>the</strong>r to capitu-<br />

Chapter 6: Spreading its Wings<br />

207


208<br />

<strong>Against</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>Wind</strong><br />

Taking a stand: Beth Thomas weighs in with her views on a proposed<br />

national seniority policy at <strong>the</strong> 1996 convention in Pittsburgh.<br />

2000<br />

26<br />

June<br />

late or appeal and risk a potentially enormous back<br />

pay liability that continued to mount.<br />

But Krasner believed NATCA’s actions were morally<br />

and legally right, and chose to appeal. Fortunately, <strong>the</strong><br />

full FLRA overturned <strong>the</strong> judge’s decision a year later.<br />

The U.S. District Court rules for <strong>the</strong> second time that <strong>the</strong> FAA has not<br />

made a valid decision on whe<strong>the</strong>r air traffic control is an “inherently<br />

governmental” function. The court leaves <strong>the</strong> existing contract tower<br />

NATCA archives<br />

Delegates debated <strong>the</strong> fractious issue for a day and a half before narrowly<br />

adopting <strong>the</strong> policy by a vote of 50.7 percent.<br />

Bellino’s actions on behalf of <strong>the</strong> agency<br />

angered many NATCA members. Aside from his<br />

brief testimony, he sat at <strong>the</strong> FAA table during <strong>the</strong><br />

hearing. Consequently, he lost his bid for president<br />

against McNally in 1997 (and John Carr in 2000).<br />

Soon after, Bellino was removed<br />

as facility rep at Chicago TRA-<br />

CON when he refused to implement<br />

<strong>the</strong> new policy.<br />

The topic of seniority arose<br />

again at <strong>the</strong> 1998 convention in<br />

Seattle. Many controllers were<br />

still unhappy. During contract<br />

negotiations <strong>the</strong> previous spring,<br />

<strong>the</strong> FAA had pressured NATCA to<br />

soften a punitive aspect of <strong>the</strong> policy,<br />

which discouraged controllers<br />

from seeking management or staff<br />

positions because <strong>the</strong>y would forfeit<br />

all previously accrued time.<br />

After a day and a half of debate,<br />

delegates modified <strong>the</strong> policy so<br />

that only time spent outside <strong>the</strong><br />

bargaining unit was lost.<br />

The issue was brought up<br />

once more during <strong>the</strong> Anchorage<br />

convention in 2000, but delegates<br />

voted overwhelmingly against<br />

considering any modifications.<br />

program in place. For <strong>the</strong> second time, NATCA asks <strong>the</strong> U.S. Court of<br />

Appeals to discontinue <strong>the</strong> program.


Breaking <strong>the</strong> Glass Ceiling<br />

By 2000, President Michael McNally had been<br />

traveling away from home for nearly a decade as national<br />

QTP coordinator, executive vice president, and<br />

president. His two daughters on Long Island were<br />

growing up without him and his wife, Maria, was<br />

unhappy over <strong>the</strong> lengthy absences. Succumbing to<br />

her wishes, McNally decided not to run for re-election<br />

and publicly endorsed John Carr.<br />

After helping to organize controllers at Kansas<br />

City Tower/TRACON during NATCA’s certification<br />

drive, Carr blazed <strong>the</strong> trail as facility rep <strong>the</strong>re. He<br />

<strong>the</strong>n moved on to spend ten years at Chicago TRA-<br />

CON, serving in every elected position in <strong>the</strong> local<br />

and frequently contributing to <strong>the</strong> facility’s newsletter,<br />

Intentionally Left Blank, an early indication of his<br />

reliance on communication.<br />

Carr was now working at Cleveland Tower/<br />

TRACON to be with his new wife, Jill, who was also a<br />

controller at <strong>the</strong> facility. Quick-witted and articulate,<br />

he’d gained national visibility as a member of <strong>the</strong><br />

1998 contract team and wrote <strong>the</strong> preamble, which<br />

stated in part, “The true measure of our success will<br />

not be <strong>the</strong> number of disagreements we resolve, but<br />

ra<strong>the</strong>r <strong>the</strong> trust, honor, and integrity with which <strong>the</strong><br />

parties jointly administer this agreement.”<br />

His campaign platform emphasized open<br />

communication, a stark difference from McNally’s<br />

12<br />

July<br />

FAA Administrator Jane Garvey, numerous o<strong>the</strong>r agency and union<br />

dignitaries, and rank-and-file members attend a ceremony to dedicate<br />

NATCA’s new headquarters as <strong>the</strong> Krasner Building. The main conference<br />

close-to-<strong>the</strong>-vest style, and reflected Carr’s down-toearth,<br />

no-nonsense attitude. He referred to himself<br />

as Johnny <strong>the</strong> Bull, a nickname he acquired during<br />

negotiations for <strong>the</strong> collective bargaining agreement.<br />

Chapter 6: Spreading its Wings<br />

area on <strong>the</strong> first floor is named <strong>the</strong> Michael McNally Conference Room.<br />

McNally presents Howie Barte with a plaque honoring him for his role in<br />

creating <strong>the</strong> NATCA logo.<br />

209<br />

Heading home: President Michael McNally<br />

(shown in a playful moment during <strong>the</strong><br />

2000 convention in Anchorage) had<br />

decided not to run for re-election when<br />

he chaired <strong>the</strong> ga<strong>the</strong>ring. He’d been on <strong>the</strong><br />

road for NATCA for nine years. / Frank Flavin


210<br />

<strong>Against</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>Wind</strong><br />

John Carr: After NATCA’s fourth<br />

president took office in 2000, he expanded<br />

communication with <strong>the</strong> membership and<br />

mounted an aggressive PR campaign to<br />

advance <strong>the</strong> union’s perspective on flight<br />

delays and privatization. / NATCA archives<br />

2000<br />

Although its origin is a closely guarded contract team<br />

secret, <strong>the</strong> moniker came to typify Carr’s tenaciousness<br />

and his campaign materials often included <strong>the</strong><br />

slogan: “Want no bull? Then know Bull.”<br />

Members welcomed <strong>the</strong> refreshing change and<br />

elected Carr in a landslide over Joseph Bellino, who<br />

was seeking <strong>the</strong> presidency for<br />

a second time, and Atlanta<br />

Center’s Lee Riley, who<br />

was mounting his third<br />

attempt.<br />

After taking office,<br />

Carr established<br />

himself as <strong>the</strong> communications<br />

president<br />

in several ways. Taking<br />

a cue from Rodney<br />

Turner, he posted detailed<br />

weekly updates on<br />

<strong>the</strong> Web to keep <strong>the</strong> membership<br />

informed about union activities.<br />

He also made it a priority to meet with <strong>the</strong> editorial<br />

boards of major newspapers such as The New York<br />

Times, The Washington Post, and Chicago Tribune.<br />

As his administration progressed, <strong>the</strong> Communications<br />

Department underwent a metamorphosis.<br />

Dealings with <strong>the</strong> news media became more<br />

proactive, <strong>the</strong> Web site expanded fur<strong>the</strong>r, and staff<br />

members produced a redesigned newsletter as well<br />

July Aug.<br />

14<br />

The FLRA certifies NATCA as <strong>the</strong> exclusive bargaining representative<br />

for <strong>the</strong> FAA’s Aviation Systems Standards specialists<br />

and seventy-five AOS-510 engineers in Oklahoma City.<br />

23<br />

as several o<strong>the</strong>r special interest publications for <strong>the</strong><br />

membership.<br />

Like McNally, Executive Vice President Randy<br />

Schwitz had spent a decade on <strong>the</strong> national board<br />

and was ready to go back to Atlanta Center. He still<br />

enjoyed widespread support, however, and says he<br />

“let people talk me into” a bid for re-election. He<br />

faced challenges by Will Faville Jr., <strong>the</strong> former<br />

Alaskan regional rep and safety and technology<br />

director who was making a second<br />

run for <strong>the</strong> position, and Ruth Marlin<br />

from Miami Center.<br />

Marlin joined <strong>the</strong> FAA in 1990<br />

and became actively involved in <strong>the</strong><br />

union’s local after checking out as a controller.<br />

She attended NATCA’s second annual<br />

Lobby Week in Washington, saw <strong>the</strong><br />

power of political activism, and persuaded<br />

<strong>the</strong> Miami Center local to establish its own<br />

legislative representative, a position Marlin initially<br />

occupied.<br />

When Congress threatened to abolish <strong>the</strong> 5<br />

percent differential for controllers, she worked with<br />

Miami Tower controller Andy Cantwell and Barry<br />

Wilson from Fort Lauderdale Executive Tower to<br />

form a group of seven facilities called <strong>the</strong> South Florida<br />

Legislative Committee to mount a coordinated<br />

lobbying effort. The ongoing success of this group<br />

became a model for similar organizational structures<br />

The FLRA certifies NATCA as <strong>the</strong> exclusive bargaining representative<br />

for <strong>the</strong> FAA’s 30 occupational health specialists,<br />

occupational health nurses, and medical program assistants.


NATCA Racing<br />

The red-and-blue NATCA logo, a<br />

visual symbol of <strong>the</strong> union’s identity<br />

since before certification in 1987, has<br />

appeared on shirts and jackets, pins and<br />

belt buckles, coffee mugs and key rings. It<br />

has graced <strong>the</strong> walls of air traffic control<br />

facilities and homes, and can be seen on<br />

many members’ cars and trucks.<br />

On Memorial Day weekend 1998,<br />

<strong>the</strong> logo debuted in a new venue: <strong>the</strong> Indianapolis<br />

500. Its appearance represented<br />

<strong>the</strong> union’s sponsorship of a car driven<br />

by Sam Schmidt, a recent contender on<br />

<strong>the</strong> circuit who placed sixth at Indy and<br />

won <strong>the</strong> Las Vegas 500K in 1999.<br />

Schmidt had been racing since he<br />

was 5. He owned a car, but needed sponsors<br />

when he met Taylor Koonce, a racing<br />

fan and controller at Indianapolis Tower/<br />

TRACON. Showing <strong>the</strong> union’s colors at<br />

major spectator sports events appealed to<br />

Koonce, as well as o<strong>the</strong>rs in <strong>the</strong> local and<br />

across <strong>the</strong> field at Indianapolis Center.<br />

They also saw it as a natural pairing given<br />

that controllers frequently work in temporary<br />

towers at races to handle <strong>the</strong> influx of<br />

drivers, pit crews, and spectators.<br />

The two Indianapolis locals soon<br />

began selling stylish polo shirts with<br />

�<br />

checkered trim, Sam Schmidt’s autograph<br />

and car number—99—and a “NATCA<br />

Racing” logo to help underwrite <strong>the</strong> cost<br />

of sponsorship. “It’s a win-win situation,”<br />

says Koonce, who spent ten years as a<br />

Navy controller before joining <strong>the</strong> FAA in<br />

1988. “The more we go to <strong>the</strong> track, <strong>the</strong><br />

more people recognize <strong>the</strong> shirts. They<br />

get to know controllers.”<br />

NATCA’s involvement took on<br />

new meaning in January 2000 after <strong>the</strong><br />

35-year-old Schmidt suffered critical<br />

injuries in an accident at <strong>the</strong> Walt<br />

Disney World Speedway in Bay Lake,<br />

Florida. Supported by a respirator for<br />

months, he was diagnosed as a quadriplegic.<br />

For <strong>the</strong> Schmidt family, history<br />

had repeated itself. Sam’s fa<strong>the</strong>r, Marvin,<br />

remains partially paralyzed from a<br />

racing accident that occurred when his<br />

son was 10.<br />

When <strong>the</strong> family established <strong>the</strong><br />

Sam Schmidt Paralysis Foundation, NAT-<br />

CA Racing proceeds from an expanded<br />

line of clothing sales were redirected<br />

toward spinal cord research. A year later,<br />

<strong>the</strong> foundation turned over $50,000<br />

in donations from <strong>the</strong> union and o<strong>the</strong>r<br />

sources to <strong>the</strong> Washington University<br />

Chapter 6: Spreading its Wings<br />

Japphire<br />

Clothing for a cause: A portion of proceeds from<br />

shirt sales helps underwrite spinal cord research.<br />

School of Medicine in St. Louis.<br />

Schmidt, who hopes to benefit<br />

from that research someday, has not been<br />

content to limit himself to daily physical<br />

<strong>the</strong>rapy. In 2001, he formed a team and<br />

returned to racing. “Sam is not a quitter,”<br />

Koonce says. “He continues to strive for<br />

excellence, and that’s very representative<br />

of NATCA.”<br />

In 2002, <strong>the</strong> union began sponsoring<br />

NASCAR Winston Cup star<br />

Bobby Labonte, who won <strong>the</strong> Virginia<br />

500 in April.<br />

211


John<br />

Carr<br />

President<br />

2000 — Pre s e n t<br />

niC k n a m e / Op e r a t i n g in i t i a l s:<br />

Johnny <strong>the</strong> Bull / CY<br />

HO m e t O w n : Washington, D.C.<br />

sp O u s e / CHildre n:<br />

Jill / Rachael Diana<br />

Ot Her tr i v i a:<br />

NATCA archives<br />

Fluent in Spanish; visited more than<br />

50 nations and 45 states<br />

in t e r e s t s:<br />

Travel, football, sailing, swimming<br />

ATC FACiliTies<br />

Cu r r e n t:<br />

pr e v i O u s: CLE<br />

C90<br />

MCI<br />

NO <strong>National</strong> Office<br />

Tower/TRACON<br />

TRACON<br />

Tower/TRACON<br />

When John Carr moved to Washington after<br />

his election as NATCA’s fourth president in<br />

2000, it was a homecoming, of sorts. Carr grew up<br />

in <strong>the</strong> D.C. area, where he delivered The Washington<br />

Post and observed <strong>the</strong> workings of <strong>the</strong> Beltway<br />

through his fa<strong>the</strong>r, a career civil servant who<br />

eschewed unions and regarded his son’s eventual<br />

interest as a hobby.<br />

An understatement, indeed. Carr’s passionate<br />

devotion stems from an overriding concern for<br />

o<strong>the</strong>rs, a sense of fairness and empathy—he once<br />

equated a woman’s tears at work with men who<br />

kick walls in frustration—tempered with intolerance<br />

for reckless authority.<br />

Carr spent four years as a Navy controller<br />

in Corpus Christi, Texas, and aboard <strong>the</strong> USS<br />

Eisenhower, including a 152-day deployment at<br />

sea without a port call—a record that stood for<br />

twenty-two years. He turned down a job offer from<br />

<strong>the</strong> FAA a few days after <strong>the</strong> strike, but reconsidered<br />

when his bro<strong>the</strong>r counseled him on his career<br />

options. Five months later, he joined <strong>the</strong> agency<br />

and soon certified as a journeyman at Kansas City<br />

Tower/TRACON.<br />

NATCA’s petition drive reached America’s<br />

heartland in 1986, whereupon Carr organized his<br />

facility and became <strong>the</strong> local’s first president. Two<br />

years later, O’Hare’s renowned traffic drew him to<br />

Chicago TRACON. The joy of serving in a variety<br />

Pr e v i o u s NATCA Po s iT i oN s / AC h i e v e m e N T s<br />

1998 contract team; all elected positions at Chicago<br />

TRACON; first local president at Kansas City<br />

Tower/TRACON; facility rep training instructor.<br />

hir e d<br />

Jan.<br />

1982<br />

of positions, including facility rep, wedded him to<br />

<strong>the</strong> union. It also contributed to a divorce.<br />

Unlike NATCA’s previous presidents, Carr’s<br />

election to <strong>the</strong> top office was not predicated on<br />

<strong>National</strong> Executive Board experience. Instead, he<br />

made <strong>the</strong> leap using his articulate flair, involvement<br />

with <strong>the</strong> 1998 contract team, and <strong>the</strong> consent<br />

of his new wife, Jill, a controller at Cleveland<br />

Hopkins <strong>Air</strong>port. After <strong>the</strong> couple married in July<br />

1998, Carr transferred to Cleveland, where <strong>the</strong><br />

newlyweds intended to settle down and start a<br />

family.<br />

But union activists had ano<strong>the</strong>r agenda and<br />

nominated Carr for president. Determined not to<br />

repeat personal history, John ceded 51 percent of<br />

<strong>the</strong> decision to run to Jill. His wife reminded him<br />

that she was a NATCA member, too, and believed<br />

he was <strong>the</strong> best candidate.<br />

Taking <strong>the</strong> reins of a maturing union, Carr<br />

has proven adept at framing public debate on key<br />

issues such as flight delays and privatization while<br />

streng<strong>the</strong>ning communication with <strong>the</strong> membership.<br />

“I’ve become a huge success in every corner<br />

of my life by giving Jill that 51 percent,” he says.<br />

Part of that good fortune recently paid a dividend.<br />

On March 14, 2002, <strong>the</strong> couple celebrated <strong>the</strong> birth<br />

of a blue-eyed, red-haired beauty named Rachael<br />

Diana.


in o<strong>the</strong>r metropolitan areas. Marlin later served as<br />

chairwoman of <strong>the</strong> Sou<strong>the</strong>rn Region Legislative<br />

Committee for several months before moving on to<br />

lead <strong>the</strong> <strong>National</strong> Legislative Committee.<br />

In <strong>the</strong> wake of <strong>the</strong> Chapter 71 battle, which she<br />

regarded as a “coming of age” in NATCA’s education<br />

about legislative activism, Marlin set about changing<br />

<strong>the</strong> nature of Lobby Week. Scheduled in advance, <strong>the</strong><br />

annual event might not coincide with a timely issue,<br />

and this could diminish its effectiveness.<br />

Marlin hoped to promote training and<br />

long-term relationships with Congress “that<br />

would enable us to work issues in <strong>the</strong> district<br />

year round ra<strong>the</strong>r than have our grass-roots<br />

legislative success hinge on a few days in<br />

D.C.,” she says. Krasner and McNally agreed,<br />

and <strong>the</strong> union held its first no-issue “NATCA<br />

in Washington” in 1997.<br />

With o<strong>the</strong>r goals in mind and hoping<br />

to avoid being typecast, Marlin decided against<br />

running for a second term as <strong>National</strong> Legislative<br />

Committee chairwoman. A year later, she worked on<br />

terminal and en route issues as a full-time NATCA<br />

liaison in <strong>Air</strong> <strong>Traffic</strong> Requirements at FAA headquarters<br />

before returning to <strong>the</strong> boards at Miami Center<br />

in <strong>the</strong> spring of 2000. During this time, she decided<br />

to campaign for executive vice president at <strong>the</strong> urging<br />

of Jim Poole, <strong>the</strong> Great Lakes Region vice president.<br />

Like Carr and many o<strong>the</strong>r members, Marlin was<br />

2000<br />

frustrated by <strong>the</strong> recent lack of communication from<br />

headquarters and believed that a top-down attitude<br />

had started to disenfranchise <strong>the</strong> rank and file.<br />

When <strong>the</strong> ballots were counted, Faville placed<br />

a distant third. Marlin surpassed Schwitz, but nei<strong>the</strong>r<br />

carried a majority. Voters faced a distinct choice.<br />

Schwitz had a strong labor-relations<br />

background, ran <strong>the</strong> national office<br />

in McNally’s absence, and represented<br />

continuity at headquarters.<br />

Marlin was part of<br />

<strong>the</strong> younger generation of<br />

controllers hired in <strong>the</strong> past<br />

decade, someone who embraced<br />

open communication,<br />

and sought to achieve<br />

<strong>the</strong> union’s goals by influencing<br />

Congress and <strong>the</strong><br />

news media.<br />

During a runoff election,<br />

Marlin did not campaign<br />

and continued to focus on re-certifying<br />

at <strong>the</strong> center to help stay in touch with life in <strong>the</strong><br />

field, a decision she now calls “foolishness.” Indeed,<br />

her original 458-vote lead dwindled to just sixteen<br />

votes in <strong>the</strong> runoff. Ballots were tabulated in <strong>the</strong> firstfloor<br />

conference room at headquarters using dollarbill<br />

counters and workers conducted several tallies to<br />

verify <strong>the</strong> results.<br />

Aug. Sep.<br />

31<br />

The FLRA certifies NATCA as <strong>the</strong> exclusive bargaining representative<br />

for 263 FAA workers in <strong>the</strong> <strong>Air</strong>ports Division and<br />

airport district offices.<br />

8<br />

Chapter 6: Spreading its Wings<br />

213<br />

Ruth Marlin: After attending <strong>the</strong> union’s<br />

Lobby Week in 1994, she became a strong<br />

advocate of maintaining close ties with<br />

lawmakers in Congress. / NATCA archives<br />

The FLRA certifies NATCA as <strong>the</strong> exclusive bargaining representative<br />

for 13 FAA workers in <strong>the</strong> <strong>Air</strong>worthiness Programs<br />

Branch.


214<br />

2000<br />

<strong>Against</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>Wind</strong><br />

12<br />

When Marlin took her place on <strong>the</strong> <strong>National</strong><br />

Executive Board (and began posting weekly updates<br />

on <strong>the</strong> Web, too), she joined Carol Branaman, <strong>the</strong><br />

newly elected Northwest Mountain Region vice<br />

president. It was <strong>the</strong> first time in NATCA’s history<br />

that women served on<br />

<strong>the</strong> board.<br />

While Branaman<br />

is happy to see that rep-<br />

resentation in <strong>the</strong> union’s<br />

leadership, she says it was<br />

not <strong>the</strong> reason she campaigned<br />

for <strong>the</strong> position.<br />

“There’s a point at which<br />

an organization has to<br />

decide that it’s a union—<br />

principally, to make it a<br />

union ra<strong>the</strong>r than a loosely<br />

knit group of regions,<br />

all of which were going<br />

<strong>the</strong>ir own way.”<br />

Branaman had<br />

been a union member<br />

most of her adult life.<br />

The FAA hired her at<br />

Daytona Beach Tower/TRACON in 1975 and she<br />

later became a PATCO facility rep. As one of <strong>the</strong><br />

first women in <strong>the</strong> tower, she encountered unique,<br />

and often petty, issues.<br />

Sep. Sep.<br />

The FLRA certifies NATCA as <strong>the</strong> exclusive bargaining representative<br />

for 532 FAA workers in <strong>the</strong> <strong>Air</strong>craft Certification<br />

Service.<br />

“<br />

There’s a point at which an<br />

organization has to decide<br />

that it’s a union—principally,<br />

to make it a union ra<strong>the</strong>r<br />

than a loosely knit group of<br />

regions, all of which were<br />

going <strong>the</strong>ir own way.<br />

The manager’s daughter accompanied Branaman<br />

to lunch on her first day at work because, <strong>the</strong><br />

young woman explained, her fa<strong>the</strong>r didn’t know what<br />

to do with his new female employee. When Branaman<br />

issued clearances to pilots, she often endured long silences<br />

before hearing <strong>the</strong><br />

incredulous response, “Is<br />

that a girl talking?”<br />

Branaman trans-<br />

— Northwest Mountain Region<br />

VP Carol Branaman<br />

17<br />

ferred to Denver Centennial<br />

Tower in May<br />

1981 after resolving<br />

not to strike, a decision<br />

prompted by her perception<br />

that <strong>the</strong> impending<br />

walkout was more about<br />

<strong>the</strong> leadership than <strong>the</strong><br />

membership. Though<br />

not involved in organizing<br />

NATCA, she joined<br />

<strong>the</strong> union after it was<br />

certified and ultimately<br />

became <strong>the</strong> facility rep.<br />

She also served on several<br />

projects, including FAA<br />

reform and <strong>the</strong> 1998 contract team, before running<br />

for <strong>the</strong> <strong>National</strong> Executive Board in 2000.<br />

Her campaign manager, Denver Center facility<br />

rep Chris Monaldi, remembers <strong>the</strong> night Branaman<br />

About 260 participants attend “NATCA in Washington.” Membership<br />

financial contributions during <strong>the</strong> week push <strong>the</strong> union’s<br />

PAC over <strong>the</strong> $1 million mark for <strong>the</strong> first time.


2000<br />

The Fifth <strong>National</strong> Executive Board<br />

Four new<br />

faces joined <strong>the</strong><br />

board in 2000:<br />

Alaskan:<br />

Incumbent Ricky<br />

Thompson from<br />

Anchorage Center<br />

easily defeated<br />

Doug Holland to<br />

win his second<br />

term.<br />

Holland<br />

worked at Chicago<br />

TRACON and his<br />

candidacy involved<br />

an interesting quirk in <strong>the</strong> union’s constitution.<br />

Candidates are permitted to run<br />

for vice president in regions o<strong>the</strong>r than<br />

where <strong>the</strong>y work; however, controllers<br />

can vote only in <strong>the</strong>ir own region.<br />

Central: John Tune from Kansas<br />

City Center beat incumbent Bill Otto<br />

from St. Louis TRACON.<br />

Eastern: Incumbent Joe Fruscella<br />

from New York TRACON ran unopposed<br />

for his third term.<br />

Great Lakes: In his second campaign<br />

for <strong>the</strong> position, Alternate Regional<br />

Vice President Pat Forrey from Cleveland<br />

�<br />

Chapter 6: Spreading its Wings<br />

NATCA archives<br />

The current leadership: NATCA’s fifth <strong>National</strong> Executive Board includes, from left: John Tune; Central; Jim D’Agati; Engineers & Architects; President<br />

John Carr; Rodney Turner, Sou<strong>the</strong>rn; Carol Branaman; Northwest Mountain; Mark Pallone, Southwest; Pat Forrey, Great Lakes; Mike Blake,<br />

New England; Kevin McGrath, Western-Pacific; Ricky Thompson, Alaskan; Executive Vice President Ruth Marlin; and Joe Fruscella, Eastern.<br />

Center edged out Kevin Christy from<br />

Chicago Center.<br />

New England: Incumbent Mike<br />

Blake from Boston Center ran unopposed<br />

for his second term.<br />

Northwest Mountain: Carol<br />

Branaman from Denver Centennial Tower<br />

defeated Mike Motta from Seattle TRA-<br />

CON.<br />

Sou<strong>the</strong>rn: Incumbent Rodney<br />

Turner from Nashville Metro Tower/<br />

TRACON won a second term by beating<br />

1998 contract team member Andy<br />

Cantwell from Miami Tower.<br />

Southwest: Eric Owens from<br />

Houston TRACON outpolled incumbent<br />

Mark Pallone from Dallas-Fort Worth<br />

TRACON, but nei<strong>the</strong>r earned a majority.<br />

Dennis McGee from DFW Tower also ran<br />

and collected 19.5 percent of <strong>the</strong> vote. In<br />

a runoff, Pallone retained his seat for a<br />

second term.<br />

Western-Pacific: Kevin McGrath<br />

from Sou<strong>the</strong>rn California TRACON defeated<br />

incumbent Gus Guerra from Oakland<br />

Center, making this <strong>the</strong> only region<br />

to select a new vice president in each of<br />

NATCA’s five national elections.<br />

215


216<br />

19xx<br />

<strong>Against</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>Wind</strong><br />

2000 Election<br />

Results<br />

�<br />

President<br />

John Carr Great Lakes Cleveland TRACON 4,446 61.7<br />

Joseph M. Bellino Great Lakes Chicago TRACON 1,396 19.4<br />

F. Lee Riley Sou<strong>the</strong>rn Atlanta Center 1,369 18.9<br />

Executive Vice President<br />

Ruth Marlin Sou<strong>the</strong>rn Miami Center 3,401 47.0 3,437 50.1<br />

Randy Schwitz / incumbent Sou<strong>the</strong>rn Atlanta Center 2,943 40.6 3,421 49.9<br />

Will Faville Jr. Great Lakes Muskegon Twr./TRACON 897 12.4<br />

Regional Vice Presidents<br />

Votes Percent<br />

Alaskan<br />

Ricky Thompson / incumb. Anchorage Center 104 98.1<br />

Doug Holland<br />

Central<br />

Chicago Center 2 1.9<br />

John Tune Kansas City Center 201 54.6<br />

Bill Otto / incumbent<br />

Eastern<br />

St. Louis TRACON 167 45.4<br />

Joe Fruscella / incumbent<br />

Great Lakes<br />

New York TRACON 975 100.0<br />

Pat Forrey Cleveland Center 780 56.0<br />

Kevin Christy<br />

New England<br />

Chicago Center 614 44.0<br />

Mike Blake / incumbent<br />

Northwest Mountain<br />

Boston Center 237 100.0<br />

Carol Branaman Denver Centennial Tower 306 56.1<br />

Mike Motta Seattle TRACON 239 43.9<br />

Runoff<br />

Votes<br />

Runoff<br />

Percent


Sou<strong>the</strong>rn<br />

Rodney Turner / incumbent Nashville Metro Twr./TRA. 853 56.2<br />

Andy Cantwell<br />

Southwest<br />

Miami Tower 665 43.8<br />

Mark Pallone / incumbent DFW TRACON 304 34.4 474 54.0<br />

Eric Owens Houston TRACON 407 46.1 403 46.0<br />

Dennis McGee<br />

Western-Pacific<br />

DFW Tower 172 19.5<br />

Kevin McGrath Sou<strong>the</strong>rn Calif. TRACON 398 40.1 621 56.3<br />

Gus Guerra / incumbent Oakland Center 350 35.3 482 43.7<br />

Tony Yushinsky Tucson TRACON 186 18.8<br />

Howie Rifas John Wayne Tower 58 5.8<br />

Engineers and Architects (special election in 1999)<br />

Jim D’Agati Great Lakes 107 47.8 126 57.5<br />

Pete Healy Southwest 108 48.2 93 42.5<br />

James “Ajax” Kidd Washington Center 9 4.0<br />

Engineers and Architects (regular election in 2000)<br />

Votes Percent<br />

Jim D’Agati / incumbent Great Lakes 184 100.0<br />

Runoff<br />

Votes<br />

Runoff<br />

Percent<br />

Chapter 6: Spreading its Wings<br />

217


Ruth<br />

Marlin<br />

Executive Vice President<br />

2000 — Pre s e n t<br />

Op e r a t i n g in i t i a l s: SL<br />

HOm e t O w n : Joppatowne, Maryland<br />

sp O u s e / CHildre n:<br />

Scott / Sean<br />

Ot Her tr i v i a:<br />

Hiked across <strong>the</strong> Grand Canyon<br />

in t e r e s t s:<br />

Skiing, art, entertaining<br />

Peter Cutts<br />

ATC FACiliTies<br />

Cu r r e n t:<br />

pr e v i O u s: ZMA<br />

NO <strong>National</strong> Office<br />

Center<br />

Ruth Marlin stumbled into <strong>the</strong> profession of air<br />

traffic control, but she quickly developed a<br />

passion for NATCA and a vision for increasing <strong>the</strong><br />

union’s influence. While selling ads for <strong>the</strong> Yellow<br />

Pages in Deerfield Beach, Florida, she heard a radio<br />

commercial about <strong>the</strong> FAA’s entrance exam for<br />

controllers and took <strong>the</strong> test one Saturday morning<br />

“because I had nothing better to do.”<br />

By <strong>the</strong> time <strong>the</strong> agency hired her eleven<br />

months later, she’d worked at a chiropractor’s office<br />

and maintained <strong>the</strong> computer network at a venture<br />

capital firm. Although not thrilled about <strong>the</strong> prospect<br />

of living in Oklahoma City during training,<br />

“I had a really good time at <strong>the</strong> academy,” Marlin<br />

says, and she soon discovered <strong>the</strong> exciting challenge<br />

of her new career.<br />

After checking out at Miami Center, she<br />

began lobbying to get involved in <strong>the</strong> union local<br />

and was appointed treasurer (later elected to two<br />

terms). Then-facility rep Tim Leonard encouraged<br />

Marlin’s activism and she was assigned to attend<br />

Lobby Week. Those four days in Washington in<br />

1994 changed her life in NATCA.<br />

“It was great. It was three hundred people,”<br />

she says. “It was that big NATCA love.”<br />

Rubbing shoulders with so many activists<br />

who shared similar interests energized her. Among<br />

<strong>the</strong> participants was Trish Gilbert, a former Hous-<br />

Pr e v i o u s NATCA Po s iT i oN s / AC h i e v e m e N T s<br />

Chairwoman of Nat’l. Leg. Comm., Sou<strong>the</strong>rn Reg.<br />

Leg. Comm.; South Florida leg. rep; liaison to FAA;<br />

earned B.A. and M.A. at George Meany campus.<br />

hir e d<br />

Dec.<br />

1990<br />

ton Center facility rep whom Marlin regarded as<br />

an idol because “she had clearly earned <strong>the</strong> respect<br />

of her peers with her effortless leadership style.”<br />

Marlin returned to Miami with a heightened sense<br />

of political awareness, became <strong>the</strong> center’s first<br />

legislative rep, and helped create <strong>the</strong> South Florida<br />

Legislative Committee to lobby for preserving <strong>the</strong> 5<br />

percent operational differential paid to controllers.<br />

Like o<strong>the</strong>r legislative activists, Marlin viewed<br />

Congress as a needed ally as much, if not more,<br />

than <strong>the</strong> FAA. To help increase membership awareness<br />

in this regard, she spearheaded a philosophical<br />

shift in Lobby Week, a $200,000 annual event,<br />

to a more educational orientation ra<strong>the</strong>r than<br />

focusing on a single issue.<br />

“It’s an open door,” Marlin says. “Fac rep<br />

training is for fac reps. Conventions are for delegates.<br />

But Lobby Week is for anyone who wants to<br />

show up and learn.”<br />

The evolution of <strong>the</strong> renamed NATCA in<br />

Washington occurred while Marlin served as<br />

chairwoman of <strong>the</strong> <strong>National</strong> Legislative Committee,<br />

experience that paved <strong>the</strong> way to her election<br />

as executive vice president in 2000. Her work in<br />

<strong>the</strong> legislative arena has attracted accolades from<br />

many members. One of her most cherished compliments<br />

came several years ago from Trish Gilbert,<br />

who told Marlin she was her idol.


expressed interest in running.<br />

“It clicked for me<br />

right away,” he says. “I<br />

felt that <strong>the</strong> union needed<br />

to promote women<br />

and minorities better.<br />

This was just a middleaged<br />

white guy’s organization.<br />

We needed a<br />

different perspective at<br />

<strong>the</strong> table.”<br />

Called a visionary by<br />

some of her colleagues, Branaman authored a paper<br />

proposing <strong>the</strong> adoption of professional standards.<br />

“It’s a <strong>the</strong>ory by which peer assessment is much more<br />

effective than <strong>the</strong> top-down hierarchy that we’ve<br />

got going,” she says. “You have to function in teams,<br />

teams who care about one ano<strong>the</strong>r and who are responsible<br />

for one ano<strong>the</strong>r.”<br />

While some see <strong>the</strong> value of <strong>the</strong> proposal,<br />

Branaman thinks it was introduced before its time:<br />

“It takes <strong>the</strong> union into a gray area. It’s uncomfortable<br />

for people. But it’s where we’re going, where we<br />

have to go.”<br />

2000<br />

11<br />

Oct.<br />

Former Southwest Regional Rep Ed Mullin,<br />

an early proponent of professional standards, agrees.<br />

“We’ve never been good at <strong>the</strong> inward look. It’s easier<br />

to blame <strong>the</strong> agency,” he says. “If we’re professional<br />

about it, we need to deal with it. It’s arrogant and<br />

stupid to ignore it.”<br />

1. Sharn, Lori. 1990. <strong>Air</strong> controllers face long-standing problem. USA Today. 13<br />

April, final edition.<br />

2. 1991. TCAS installation should cease indefinitely until <strong>the</strong> system’s flaws are<br />

ironed out. NATCA Newsletter. October.<br />

3. 1993. Unnecessary altitude deviations due to TCAS are increasing, wreaking<br />

havoc on <strong>the</strong> air traffic control environment. NATCA Newsletter. February.<br />

4. Weintraub, Richard. 1994. FAA grounds two key parts of big computer<br />

project. The Washington Post. 4 June, final edition.<br />

5. 1997. NARI receives more than $1 million in grants. The <strong>Air</strong> <strong>Traffic</strong> Controller.<br />

September.<br />

6. Miller, John M., and Saffle Jr., Charles F. 1996. The JOVIAL/MIL-STD-1750A<br />

Integrated Tool Set.<br />

7. 1989. IFATCA ’89. NATCA Newsletter. June.<br />

8. Shorrock, Tim. 1996. Ex-MEBA president gets five-year sentence. Journal of<br />

Commerce. 30 January.<br />

9. 1996. 1996 convention propels NATCA into <strong>the</strong> future. Radar Contact.<br />

October.<br />

10. Ibid.<br />

The FLRA certifies NATCA as <strong>the</strong> exclusive bargaining representative for<br />

FAA employees in <strong>the</strong> Logistics, Finance, and Computer Support divisions<br />

in <strong>the</strong> Alaskan Region.<br />

Chapter 6: Spreading its Wings<br />

219<br />

Carol Branaman: Women served on <strong>the</strong><br />

union’s <strong>National</strong> Executive Board for <strong>the</strong><br />

first time in 2000. Branaman, a controller<br />

since 1975, was elected Northwest Mountain<br />

Region vice president. / NATCA archives


“ Safety and<br />

corporate America<br />

do not go<br />

arm in arm.<br />

— Former President<br />

Michael McNally<br />

ATC One: Archie League, <strong>the</strong> nation’s first<br />

air traffic controller, pioneered his profession<br />

in St. Louis about <strong>the</strong> time of <strong>the</strong><br />

stock market crash of 1929. / <strong>National</strong> Archives


Chapter 7<br />

The Skies Ahead<br />

When controller Archie League arrived for his day shift at Lambert<br />

Field in St. Louis, he did not don a headset. Radio communication<br />

with pilots was ano<strong>the</strong>r year off in 1929. The tools of <strong>the</strong><br />

trade for League, generally considered to be <strong>the</strong> first air traffic controller in <strong>the</strong><br />

United States, consisted of checkered and red flags, a beach chair, notepad,<br />

water, and his lunch.<br />

Every morning, <strong>the</strong> former barnstormer and<br />

mechanic piled his equipment in a wheelbarrow<br />

that he’d rigged with an umbrella to protect him<br />

from <strong>the</strong> sun. Then he trekked across <strong>the</strong> 170-acre<br />

dirt airfield, positioned himself at <strong>the</strong> approach end<br />

of <strong>the</strong> runway, and waved his flags to issue holding<br />

or landing clearances for inbound pilots.<br />

League was employed by <strong>the</strong> city of St. Louis.<br />

O<strong>the</strong>r large airports followed suit and began hiring<br />

controllers, too. However, pilots had a hard time seeing<br />

<strong>the</strong>m from above and it was nearly impossible for<br />

<strong>the</strong> controllers to simultaneously direct more than<br />

one arriving plane.<br />

Within several years, flourishing traffic<br />

forced dramatic changes. Twin-engine Boeing<br />

247D and Douglas DC-2 airliners swarmed above<br />

Chicago, Cleveland, and Newark. One airport official<br />

said as many as fifteen planes often circled<br />

overhead, “all of <strong>the</strong>m blind flying and trying to<br />

keep at a different altitude, and some of <strong>the</strong>m low<br />

on gas.” 1 Near misses occurred regularly. Local<br />

officials worried about planes crashing into neighborhoods<br />

and enacted flying restrictions around<br />

major airports.<br />

In response, Congress formed <strong>the</strong> Bureau of<br />

<strong>Air</strong> Commerce in 1934 to create and operate an<br />

air traffic control system. But <strong>the</strong> Great Depression<br />

still gripped <strong>the</strong> nation and <strong>the</strong> new agency could<br />

<strong>National</strong> Archives<br />

Newark control: Earl Ward, left, and R.A.<br />

Eccles track aircraft at <strong>the</strong> nation’s first<br />

<strong>Air</strong>way <strong>Traffic</strong> Control Unit in 1935. Ward<br />

helped to develop <strong>the</strong> concept of ATC.


222<br />

<strong>Against</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>Wind</strong><br />

<strong>National</strong> Archives<br />

Privatized ATC: Four airlines operated this first <strong>Air</strong>way <strong>Traffic</strong> Control Unit at Newark <strong>Air</strong>port—plus o<strong>the</strong>rs in Chicago,<br />

Cleveland, Pittsburgh, and Oakland—for seven months before <strong>the</strong> Bureau of <strong>Air</strong> Commerce took over in July 1936.<br />

2000<br />

26<br />

Oct.<br />

not afford to carry out its mission. Accordingly, <strong>the</strong><br />

Commerce Department asked <strong>the</strong> airlines to run <strong>the</strong><br />

system until it could take over. American, Eastern,<br />

TWA, and United opened <strong>the</strong> first <strong>Air</strong>way <strong>Traffic</strong> Control<br />

Unit at Newark <strong>Air</strong>port on December 1, 1935.<br />

The FLRA certifies NATCA as <strong>the</strong> exclusive bargaining representative for<br />

22 controllers in <strong>the</strong> Hawaii <strong>Air</strong> Guard and Defense Department on <strong>the</strong><br />

islands. This is <strong>the</strong> eleventh and last new bargaining unit organized by <strong>the</strong><br />

Soon after, <strong>the</strong> four airlines launched facilities<br />

in Chicago, Cleveland, Pittsburgh, and Oakland,<br />

California. Dressed in white shirts and ties, controllers<br />

received position reports from airline dispatchers<br />

and pushed brass shrimp boats tagged with information<br />

about each flight across aeronautical charts to<br />

monitor <strong>the</strong>ir progress. They issued clearances by<br />

telephone to <strong>the</strong> dispatchers, who relayed <strong>the</strong>m to<br />

pilots via primitive radios.<br />

By mid-1936, <strong>the</strong> Commerce Department was<br />

flush enough to acquire <strong>the</strong> operations and staff <strong>the</strong>m<br />

with federally certified controllers. Many of <strong>the</strong> airline<br />

employees joined <strong>the</strong> Bureau of <strong>Air</strong> Commerce so<br />

<strong>the</strong>y could continue working at <strong>the</strong> renamed <strong>Air</strong>way<br />

<strong>Traffic</strong> Control Stations.<br />

Except for some very small, municipally<br />

owned towers run by private firms, air traffic control<br />

remained within <strong>the</strong> province of <strong>the</strong> federal government<br />

for nearly half a century.<br />

In <strong>the</strong> wake of <strong>the</strong> 1981 strike, a hamstrung<br />

FAA turned to <strong>the</strong> private sector once more. Scrambling<br />

to keep <strong>the</strong> system running with just one-quarter<br />

of its controller work force, <strong>the</strong> agency closed<br />

eighty small facilities known as Level I VFR towers.<br />

Two-thirds of <strong>the</strong> towers were reopened by <strong>the</strong> fall of<br />

1984, including nine operated by private companies<br />

under contract with <strong>the</strong> FAA. The towers ranged<br />

from North Myrtle Beach in South Carolina to Laredo,<br />

Texas, to Pendleton, Oregon.<br />

union during <strong>the</strong> calendar year. NATCA now represents 15,000 controllers,<br />

80 percent of whom are union members, and nearly 4,000 o<strong>the</strong>r FAA<br />

employees, whose membership percentage varies.


The contract program expanded to thirty facilities<br />

by late 1993, when <strong>the</strong> FAA announced that it intended<br />

to privatize <strong>the</strong> remaining 101 Level I towers<br />

over <strong>the</strong> next four years.<br />

Concerned about <strong>the</strong> fate of some 1,150 controllers,<br />

who could be transferred at <strong>the</strong> agency’s<br />

whim or simply let go, NATCA sued. The union<br />

charged that <strong>the</strong> FAA failed to comply with rules<br />

requiring government agencies to determine whe<strong>the</strong>r<br />

7<br />

FYI<br />

Archie League, <strong>the</strong> nation’s first air traffic<br />

controller, ultimately graduated to using a radio to<br />

guide aircraft.<br />

He also went on to earn a degree in aeronautical<br />

engineering at Washington University in St. Louis<br />

and flew as a pilot during World War II.<br />

In 1937, League joined <strong>the</strong> Bureau of <strong>Air</strong> Commerce,<br />

which evolved into <strong>the</strong> Civil Aeronautics Authority<br />

and today’s FAA. During his 36-year career,<br />

he served as assistant administrator of <strong>the</strong> Central<br />

Region, director of <strong>the</strong> Southwest Region, and<br />

director of <strong>Air</strong> <strong>Traffic</strong> Services at FAA headquarters<br />

before retiring in 1973.<br />

League died on October 1, 1986. He was 79.<br />

Dec.<br />

President Clinton signs an executive order mandating <strong>the</strong> FAA to reorganize<br />

its air traffic control operations into a performance-based <strong>Air</strong> <strong>Traffic</strong><br />

Organization. He defines such services as “inherently governmental.”<br />

services <strong>the</strong>y provide are “inherently governmental”<br />

or a “commercial activity” before awarding a contract.<br />

The law permitted private firms to handle commercial<br />

services only.<br />

At <strong>the</strong> same time, <strong>National</strong> Executive Board<br />

member James Ferguson, whose Northwest Mountain<br />

Region stood to lose <strong>the</strong> most towers, volunteered to<br />

work with <strong>the</strong> agency on arranging transfers for <strong>the</strong> affected<br />

controllers. Then-President Barry Krasner hedged<br />

his bet and readily agreed. He believed contracting out<br />

was wholly within <strong>the</strong> purview of <strong>the</strong> FAA and doubted<br />

that NATCA would win its case in court. *<br />

While <strong>the</strong> agency initially contended it knew<br />

best where people were needed, Ferguson successfully<br />

argued that giving employees a say on where<br />

<strong>the</strong>y moved would improve <strong>the</strong>ir morale and job performance.<br />

Out of <strong>the</strong>se talks came <strong>the</strong> Direct Placement<br />

Program, which essentially guaranteed Level I<br />

controllers <strong>the</strong> right to transfer to <strong>the</strong> higher-density<br />

facility of <strong>the</strong>ir choice.<br />

Krasner viewed <strong>the</strong> program with mixed emotions.<br />

Although <strong>the</strong> Level I controllers would be taken<br />

care of, he recognized that <strong>the</strong> union was establishing<br />

a precedent on contract towers. He also knew that<br />

some Level II and III controllers who’d been trying<br />

to move up <strong>the</strong> ranks might be frustrated when <strong>the</strong>ir<br />

colleagues leapfrogged over <strong>the</strong>m to larger facilities.<br />

Given his pessimism concerning <strong>the</strong> ongoing<br />

legal battle, however, he reluctantly signed an<br />

Chapter 7: The Skies Ahead<br />

Clinton names five members to a board of directors that will serve as an<br />

oversight committee and directs that a chief operating officer be hired.<br />

223<br />

James Ferguson: When <strong>the</strong> FAA contracted<br />

with private firms to operate 101 small<br />

towers during <strong>the</strong> mid-1990s, NATCA’s<br />

Northwest Mountain Region vice president<br />

worked with <strong>the</strong> agency to ensure<br />

that affected controllers could transfer to<br />

<strong>the</strong> facility of <strong>the</strong>ir choice. / NATCA archives<br />

* In <strong>the</strong> eight years since NATCA filed its<br />

original lawsuit—as well as a second suit in<br />

1999—<strong>the</strong> case has remained unresolved<br />

after a series of partial union victories and<br />

appeals. In February 2002, <strong>the</strong> U.S. Court of<br />

Appeals in Cleveland directed <strong>the</strong> FAA, once<br />

again, to complete a “final” attempt to bring<br />

its privatization program into compliance<br />

with federal law.


224<br />

<strong>Against</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>Wind</strong><br />

FYI<br />

Until 1998, <strong>the</strong> FAA<br />

ranked its towers and TRA-<br />

CONs on a five-tier scale<br />

according to traffic volume.<br />

Level V was reserved for<br />

<strong>the</strong> busiest facilities. En<br />

route centers were ranked<br />

on a different three-level<br />

scale, and controllers at <strong>the</strong><br />

busiest facilities were paid<br />

<strong>the</strong> same as those at Level V<br />

towers and TRACONs.<br />

Level I VFR (Visual<br />

Flight Rules) towers were<br />

not equipped with radar<br />

and handled general aviation<br />

traffic in good wea<strong>the</strong>r only.<br />

Under <strong>the</strong> reclassification<br />

plan adopted by <strong>the</strong><br />

FAA in 1998, all facilities are<br />

now ranked from ATC-4 to<br />

ATC-12 based on traffic volume<br />

and operational complexity.<br />

Two higher grades—<br />

ATC-13 and -14—were built<br />

into <strong>the</strong> scale to accommodate<br />

future growth.<br />

2001<br />

agreement with <strong>the</strong> FAA<br />

to implement <strong>the</strong> Direct<br />

Placement Program.<br />

“It was a victory for<br />

<strong>the</strong> people. It was a loss for<br />

<strong>the</strong> union,” says Krasner,<br />

who regards <strong>the</strong> issue as<br />

<strong>the</strong> one key failure of his<br />

presidency.<br />

A twelve-member<br />

Level I Contracting Committee,<br />

composed equally<br />

of FAA managers and<br />

union representatives, was<br />

formed to carry out <strong>the</strong><br />

program. The agency gave<br />

NATCA some latitude by<br />

allowing it to recommend<br />

which facilities would be<br />

transferred to private operators<br />

each year.<br />

Although <strong>the</strong> program was hailed as a success<br />

for <strong>the</strong> controllers involved, <strong>the</strong> overall toll on<br />

<strong>the</strong> union is represented by what its members call<br />

<strong>the</strong> “Wall of Shame.” Covering one side of <strong>the</strong> main<br />

conference room on <strong>the</strong> fifth floor of NATCA headquarters<br />

are <strong>the</strong> local charters of 101 towers that were<br />

once unionized but have since been contracted out.<br />

Ano<strong>the</strong>r thirty-four privately run towers have been<br />

Jan. Jan.<br />

The FLRA certifies NATCA as <strong>the</strong> exclusive bargaining representative<br />

for <strong>the</strong> FAA’s 50 regional and center counsel.<br />

4<br />

20<br />

Japphire<br />

Wall of Shame: Union charters from towers that have been contracted out to private firms hang in a<br />

conference room at NATCA headquarters. The union has reorganized thirty-four contract towers.<br />

reorganized by NATCA. Unless it’s absolutely necessary,<br />

Krasner won’t enter <strong>the</strong> room.<br />

“I just can’t look at it,” he says. “It eats me<br />

alive.”<br />

One of Krasner’s fears about <strong>the</strong> Direct Placement<br />

Program reared its head not long after <strong>the</strong><br />

remaining towers went private, posing a significant<br />

challenge to NATCA’s future. In 1998, Congress directed<br />

<strong>the</strong> FAA to study <strong>the</strong> feasibility of expanding<br />

Transportation Secretary Rodney E. Slater leaves office after<br />

serving since February 14, 1997.


its contract program to all non-radar towers, which<br />

would include Level II and III facilities (now rated<br />

ATC-8 and lower). Murmurs also buzzed through<br />

Congress and <strong>the</strong> airline industry about spinning off<br />

transoceanic flight operations from <strong>the</strong> FAA, a potentially<br />

lucrative segment of <strong>the</strong> air traffic system.<br />

Meanwhile, a staunch public policy advocate<br />

named Robert Poole proposed turning all air traffic<br />

operations over to a private entity funded entirely by<br />

user fees. Poole, founder of a think tank called <strong>the</strong><br />

Reason Foundation, had advocated <strong>the</strong> privatization<br />

of many government services for more than two decades.<br />

He based his model for air traffic control on<br />

Nav Canada and similar ATC systems in Australia,<br />

New Zealand, and elsewhere. His views attracted<br />

attention at <strong>the</strong> end of <strong>the</strong> millennium as burgeoning<br />

air traffic led to unprecedented flight delays and<br />

Congress grew increasingly frustrated with <strong>the</strong> FAA’s<br />

laggardly pace of modernization.<br />

Under <strong>the</strong> current U.S. system, larger airports<br />

assess airlines and general aviation pilots landing<br />

fees to help pay for operational costs and facility<br />

improvements. Money from an airline passenger<br />

ticket tax and a fuel tax assessed on GA pilots goes<br />

into <strong>the</strong> <strong>Air</strong>port and <strong>Air</strong>way Trust Fund, which<br />

Congress appropriates to <strong>the</strong> FAA for o<strong>the</strong>r capital<br />

expenses. However, one-third of <strong>the</strong> agency’s operating<br />

budget ($6.9 billion in fiscal year 2002) comes<br />

from general tax revenue.<br />

25<br />

Jan.<br />

Norman Y. Mineta takes over as transportation secretary. Mineta served<br />

as a Democratic congressman from California for two decades and as<br />

Commerce Department secretary under President Clinton. In 1997,<br />

Poole and o<strong>the</strong>r proponents argued that a selffunded<br />

system would alleviate <strong>the</strong> congres sional<br />

budget battles that had plagued civil aviation ever<br />

since <strong>the</strong> Bureau of <strong>Air</strong> Commerce was formed<br />

nearly seventy years ago. They also contended it<br />

would expedite modernizing air traffic control facilities<br />

and reduce delays, which by <strong>the</strong> summer of<br />

2001 reached an all-time high of one of every four<br />

commercial flights.<br />

Over <strong>the</strong> years, NATCA had endorsed two<br />

proposals to create a quasi-governmental body to<br />

operate air traffic control on <strong>the</strong> premise that such<br />

an agency could free <strong>the</strong> union from <strong>the</strong> constraints<br />

of <strong>the</strong> civil service pay system and potentially hasten<br />

Chapter 7: The Skies Ahead<br />

225<br />

The finances of flying: Privatized ATC<br />

systems charge user fees. In <strong>the</strong> United<br />

States, landing fees, fuel and ticket taxes,<br />

and general tax revenues pay for operating<br />

and capital expenses. / Brian Fallon<br />

Mineta chaired <strong>the</strong> <strong>National</strong> Civil Aviation Review Commission, which recommended<br />

restructuring <strong>the</strong> FAA into a government-run, performancebased<br />

organization.


226<br />

<strong>Against</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>Wind</strong><br />

The bottom line: NATCA argues that<br />

<strong>the</strong> drive for profits in a privatized ATC<br />

system competes against safety in terms of<br />

adequate staffing and training.<br />

* Despite fifty-seven co-sponsors, Ford’s bill<br />

never came up for a vote in <strong>the</strong> Senate.<br />

** The Transportation Trades Department is an<br />

umbrella organization composed of thirtyfour<br />

AFL-CIO unions representing aviation,<br />

rail, transit, trucking, highway, and longshore<br />

workers.<br />

2001<br />

badly needed equipment upgrades. The union supported<br />

Sen. Wendell Ford’s bill for an independent<br />

FAA in 1988 and worked with <strong>the</strong> Clinton administration<br />

to create its USATS plan in <strong>the</strong> mid-1990s. *<br />

However, NATCA opposed privatization and<br />

fur<strong>the</strong>r contracting out. It<br />

also kept a watchful eye<br />

on o<strong>the</strong>r proposals. When<br />

<strong>the</strong> Clinton administration<br />

drafted an executive<br />

order in late 2000 to create<br />

a performance-based<br />

organization, <strong>the</strong> union’s top two officers and <strong>the</strong><br />

Transportation Trades Department’s executive director<br />

attended a White House meeting to help ensure<br />

that <strong>the</strong> mandate described air traffic control as an<br />

inherently governmental function. **<br />

Saving jobs was not NATCA’s sole concern.<br />

Many members worried about <strong>the</strong> inevitable tradeoff<br />

between safety and <strong>the</strong> bottom line. Bill “Blackie”<br />

Blackmer, a former director of safety and technology<br />

for <strong>the</strong> union, says ever-increasing traffic puts pressure<br />

on controllers, whose adherence to safety margins<br />

can result in delays. “What scares our people<br />

most is <strong>the</strong> pressure we’d feel in <strong>the</strong> private world.”<br />

One measure of that influence and <strong>the</strong> effect of<br />

mounting traffic is <strong>the</strong> number of near misses on <strong>the</strong><br />

ground, referred to as runway incursions. A record<br />

431 incidents were reported in <strong>the</strong> United States<br />

Jan. Feb.<br />

30<br />

NATCA signs two collective bargaining agreements with <strong>the</strong><br />

FAA representing engineers/architects and traffic management<br />

specialists.<br />

28<br />

during 2000—or more than one a day. The <strong>National</strong><br />

Transportation Safety Board considered <strong>the</strong> problem<br />

so acute that it listed prevention of runway incursions<br />

as one of its most-wanted safety improvements.<br />

While many incidents are relatively minor,<br />

<strong>the</strong> potential for disaster is<br />

always present. Aviation’s<br />

worst accident in history<br />

occurred when two Boeing<br />

747s collided on a<br />

fog-shrouded runway on<br />

Tenerife in <strong>the</strong> Canary Islands<br />

in 1977, killing 582 people.<br />

NATCA feared, with some justification, that<br />

a privatized system would create an acute staffing<br />

shortage and compromise safety. Its neighbor to <strong>the</strong><br />

north provides an example of a privatized model.<br />

Nav Canada, a nonprofit corporation, paid <strong>the</strong><br />

Canadian government C$1.5 billion to take over air<br />

traffic control operations in 1996. <strong>Air</strong>lines and o<strong>the</strong>r<br />

users pay Nav Canada fees for its services. The firm<br />

estimated that airlines saved more than C$225 million<br />

in fiscal year 2000 compared with <strong>the</strong>ir previous<br />

costs under Canada’s air transportation tax. 2<br />

Although Nav Canada has spent C$500 million<br />

on modernization, <strong>the</strong> Canadian <strong>Air</strong> <strong>Traffic</strong><br />

Control <strong>Association</strong> maintains that some of <strong>the</strong> savings<br />

should have been allocated for fur<strong>the</strong>r improvements.<br />

O<strong>the</strong>r savings have come from Nav Canada’s<br />

A 6.1-magnitude temblor severely damages <strong>the</strong> Seattle-Tacoma<br />

International <strong>Air</strong>port control tower. Ignoring orders to evacuate,<br />

Brian Schimpf clears twelve remaining arrivals to land.


practice of closely matching traffic patterns with<br />

variable work shifts lasting six to eleven hours from<br />

one day to <strong>the</strong> next to minimize staffing. However,<br />

many of its 2,000 controllers complain about chronic<br />

fatigue.<br />

Former CATCA<br />

President Fazal Bhimji<br />

has said that it’s not<br />

uncommon for many<br />

Canadian controllers to<br />

work nine consecutive<br />

days with one off. “The<br />

extreme variation in shift<br />

lengths and start times,<br />

as <strong>the</strong> employer tries to<br />

match its anticipated<br />

traffic with staffing, is<br />

creating havoc on our<br />

controllers’ sleep patterns<br />

and <strong>the</strong>ir personal lives.”<br />

Bhimji’s successor,<br />

President Rob Thurger,<br />

points out that understaffing is systemic: “Scheduling<br />

practices show that Nav Canada staffs for <strong>the</strong><br />

ninetieth percentile of demand. So, at any given time,<br />

<strong>the</strong> system demand could be at least ten percent over<br />

capacity.” 3<br />

Boston Center controllers experienced that<br />

equation firsthand during <strong>the</strong> summer of 2000 when<br />

7<br />

<strong>the</strong>y asked Nav Canada for permission to route some<br />

regional jets north of <strong>the</strong> New York border to avoid<br />

thunderstorms. The Canadians denied <strong>the</strong> request,<br />

citing insufficient flights to warrant paying ano<strong>the</strong>r<br />

controller to work overtime.<br />

Those already on<br />

duty could not handle<br />

<strong>the</strong> overflow and, consequently,<br />

<strong>the</strong> flights were<br />

“<br />

delayed.<br />

Bad wea<strong>the</strong>r typically<br />

accounts for about<br />

70 percent of traffic<br />

holdups. Much of <strong>the</strong> rest<br />

have been caused by saturated<br />

capacity at major<br />

airports, where runways<br />

cannot physically accommodate<br />

<strong>the</strong> number<br />

of planes scheduled to<br />

arrive and depart within<br />

a given hour. In <strong>the</strong> face<br />

of mounting delays during <strong>the</strong> late 1990s, Congress<br />

and <strong>the</strong> <strong>Air</strong> Transport <strong>Association</strong> became increasingly<br />

critical of <strong>the</strong> FAA and its beleaguered air traffic<br />

control system.<br />

NATCA President John Carr’s pronouncement<br />

that “delays are on <strong>the</strong> ground—not in <strong>the</strong> air” became<br />

a rallying cry for <strong>the</strong> union in 2001 and formed<br />

The extreme variation in<br />

shift lengths and start times<br />

… is creating havoc on our<br />

controllers’ sleep patterns and<br />

<strong>the</strong>ir personal lives.<br />

— Former CATCA President Fazal Bhimji<br />

Apr. May<br />

Atlanta TRACON begins operations in a new consolidated<br />

facility in Peachtree City, Georgia. Macon and Columbus TRA-<br />

CONs are scheduled to move into <strong>the</strong> building within a year.<br />

14<br />

Chapter 7: The Skies Ahead<br />

About 285 participants attend “NATCA in Washington.”<br />

227


228<br />

<strong>Against</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>Wind</strong><br />

A concrete solution: NATCA President<br />

John Carr, center, and Capt. Andy Deane,<br />

an <strong>Air</strong> Line Pilots <strong>Association</strong> member, appeared<br />

in a television commercial in 2001<br />

to convey <strong>the</strong> message that lack of runway<br />

capacity causes flight delays. / NATCA archives<br />

2001<br />

24<br />

May<br />

part of a public relations campaign that shifted <strong>the</strong><br />

focus away from <strong>the</strong> FAA.<br />

“For anyone under <strong>the</strong> mistaken impression<br />

that you can add limitless demand to a finite system,<br />

I’ve got a news flash for you—you can’t,” Carr contended.<br />

“Fifty miles of concrete poured at <strong>the</strong> twentyfive<br />

busiest airports would do more for this country’s<br />

aviation needs than privatization ever will.”<br />

Working with Hill & Knowlton, a worldwide PR<br />

firm, NATCA also produced commercials for CNN’s<br />

<strong>Air</strong>port Network and ran print ads in AOPA Pilot, Roll<br />

The FAA selects Lockheed Martin Corporation to upgrade <strong>the</strong> agency’s<br />

Anchorage, New York, and Oakland oceanic control centers. Lockheed’s<br />

system, which is used by privately run <strong>Air</strong>ways New Zealand, will elimi-<br />

Call, and elsewhere to educate <strong>the</strong> public<br />

about privatization and o<strong>the</strong>r air traffic<br />

control issues. The union also created toy<br />

Beanie planes named Roger and Journey<br />

to distribute to members of Congress<br />

during NATCA in Washington.<br />

As <strong>the</strong> union’s PR campaign ga<strong>the</strong>red<br />

steam, <strong>the</strong> ATA, a trade group representing<br />

twenty-two domestic airlines<br />

and five international carriers, toned<br />

down its attacks on <strong>the</strong> FAA and supported<br />

NATCA. ATA President Carol<br />

Hallett also distanced <strong>the</strong> association<br />

from Poole’s privatization proposal and<br />

acknowledged <strong>the</strong> need for infrastructure<br />

improvements.<br />

“We must now set real, achievable<br />

priority targets to rapidly address system<br />

inadequacies,” she said. “What we do not need<br />

is ano<strong>the</strong>r protracted debate among academics and<br />

<strong>the</strong>oreticians about <strong>the</strong> merits of a privately run air<br />

traffic control system.” 4<br />

Cataclysm on September 11<br />

Rumblings over privatization and traffic delays<br />

vanished—at least temporarily—in <strong>the</strong> thick, ominous<br />

smoke that billowed from four plane crashes on<br />

September 11, 2001.<br />

nate <strong>the</strong> need for controllers to use paper strips and track oceanic flights<br />

with grease pencils on Plexiglas charts. Such rudimentary tools have been<br />

in use since <strong>the</strong> 1930s.


The day dawned under brilliant blue skies<br />

along <strong>the</strong> East Coast. By mid-morning, <strong>the</strong> sun shone<br />

over a nation in shock from ghastly terrorist attacks<br />

carried out by Islamic extremists associated with<br />

Saudi Arabian exile Osama bin Laden. Some<br />

3,000 victims from eighty nations died in<br />

<strong>the</strong> catastrophe, including Susan Mackay,<br />

<strong>the</strong> wife of a Boston Center controller.<br />

After American <strong>Air</strong>lines<br />

flight 11, a Boeing 767 destined<br />

for Los Angeles, slammed into<br />

<strong>the</strong> north tower of <strong>the</strong> World<br />

Trade Center in New York at<br />

8:46 a.m., a few broadcast news reporters<br />

speculated about a grievous<br />

air traffic control error. Sixteen minutes<br />

later, a United <strong>Air</strong>lines 767 barreled<br />

into <strong>the</strong> south tower, making it painfully<br />

clear <strong>the</strong> crashes were no accident.<br />

<strong>Controllers</strong> had already alerted <strong>the</strong> military that<br />

hijackers commandeered <strong>the</strong> two aircraft. They’d also<br />

passed along a chilling message from one of <strong>the</strong> terrorists<br />

aboard American flight 11 who said, “We have<br />

some planes.” 5 The hijacker thought he was speaking<br />

to passengers on <strong>the</strong> airliner’s public address system.<br />

Instead, his words were transmitted over <strong>the</strong> radio<br />

frequency, providing controllers with confirmation<br />

that something was terribly wrong.<br />

6<br />

June<br />

The FAA and The Boeing Company’s <strong>Air</strong> <strong>Traffic</strong> Management unit each<br />

unveil long-range plans for improving <strong>the</strong> ATC system. The FAA’s plan,<br />

estimated to cost $11.5 billion, consists of several projects already in de-<br />

But <strong>the</strong> horrific sequence of events unfolded<br />

too quickly to prevent disaster.<br />

One after <strong>the</strong> o<strong>the</strong>r, <strong>the</strong> planes raced south over<br />

<strong>the</strong> Hudson Valley and reached <strong>the</strong>ir target before<br />

two F-15 fighter jets from Otis <strong>Air</strong> <strong>National</strong><br />

Guard Base in Falmouth, Massachusetts,<br />

were able to intercept <strong>the</strong>m. The twin<br />

110-story towers, consumed by an inferno<br />

raging at 2,000 degrees Fahrenheit,<br />

collapsed in <strong>the</strong> next ninety<br />

minutes.<br />

Not long before <strong>the</strong> second<br />

tower was struck, Indianapolis Center<br />

controllers lost radio contact with<br />

ano<strong>the</strong>r American jet. The radar target<br />

for Los Angeles-bound flight 77<br />

disappeared, too. At 9:24 a.m. Danielle<br />

O’Brien in <strong>the</strong> Dulles TRACON<br />

noticed an unidentified blip on her scope<br />

moving rapidly from <strong>the</strong> southwest toward prohibited<br />

airspace over <strong>the</strong> White House and Capitol<br />

known as P-56.<br />

Flight 77 had resurfaced. In spite of urgent<br />

warnings from Dulles, <strong>the</strong> Boeing 757 crashed into<br />

<strong>the</strong> Pentagon before fighter jets from Langley <strong>Air</strong> Force<br />

Base in Hampton, Virginia, could arrive to stop it.<br />

Half an hour later, passengers overwhelmed<br />

<strong>the</strong> hijackers aboard a United <strong>Air</strong>lines 757 en route<br />

from Newark to San Francisco. During <strong>the</strong> ensuing<br />

Chapter 7: The Skies Ahead<br />

229<br />

Jane Garvey: The FAA administrator<br />

credited <strong>the</strong> fast actions of controllers<br />

with preventing more loss of life after <strong>the</strong><br />

terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001:<br />

“It was public service at its best.” / FAA<br />

velopment. Boeing’s blueprint relies heavily on satellites to provide navigation<br />

and communication services. Boeing’s John Hayhurst stresses that his<br />

company’s plan would minimize <strong>the</strong> need for ground-based facilities.


230<br />

<strong>Against</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>Wind</strong><br />

Dick Swauger: NATCA’s national technology<br />

coordinator previously assisted <strong>the</strong><br />

union with its comprehensive facility and<br />

pay reclassification project. / NATCA archives<br />

* The <strong>National</strong> <strong>Air</strong>space System was shut down<br />

to commercial and general aviation traffic for<br />

<strong>the</strong> first time on September 10, 1960, when<br />

<strong>the</strong> Defense Department conducted a sixhour<br />

air drill known as Operation Sky-Shield.<br />

2001<br />

11<br />

Sep.<br />

struggle, <strong>the</strong> plane nose-dived into a field about three<br />

miles from <strong>the</strong> tiny burg of Shanksville in western<br />

Pennsylvania.<br />

Shortly after <strong>the</strong> two planes hit <strong>the</strong> World Trade<br />

Center, <strong>the</strong> FAA Command Center banned all<br />

takeoffs nationwide. As more information<br />

poured in, it became obvious that <strong>the</strong><br />

best move was to land <strong>the</strong> remaining<br />

4,500 aircraft as soon as possible.<br />

Transportation Secretary Norman<br />

Mineta issued <strong>the</strong> order at 9:45<br />

a.m., shutting down <strong>the</strong> <strong>National</strong><br />

<strong>Air</strong>space System for only <strong>the</strong> second<br />

time in history under a modified implementation<br />

of a plan known as <strong>the</strong><br />

Security Control of <strong>Air</strong> <strong>Traffic</strong> and<br />

Navigation Aids—or SCATANA—<br />

which was developed in <strong>the</strong> 1960s to<br />

clear <strong>the</strong> skies in <strong>the</strong> event of a nuclear<br />

attack. 6 <strong>Controllers</strong> guided 700 planes<br />

back to <strong>the</strong> ground in <strong>the</strong> first four minutes<br />

and <strong>the</strong> remainder in ano<strong>the</strong>r two hours. *<br />

FAA Administrator Garvey credits <strong>the</strong> extraordinary<br />

actions of controllers with preventing fur<strong>the</strong>r<br />

loss of life. “The prevailing view—and one that I<br />

share—is that greater tragedies might have occurred<br />

but for <strong>the</strong>ir fine actions,” she says. “It was public<br />

service at its best.”<br />

Recognizing <strong>the</strong> controllers’ efforts, Mineta<br />

Terrorists commandeer four airliners in an attack that kills some 3,000.<br />

The hijackers fly two Boeing 767s into <strong>the</strong> World Trade Center in New<br />

York, causing both towers to collapse from <strong>the</strong> ensuing fire. They fly a 757<br />

subsequently presented <strong>the</strong>m with <strong>the</strong> Transportation<br />

Department’s 2001 Gold Medal for Outstanding<br />

Achievement.<br />

The airspace system remained shut down for<br />

two days to commercial flights. General aviation<br />

traffic was grounded for a week and many<br />

private planes were stranded for several<br />

months due to new flying restrictions<br />

in high-density areas. <strong>Controllers</strong><br />

and pilots contended with almost<br />

daily changes in procedures during<br />

<strong>the</strong> initial weeks after <strong>the</strong> attack.<br />

Ironically, three-quarters of<br />

<strong>the</strong> union’s <strong>National</strong> Executive Board<br />

and facility representatives from five<br />

regions were ga<strong>the</strong>red in New Orleans<br />

for a meeting on September 11<br />

and spent several frustrating days trying<br />

to get home to help controllers on<br />

<strong>the</strong> front lines.<br />

NATCA’s Critical Incident Stress<br />

Management Team also swung into action. The<br />

specially trained volunteers, who counsel <strong>the</strong>ir colleagues<br />

to help <strong>the</strong>m deal with traumatic events,<br />

had <strong>the</strong>ir work cut out for <strong>the</strong>m. Like many people<br />

in Manhattan, controllers on position at LaGuardia,<br />

Newark, and Kennedy towers endured a front-row<br />

seat to <strong>the</strong> smoke rising from <strong>the</strong> gaping hole in New<br />

York’s skyline for several weeks.<br />

into <strong>the</strong> Pentagon. A 757 crashes in Pennsylvania after passengers fight<br />

<strong>the</strong> hijackers to prevent fur<strong>the</strong>r attacks. All air traffic in <strong>the</strong> United States,<br />

except for military flights, is grounded for only <strong>the</strong> second time in history.


Amid a clamor for heightened airport security,<br />

President Bush signed a law to federalize passenger<br />

screeners—though with misgivings. New regulations<br />

on baggage screening were also adopted.<br />

While <strong>the</strong> attention focused solely on airports,<br />

many air traffic control facilities were still vulnerable.<br />

Security usually consisted of little more than<br />

chain-link fences and a guard stationed at <strong>the</strong> front<br />

entrance. NATCA urged <strong>the</strong> FAA to position armed<br />

guards at all control towers and radar facilities, and<br />

to redesign employee identification cards to minimize<br />

<strong>the</strong> chances of tampering or duplication.<br />

Perfection, Nothing Less<br />

As <strong>the</strong> tragic events of September 11 jolted <strong>the</strong><br />

U.S. aviation industry out of its longstanding complacency<br />

over security, NATCA’s core argument against<br />

privatization—that air traffic control is an inherently<br />

governmental function—took on a new dimension and<br />

affirmed <strong>the</strong> controllers’ role in homeland defense.<br />

But <strong>the</strong> passionate dedication of a cadre of<br />

NATCA activists concerned with safety and o<strong>the</strong>r issues<br />

has remained constant since <strong>the</strong> union’s earliest<br />

organizing days. Much of <strong>the</strong>ir devotion stems from<br />

<strong>the</strong> nature of <strong>the</strong> profession, where perfection is <strong>the</strong><br />

minimum performance standard and a momentary<br />

lapse of attention can wreak tragic consequences.<br />

Dick Swauger, a PATCO controller who now<br />

13<br />

Sep.<br />

Limited commercial flights resume, however, passenger traffic declines<br />

dramatically. General aviation planes are permitted to fly IFR on September<br />

15. VFR flights resume four days later, but restrictions near major<br />

works in <strong>the</strong> union’s Safety and Technology Department,<br />

likens <strong>the</strong> job to boxing. “The only problem is<br />

you never win and you never lose. You come away<br />

from it and feel good if you didn’t make any mistakes,”<br />

he says. “After that, you need something else<br />

to put those energies into. A lot of controllers feel<br />

very happy that <strong>the</strong>y can do something.”<br />

Those who turn to activism to satisfy <strong>the</strong>ir<br />

craving to do more often find <strong>the</strong>mselves pulled into<br />

a vortex of nonstop involvement. <strong>National</strong> Executive<br />

Board members and facility representatives receive<br />

official time off from <strong>the</strong> agency to conduct union<br />

business. But NATCA’s evolution and its many accomplishments<br />

have also come at <strong>the</strong> hands of<br />

countless activists working on <strong>the</strong>ir own time<br />

without financial compensation. Their commitment<br />

exacts a toll.<br />

Extensive travel has been a factor in divorces<br />

that have touched nearly every <strong>National</strong> Executive<br />

Board, along with activists in <strong>the</strong> field. Several longtime<br />

regional vice presidents have left <strong>the</strong> board and<br />

returned home to children who’d grown a foot or<br />

more during <strong>the</strong>ir extended absences. Contract team<br />

members and those who are assigned to Washington<br />

for a year or more as liaisons and technical representatives<br />

know well <strong>the</strong> personal cost of participation.<br />

Back home, <strong>the</strong>ir spouses shoulder a greater burden,<br />

willingly or not.<br />

Chapter 7: The Skies Ahead<br />

In May 1986, John Thornton visited Howie Barte Courtesy of Mike Hull<br />

airports leave thousands of private planes trapped where <strong>the</strong>y were on <strong>the</strong><br />

ground when <strong>the</strong> attacks occurred. All commercial airports reopen except<br />

<strong>National</strong>, due to security concerns; limited flights resume on October 4.<br />

231<br />

Steve Schneider<br />

The union label: “NATCAvists” are passionate<br />

about <strong>the</strong>ir organization. Above:<br />

Many members demonstrate <strong>the</strong>ir allegiance<br />

with special license plates. Below:<br />

Oakland Center controller Mike Hull, a<br />

NATCA liaison to <strong>the</strong> FAA, shows off his<br />

pride in a more personal manner.


232<br />

2002<br />

<strong>Against</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>Wind</strong><br />

Phil Barbarello: A Pennsylvania police<br />

officer startled <strong>the</strong> longtime New York<br />

TRACON facility rep by “arresting” him<br />

during a session of <strong>the</strong> 1996 convention in<br />

Pittsburgh. The officer’s bro<strong>the</strong>r, a controller,<br />

concocted <strong>the</strong> prank. / NATCA archives<br />

at his home in rural Rhode Island and was greeted by<br />

an indignant 10-year-old. “You took my dad,” Susan<br />

Barte said. Thornton nodded with understanding. “My<br />

daughter says <strong>the</strong> same thing,” he replied.<br />

“The involvement is like a mistress,” says former<br />

Central Region Vice President Michael Putzier.<br />

“You have to be really careful because it can<br />

completely consume all of your time.”<br />

Christine Neumeier, <strong>the</strong> longtime<br />

Southwest Region office administrative<br />

assistant, regards <strong>the</strong> members<br />

as her children. It is a sentiment that<br />

explains why she and o<strong>the</strong>r dedicated<br />

staff members can often be found<br />

working on NATCA business well<br />

past 5 p.m.<br />

The union’s ongoing successes<br />

and its necessary involvement in<br />

decisions affecting <strong>the</strong> <strong>National</strong> <strong>Air</strong>space<br />

System continue to lure 5 percent<br />

to 10 percent of its members into<br />

<strong>the</strong> ring of activism like a narcotic. Legions<br />

of o<strong>the</strong>rs help by contributing to <strong>the</strong> union’s<br />

Political Action Committee or simply paying dues.<br />

The net result can be seen in NATCA’s contract<br />

gains with <strong>the</strong> agency, its significant influence in<br />

<strong>the</strong> industry and on Capitol Hill, its effective dealings<br />

with <strong>the</strong> news media, and its recognition by<br />

organized labor.<br />

Jan. May<br />

7<br />

The FLRA certifies NATCA as <strong>the</strong> exclusive bargaining representative<br />

for 950 FAA staff support specialists. This is <strong>the</strong> twentieth<br />

bargaining unit organized by NATCA since its inception. 19<br />

Although NATCA is a relatively small union,<br />

Labor Relations Director Bob Taylor notes that its<br />

voice is strong. “No doubt, we lead <strong>the</strong> way in <strong>the</strong><br />

labor movement in <strong>the</strong> federal government for all bargaining<br />

unit employees and <strong>the</strong>ir families,” he says.<br />

Such a string of victories has its downside.<br />

More than a few members worry about <strong>the</strong><br />

inevitable serious setback. “Sooner or later,<br />

it’s going to happen and it will be a<br />

major shock. I don’t think <strong>the</strong> union’s<br />

ready for it,” James Ferguson says.<br />

For <strong>the</strong> time being, however,<br />

NATCA remains justifiably proud<br />

of its accomplishments and enjoys<br />

a level of partnership with <strong>the</strong> FAA<br />

that eluded previous generations of<br />

controllers and agency managers.<br />

Many union members are quick to<br />

share <strong>the</strong> credit.<br />

“Jane Garvey and her immediate<br />

staff are phenomenal,” says Phil Barbarello,<br />

<strong>the</strong> facility rep at New York TRACON.<br />

“They’ve truly changed <strong>the</strong> way we think about<br />

<strong>the</strong> agency. They’re more collaborative. And it’s starting<br />

to trickle down. I don’t think <strong>the</strong>re’s any turning<br />

back. Too many people within <strong>the</strong> general ranks like<br />

working with each o<strong>the</strong>r.”<br />

From Garvey’s perspective, NATCA leadership<br />

has played a big role in turning collaboration into<br />

About 275 participants attend “NATCA in Washington.”


eality.<br />

“I’ve been very lucky to have McNally and<br />

Carr. Both are gifted leaders. Both were right for <strong>the</strong>ir<br />

time,” she says. “Mike understood <strong>the</strong> collaboration<br />

piece and <strong>the</strong> concepts of productivity and taking<br />

on more responsibility.” As <strong>the</strong> relationship matures,<br />

Garvey notes, each side must rely on <strong>the</strong> o<strong>the</strong>r for<br />

support, a concept that Carr intuitively grasped. “He<br />

always comes with <strong>the</strong> notion of problem-solving.”<br />

She also lauds Carr for his exceptional communication<br />

skills. “I don’t think <strong>the</strong>re is anyone better in<br />

Washington at capturing <strong>the</strong> public’s attention,” Garvey<br />

says. “He’s galvanizing. He says <strong>the</strong> right thing in<br />

<strong>the</strong> right way. It’s great fun to watch him.”<br />

The trade publication Aviation Daily echoed that<br />

sentiment when it named Carr <strong>the</strong> second most-influential<br />

person in aviation for 2001. The honor was bestowed<br />

in recognition of controllers’ efforts on September<br />

11, but it also underscored <strong>the</strong> great strides NATCA<br />

had made since its inception fourteen years earlier.<br />

<strong>Air</strong> traffic controllers have always provided a<br />

5<br />

Sep.<br />

NATCA holds its ninth biennial convention at <strong>the</strong> Cleveland Convention<br />

Center, with <strong>the</strong> Sheraton City Centre serving as <strong>the</strong> host hotel.<br />

guiding voice on <strong>the</strong> radio. Yet <strong>the</strong>y have struggled<br />

for decades to attain one in <strong>the</strong> workplace. Today,<br />

NATCA and <strong>the</strong> FAA regard each o<strong>the</strong>r as partners<br />

like never before. Despite <strong>the</strong> unprecedented changes,<br />

though, realists understand that <strong>the</strong> process will<br />

never be complete.<br />

“We haven’t fully gotten <strong>the</strong>re yet. We’re not<br />

done,” Garvey says. “It’s like any relationship. You<br />

have to constantly work at it.”<br />

1. Komons, Nick. 1986. Aviation’s Indispensable Partner Turns 50. U.S. Department<br />

of Transportation.<br />

2. Flint, Perry. 2000. A towering success. <strong>Air</strong> Transport World. October.<br />

3. 2001. CATCA says, “Privatization is not justified by Nav Canada example.”<br />

The <strong>Air</strong> <strong>Traffic</strong> Controller. July/August.<br />

4. <strong>Air</strong> Transport <strong>Association</strong> archives. News release of March 1, 2001.<br />

5. Wald, Mat<strong>the</strong>w, and Sack, Kevin. 2001. “We have some planes,” hijacker told<br />

controller. The New York Times. 16 October.<br />

6. Schwartz, Stephen I. 2001. This is not a test. Bulletin of <strong>the</strong> Atomic Scientists.<br />

November/December.<br />

Chapter 7: The Skies Ahead<br />

233


Index<br />

Note<br />

Page references in italic type<br />

refer to information contained in<br />

illustrations or photographs.<br />

A<br />

AATCC New England, 57, 58–59,<br />

61, 65<br />

Abbott, David C., 110<br />

activism, of NATCA members,<br />

231–232<br />

Advanced Automation System<br />

project (AAS), 157, 179, 182<br />

Aero Center map, 39<br />

AFL-CIO<br />

accepts NATCA as direct<br />

charter, 8, 188–191<br />

Article 20 hearing on AFGE/<br />

MEBA, 64–65<br />

and NATCA’s Chapter 71 rights<br />

fight, 157–158<br />

Transportation Trades<br />

Department, 226<br />

<strong>Air</strong> Line Pilots <strong>Association</strong> (ALPA),<br />

54–55, 57, 62, 64–65<br />

<strong>Air</strong>port and <strong>Air</strong>way Trust Fund,<br />

153, 225<br />

<strong>Air</strong>port Surface Detection<br />

Equipment (ASDE), 53<br />

air traffic assistants, 56, 59<br />

<strong>Air</strong> <strong>Traffic</strong> Control <strong>Association</strong><br />

(ATCA), 18<br />

air traffic control operations<br />

ARTS system, 17, 18, 175, 181<br />

centers, 17–18<br />

equipment, 10, 15, 16, 17<br />

late 1950s, 15–16<br />

modernizing, 229<br />

origins of, 221–222<br />

post-strike, 35–36<br />

Project Beacon, 16–18<br />

STARS system, 17, 175, 181,<br />

182–183<br />

<strong>Air</strong> <strong>Traffic</strong> Organization, 223<br />

<strong>Air</strong> Transport <strong>Association</strong> (ATA),<br />

24, 228<br />

Alaskan Region, 176<br />

Albuquerque Center, 31–32<br />

Allen, Tom, 53<br />

Alsop, Frances, 105, 147<br />

Alternate Dispute Resolution, 117<br />

alternate work schedules (AWS),<br />

170–171<br />

American <strong>Air</strong> <strong>Traffic</strong> <strong>Controllers</strong><br />

Council (AATCC), 54, 72<br />

logo, 71<br />

American Federation of<br />

Government Employees (AFGE)<br />

AATCC organizing efforts, 47,<br />

53, 54, 55, 56–65, 67,<br />

72<br />

drug testing opposition, 99<br />

American Federation of State,<br />

County and Municipal<br />

Employees (AFSCME), 67<br />

American Federation of Teachers<br />

(AFT), 67<br />

American Medical <strong>Association</strong><br />

(AMA), 64<br />

Anchorage International <strong>Air</strong>port,<br />

53<br />

arbitration, 116, 117<br />

arrival metering, 34<br />

asbestos removal, 173–174, 184<br />

Ashwood, Thomas, 64<br />

Atlanta Center, 52–53, 56–57, 175<br />

Atlanta Center local offices, 109<br />

Atlanta TRACON, 184, 227<br />

Atlantic City Tower, 54<br />

Automated Radar Terminal System<br />

(ARTS), 17, 18, 175, 181<br />

automation specialists, 56, 58–59<br />

Aviation Labor Coalition, 157,<br />

159–160<br />

Aviation Safety Commission, 76,<br />

94<br />

Aviation Safety Reporting System,<br />

21, 127<br />

B<br />

Bailey, F. Lee, 21, 22, 23<br />

Baker, Gordon, 121<br />

Bamberger, Richard, 84, 100, 101,<br />

103, 128, 137, 139<br />

Barbarello, Phil, 36, 51, 160, 168,<br />

205, 232<br />

Bargaining units. see also NATCA—<br />

bargaining units within<br />

Aerospace Medicine, 194<br />

<strong>Air</strong> <strong>Traffic</strong> Control Specialists,<br />

194<br />

<strong>Air</strong>craft Certification, 194<br />

<strong>Air</strong>ports Division, 194<br />

<strong>Air</strong>worthiness Engineers, 194<br />

Automation Specialists, 194<br />

Budget and Financial Analysis,<br />

194<br />

Cherry Point Marine Corps <strong>Air</strong><br />

Index<br />

253<br />

Station, 194<br />

Engineers and Architects, 180,<br />

185, 191-192, 194<br />

Engineers (Oklahoma City/<br />

Atlantic City), 194<br />

Hawaii Department of Defense,<br />

194<br />

Hawaii <strong>National</strong> Guard, 194<br />

Logistics, Finance, Accounting<br />

Information Services<br />

Division, 194<br />

Notice to <strong>Air</strong>men Office, 194,<br />

196<br />

Regional Counsel’s Office, 194<br />

privately employed <strong>Air</strong> <strong>Traffic</strong><br />

Control Specialists, 194<br />

Staff Support Specialists, 194<br />

<strong>Traffic</strong> Management<br />

Coordinators, 163, 191,<br />

194<br />

Barry Krasner Building, 2, 9, 106,<br />

195–196, 197<br />

Barte, Howie, 1, 6, 84, 100, 103, 137<br />

and AATCC logo, 61, 71<br />

Aviation Subcommittee<br />

testimony, 85<br />

biographical sketch, 66<br />

elected AATCC New England<br />

rep, 55–56, 58<br />

and NATCA certification, 89<br />

and NATCA creation, 65–70<br />

proposes CEO model, 93–94<br />

on strike’s effect on operations,<br />

33, 34<br />

Bayone, Tom, 192<br />

Bay TRACON, 149<br />

Bears, Ed, 146–148<br />

Bell, R. Steve, 73, 84, 100, 128


254<br />

<strong>Against</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>Wind</strong><br />

biographical sketch, 104<br />

elected first president of<br />

NATCA, 95–99, 97, 102<br />

and first contract negotiations<br />

with FAA, 124, 125, 126<br />

and John Thornton, 94<br />

joins union movement, 74–75<br />

at New York TRACON, 51<br />

1991 election, 135<br />

Bellino, Joseph, 100, 103, 113, 114,<br />

137, 138<br />

and Barnstable Tower, 146<br />

biographical sketch, 140<br />

loses 1997 election, 160<br />

and NATCA organizing, 83<br />

and pay demo, 146–148<br />

runs for executive vice<br />

president, 134–135<br />

and seniority policy, 207–208<br />

and Sunday pay settlement, 147<br />

Bentley, John, 47, 52<br />

Bhimji, Fazal, 227<br />

Blackmer, Bill “Blackie,” 160, 166,<br />

226<br />

Blake, Mike, 164, 215<br />

Blaylock, Ken, 48<br />

Blittersdorf, Karen, 165<br />

Bolling, Charlie, 47, 52<br />

Bolton, Richard, 102<br />

Bond, Langhorne M., 21, 22, 73<br />

Boston Center, 174, 184, 227<br />

Bottini, Dave, 63–64<br />

Boughn, Chris, 168<br />

Bradley-<strong>Wind</strong>sor Locks Tower, 54<br />

Branaman, Carol, 95, 142, 159,<br />

168, 214–219, 215<br />

Brandt, Dan, 42, 80, 84, 94, 96, 98,<br />

100, 102, 114, 137, 138<br />

Brawner, James, 137, 139<br />

Breen, James, 95, 100, 103, 137,<br />

139, 152<br />

Bridgeman, Owen, 103, 137, 139,<br />

152, 165<br />

Brissenden, Ken, 143<br />

Brown, David, 84<br />

Brown, Don, 1, 35, 40, 46<br />

Browne, Walter, 97<br />

Buckles, Jim, 136<br />

building fund, NATCA, 170, 194<br />

Bullard, Margaret L., 165<br />

Bureau of <strong>Air</strong> Commerce, 221–222<br />

Burnett, James, 77, 91<br />

Burnley, James H., 101, 111<br />

Busey, James, B., IV, 116, 136<br />

Butterworth, Valerie and Bob, 200,<br />

201<br />

Byrnes, Barrett, 205<br />

C<br />

Calhoon, Jesse, 23<br />

Canada, ATC operations in, 226–<br />

227<br />

Canadian <strong>Air</strong> <strong>Traffic</strong> Control<br />

<strong>Association</strong>, 226–227<br />

Candaele, Kelly, 62–64, 73, 76, 97<br />

Cannon, Cheryl, 108<br />

Cantwell, Andy, 117, 165, 168, 210,<br />

215<br />

Card, Andrew H., 137, 142<br />

Carlisle, Don, 128<br />

Carr, John, 44, 115, 118, 163, 168<br />

biographical sketch, 212<br />

and Jane Garvey, 233<br />

joins union effort, 81–83<br />

and safety campaign, 228<br />

and “<strong>the</strong> shroud,” 165<br />

training, 41<br />

2000 election, 209–210<br />

Carson, Johnny, 21<br />

Carter, Jimmy, 16<br />

Carter, Randy, 53<br />

Cascio, Paul, 128, 137, 139<br />

Chapter 71 rights issue, 156–160,<br />

202<br />

Chavez-Thompson, Linda, 157<br />

Cherry Point Marine Corps <strong>Air</strong><br />

Station, 191<br />

Chicago Center, 19, 173–174, 175<br />

Chiles, Lawton, 181<br />

China Lake Naval Weapons Center,<br />

148<br />

choirboys, 12, 23, 25<br />

Christy, Kevin, 192, 193, 215<br />

CIP (controller incentive pay), 169<br />

Civil Aeronautics Administration<br />

(CAA), 16<br />

Clementz, Larry, 100, 102<br />

Clendenin, Alan, 175<br />

Clinton, Bill, 145, 158, 171, 223<br />

Coiro, Anthony, 113, 127, 128<br />

Cole, Martin, 184–186<br />

Command Center, 104<br />

committees. see NATCA<br />

committees<br />

Communications Workers of<br />

America, 67<br />

CompuServe aviation special<br />

interest group, 121<br />

computer bulletin boards, 121–123<br />

Conklin, Kenneth, 49<br />

Connor, Mike, 185<br />

Conom, Nick, 36<br />

contracts. see NATCA–FAA<br />

contracts; PATCO–FAA 1981<br />

contract negotiations<br />

contract towers issue, 153, 161,<br />

178, 187, 222–224<br />

Controller Incentive Pay, 149<br />

conventions. see NATCA national<br />

conventions<br />

Coulter, Mike, 151, 165<br />

Critical Incident Stress Debriefing,<br />

159<br />

Critical Incident Stress<br />

Management Team, 230–231<br />

Crouse, Jack, 43, 47, 52, 57, 70<br />

Cullison, Alexander “Doc,” 5–6, 27,<br />

76–79, 80–81, 186–187<br />

Cunningham, Debbie, 175, 176<br />

D<br />

D’Agati, Jim, 164, 192, 193, 215<br />

D’Alessio, Joe, 58<br />

Dallas-Fort Worth International<br />

<strong>Air</strong>port, 158<br />

Damalas, Al, 53<br />

Data Link, 184<br />

Davies, Scott, 121<br />

Day, Ed, 162<br />

“deals,” 16, 69, 77<br />

Deane, Andy, 228<br />

DeFries, Clayton E. “Gene”, 65, 67,<br />

68, 88, 94, 186–187<br />

Delaney, Dennis, 84, 85, 100, 103<br />

delays, airline, 227–228<br />

Denver Center, 35<br />

Denver International <strong>Air</strong>port, 163<br />

Detling, Chalmer, 165<br />

Direct Access Radar Channel<br />

(DARC) systems, 20, 26<br />

Direct Placement Program, 223–<br />

224<br />

Display System Replacement<br />

project (DSR), 157, 176, 179–<br />

180<br />

Dole, Elizabeth, 50, 99<br />

Dresden, Tony, 105<br />

dress code, 36<br />

drug testing, 72, 99, 100<br />

dues, 87, 110–111, 198–199<br />

Duffy, Henry A., 55, 64<br />

Dunigan, Joe, 84


Dupon, Duane, 143<br />

Dyess <strong>Air</strong> Force Base, 38<br />

E<br />

Eads, Gary, 27, 29, 40<br />

Eccles, R.A., 221<br />

Edmunds, Jim, 76<br />

Ehrlichman, John, 23<br />

elections, see under NATCA<br />

national elections<br />

emeritus members, 95<br />

Engen, Donald D., 55, 57, 67, 69,<br />

70, 90, 91, 95<br />

Engineers and Architects<br />

bargaining unit, 180, 185,<br />

191–192<br />

F<br />

FAA. see also NATCA–FAA<br />

contracts; PATCO–FAA 1981<br />

contract negotiations; strike,<br />

1981 controllers’<br />

administrators, since 1958, 161<br />

Advanced Automation System<br />

project (AAS), 157, 179,<br />

182<br />

age limits for controllers, 47<br />

Automated Radar Terminal<br />

System (ARTS), 17, 18,<br />

175, 181<br />

commissions first DARC, 20<br />

contract towers issue, 153, 161,<br />

178, 187, 195, 208,<br />

222–224<br />

Controller Incentive Pay, 149<br />

created, 16<br />

Critical Incident Stress<br />

Debriefing, 159<br />

Direct Placement Program,<br />

223–224<br />

Display System Replacement<br />

project (DSR), 157, 176,<br />

179–180<br />

facilities security, 42, 231<br />

Facility Advisory Boards (FABs),<br />

42–43<br />

“Flow Control 50” implemented,<br />

27, 32<br />

Free Flight program, 82<br />

funding and privatization,<br />

224–226<br />

General Aviation Reservation<br />

system, 54<br />

Human Relations Councils<br />

(HRCs), 42<br />

independence hearings, 99, 107<br />

Jones Committee reports, 37,<br />

41, 43<br />

NATCA liaison position, 177–<br />

179, 180<br />

<strong>National</strong> <strong>Air</strong>space System Plan, 42<br />

Pay Demonstration Projects,<br />

114, 135, 146<br />

reclassification of facilities in<br />

1998, 224<br />

replacement controllers, training<br />

and treatment, 5–6,<br />

34–43<br />

seeks consolidation of AATCC<br />

regional certification<br />

petitions, 57, 58<br />

Standard Terminal Automation<br />

Replacement System<br />

(STARS), 17, 175, 181,<br />

182–183<br />

Structured Staffing program,<br />

45–46, 51<br />

supervision culture of, 19–20<br />

FAA Academy, 18, 21, 36, 37–41<br />

Facility Advisory Boards (FABs),<br />

42–43<br />

Facility Representative and<br />

Leadership Training course,<br />

115–123<br />

Fallon, Brian, 120, 174<br />

FAM trip privileges, 24, 73, 197<br />

Faville, Will, Jr., 84, 100, 102, 137,<br />

147, 164, 177, 182, 183<br />

Federal Labor Relations Authority<br />

(FLRA), 38, 41, 50, 58, 163<br />

Fellows, Mike, 35<br />

Ferguson, James, 149, 152, 164,<br />

185, 186, 202, 223<br />

Fisher, Freddie, 42<br />

Fitas, Dan, 168<br />

Fletcher, Robert, 100, 103<br />

“Flow Control 50,” 27, 32<br />

Ford, Mike, 55<br />

The Forgotten Promise: The<br />

Resurgence of Unionism Among <strong>the</strong><br />

<strong>Air</strong> <strong>Traffic</strong> <strong>Controllers</strong>, 79<br />

Forrey, Pat, 147, 151, 152, 199, 215<br />

Frank, Barney, 99<br />

Frascone, Jim, 192<br />

Free Flight program, 82, 160, 205<br />

Fruscella, Joe, 51, 110, 141, 143,<br />

152, 164, 215<br />

Future <strong>Air</strong> Navigation System, 168<br />

G<br />

Galipault, John, 121<br />

Galloway, Tom, 49<br />

Garvey, Jane, 168, 183<br />

collaboration emphasis, 160,<br />

161, 182, 232–233<br />

credits controllers’ actions on<br />

September 11, 2002, 230<br />

Index<br />

255<br />

1998 contract negotiations, 7–8,<br />

170–171<br />

General Aviation Reservation<br />

system, 54<br />

George Meany Center for Labor<br />

Studies, 114–115, 117<br />

Gibbons, Ray, 118, 177<br />

Gilbert, Fred, 19–20, 55, 58, 84, 87<br />

on controller treatment after<br />

strike, 34–35<br />

and FAB national meeting, 34,<br />

42–43<br />

runs for president of NATCA,<br />

96–99, 98, 102<br />

supports rehiring controllers,<br />

74–76, 79<br />

Gilbert, John, 31–32<br />

Gilbert, Trish, 110, 161<br />

Gisala, Wilma, 109<br />

Goldschmidt, Neil E., 19<br />

Gordon, Richard, Jr., 105, 108, 109,<br />

137, 143, 159, 194, 199<br />

Green, Dee, 175<br />

Green, Veronica, 118, 119<br />

Green, Jim, 167<br />

Green Book, The, 35–36<br />

Greer, Phil, 55<br />

Gropper, Donna, 55, 56, 69<br />

Grundmann, Karl, 84, 90, 100, 102<br />

108, 137, 139, 153<br />

and dues increases, 198<br />

liaison to FAA, 159, 178–179<br />

runs for executive vice<br />

president, 96–99, 97<br />

on union leadership by<br />

controllers, 93<br />

Grundmann, Susan see under Tsui<br />

Grundmann, Susan<br />

Guensch, Craig, 36–37<br />

Guerra, Gus, 164, 215


256<br />

<strong>Against</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>Wind</strong><br />

H<br />

Haines, Tim, 137, 138, 150–153<br />

Haldeman, H.R. “Bob,” 23<br />

Hallett, Carol, 228<br />

Hambrick, Melissa Lee, 165<br />

Hampton University, 127<br />

“Handbook for <strong>Air</strong> <strong>Traffic</strong><br />

Employees in Centers and<br />

Towers,” 35–36<br />

Hanley, Scott, 180<br />

Hanson, Terry, 185–186<br />

Hartney, Dennis, 153<br />

Hastert, Dennis, 173<br />

Hatfield, Mark, 158<br />

Hays, Jimmy, 22<br />

Healy, Pete, 192, 193, 217<br />

Helms, J. Lynn, 22, 37, 54<br />

Herman, Tony, 7–8, 168, 169–170<br />

Hiatt, Jon, 188<br />

Hicks, Joel, 73–74, 108, 182<br />

Hightower, Laura Caroline, 165<br />

Hill & Knowlton, 228<br />

Hinson, David, 145, 176<br />

Hintz, Doug, 192<br />

Hoffman, Bob, 53<br />

Holland, Doug, 121, 215<br />

Hood, Mark, 165<br />

House of Representatives, U.S. see<br />

U.S. Congress<br />

Houston Center, 33<br />

Howe, Curt, 192<br />

H.R. 2663, 146<br />

H.R. 4003, 75–76, 79<br />

Hull, Mike, 117, 231<br />

Human Relations Councils (HRCs),<br />

42<br />

Humphreys Adell, 92, 105–107,<br />

196<br />

biographical sketch, 106<br />

Hurricane Andrew, 178<br />

I<br />

IBM<br />

3083-BXI “Host” computers, 63,<br />

108<br />

9020 computers, 16, 18, 63<br />

RISC-6000 computers, 157<br />

immunity program, operational<br />

error-reporting, 73, 127–128<br />

Intentionally Left Blank, 118<br />

International Civil Aviation<br />

Organization, 183<br />

International Federation of <strong>Air</strong><br />

<strong>Traffic</strong> <strong>Controllers</strong>’ <strong>Association</strong>s<br />

(IFATCA), 8, 183–186<br />

Irving, Mike “Iggy,” 120<br />

J<br />

Jacksonville Center, 18<br />

Jeffries, Terri, 109<br />

Johanssen, Howard, 72–73, 86<br />

Jones, Gordon P., 100<br />

Jones, Lawrence M., 37<br />

Jones, Rick, 45, 47<br />

Jones Committee reports, 37, 41, 43<br />

Jordan, Garlon, 192<br />

Joseph, Art, 55, 128<br />

JOVIAL computer language, 181<br />

K<br />

Kansas City Center, 170<br />

Katz, Deborah Ann, 138<br />

Kaufman, Andy, 182<br />

Keeling, Jay, 143<br />

Keener, Kevin, 207<br />

Keeney, Dan, 68, 72, 84<br />

Keesler <strong>Air</strong> Force Base, 38<br />

Kelley, Steve, 51, 75<br />

Kennedy, John F., 16, 18<br />

Kerr, George, 13, 25, 51, 53, 55<br />

Kidd, James “Ajax,” 115, 116, 121,<br />

164, 166, 217<br />

Kilgallon, Joe, 105, 141, 150<br />

Kirkland, Lane, 37<br />

Kochis, Kim, 61, 71<br />

Koonce, Taylor, 211<br />

Kramer, Lonnie, 128, 143<br />

Krasner, Barry, 100, 102, 128, 143,<br />

152, 168<br />

accomplishments during second<br />

term, 160<br />

biographical sketch, 132<br />

conducts third convention<br />

meetings, 131<br />

and Direct Placement Program,<br />

223–224<br />

and dues increases, 198–199<br />

emeritus member, 95<br />

and IFATCA, 186<br />

introduces constitutional<br />

amendments on<br />

membership, 94<br />

and MEBA disaffiliation, 187–188<br />

1993 contract team, 143–146,<br />

144<br />

1998 contract negotiations, 7–8,<br />

163<br />

office motif, 193–194, 195<br />

organizing at New York<br />

TRACON, 51–52<br />

runs for president, 133–134,<br />

137, 138<br />

Kremer, Leo, 121<br />

Kuhl, Tim, 121, 168<br />

Kushner, David, 57, 58, 67<br />

Kutch, Mark, 114, 125, 126, 128,<br />

138, 143<br />

L<br />

Labonte, Bobby, 211<br />

“Labor and Management: Partners<br />

in Problem-Solving,” 136.<br />

see also Quality Through<br />

Partnership (QTP)<br />

Landry, Dave, 19, 20, 70, 84<br />

Lane, Sally, 32<br />

Lasker, T. Craig, 142, 152, 165<br />

Laughter, Doug, 122, 123<br />

Lawless, Scott, 84, 100<br />

lawsuits, 101, 105<br />

League, Archie, 220, 221, 223<br />

Leonard, Tim, 100, 103, 165<br />

Lewis, Drew, 19, 26, 37, 50<br />

Leyden, John, 7, 22, 86<br />

career highlights, 14<br />

and choirboys, 12, 25<br />

elected PATCO president, 22–23<br />

honorary lifetime membership,<br />

95<br />

and John Thornton, 48<br />

ousted as PATCO president,<br />

11–13<br />

and reclassification, 169<br />

and rehiring of fired controllers,<br />

200<br />

and vocational retraining, 24<br />

liaison and technical representative<br />

program, NATCA, 177–179,<br />

180, 182<br />

lifetime members, honorary, 95<br />

Llafet, Greg, 115–117<br />

lobbying efforts and programs,<br />

NATCA, 156–160, 172, 175–<br />

176, 210–213<br />

“Lobby Week,” 146, 158, 164, 170,<br />

175, 176, 179<br />

Lockheed Martin Corporation, 228<br />

logo, NATCA, 70, 71, 130


logo quilt, 92, 107<br />

Lombardi, Bill, Jr., 49<br />

Low-Level <strong>Wind</strong> Shear Alert<br />

Systems (LLWAS), 46, 64<br />

M<br />

Mackay, Susan, 229<br />

“Magnificent Seven,” 146<br />

Magnuson, Warren, 16<br />

Maher, Jack, 20, 21<br />

Majors, Floyd, 192<br />

Maltby, Cam, 151<br />

Marine Engineers Beneficial<br />

<strong>Association</strong> (MEBA)<br />

affiliation agreements/fees, 88–<br />

89, 111–113<br />

and civil lawsuit legislation, 101<br />

final loan payment to, 111, 168<br />

NATCA disaffiliation, 178, 179,<br />

184, 186–188<br />

and NATCA organizing, 62,<br />

65, 67, 68, 70–72, 74,<br />

85–87<br />

and PATCO, 5, 9, 23<br />

training facility, 125, 126<br />

Marlin, Ruth, 9, 159, 210–214, 213,<br />

215<br />

biographical sketch, 218<br />

Martin, Mike, 192<br />

McArtor, T. Allan, 95, 111<br />

McCain, John, 158–159<br />

McCann, Jim, 84, 97<br />

McDermott, Jerry, 146–148<br />

McGee, Dennis, 215<br />

McGrath, Kevin, 215<br />

McLauren, Mark, 192<br />

McNally, Michael, 137, 138, 152,<br />

164, 168<br />

assesses Bell’s performance, 136<br />

biographical sketch, 162<br />

and Chapter 71 rights fight,<br />

157–158<br />

doesn’t run for re-election, 209<br />

emeritus member, 95<br />

and Jane Garvey, 160, 161–162<br />

at New York Center after strike,<br />

34<br />

1998 contract negotiations, 7–8,<br />

168–171<br />

as QTP <strong>National</strong> Coordinator,<br />

135, 141<br />

and Steve Bell, 75<br />

Meachum, Cathy, 95, 204–206<br />

Meachum, Darrell, 179, 180,<br />

204–206<br />

Means, Bruce, 143, 168<br />

media use, by NATCA, 175<br />

Metropolitan <strong>Controllers</strong><br />

<strong>Association</strong>, 21<br />

Meyer, Greg, 177<br />

Meyer, Robert, 29, 40<br />

Miami Tower, 36–37<br />

midair collisions, 16<br />

Mike Monroney Aeronautical<br />

Center. see FAA Academy<br />

Mineta, Norman, 73–74, 185, 225,<br />

230<br />

minimum safe altitude warnings,<br />

34<br />

Moen, Kenneth, 103<br />

Molen, Gary, 58, 72, 84, 88, 100,<br />

103, 137, 139, 152–153<br />

emeritus member, 95<br />

and John Thornton, 94<br />

and NATCA certifying election,<br />

90<br />

organizing at Salt Lake Center,<br />

61–62, 63<br />

retires, 149<br />

Molinari, Guy, 67, 69, 76<br />

Monaldi, Chris, 214–219<br />

Monroney, Mike, 16<br />

Montoya, Ken, 156, 158–159, 168<br />

Morin, James, 107–108<br />

Morris, Ed, 121, 123<br />

Motta, Mike, 143, 215<br />

Mullin, Ed, 84, 100, 103, 137, 139,<br />

153<br />

biographical sketch, 78<br />

and certification election, 90, 91<br />

emeritus member, 95<br />

joins FAA, 77<br />

O.N.E. Dues Back Trust<br />

program, 110–111<br />

organizing efforts, 6, 79–80<br />

and pay raise negotiations, 168<br />

“Southwest Rule” (contingency<br />

fund), 111<br />

and Wright Amendment, 202–<br />

203<br />

Murphy, Bill, 142<br />

Murphy, Doug, 39<br />

N<br />

NATCA<br />

approved as exclusive<br />

bargaining agent of<br />

controllers, 6–7, 86,<br />

89–91<br />

bargaining units within, 191–<br />

193, 194, 210, 213, 214,<br />

219, 222, 232<br />

building fund, 170, 194<br />

Chapter 71 rights issue, 156–<br />

160, 202<br />

charter member pin, 90<br />

charter members, 236-249<br />

Critical Incident Stress<br />

Management Team,<br />

230–231<br />

Index<br />

257<br />

dues, 87, 110–111, 198–199<br />

emeritus members, 95<br />

employees, 245<br />

Facility Representative and<br />

Leadership Training<br />

course, 115–123<br />

files election petition, 83<br />

finances, and MEBA loans, 88,<br />

111–113, 123, 150, 168,<br />

194<br />

health and working conditions,<br />

173–175<br />

interim constitution, 85, 87<br />

liaison and technical<br />

representative program,<br />

177–179, 180, 182<br />

lifetime members, honorary, 95<br />

lobbying efforts and programs,<br />

156–160, 172, 175–176,<br />

210–213<br />

Logistics, Finance, Accounting,<br />

Information Services<br />

Division bargaining<br />

unit, 203<br />

members, 236–249. see also<br />

individual names<br />

membership milestone figures,<br />

110, 129<br />

name and logo adopted, 70, 71<br />

national office and staff, 2, 9,<br />

105–110, 106, 193–196,<br />

202<br />

O.N.E. Dues Back Trust<br />

program, 110–111<br />

Radar Tower Coalition, 182<br />

regional divisions, 95, 234<br />

safety concerns and initiatives,<br />

176–186, 226–228<br />

seniority issue, debates and<br />

policies, 144, 163–165,<br />

174, 191, 200, 205–208<br />

Small Region Coalition, 95-96


258<br />

<strong>Against</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>Wind</strong><br />

“Southwest Rule” (contingency<br />

fund), 111<br />

training programs, 114–123<br />

“Wall of Shame,” 224<br />

Web site, 117, 122<br />

NATCA Charitable Foundation<br />

(NCF), 204–206<br />

NATCA committees<br />

<strong>National</strong> Communications<br />

Committee, 121, 123<br />

<strong>National</strong> Legislative Committee,<br />

175<br />

Political Action Committee, 8,<br />

120, 176<br />

Reclassification Committee<br />

(facility and pay), 141,<br />

150–153, 168, 169, 224<br />

NATCA–FAA contracts<br />

1989, 110, 113, 114, 125–129,<br />

128<br />

1993, 137, 143–149<br />

1998, 7–8, 163–171, 168<br />

NATCA in Washington, 176, 179,<br />

186, 213, 227, 232<br />

NATCA Membership Investments<br />

Incorporated (NMI), 196–197<br />

NATCA national conventions<br />

<strong>National</strong> Convention Body, 235<br />

founding (1986), 81, 84, 85–89<br />

second (1988), 93–95, 103<br />

third (1990), 126–133, 205<br />

fourth (1992), 138<br />

fifth (1994), 155<br />

sixth (1996), 174<br />

seventh (1998), 191<br />

eighth (2000), 205<br />

ninth (2002), 233<br />

parliamentarians, 94<br />

NATCA national elections<br />

1988, 95–101, 100–101, 102–<br />

103, 109<br />

1991, 133–136, 137–139<br />

1994, 152–153, 154–155, 160<br />

1997, 164–165, 166–167<br />

2000, 213–214, 215–217<br />

NATCAnet, 121–122<br />

NATCA Racing, 211<br />

NATCA Shop, 119–120<br />

NATCAvists, 231–232<br />

The NATCA Voice, 118–120, 174<br />

NATCA (Washington Center),<br />

45–48, 52, 56, 57<br />

<strong>National</strong> <strong>Air</strong>port (Washington,<br />

D.C.), 28<br />

<strong>National</strong> <strong>Air</strong>space System Plan, 42<br />

<strong>National</strong> <strong>Association</strong> of <strong>Air</strong> <strong>Traffic</strong><br />

Specialists, (NAATS), 18–19,<br />

157, 159–160<br />

<strong>National</strong> <strong>Association</strong> of<br />

Government Employees (NAGE)<br />

local controllers’ unions formed,<br />

18–19<br />

O’Hare slowdown and<br />

compensation plans,<br />

20–21<br />

<strong>National</strong> Aviation Research<br />

Institute (NARI), 171, 185<br />

<strong>National</strong> Communications<br />

Committee, 121, 123<br />

<strong>National</strong> Executive Board (NEB).<br />

see also provisional Executive<br />

Board<br />

first (1988), 100-101<br />

second (1991), 137<br />

third (1994), 152-153<br />

fourth (1997), 164-165<br />

fifth (2000), 215<br />

expansion of, 193<br />

family toll of, 231<br />

first woman board member, 214<br />

weighted scale proposal, 94-95<br />

<strong>National</strong> Federation of Federal<br />

Employees, 54<br />

<strong>National</strong> Legislative Committee,<br />

175<br />

<strong>National</strong> Maritime Union, 187<br />

Nav Canada, 226–227<br />

Neumeier, Christine, 109<br />

Newark <strong>Air</strong>port, 222<br />

Newburn, Ed, 114<br />

New England, organizing in,<br />

55–56<br />

New York Center, 54<br />

New York TRACON, 18, 50–52,<br />

109–110, 141<br />

“Nightline” program on ATC, 67,<br />

68–70<br />

Nixon, Richard, 23<br />

Noonan, Joseph, 113, 140<br />

O<br />

Oakland Center, 19<br />

O’Brien, Danielle, 229<br />

O’Brien, Dennis, 84<br />

O’Brien, Joe, 34, 51, 58, 67, 68, 69,<br />

72, 75, 84<br />

O’Hare International <strong>Air</strong>port, 15,<br />

20<br />

O.N.E. Dues Back Trust program,<br />

110–111<br />

Operational Error Detection Patch<br />

software, 52–53<br />

operational error-reporting, 73, 91,<br />

127–128<br />

“Operation Snowman,” 20<br />

Osborne, William W., Jr., 94, 99,<br />

128, 187–188, 207<br />

Otto, Bill, 141–142, 164, 198, 215<br />

Owens, Chuck, 137, 138<br />

Owens, Eric, 168, 215<br />

Owens, Norbert “Nobby,” 113<br />

P<br />

Padgett, Victor, 48<br />

Pallone, Mark, 164, 186, 215<br />

Pappa, Benjamin, Jr., 103<br />

Parrish, Jeff, 119<br />

PATCO. see also PATCO–FAA 1981<br />

contract negotiations; strike,<br />

1981 controllers’<br />

accomplishments under Leyden,<br />

11–12<br />

affiliation with MEBA, 23<br />

choirboys, 12, 23, 25<br />

creation of, 18–21<br />

decertified, 29, 38<br />

early negotiated victories, 21<br />

endorses Reagan, 16<br />

files Chapter 7 bankruptcy, 43<br />

1978 agreement with FAA, 24<br />

1970 sickout, retaliation, and<br />

reinstatement, 22–24<br />

Second-Career Retirement Bill,<br />

24<br />

work-to-rule slowdown at<br />

O’Hare International<br />

<strong>Air</strong>port, 15<br />

PATCO–FAA 1981 contract<br />

negotiations<br />

“educational package”<br />

distributed to members,<br />

13<br />

labor agreement with FAA<br />

lapses in March 1981,<br />

21<br />

Poli agrees to FAA’s “final”<br />

contract offer, 24, 26<br />

representatives walk out of<br />

bargaining sessions, 23<br />

second strike deadline set, 26<br />

strike and aftermath, 27–29<br />

strike deadline set, 23, 26, 31


Pay Demonstration Projects, 114,<br />

135, 146, 149<br />

Pearson, Dave, 84, 100, 102<br />

Peer, William, 13<br />

Peña, Federico F., 143, 177<br />

Perrone, Joseph, 102<br />

Phillips, Rich, 141, 152, 165, 193<br />

plane crashes, 1985, 68–69, 130<br />

Planzer, Neil, 178, 179<br />

Poli, Robert E.<br />

assumes leadership of PATCO,<br />

12–13<br />

and FAA’s “final” contract offer,<br />

24, 26<br />

resigns, 29, 40<br />

strike deadlines set, 23, 26, 31<br />

Political Action Committee, 8, 120,<br />

176<br />

Poole, Jim, 58, 84, 98, 118, 137,<br />

138, 141, 152, 164, 173<br />

Poole, Robert, 225<br />

Portner, Courtney, 108<br />

Potzger, Richard H., 154<br />

Preston, Wayne, 13<br />

privatized ATC systems, 224–226,<br />

225. see also contract towers<br />

issue<br />

Professional <strong>Air</strong>ways Systems<br />

Specialists (PASS), 41, 72–73,<br />

131, 157, 159–160, 192<br />

Professional <strong>Controllers</strong> Alliance,<br />

55, 76<br />

Project Beacon, 16–18, 18<br />

provisional Executive Board, 44,<br />

72, 84<br />

Putzier, Michael, 114, 137, 138,<br />

141, 152, 164<br />

Q<br />

Quality Through Partnership<br />

(QTP), 60, 104, 135, 136, 137–<br />

143, 162<br />

Quonset TRACON, 35, 55<br />

R<br />

radarscopes, 10, 15<br />

Radar Tower Coalition, 182<br />

rainy day fund, 78<br />

Ramsden, Jon, 159<br />

Ray<strong>the</strong>on Company, 20, 64, 175<br />

Reagan, Ronald<br />

dismissal of 11,000 striking<br />

controllers, 5, 27–28<br />

pledges support to PATCO, 16,<br />

25–26<br />

rescinds order banning fired<br />

controllers from federal<br />

jobs, 39<br />

Reclassification Committee (facility<br />

and pay), 141, 150–153, 168,<br />

169, 224<br />

Reed, Bernie, 137, 143, 145, 148,<br />

149, 153, 163, 168<br />

rehiring of fired controllers, 75–76,<br />

79, 145, 199–201<br />

Reuben, S. Jesse, 58–59<br />

Rich, Sam, 137, 138, 152<br />

Richards, Thomas C., 142<br />

Rifas, Howie, 167, 217<br />

Riley, Bill, 53, 54, 56-57, 61, 137<br />

Riley, Lee, 36, 52–53, 56–57, 84,<br />

100, 103, 137, 160<br />

Rock, Mike, 21<br />

“Rodney Vision,” 122–123<br />

RTCA, Inc., 160<br />

Rucker, Tom, 38, 41<br />

runway incursions, 226<br />

S<br />

safety concerns and initiatives,<br />

176–186, 226–228<br />

safety statistics, 41–42<br />

Salt Lake Center, 20, 33, 62, 76<br />

Saludin, John, 102<br />

Sam Schmidt Paralysis Foundation,<br />

211<br />

Sandbach, David, 115, 116<br />

San Juan CERAP, 59<br />

Schimpf, Brian, 226<br />

Schmidt, Sam, 211<br />

scholarship program, 165<br />

Scholl, Mark, 164, 173<br />

Schwitz, James R. “Randy,” 28,<br />

121, 137, 139, 152, 164<br />

attends IFATCA conference, 185<br />

biographical sketch, 190<br />

and national office building<br />

purchase, 195–196<br />

2000 election, 210, 213<br />

Scott, Mike, 47, 52<br />

Seattle-Tacoma International<br />

<strong>Air</strong>port, 226<br />

sector suite design, 180<br />

Security Control of <strong>Air</strong> <strong>Traffic</strong> and<br />

Navigation Aids (SCATANA),<br />

230<br />

seniority issue, debates and<br />

policies, 144, 163–165, 174, 191,<br />

200, 205–208<br />

September 11, 2001, terrorist<br />

attacks, 228–231<br />

Shandrowsky, Alex, 174, 187<br />

Shedden, Bill, 153<br />

Sheedy, Michael, 73–74<br />

Index<br />

259<br />

“shrimp boats,” 15<br />

“<strong>the</strong> shroud,” 165<br />

Shuler, David, 100, 103<br />

sickouts, 21, 22<br />

Simon, Paul, 146–148, 156, 173<br />

Simpkins, Walt, 70, 72<br />

Singletary, Cary R., 115, 116<br />

Skinner, Samuel, 111, 136<br />

Skirlick, Anthony “Skip,” 38, 55,<br />

57, 63–64<br />

Slater, Rodney E., 177, 224<br />

Smith, Brandy L., 165<br />

Sou<strong>the</strong>rn California TRACON, 134<br />

South Florida Legislative<br />

Committee, 210–213<br />

Southwest Region (NATCA), 102,<br />

109<br />

“Southwest Rule” (contingency<br />

fund), 111<br />

Soviet Union ships/cargo, MEBA<br />

longshoremen and, 23<br />

Sperry Univac Corporation, 17, 18<br />

Spickler, Ray, 84, 100, 102, 135–<br />

136<br />

biographical sketch, 112<br />

bypassed at third convention,<br />

131<br />

elected first executive vice<br />

president, 98, 99<br />

at founding convention, 95<br />

IFATCA meeting, 183<br />

and pay demo, 149<br />

re-election bid in 1991, 130<br />

“sprinters,” 27<br />

Standard Terminal Automation<br />

Replacement System (STARS),<br />

17, 175, 181, 182–183<br />

Stephenson, Rob, 143<br />

Stevens, George, 97<br />

strike, 1981 controllers’, 27–32<br />

Stinson, Timothy, 102<br />

Structured Staffing program,


260<br />

<strong>Against</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>Wind</strong><br />

45–46, 51<br />

Success Through Partnership,<br />

113, 136–141. see also Quality<br />

Through Partnership (QTP)<br />

Sullivan, Sallie, 132<br />

Su<strong>the</strong>rland, Chris, 115, 116<br />

Swauger, Richard, 95, 141, 150,<br />

182, 230<br />

Sweeney, John, 158, 189<br />

T<br />

Taylor, Quentin, 69<br />

Taylor, Robert D., 95, 114, 115–117,<br />

168, 189, 191<br />

Teamsters, 67<br />

Terminal Doppler Wea<strong>the</strong>r Radar,<br />

64<br />

terrorist attacks of September 11,<br />

2001, 228–231<br />

Texas, 80<br />

Thoman, Ray, 124, 125, 163–165<br />

Thomas, Beth, 59–61, 73, 127, 128,<br />

208<br />

biographical sketch, 60<br />

Thomas, Chuck, 59, 61<br />

Thomas, David, 18<br />

Thompson, Bryan, 118–120, 119,<br />

121, 123<br />

Thompson, Ricky, 164, 215<br />

Thornton, John<br />

addresses founding convention,<br />

85<br />

as AFGE organizer, 47–50, 55-<br />

56, 67<br />

Barte recommends to coordinate<br />

NATCA organization<br />

under MEBA, 68, 69<br />

biographical sketch, 82<br />

board removes, 203–205<br />

and certification election, 44,<br />

88-90<br />

honorary lifetime membership,<br />

94, 95<br />

MEBA mandates as executive<br />

director, 87–88<br />

as MEBA organizer, 73<br />

as PATCO president, 49<br />

and rehiring of fired controllers,<br />

74, 79<br />

role determined, at second<br />

national convention,<br />

93–94<br />

as senior director for legislative<br />

affairs, 101, 105, 202<br />

and Wright Amendment repeal,<br />

202–203<br />

Thurger, Rob, 227<br />

Tierney, Jerry, 3–5, 182<br />

Timme, Hea<strong>the</strong>r, 115, 116<br />

Torchia, Domenic, 19, 29, 40<br />

<strong>Traffic</strong> Alert/Collision Avoidance<br />

System (TCAS), 25, 151, 177<br />

training programs, 114–123<br />

Trainor, Joe, 159<br />

trans-Atlantic flights, 16<br />

Transportation Department, 230<br />

Transportation Trades Department,<br />

226<br />

Trigler, Stacy, 156<br />

Trumka, Richard, 157<br />

Tsui Grundmann, Susan, 108–109<br />

Tune, John, 37–39, 38, 41, 215<br />

Turner, Rodney, 116, 121, 122–123,<br />

143, 164, 215<br />

U<br />

ULTRA computer language, 181<br />

understaffing, 30, 69<br />

union formation procedure, 50<br />

United <strong>Air</strong> <strong>Traffic</strong> <strong>Controllers</strong><br />

Lobby, 57<br />

United States <strong>Air</strong> <strong>Traffic</strong> Control<br />

Organization (USATCO), 59<br />

University of Oklahoma, 36<br />

U.S. <strong>Air</strong> <strong>Traffic</strong> Services<br />

Corporation (USATS), 153, 156<br />

U.S. Congress. see also individual<br />

congressmen<br />

<strong>Air</strong> <strong>Traffic</strong> Controller Incentive<br />

and Retention Act, 146<br />

Chapter 71 rights issue, 156–<br />

160, 202<br />

Civil Service Reform Act, 18<br />

FAA Reauthorization Act,<br />

158–159<br />

hearing on controller stress, 43<br />

House Subcommittee on<br />

Aviation, 73–74, 107<br />

H.R. 2663, 146<br />

H.R. 4003, 75–76, 79<br />

Postal Reorganization Act, 22<br />

Second-Career Retirement Bill,<br />

24<br />

Senate Subcommittee on<br />

Aviation, 85, 99<br />

Wright Amendment, 202–203<br />

U.S. Postal Service, 22<br />

V<br />

Van Houten, Steve, 100, 102<br />

Van Nuys Tower, 150<br />

vocational retraining, 24<br />

Volpe, John, 22<br />

W<br />

Wagner Act, 18<br />

“Wall of Shame,” 224<br />

Ward, Earl, 221<br />

Ward, Mark, 100, 103<br />

Washington Center, 3, 4, 30, 45–<br />

48, 52, 57–58<br />

Washington <strong>National</strong> <strong>Air</strong>port, 28<br />

Watson, Larry “Bubba,” 164<br />

Web site, NATCA, 117, 122<br />

Whittaker, Jerry, 152, 154, 164<br />

Wicker, Doug, 183<br />

Williams, Paul, 9, 142, 143<br />

Wilson, Barry, 210<br />

wind shear, 46, 64<br />

Woolbright, Rick, 110<br />

World Wide Web, use of, 117,<br />

122–123<br />

Wright, Dale, 117, 195<br />

Wright, James, 202<br />

Wright Amendment, 202–203<br />

Y<br />

Yushinsky, Tony, 217


234<br />

<strong>Against</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>Wind</strong><br />

NATCA at a Glance<br />

California<br />

Hawaii<br />

Washington<br />

Oregon<br />

Nevada<br />

Western-<br />

Pacific<br />

Alaskan<br />

Idaho<br />

Arizona<br />

Northwest<br />

Mountain<br />

Utah<br />

Alaska<br />

Montana<br />

Wyoming<br />

Colorado<br />

New Mexico<br />

The Nine Regions<br />

Nebraska<br />

Texas<br />

North<br />

Dakota<br />

Central<br />

Kansas<br />

Oklahoma<br />

Southwest<br />

Minnesota<br />

Great Lakes<br />

South<br />

Dakota Wisconsin<br />

Iowa<br />

Arkansas<br />

Louisiana<br />

Missouri<br />

Illinois Indiana<br />

Mississippi<br />

Notes<br />

Kentucky<br />

Tennessee<br />

Sou<strong>the</strong>rn<br />

Alabama<br />

Michigan<br />

Sou<strong>the</strong>rn Region includes San Juan and <strong>the</strong> U.S.<br />

Virgin Islands.<br />

Western-Pacific Region includes Kwajalein and<br />

Marshall Islands, American Samoa, and Guam.<br />

Ohio<br />

Georgia<br />

West<br />

West<br />

Virginia<br />

Virginia<br />

North Carolina<br />

South<br />

Carolina<br />

Florida<br />

Pennsylvania<br />

Eastern<br />

Virginia<br />

New York<br />

New<br />

England<br />

Vermont<br />

New<br />

Hampshire<br />

Delaware<br />

Maryland<br />

Maine<br />

Massachusetts<br />

Rhode Island<br />

Connecticut<br />

New Jersey<br />

Additional information<br />

is available on <strong>the</strong> union’s<br />

Web site: www.natca.org<br />

NATCA<br />

1325 Massachusetts Avenue NW<br />

Washington, D.C. 20005<br />

Voice: 202 / 628-5451<br />

Fax: 202 / 628-5767


Director of<br />

Political &<br />

Legislative Affairs<br />

Legislation<br />

Legislative Rep.<br />

Administrative Asst.<br />

Director of<br />

Administration<br />

Constitution<br />

Elections<br />

Regional<br />

Admin. Asst.<br />

Human Resources<br />

Information Technology<br />

Administrative Asst.<br />

Al A sk An RVP<br />

Ce n t R A l RVP<br />

eAsteRn RVP<br />

GR e At lA k e s RVP<br />

new en G l A n d RVP<br />

Director of<br />

Communications<br />

Communication<br />

Media Relations Mgr.<br />

Publications Specialist<br />

Communications Spec.<br />

Director of<br />

Membership<br />

& Marketing<br />

Benefits<br />

Membership Manager<br />

Marketing Specialist<br />

Member Contact Spec.<br />

Receptionist<br />

<strong>National</strong> Convention Body<br />

<strong>National</strong> Executive Board<br />

PR e s i d e n t<br />

ex eCu t i V e ViCe PR e s i d e n t<br />

Liaisons<br />

Comptroller<br />

Finance<br />

Deputy Comptroller<br />

Staff Accountant<br />

Accounting Asst. I/II<br />

noR t h w e s t Mtn. RVP<br />

southwesteRn RVP<br />

so u t h e R n RVP<br />

westeRn-PACif iC RVP<br />

enGineeRs & AR C h i t e C t s VP<br />

Director of<br />

Safety & Technology<br />

Safety<br />

Technology<br />

Reps<br />

Safety Specialist<br />

Technology Reps<br />

Administrative Asst.<br />

Regional<br />

Admin. Asst.<br />

Director of<br />

Training<br />

Director of<br />

Strategic Planning<br />

& Policy<br />

Director of<br />

Labor Relations<br />

Arbitration<br />

Advocate<br />

Trial<br />

Committee<br />

General Counsel<br />

Dep. General Counsel<br />

L.R. Specialists<br />

Administrative Asst.


The NATCA Family<br />

Bargaining Unit Members (as of January 2002)<br />

Names of charter members are in bold<br />

John Michael Aarhus • John A. Aartman • Mark G. Abbey • James R. Abbott • Robert G. Abbott • Teresa L. Abbott • Todd D. Abbotts • William M. Abdalla • Eric K. Abdullah • John D. Abdul-Malik • Chris J. Abel • L. Roger Abel • Tim G. Abels • Karl Aber • Marc M.<br />

Abeyta • Gary Lee Abplanalp • Dean M. Abraham • Janice O. Abraham • Stephen J. Abraham • Lynn M. Abram • Russell O. Absher • George G. Acampora • Tracey E. Acampora • Dennis J. Accavallo • Joe Accavallo • Juliane W. Accavallo • Terrence R. Accoo • Richard<br />

M. Accorto • Thomas M. Achin • Diane Y. Achterling • Gordon F. Acker • Michael R. Ackerman • Robert Todd Ackerman • George F. Ackley • Andrew G. Acres • James P. Adair • Jeffrey S. Adair • Charles F. Adam • Robert R. Adam • Leonard J. Adamczyk • Michael<br />

Adame • Steve Adamek • Amanda M. Adams • Brad Adams • Charles B. Adams • Derrek J. Adams • Donnie Adams • Glenn E. Adams • Gregory J. Adams • John K. Adams • John R. Adams • Mark A. Adams • Marshall Adams • Michael D. Adams • Michael L.<br />

Adams • Pamela D. Adams • Patrick M. Adams • Philip W. Adams • Raymond M. Adams • Rhonda Adams • Theresa J. Adams • Timothy L. Adams • Warren M. Adams • Ronald J. Adamski • Stephen P. Adamski • Jonathan Lee Adcock • Ka<strong>the</strong>rine H. Adcock • Thomas<br />

R. Adcock • Mary Anne Addis • Charles Thomas Addy • Robert Adelizzi • Herbert W. Adkins • James D. Adkins • Abner P. Advincula • Blaine G. Agena • Don R. Aggers • Curtis P. Agnew • Vimala Agrawal • Lourdes D. Aguerre-Bennett • Roberto Aguilera • Alice<br />

H. AhLo • John M. Ahearn • Shane T. Ahern • Donald E. Ahlberg • James F. Ahlers • Michael V. Aiello • Gregory A. Aiken • John D. Aiken • Ernest Akau • Jeffrey Scott Ake • Charlie Akers • Gregory S. Akers • Daniel E. Albanese • Glenn S. Albanese • George K.<br />

Alberer • Joe M. Albers • Jonette M. Albers • Richard W. Albers • Edward W. Albert • Merlyn E. Albert • Steven L. Alberts • Jason T. Albold • Frederic Paul Albrecht • Chris D. Albright • James Albright • Thomas Scott Albright • Glen M. Alcantara • Ca<strong>the</strong>rine S.<br />

Alcorn • James A. Alcorn • Jeff R. Alcorn • Larry D. Alcorn • Michael E. Alcorn • Michael D. Alcott • Alain Aldama • Bradley I. Alden • Randal M. Alden • David M. Aldrich • Joy Ann Aldrich • Michael F. Aldrich • Guy Douglas Aldridge • Steve Aldridge • Thomas Jay<br />

Alef • Bobbie Lee Alejandre • Mark Phillip Alessio • Dawn Alewine • Kevin Charles Alewine • Michael P. Alewine • Stephen Alex • Allen B. Alexander • Arnold G. Alexander • Beth Ann Alexander • Brett Robin Alexander • Bruce W. Alexander • Chris V.<br />

Alexander • Daniel A. Alexander • David L. Alexander • Keith D. Alexander • Lynn D. Alexander • Michael Eames Alexander • Richard D. Alexander • Robbie R. Alexander • Roland Lee Alexander • Terry W. Alexander • Todd Alfes • Julie Alger • Alexis Raul Ali • Asif<br />

M. Ali • Melissa Alicea • Joseph Aliperti • John R. Aliperto • Carl Joe Alizio • Robert G. Alker • David T. Allan • Loretta Ann Allberry • Lawrence Joseph Allcott • Scott A. Allegretto • Kevin J. Allegrini • Joseph F. Allegro • Steven M. Allemang • Amy L. Allen • Brenda<br />

G. Allen • Charles C. Allen • Darren J. Allen • David W. Allen • Donald F. Allen • Edward A. Allen • Edward F. Allen • George T. Allen • Jeffry R. Allen • Kerry W. Allen • Lawrence F. Allen • Mark D. Allen • Murriel D. Allen • Scott E. Allen • Steven D. Allen • Tami L.<br />

Allen • Thomas J. Allen • Vernon P. Allen • James K. Allerdice • James R. Alles • Barbara G. Allgood • Glen R. Allgood • Virginia A. Allis • Patricia A. Allison • Brady J. Allred • Kevin L. Allsop • Kenneth D. Almand • Juan Almanzar • Gail C. Almeida • Douglas C.<br />

Alms • Barbara A. Alonzo • Steven E. Alqueza • Marianne C. Als • Aric Sean Alston • Kelley R. Althouse • Jon D. Altieri • Michael N. Altmann • Gregory L. Alumbaugh • Eduardo Q. Alva • Merce Alvarado • Orlando Alvarado • Joseph Alvardo • Armando<br />

Alvarez • Michael Alvarez • Gerald Dale Alvord • Gordon K. Amann • Marie Ann Amato • Michael Samuel Amato • Larry C. Ambrose • John B. Amengual • Pamela S. Amerman • Todd K. Amerman • Stephen J. Ames • Abdul Hafiz Amin • Mohammad R. Amini • Brian<br />

Thomas Amireault • Anthony Amodeo • John L. Amor • Alvin L. Amposta • Gary L. Amy • Jeffrey J. Amy • Donald V. An • Edward Anacleto • Bill Ancheta • Shelby D. Anders • Ca<strong>the</strong>rine E. Andersen • Anthony Anderson • Billy T. Anderson • Charles Crouse<br />

Anderson • Christian D. Anderson • David L. Anderson • David P. Anderson • David S. Anderson • Dennis M. Anderson • Dhana Marlene Anderson • Doyle B. Anderson • Drew O. Anderson • Dwight D. Anderson • Eric N. Anderson • Erik C. Anderson • Ernest E.<br />

Anderson • Grant R. Anderson • Greg T. Anderson • Holly Marie Anderson • James C. Anderson • Jeffrey A. Anderson • Jeffrey E. Anderson • John D. Anderson • John E. Anderson • John Stanley Anderson • John Anderson • Kent Thomas Anderson • Lars D.<br />

Anderson • Martin Lee Anderson • Michael A. Anderson • Michael D. Anderson • Nathan Anderson • Ray L. Anderson • Richard N. Anderson • Ronald L. Anderson • Stanley N. Anderson • Stephen E. Anderson • Susan E. Anderson • Susan P. Anderson • Tamara L.<br />

Anderson • Tina L. Anderson • Todd A. Anderson • Wendy S. Anderson • Kenneth A. Andrade • Gary A. Andrae • Raymond R. Andrae • Ronald C. Andre’ • John Andrei • Alan Bruce Andrelezyk • Darrin Andrew • Brad L. Andrews • David L. Andrews • George W.<br />

Andrews • John S Andrews • Kyle R. Andrews • Michael E. Andrews • Nathan Andrews • Sandy Andrews • John W. Andrick • Gregory Andriotis • Paul R. Andrus • Charles Andruskiewicz • Marco Angel • Sherry L. Angeley • Neil Angelotti • Dennis J.<br />

Angerman • Judy C. Angle • Theodore W. Angle • Russell A. Anile • John Robert Ankeny • William T. Anker • John Charles Annino • Dan Lee Ansbaugh • Barry Anshell • Kendle G. Anspach • Taso P. Anthan • John G. Antoine • John Antonakos • Felix T.<br />

Antone • Anthony Antonopoulos • Dina R. Antuna • James A. Anzaldi • Frank J. Apel • William M. Apgar • Andy Applegate • Curtis W. Applegate • Craig Applin • Ron Aquilina • Rodney S. Aquiningoc • Anthony J. Aquino • Majid K. Arab • Craig Y. Arakaki • Morris<br />

K. Arakawa • Joseph D. Aramburu • Roberto V. Aranda • Virginia A. Arata • Alfred K. Arbeiter • Bonny L. Arbuckle • Fred R. Arbuckle • David Arcado • Lourdes Arce • William J. Archbold • Anna M. Archer • Michael A. Archer • Andrew T. Archut • Steven F.<br />

Arcio • Charles E. Ard • Thomas E. Arden • Timothy C. Arden • Ka<strong>the</strong>rine E. Arehart • Vivian E. Arendall • Diane E. Arendt • Robert J. Arenholz • Chris P. Argalas • Paul R. Argus • Alexander A. Argyros • Patrick J. Arlt • Stephan J. Armocida • David R.<br />

Armstrong • David W. Armstrong • Denis Armstrong • Jack K. Armstrong • James M. Armstrong • Patrick Michael Armstrong • Peggy J. Armstrong • Steve A. Armstrong • Sheldon C. Arndt • William A. Arnett • Bunny L. Arnold • Eric Neel Arnold • James R.<br />

Arnold • James R. Arnold • James Randell Arnold • Jason Ty Arnold • Joe W. Arnold • John S. Arnold • Kirk Allen Arnold • Mark W. Arnold • Peter R. Arnold • Peter V. Arnold • Richard D. Arnold • Shelly R. Arnold • Thomas W. Arnold • Timothy A. Arnold • John<br />

D. Arntz • Harley Aronson • Wesley Arp • V. Homer Arrington • David J. Arroyo • Margarita Arroyo • Craig R. Arruda • Jeffrey T. Arruda • Richard J. Arsenault • Scott L. Arsenault • Marvin Arshawsky • Krikor Arslanian • Randolph E. Arslanian • Adlai M.<br />

Arthur • Vivian A. Artis • Richard L. Arzate • Thomas E. Asbury • Thomas E. Asby • Gary J. Aschenbrenner • Mike G. Ascherl • David M. Ash • James M. Ash • James Ash • Cassie Susan Ashbury • David L. Ashby • James D. Ashe • Roger Harry Asher • Mary A.<br />

Ashley • Francis A. Ashline • Allen A. Ashlock • Scott C. Ashton • Anthony C. Askew • Terry Askew • William A. Aslaksen • Alan H. Ast • Mark Athas • Girard I. A<strong>the</strong>rholt • Larry Atkerson • Arthur C. Atkinson • Thomas R. Atkinson • Van D. Atmore • Derrick<br />

L. Aubuchon • Ivens Auchet • Gary P. Audet • Harold A. Auer • Allen E. Augustad • Richard S. Augustin • Gregory Augusto • Peter J. Augustyniak • Rana Aujla • Jeffrey M. Aulbach • Albert W. Aulner • Philip R. Aune • Kevin Aurandt • Andy Auscherman • Bonnie<br />

S. Austin • Daniel B. Austin • Mark A. Austin • Michael J. Austin • Richard A. Austin • Stephen A. Austin • Stephen R. Austin • Thomas Patrick Austin • Timothy A. Austin • Dudley Auzenne • Bart B. Avery • Julia Avery • Robert M. Avery • Fabian I. Avilla • Michael<br />

Avitt • Roy K. Awana • Bejie Aweau • Gary S. Ayers • Larry W. Ayers • John P. Aylward • William D. Aynes • Colleen M. Ayotte • Daniel R. Ayotte • Michael A. Ayotte • David A. Ayres • Clinton D. Aytes • Ann Azevedo • James M. Babcock • Jerry W.<br />

Babcock • Robert L. Babcock • Michael J. Babin • Aaron A. Babino • Secundino O. Baca • Denise M. Bachand • Robin L. Bacher • William Kevin Bachman • Barbara A. Bachus-Saunders • Jennifer Bacon • Mat<strong>the</strong>w W. Bacon • William J. Bacon • Cynthia M. Bacon-<br />

Sturgis • Eric J. Baczenski • David D. Baczkowski • Mark Baden • Charles Bader • Mat<strong>the</strong>w C. Bader • Nancy Lea Bader • Chris Badger • Ky D. Badgley • Karl Bading • Jack L. Baggett • Patrick A. Baggot • Donald R. Bagley • James P. Bagley • Stephen P.<br />

Bagley • James D. Baglieri • Leigh S. Bagnall • Kenneth Bagnasco • Charles E. Bagwell • David A. Bagwell • Jay B. Bagwell • Raymond Bahavar • Roger R. Bahl • Gary C. Bahler • John H. Bahns • Mat<strong>the</strong>w W. Bahnsen • Joel M. Bahr • Randall D. Bahrenfuss • Robert G.<br />

Bahrke • Ale<strong>the</strong>a Michelle Bailey • Debbie A. Bailey • Dennis E. Bailey • Frank C. Bailey • Gregory D. Bailey • Henry Eugene Bailey • Janet L. Bailey • Jay L. Bailey • Jennifer L. Bailey • Patricia E. Bailey • Rick Bailey • Russell E. Bailey • Terry N. Bailey • Roger A.<br />

Baim • Brad H. Bain • Bruce M. Bain • Chris A. Bain • Gloria L. Bain • Kevin E. Bainer • Jimmie O. Bair • Kevin Bair • Clifford Baird • David L. Baird • Steven L. Baird • Susan L. Baird • Timothy J. Bakeman • Angela Lynette Baker • Bryan S. Baker • Charles B.<br />

Baker • Charles W. Baker • Charles W. Baker • Charles Baker • Gary D. Baker • Glenn S. Baker • Gregory L. Baker • Jeffrey W. Baker • John W. Baker • Joseph K. Baker • Kathy L. Baker • Kenneth Eugene Baker • Marshall Louis Baker • Paul M. Baker • Phillip<br />

William Baker • Rex A. Baker • Richard T. Baker • Robert B. Baker • Robert L. Baker • Roger A. Baker • Steven Baker • Thomas E. Baker • Timothy W. Baker • James J. Balachowski • John D. Balachowski • John P. Balberchak • John Balbi • Kenneth A. Balch • Michael<br />

E. Balder • David H. Baldwin • Jacqueline A. Baldwin • Michael W. Baldwin • Raymond S. Baldwin • Sam R. Baldwin • Sharon K. Baldwin • John S. Baldyga • John A. Baleski • David M. Balestreri • Susan Balestrier • Michelle F. Bales-Woods • David L. Balkenbush • Steven<br />

P. Balkevicius • Crystal Ball • Daniel Lee Ball • Luke A. Ball • Randall R. Ball • William W. Ball • Ann Ballard • Christopher J. Ballard • Gary D. Ballard • Kenneth D. Ballard • Michael J. Ballard • Rhonda Lee Ballard • Frank Louis Ballif • Timothy A. Ballog • Darryl Keith<br />

Bally • Howard W. Balmer • Douglas L. Balok • Jeff P. Baltzley • Marc D. Balzac • Bernard J. Banche • Rene Laurance Bancroft • Janice M. Bane • Hans E. Banitt • Carol A. Banks • Clayton Mitchell Banks • James A. Banks • James E. Banks • Shawn R. Banks • Kirk S.<br />

Banner • Kevin James Bannwolf • Michael E. Baptiste • Robert B. Barabasz • Charles A. Baratta • David J. Baratta • Phil M. Barbarello • Richard W. Barbas • James Ray Barbee • Ashley M. Barber • Barry W. Barber • Bobby R. Barber • Chad E. Barber • David A.<br />

Barber • Hugh Barber • John B. Barber • Kirk R. Barber • Robert A. Barber • Joseph Barberia • John R. Barbieri • Jesse R. Barcinas • Don E. Barclay • John J. Barcus • Paul L. Bardwell • Rufus B. Bardwell • Mark John Barger • John R. Bargerhuff • Alan P. Barker • Brett<br />

O. Barker • Bryan Barker • David K. Barker • Ryan B. Barker • Wayne T. Barkfelt • Ronald Jay Barkley • Loretta Barlow • Roger A. Barlow • William K. Barlow • Thomas A. Barnard • Thomas J. Barnard • Alan L. Barnes • Brian J. Barnes • James A. Barnes • Julie A.<br />

Barnes • Lisa D. Barnes • Mark A. Barnes • Morris N. Barnes • Scott S. Barnes • Thomas H. Barnes • Era L. Barnes-Wagner • James R. Barnett • James Richard Barnett • Jodi Lynne Barnett • Maury K. Barnett • Richard E. Barnett • Thomas E. Barnett • John C.<br />

Barnewall • Cindy L. Barnhart • William B. Barnhart • Ramon Barnowski • Anthony J. Baron • Candy L. Barr • Troy L. Barr • Thomas V. Barrale • Anthony J. Barrett • Bruce W. Barrett • Charles E. Barrett • Edward V. Barrett • James Patrick Barrett • John J.<br />

Barrett • Lorraine H. Barrett • Michell J. Barrett • Robert W. Barrett • Susan Barrett • Tim D. Barrett • Stephen Barringer • Bruce R. Barris • Mark P. Barron • Vincent L. Barron • Charles R. Barry • Michael F. Barry • Michael R. Barry • Howie Barte • J a n e t<br />

Bartek • Rodney Bartek • David Alan Bartel • James C. Bartel • Bronson M. Barth • Chris J. Barth • Michael N. Bartholomew • John G. Bartimoccia • Byron M. Bartkiewicz • Gregory J. Bartlett • John Bartlett • William A. Bartlett • Keven Bartness • Eugene Samuel<br />

Barto • Raymond T. Bartolotta • John J. Bartosiewicz • Todd J. Bartoszek • Richard F. Bartow • Patricia Jo Bartz • Michael J. Barutha • Danny R. Basham • John E. Basham • Domingo Basilio • Mohanned A. Basith • Anthony R. Bass • Edward J. Bass • Alan B.<br />

Bassett • Charles Thomas Bastien • Francis Robert Bastis • Stephen M. Batchelder • Robert F. Bateman • Bruce E. Bates • Charles T. Bates • Daniel Dean Bates • John W. Bates • Michael E. Bates • Stanley E. Bates • Steven E. Bates • Susan Bates • William C.<br />

Batie • Rachelle Marie Batista • Laverne Battle • Nicole Battle • Sharon A. Battles • Paul S. Baudanza • Kathleen Sue Bauer • Keith R. Bauer • Troy Bauer • John A. Bauers • Birthland O. Baugh • Jeffrey Lee Baugh • Richard G. Baugh • Randall Lee Baughcum • Benny<br />

W. Baughman • David G. Baum • Stephen M. Baum • Charles K. Bauman • Richard J. Bauman • Stephen R. Bauman • Vincent E. Bauman • Michael D. Baur • Cheryl Ann Bavister • Brett L. Baxter • Kent A. Baxter • Kimberly M. Baxter • Wayne D. Baxter • Thomas J.<br />

Bayalis • Joel Michael Bayes • John Bayone • Thomas F. Bayone • Darrell P. Bazman • Julie Anne Bazman • Pinkney C. Beach • Mark R. Beadle • James E. Beadling • John L. Beall • Mark Richard Beall • Paul D. Beall • Jon A. Bealles • Vicki D. Bealman • David Glenn<br />

Beam • Michael K. Beam • Ca<strong>the</strong>rine E. Beard • Dennis H. Beard • Mark William Beard • Marnie Lynn Beard • Nathaniel D. Beard • Ralph J. Beard • Scott E. Beard • Jeffrey R. Beasley • Mary Melissa Beasley • Ronald G. Beasley • Charles Beaton • Mark Anthony<br />

Beaton • Russell C. Beatse • Charles F. Beattie • Thomas R. Beattie • Scott D. Beauchamp • Barbara A. Beauchat • John F. Beauchat • David G. Beauchesne • Bruce M. Beaulieu • Dennis M. Beaulieu • Ann Beauman • William E. Beaumont • Timothy J. Bechtler • Kenneth<br />

Robert Bechtold • Alex L. Beck • Bryan D. Beck • Charles N. Beck • David E. Beck • Douglas D. Beck • Jimmy C. Beck • Karen L. Beck • Michael L. Beck • Robert E. Beck • Robert K. Beck • William M. Beck • Alex H. Becker • Daniel Becker • James R. Becker • Mark<br />

E. Becker • Philip D. Becker • Robert H. Becker • Holly Beckley-Bailey • John N. Beckman • Patricia M. Beckman • Stephen E. Beckmann • Jerald N. Beckner • Donald W. Beckwith • John W. Becoat • David M. Becquet • Howard E. Bedee • James R. Bedient • Theresa<br />

J. Bedner • Theresa A. Bedwell • Lloyd B. Beebe • William B. Beebe • M. Faye Beedles • Michael Beeler • William B. Beeler • Sammy Beene • Robert G. Beer • James L. Beers • Kenneth Beers • Curtis R. Beery • Frank E. Beeton • Larry G. Beggs • Jeffrey Lynn<br />

Begley • Steven B. Begnaud • Andrew Behary • David S. Behney • Jeffrey W. Behrens • Lisa A. Behrens • Thomas R. Behrens • Kevin John Beine • Ana Maria Bejar • Brett C. Belak • Juliann E. Belanger • Marc Belhumeur • Andrew Bell • Clyde A. Bell • Cynthia E.<br />

Bell • Keith O. Bell • Keith W. Bell • Kevin L. Bell • R. Steve Bell • Rebecca G. Bell • Richard A. Bell • Robert L. Bell • Ronald W. Bell • Thomas R. Bell • Jean Darlene Bellamy • Robert J. Bellchambers • Gary W. Beller • Kenneth Bruce Bellesen • Joseph M.<br />

Bellino • Daniel Ross Bellows • Janet G. Bellush • Joseph H. Beltz • Guguie Benabe • Michael A. Bencal • Allen H. Bencker • Lyn Edward Bendall • David C. Bender • Brian L. Bendigo • Paul L. Bendigo • Paul David Benedetto • Janis L. Benell • Doug Benesch • Robert<br />

J. Benetti • Rita D. Benike • Scott Ryan Benish • Mark A. Benner • Charlie Bennett • Chris C. Bennett • David Alan Bennett • Jeffrey A. Bennett • Judy M. Bennett • Mark S. Bennett • Roger L. Bennett • Stephen D. Bennett • Teresa M. Bennett • Thomas J.<br />

Bennett • Craig A. Bennington • Robert J. Benoit • Victoria L. Bensburg • William F. Bensburg • Bruce Benson • Gregory John Benson • Michael A. Benson • Charles Bentley • Robert James Bentley • Carol A. Bento • Benny M. Benton • Richard P. Benton • Terrance<br />

L. Benton • Megan Bents • Chad M. Bentz • Daniel W. Bentz • Edward H. Bentzlin • Victoria L. Benzinger • Juanita Beran • Rebecca Anne Berberich • Gary M. Berblinger • James C. Berbrich • Mark J. Berdahl • Kimberlee Putnam Berens • Gunnar H. Berg • Jeff<br />

Berg • Leah J. Berg • Michael D. Berg • Michael Jon Berg • James W. Bergagna • Ken A. Berge • Mark S. Berger • Patrick Bergin • Thomas G. Bergin • Harry Bergmann • Jonathan H. Bergstrom • Clifford M. Beringer • Lisa C.M. Berkland • James G. Bermant • Antonio<br />

Bermudez • DonRoy A. Bernabe • Yolanda A. Bernal • Alfredo Bernard • Keith Anthony Bernard • Vince Bernard • Deanna L. Bernardino • Brian Bernhardt • Bruce R. Bernstein • Thomas Bernstein • David G. Berrang • Bobby S. Berry • Bryan T. Berry • Chris F.<br />

Berry • Jeffrey L. Berry • Joe Bailey Berry • Michael L. Berry • Mitchel A. Berry • Peter T. Berry • Ransome L. Berry • Robert S. Berry • Thomas Berry • Bret Bersuch • Bruce Bertelsen • Jeffrey T. Bertelsen • Daniel C. Bertrand • Cheryl Kay Berttunen • Dave<br />

Berveiler • Michael L. Besagno • James R. Best • Heidi R. Besters • Phillip E. Bettis • Michael Walter Betz • Thomas E. Beuerlein • Keith J. Beulen • Kerry Beus • Holly A. Bevan • Peter J. Bever • Brent L. BeVier • Stephanie P. Bevins • Audrey L. Beyer • Brian K.<br />

Beyer • Patricia A. Beyer • Robert E. Beyer • Garth C. Beyette • Kevin M. Bianchi • John F. Bica • August H. Bickel • Douglas B. Bickerstaff • John J. Bideganeta • Brian Keith Bidwell • Allen L. Bieber • Andrew Biegel • Stacey L. Bierfeldt • Steven G. Bierfeldt • Mark<br />

C. Bierhaalder • Vernon William Biesecker • Thomas P. Bieszad • Daniel P. Bigelow • Kathleen M. Bigelow • Molly B. Bigelow • Ralph J. Bigelow • Troy L. Bigelow • Francis B. Biggar • Geraldine Biggers • Jack H. Biggers • Michael H. Biggers • Rachael Biggs • Randall<br />

F. Biggs • Michael W. Bigler • Stephen B. Bilger • Michael G. Billinghurst • Jeff A. Billings • Thomas L. Billings • Kevin Billingsly • Scott M. Billups • Gary M. Bilonta • William S. Bing • Michael E. Bingham • Richard V. Bingham • Benjamin E. Biordi • Todd C. Birch • James<br />

A. Birchfield • Randy J. Birchler • Daniel E. Bird • Leslie Sheldon Bird • Lewis M. Bird • Mitchell R. Bird • Pamela S. Bird • Alan S. Birdsall • Janet S. Birkner • Timothy C. Birtcil • Mary J. Birtwistle • George W. Bishop • John K. Bishop • Mark R. Bishop • Reynold W.<br />

Bishop • Rodney C. Bishop • Scott R. Bishop • Ted D. Bishop • Willis A. Bishop • Chris Alan Bishopp • Glenn S. Bishop-Smith • Joseph R. Bisping • Denis Bisson • Kenneth A. Bitgood • Kyle F. Bitters • Charles A. Bittner • Jimmy Bitz • Mark O. Bjorg • M a r k


Names of charter members are in bold<br />

Blaber • Vincent D. Blaber • Albert D. Black • Bernard A. Black • Danielle Starr Black • James M. Black • John C. Black • N. Keith Black • Rodney L. Black • Stephen D. Black • Thomas G. Black • Bernard L. Blackburn • Jeffrey Dean Blackburn • Michael E.<br />

Blackburn • Derek A. Blackford • Jeffrey D. Blackman • Bill A. Blackmer • Aaron Wade Blackmon • Guy S. Blackwell • Walter D. Blackwood • Kristianne K. Blaese • Robert J. Blahut • Scott D. Blain • Allan Blair • Bruce E. Blair • Chris Dean Blair • Doug Blair • Mark<br />

A. Blair • Randy H. Blair • Thomas M. Blair • Michael J. Blais • Bradford M. Blaisdell • Michael F. Blaisuis • Earl W. Blake • Michael I. Blake • Michael J. Blake • Robert A. Blake • Roger T. Blake • John W. Blakeney • Marc David Blam • Andrew S. Blanchard • Mark I.<br />

Blanchard • Peter D. Blanchard • William G. Blanchette • Rene Laurence Blanco • Charles C. Blankenship • Delayna Smith Blankenship • Hank G. Blankenship • Howard L. Blankenship • Steven A. Blankenship • Willis Blankenship • Darrell G. Blanton • Lawrence<br />

M. Blaser • George E. Blash • Jayne B. Blasier • Kurt R. Blasier • Nicky D. Blaylock • David L. Blessinger • Terrence R. Bleuins • Brent Blevins • James Blilie • Stephen E. Blinco • Charles L. Blink • Jeffrey E. Blittersdorf • Kevin Joseph Blixt • Chris J. Block • Maryrose<br />

Block • Suzanne Block-Bauman • Dewey Blocker • Roelof Blok • Jill R. Blomquist • Michael S. Blondin • Edward D. Bloom • John H. Bloomingdale • LaTaunya L. Bloomingdale • Keith P. Bloss • Jeffrey S. Blow • John M. Blue • Carl Bluethgen • David Bluhm • Amy<br />

M. Blume • Michael Blumling • Thomas B. Blunk • Carl L. Bly<strong>the</strong> • Douglas Bly<strong>the</strong> • Otto J. Boat • Michael E. Boatright • Thomas A. Boatwright • Cheryl Bobletz • Dominick Bocelli • Brian L. Bochenski • Irvin C. Bockhold • Richard E. Bocook • Rodney S.<br />

Bodart • Jeffrey Bodell • Mark E. Bodine • Robert W. Bodron • Brian Robert Boehne • Craig M. Boehne • Timothy T. Boelter • Brad K. Boese • Roy E. Boffo • Yvonne Bogardus • Michael J. Bogdan • Dean Bogdanowich • Eugene F. Bohl • Daniel F. Bohleber • James<br />

P. Bohleber • Mark R. Bohn • Todd K. Bohrer • Chris Bokowy • Thomas Boland • Gina A. Bolen • Joseph N. Bolen • Richard C. Boles • Kevin Daniel Bolhouse • Douglas Lee Bolkema • Brian L. Bollin • Tonya M. Bolling • Bobby Bolt • Daniel T. Bolt • Lisa M.<br />

Bonczyk • Brian C. Bond • George A. Bond • Howard W. Bond • James O. Bond • Ronald F. Bond • Susann S. Bond • Michele Marie Bonds • Scott W. Bondurant • Bradley W. Bone • Michael D. Bone • Patricia Ann Bonelli • James E. Bonham • Steven R.<br />

Boniberger • Anthony J. Bonic • Mat<strong>the</strong>w L. Bonidie • Edward S. Bonilla • Lance R. Bonin • Donna Bonner • Scott W. Bonnet • Jacqueline K. Bonney • David E. Bono • Steven Bono • Wendell W. Bonta • Mark Richard Bonvouloir • Eric A. Booe • Carol A.<br />

Boome • Deborah L. Boone • Mark A. Boone • Ronald R. Boos • Jack A. Boot • Jack Boot • Jeffrey P. Booth • Melissa G. Booth • Jack Allan Boothby • David J. Borcalli • Greg R. Borchardt • Louise M. Borchardt • Ted A. Borchelt • John C. Bordeaux • Nicholas P.<br />

Bordelon • Robert W. Bordner • Stephen K. Bordner • James W. Bordoni • Martin A. Borg • Michael L. Borga • David W. Borger • Kevin P. Borre • Louis Richard Borrego • Victoria Borrego • Michaab Borrero • Michael Borzym • Michael G. Bosch • Kevin C.<br />

Bosemer • Scott Bosemer • James R. Boshek • James D. Bosley • Kimberly Bostick • Joseph H. Boswell • Timothy N. Bosworth • Terri M. Botkins • Joanne V. Botos • David P. Bottiglia • David T. Bottini • Peter L. Bouchard • Rodney D. Bouchard • Frederick M.<br />

Boucher • Kevin M. Boucher • Scott B. Boucher • Sharon E. Bouchonville • William P. Boudewyns • Chris S. Boughn • Mark Andrew Boumenot • Lynn R. Bounds • Nancy A. Bourn • Jay R. Bourne • Donald J. Bouslaugh • Jeffery H. Bousson • Carrie Lee<br />

Boutivas • Russell F. Boutot • Brian J. Boutte • Christophe P. Boutte • Kerry E. Bowden • Edward J. Bowe • John R. Bowe • Delaine G. Bowen • Joel A. Bowen • Christopher J. Bowers • David William Bowers • Jack E. Bowers • Jay B. Bowers • Jerry O. Bowers • Larry<br />

W. Bowers • Stephen D. Bowers • William M. Bowers • Leo F. Bowersox • Evell D. Bowie • Larry M. Bowles • Chris Shay Bowling • Kimberly Ann Bowling • Bond R. Bowman • Daniel B. Bowman • Joseph E. Bowman • William Blaine Bowman • Erik V. Bowring • Richard<br />

M. Bowser • Douglas Clayton Boyce • Jeffrey J. Boyce • John E. Boyce • A’kin M. Boyd • Andrew F. Boyd • Brian P. Boyd • Bruce J. Boyd • Edward I. Boyd • James A. Boyd • John C. Boyd • Kevin W. Boyd • Richard A. Boyd • Ronald D. Boyd • Ramona C. Boyd-<br />

Brenholdt • Jason F. Boyde • Joanne R. Boyer • Michael Thomas Boyer • Steve R. Boyer • David B. Boyett • Jeff Boyett • Louise Marie Boyett • Conway L. Boyette • Derryl R. Boyette • Joel Vincent Boykin • Daniel P. Boyle • Duane A. Boyle • Joseph D. Boyle • Lynn<br />

D. Boyle • Mark Boyle • Mona J. Boyle • Ronald A. Boyle • Scott C. Boyle • Travis Boyle • Wanda C. Boyle • William R. Boyle • James G. Brabec • Donald C. Bracewell • Cyrus Bracey • Frank M. Bracken • Linda L. Bracken • Jimmy L. Brackery • Sydney P.<br />

Bradfield • Richard S. Bradfisch • Robert I. Bradford • Samuel M. Bradford • Terry Bradford • Bruce James Bradigan • Forrest H. Bradley • Halcott W. Bradley • John R. Bradley • Keith F. Bradley • Mat<strong>the</strong>w P. Bradley • Paquita K. Bradley • Phillip M. Bradley • Robert<br />

K. Bradley • Robin H. Bradley • Gary M. Bradt • Daniel D. Brady • Edward Charles Brady • Jason T. Brady • Wilbert G. Brady • Gary F. Braese • Randy Bragg • Jennifer S. Braid • Michael A. Braid • Frank E. Brakenwagen • Anthony V. Brama • Nora J. Braman • Mark<br />

G. Bramfeld • Erica L. Bramhall • Carol D. Branaman • James O. Branch • Torrance L. Branch • Ralph A. Branche • Sarah C. Brand • Michael D. Brandes • Kevin S. Brandon • Daniel L. Brandt • Lee A. Brandt • Peter L. Brandt • Randal Dean Branham • Tony A.<br />

Branham • Elliot H. Brann • William J. Brann • Thomas L. Brannon • Janelle L. Branower • Carrie J. Branowitzer • Stephanie Marion Branta • Carl E. Brantley • Dick J. Brantley • Daniel J. Brashear • David D. Brasko • Thomas J. Brassard • Glynn E. Braswell • Joseph<br />

Bratovich • Terry O. Braun • William Braun • David Braunius • Douglas R. Braunsroth • Cary R. Brawley • Ray M. Braxton • Charles T. Bray • John L. Bray • Lisa M. Bray • Lance L. Brazeale • Lesa Ann Brazeale • Christophe J. Brazys • James H. Breaker • Mark T.<br />

Bredehoft • Scott L. Breece • Kenneth Paul Breeden • Ken L. Breedlove • James D. Breen • Karen Breen • David W. Breidenbach • Robert S. Breidenbach • Joyce Breiner • Robert D. Breitweg • Randy P. Breland • Andrew B. Brennan • James A. Brennan • James W.<br />

Brennan • Jeffrey S. Brennan • Michael J. Brennan • Terence P. Brennan • Roger A. Brensinger • Richard M. Brent • David L. Bre<strong>the</strong>rick • John A. Brewer • Roger Keith Brewer • Laura K. Brewner • David Bricker • Harley S. Bridgeman • James Robert Bridgeman • Janet<br />

M. Bridges • David B. Bridson • Sven Bridstrup • Brian H. Bridwell • Russell Kent Brier • Peter Brierton • Douglas E. Briggs • Sally A. Briggs • Virginia A. Briggs • Ronald L. Bright • Kevin W. Brill • William L. Brill • Curtis K. Brilz • Randy Brindley • John T.<br />

Brine • Joshua S. Brinegar • Todd P. Brink • Richard M. Brinker • Jon A. Brint • William Brisbane • Steven M. Brisbey • Floyd Grant Brisco • Denzil K. Britt • Gary R. Brittain • Janice Beth Britton • Keith R. Britton • William D. Britton • William W. Broach • Ronald<br />

L. Broadbent • Robert D. Broadwater • William Rolland Broadwell • Terry A. Brockett • Roger M. Brode • Patricia A. Broderick • Timothy I. Broderick • Kenneth L. Brodston • Patrick K. Brogan • Philip P. Brogan • Gordon F. Broich • Barbara A. Broker • Harold F.<br />

Broker • Scott A. Bronger • Richard T. Bronleben • John Steven Brooke • Joseph Brooke • Harold L. Brooker • Vincent Scott Brookins • Alan Wade Brooks • Amy S. Brooks • Christine A. Brooks • David Weeks Brooks • Diana M. Brooks • Joanna Brooks • Patrick<br />

K. Brooks • Rayford H. Brooks • Robert E. Brooks • Robin H. Brooks • Ronald D. Brooks • Thomas C. Brooks • Ken Brookshire • Lester W. Broom • Michelle S. Broom • Charles R. Broome • Joseph T. Brophy • Pamela C. Brophy • George J. Broschart • Maria<br />

Broschart • David C. Bross • Jerry Bro<strong>the</strong>r • Thomas Broughall • David B. Broughton • Louis Brouillard • Julia Lee Broussard • James E. Brouwers • Lynn Elizabeth Brouwers • Stephen Browder • Alvin C. Brown • Andrew David Brown • Angela F. Brown • Barbara<br />

A. Brown • Blake R. Brown • Brenda L. Brown • Bruce E. Brown • Byron C. Brown • Calvin R. Brown • Chris W. Brown • Clement Brown • Cydney M. Brown • David G. Brown • David I. Brown • David L. Brown • David Brown • Dean Allan Brown • Dirk G.<br />

Brown • Donald L. Brown • Donald S. Brown • Edward J. Brown • Garry F. Brown • Gary L. Brown • Gene A. Brown • Herbert A. Brown • Herbert Brown • Inger T. Brown • Janice C. Brown • Jeff E. Brown • Jennifer L. Brown • Joel L. Brown • John G. Brown • John<br />

I. Brown • John R. Brown • Joseph E. Brown • Keith S. Brown • Kelly E. Brown • Kenneth Paul Brown • Kent D. Brown • Kevin Grant Brown • Mark A. Brown • Marla M. Brown • Marlow L. Brown • Maurice Brown • Michael G. Brown • Monte Cassidy Brown • Nancy<br />

S. Brown • Noble R. Brown • Noble R. Brown • Norman C. Brown • Patrick E. Brown • Patti L. Brown • Raymond Brown • Richard A. Brown • Richard A. Brown • Richard J. Brown • Richard Jay Brown • Robert O. Brown • Robert T. Brown • Robert Brown • Robert<br />

Brown • Roger Anthony Brown • Roger Douglas Brown • Scott D. Brown • Stephen A. Brown • Tammy S. Brown • Timmy L. Brown • Timothy Jay Brown • Troy A. Brown • Vanna T. Brown • William D. Brown • William K. Brown • Sandra L. Brown-Bisson • Francis<br />

L. Browne • Mark Browning • Micheal W. Browning • Mikel D. Browning • Robert V. Browning • Samuel Robert Browning • James R. Broz • Judith I. Bruce • Larry Ray Bruce • Kenneth S. Bruck • Diemut K. Brugonone • Robert F. Bruhn • Russell M. Bruinsma • Gary<br />

D. Brummett • Michael Brundage • Leroy C. Brune • William K. Brune • Craig J. Bruneault • Donald P. Brunner • Lisa K. Brunner • Glenn R. Bruno • Richard L. Bruno • Angelia R. Brunofsky • Eric C. Bruns • Susan M. Brunson • Ronald W. Brust • P e r r y<br />

Bryan • Alton M. Bryant • Ben Bryant • Gerald D. Bryant • Giovanni D. Bryant • James P. Bryant • Kurt C. Bryant • Donald C. Bryden • Robert J. Bryer • Chris J. Bryja • Pamela A. Brynarsky • Thomas D. Bryska • Elizabeth Bryson • Douglas F. Bubb • Jaideep H.<br />

Buch • Werner F. Buch • William T. Buchanan • Jack J. Buchholz • Laura Lee Buchkovich • Steve Buchkovich • Donald J. Buchner • William Buchwald • Danny Terrell Buck • Doug Buckingham • Linda M. Buckingham • Paul J. Buckingham • Daniel J. Bucklaew • Mary<br />

Buckle • Brian J. Buckley • Bryan Buckley • James E. Buckley • Jeffrey A. Buckley • Peter W. Buckley • Gary D. Buckowsky • Cory M. Buckway • Richard A. Buczyna • Paul R. Buday • Ross S. Budd • Nick Buderus • Pamela L. Buesing • Timothy E. Buffett • Vernon<br />

D. Buffington • Steven A. Buford • Paul L. Bugarin • Dana M. Bugbee • Jerilee E. Buggert • Lawrence L. Buggie • James E. Buhl • Hung Q. Bui • James Bui • Stanley W. Bujnowski • Gary A. Bukovskey • George W. Buley • Shelley Bulkley • Belinda S. Bullard • Stanley<br />

C. Bullard • Ann M. Buller • Allen Bullock • Kevin L. Bullock • Wayne A. Bullock • Steven G. Bullough • Thomas R. Bulzoni • Billy Arthur Bump • Daniel D. Bunce • Michael R. Bunch • Oswald S. Bunda • Brian B. Bunnell • Jennifer L. Buntjer • Darrel Keith<br />

Buntyn • William E. Bupp • Randy Alan Burack • Dennis C. Burch • Jerald W. Burch • Valerie J. Burch • Brent David Burcham • George M. Burd • William R. Burd • Delores C. Burden • J. Brad Burdette • John W. Burdine • Deron L. Burger • John Robert<br />

Burger • Carole A. Burgess • James K. Burgess • Mat<strong>the</strong>w R. Burgess • Ronald G. Burgess • Stacey Leigh Burgesser • Larry P. Burgett • Stacie Burik • Robert G. Burkart • Tracy Burkart • William Robert Burkart • Darryl J. Burke • Doug Burke • Jeffrey A.<br />

Burke • Joseph A. Burke • Kenneth L. Burke • Margaret Joy Burke • Mat<strong>the</strong>w A.W. Burke • Robert A. Burke • Robert K. Burke • Sharon Burkes • Jimmy D. Burkett • Benjamin N. Burkey • Jeffrey D. Burkhart • Margaret Anne Burkhart • Robert G. Burkhart • S. Scott<br />

Burks • Thomas A. Burks • James A. Burleigh • Starlet R. Burleson • Daniel G. Burnett • Elizabeth R. Burnett • Steven D. Burnett • Julie R. Burney • David Robert Burnier • Don B. Burns • Kent W. Burns • Michael L. Burns • Robert S. Burns • Rusty A. Burns • William<br />

K. Burns • Thomas C. Burr • Agnes C. Burrell • Margaret Burrell • Chris A. Burri • Leonard A. Burridge • Jeff Burrill • Lyle Jason Burrington • Charles M. Burroughs • David L. Burrows • Patrick Burrows • James N. Burrus • Allen Burt • Brian F. Burt • Robert<br />

Louis Burt • Bradley L. Burtner • Brad Burton • Danny D. Burton • David L. Burton • David Burton • Jill Terese Burton • Kenneth Burton • Richard M. Burton • Richard W. Burton • Tanja J. Burton • Thomas J. Burton • Meredith W. Burtt • Eric W.<br />

Burwell • Clifford L. Burwick • Michael L. Burye • Craig A. Burzych • Archie Ray Busbee • Russell S. Busbee • Mat<strong>the</strong>w R. Busch • Sonya Holland Busch • Kevin P. Buscio • Charlotte L. Bush • Edward W. Bush • Jason A. Bush • Jeremy D. Bush • Roan C. Bush • Steven<br />

A. Bush • Timothy A. Buso • Judith A. Busse • Rafael E. Bustamante • Sonia Bustamante • Albert E. Butler • Jeffery Dale Butler • Robert A. Butler • Lesley A. Butrymowicz • Robert Butterworth • Valerie N. Butterworth • Michael Butts • William G. Buvens • George<br />

Buxmann • Randall D. Buxton • Mark G. Buzenski • Byron R. Byars • Jeffrey L. Byberg • Theodore C. Bye • Lee T. Bynum • Rhonda Yvette Byran • Brian R. Byrd • Chris D. Byrd • James Chris Byrd • John G. Byrd • Joyce A. Byrd • Lorrania Byrd • Michael Warren<br />

Byrd • Richard B. Byrd • Sheila Byrd • John J. Byrne • Leona J. Byrne • Michael T. Byrne • Richard H. Byrne • Barrett R. Byrnes • Steven Byrnes • Edward B. Byron • Stephen V. Byrum • David L. By<strong>the</strong>way • Ruben Cabalbag • Cynthia E. Cabico • Karen C.<br />

Cabral • Arys Rene Cabrera • Roger L. Cadd • Gregory A. Cade • Latasha B. Cage • Louis J. Caggiano • Mark S. Cagle • Ronald L. Cagle • John P. Cahill • Lawrence D. Cahill • Kevin P. Cahoon • Donna R. Cain • James P. Cain • Kevin Cain • Martin R. Cain • Ralph V.<br />

Cain • Patrick N. Caine • Craig David Cairns • William A. Cairns • Decolino G. Cajigas • Keith Calabro • Jose E. Calderon • Pablo L. Calderon • Christine M. Caldwell • David B. Caldwell • Donald J. Caldwell • Frank M. Caldwell • John A. Caldwell • Michael J.<br />

Caldwell • Stewart D. Caldwell • Terrance Caldwell • William H. Caldwell • Chester A. Calhoun • Terry Calhoun • David Cali • Rick A. Cali • Thomas Cali • Julie D. Call • Gregory A. Callahan • Thomas F. Callahan • Joe Callegari • Roberta L. Calley • Paul J.<br />

Callinan • Kendal C. Callwood • Craig R. Calvert • Jose A. Camacho • Jeffrey D. Camara • Gregory J. Cameron • Jay R. Camp • John W. Camp • Bernard A. Campau • Gregg A. Campayno • Brian R. Campbell • Chandra Gray Campbell • Craig B. Campbell • Craig G.<br />

Campbell • Dani L. Campbell • Derrick N. Campbell • Donald S. Campbell • Edward Scott Campbell • Frederick Lee Campbell • Gregg E. Campbell • Hea<strong>the</strong>r Rochelle Campbell • John G. Campbell • Kevin M. Campbell • Oliver S. Campbell • Patrice Ellis<br />

Campbell • Rebecca Campbell • Russell W. Campbell • Walter R. Campbell • Yolanda Campbell • Dale A. Campo • Orlando Campomizzi • Brian A. Campos • Debra J. Campton • Michael S. Canaan • Robert P. Canali • Timothy R. Canan • Donald Candage • Antonio<br />

Canepa • Kevin Dale Canipe • Gary R. Cannady • Terry D. Canney • Bill G. Canning • Kimberlynn M. Cannioto • Michael Cannioto • Curtis W. Cannon • Deborah R. Cannon • Jeremie M. Cannon • Mark E. Cannon • Michael J. Cannon • Philip Cannon • Robert K.<br />

Cannon • Stephen B. Cannon • Timothy S. Cannon • Debra J. Canter • Timothy D. Canter • Rodolfo Cantu • Andrew J. Cantwell • Charles Cantwell • David Edward Cantwell • Edward M. Canyes • Nicholas A. Capaci • Sam A. Capangpangan • Enrique E.<br />

Capati • George P. Capitano • Norman E. Caple • David C. Capobianco • Denise A. Capobianco • Mark E. Caporale • Chris W. Capps • Jeanette C. Caproon • Kevin M. Caproon • Dominick P. Caputo • Francis J. Caputo • Neil M. Caputo • Robert Caradonna • Robert<br />

E. Card • Andrew D. Cardaras • Craig L. Cardell • Anthony M. Carder • John E. Carder • John T. Cardinal • Melanie J. Carender • John H. Carey • Molly Carey • Rodney E. Carey • Rebecca S. Carini • Michael A. Carioscia • Daniel E. Carlberg • John J. Carle • David<br />

I. Carley • Mat<strong>the</strong>w C. Carley • Sandi Carli • Daniel A. Carlins • David J. Carlisle • Steven D. Carlisle • Linda Gail Carlock • Clae Beau Carlson • Eli Carlson • Gregory D. Carlson • Keith E. Carlson • Timothy E. Carlson • Michael W. Carlton • Richard A.<br />

Carlton • Shirlene P. Carlton • Mat<strong>the</strong>w T. Carlyon • Daniel B. Carmack • Eugene F. Carman • Scott J. Carman • David L. Carmichael • Darrell W. Carnes • Tony Carnes • Edward W. Carney • Thomas M. Carnicom • Michael D. Carollo • Jeffery P. Carowan • Charles<br />

W. Carpenter • Ernest L. Carpenter • Gerald D. Carpenter • Jacqueline D. Carpenter • James E. Carpenter • Jeffrey M. Carpentier • George R. Carper • Timothy T. Carper • Daniel P. Carr • Donald R. Carr • Jennifer L. Carr • Jill D. Carr • John S. Carr • Laura M.<br />

Carr • Robert J. Carr • Roy Paul Carr • William B. Carr • David Carrasco • Daniel Carrico • Brian K. Carrier • Nancy P. Carrigan • Jesse Carriger • Edward Carrillo • Yvonne M. Carrillo • Jerry D. Carriveau • Oscar Carrizales • Bobby Lee Carroll • Frank B.<br />

Carroll • Jacqueline Mary Carroll • Jerald P. Carroll • Michael W. Carroll • Paul Carroll • Reba J. Carroll • Richard W. Carroll • Ronald Jay Carroll • John P. Carron • David W. Carru<strong>the</strong>rs • Scott R. Carru<strong>the</strong>rs • Darrell C. Carson • Howard G. Carson • Robert S.<br />

Carson • Rita L. Carstens • Dianne Lynn Carswell • Perry M. Carswell • Damon D. Carter • Daniel E. Carter • Eric Sean Carter • Gary D. Carter • James L. Carter • James R. Carter • John R. Carter • John W. Carter • Lenard L. Carter • Lisa Gail Carter • Norman<br />

Jefferson Carter • Patricia Wilson Carter • Richard C. Carter • Shawn L. Carter • Stephen P. Carter • Wesley H. Carter • William T. Carter • Paul G. Cartier • Theresa M. Cartier • Carl R. Cartwright • Anthony P. Carugno • Peter J. Caruso • Tony H. Caruso • John<br />

L. Carvajal • Brian A. Carver • Jeffery S. Carver • Keith Carver • Salvatore J. Casale • Steven Casarez • Albert John Casari • Paul A. Cascio • Douglas M. Case • Joseph L. Case • Pamela Lee Case • Kathleen A. Casey • Michael L. Casey • Oscar L. Casey • Richard J.<br />

Casey • Robert C. Casey • William Casey • Curtis R. Cash • Monica V. Cash • Richard A. Cash • Vickie S. Cash • Eliot J. Cashdan • Robert W. Cashdollar • John L. Cashin • Tracy Casil • Aileen Casillas • Barry D. Casper • David T. Casper • Kurt Casper • Dennis<br />

Cassalia • Joseph S. Cassara • John M. Cassarly • Robert D. Cassell • Cort D. Cassens • James F. Cassidy • Robert D. Cassidy • Ron Cassidy • Thomas M. Cassidy • Nanci Castellano • Timothy Casten • Albert Castillo • Jorge R. Castillo • Steven A. Castillo • Jon<br />

Mark Castle • Michael L. Casto • Luciano L. Castracane • James H. Castro • Jose T. Castro • Laurance A. Castro • Malinda Castro • Diane M. Cathcart • Caron L. Ca<strong>the</strong>rs • Wayne Owen Ca<strong>the</strong>y • Mark R. Catizone • William Clinton Catledge • Marvin C.<br />

Cato • Ralph D. Catoe • Chris J. Catoggio • Norman J. Cattanach • Romaine Catusi • Todd J. Cavanagh • John F. Cavanaugh • Mark G. Cavanaugh • Sandra K. Cavanaugh • Joel J. Cavazos • Lawrence B. Cavender • Racior R. Cavole • Dawn J. Cawrse • Joseph M.<br />

Cazalas • Paul J. Cazares • Jerry L. Cearley • Jon D. Cech • Craig Mat<strong>the</strong>w Cecil • John Lamont Cecil • Ronald Louis Cecil • Jerome James Ceithaml • Trisha L. Celano • David F. Celski • Gregory J. Cenac • Kurt Ceniglio • Gerard J. Censabella • Joseph S. The<br />

NATCA Family


The NATCA Family<br />

Names of charter members are in bold<br />

Cerami • Joseph J. Cerasuolo • Rosemary L. Cerasuolo • Thomas Cercone • Chris J. Cerda • James F. Cergl • George M. Cerillo • Roger M. Cerovsky • Maria H. Cerqueira • Franklin D. Ceruti • Ronald David Cetta • Jorge A. Chades • Ronald E. Chadman • Gary M.<br />

Chadwell • William M. Chadwick • Andrew M. Chalot • Todd J. Chaltry • Stephen P. Chamberlain • Mark John Chamberlin • Joseph T. Chambers • M. Steven Chambers • Michael G. Chambers • Michael L.P. Chambers • Robert W. Chambers • Stephen W.<br />

Chambers • Terrell Chambers • Daryl K. Chambless • Chris L. Chambliss • Henry H. Chambliss • Latifa Chamie • Douglas James Champagne • William G. Champion • Harry L. Champley • Wing T. Chan • Yiu Ming Chan • Michael S. Chance • Dale K. Chandler • Dan<br />

E. Chandler • David K. Chandler • Garry Chandler • Paula A. Chandler • Karen Chaney • Lon D. Chaney • David W. Chang • Sean S. Chaplain • Don Chapman • Kimberly A. Chapman • Ricky K. Chapman • Robert A Chapman • Trina H. Chapman • Troy L.<br />

Chapman • David A. Chapmon • Phillip T. Chappell • Ronald Arthur Chappell • David J. Chappuies • Paul Charapata • Terri L. Charapata • Cortez M. Charles • Wallace C. Charles • Kimberly J. Charlten • John B. Charlton • Michael J. Charmoli • Michael C.<br />

Charton • Nathan D. Chase • Patricia M. Chasse • Jody W. Chastine • Vicki S Chatel • Anita Renee Chatman • Tim P. Chatterley • Edward I. Chau • Shailendra Chaudhari • Scott James Chausee • Paul J. Chavez • Terry A. Chavez • Emilio A. Chaviano • Marc H.<br />

Cheadle • Douglas W. Chee • Michael Chen • William Chen • Annjenet Chennault • Joseph N. Cheravitch • Steven J. Chereson • Christopher Cherioli • Gary M. Chernega • James C. Cherrey • Robert E. Cherry • Theodore J. Cherry • Christine J. Chesak • Leslie<br />

J. Cheshire • Patrick Cheslak • Carl Chesley • Jeffrey W. Chester • Joseph F. Chester • Reggie L. Chester • Richard C. Chester • Sam B. Cheung • Alan Chew • Freddy Chez • Raymond K. Chiang • Robert Chibana • Gary L. Chicoine • Brian Kent Childers • Greg<br />

T. Childers • Ricky F. Childers • Roderick G. Childers • Jacqueline P. Childress • David E. Childs • Mark A. Chiles • David Chilson • William E. Chilson • James Chin • Jeffrey K. Chin • Sam Y. Chin • Chris A. Chiorando • Michael Vincent Chiovari • Michael<br />

Chirillo • Thomas W. Chitwood • Oiming Chiu • Philip D. Chlentzos • Pamela M. Choi • Glenn Chong • Michele M. Chong • Sunny M. Chong • Nick Choporis • Stephen Girard Chorba • Erich John Chouinard • Jamie L. Chouinard • Paul E. Chouinard • Lucy L.<br />

Chow • Keith M.J. Choy • Douglas S. Chrisman • Daniel James Christensen • Eric Christensen • Kenneth D. Christensen • Kenneth Joel Christensen • Mark A. Christensen • Raymond Christensen • Rodney O. Christensen • Susan L. Christensen • Timothy A.<br />

Christensen • Scott D. Christenson • Stuart D. Christenson • Kenneth H. Christgen • Ralph B. Christian • Ralph H. Christian • Carrie R. Christiansen • Peter A. Christianson • Thor E. Christianson • Thomas D. Christie • Deborah L. Christin • Leann R.<br />

Christman • David E. Christmas • Stephen A. Christon • Mark J. Christophel • Chester G. Christopher • George J. Christopher • Paul F. Chrobak • Andrea D. Chrouser • David Chrzanowski • Frank Peter Chuberko • Timothy P. Chun • Phillip Chung • Tracy T.<br />

Chung • Jeffrey Joseph Church • Joel I. Church • Jeffrey A. Churchill • Joseph Ciappa • Leonard P. Ciarnelli • Farol Cilluffo • Kevin M. Cimarusti • Robert Cimino • Darrell J. Cindrich • Richard M. Cinotto • Mark A. Cinquegrana • Albert A. Cipicchio • John<br />

Cirrincione • Jacqueline M. Cissna • John M. Citrola • Chris B. Clack • Dennis E. Clack • Alan W. Clark • Bruce W. Clark • Christina N. Clark • Cynthia L. Clark • Dean C. Clark • Elaine Elise Clark • Jack G. Clark • James R. Clark • Jeffry S. Clark • John A. Clark • Jon<br />

Milton Clark • Kenneth A. Clark • Kenton B. Clark • Lee K. Clark • Lorri E. Clark • Michael D. Clark • Michael L. Clark • Pamla A. Clark • Patrick L. Clark • Patrick W. Clark • Randy L. Clark • Robert E. Clark • Rodney Clark • Ronald B. Clark • Scott F.<br />

Clark • Stephen T. Clark • William A. Clark • William B. Clark • William C. Clark • James S. Clarke • Jerry D. Clarke • Kimberly C. Clarke • Louis W. Clarke • Robert Clarke • Shawn L. Clarke • Warren B. Clarke • James M. Clarkson • James S. Clarry • Michael A.<br />

Clary • James V. Claseman • Raymond N. Claus • William P. Claus • Jonathan N. Clausen • Douglas L. Clausnitzer • Eric M. Clawson • Eric Clawson • Richard Clay • Laurence J. Clayton • Mark Clayton • Scott R. Clayton • Rhett A. Claytor • Gary W. Cleary • James<br />

R. Cleary • Kevin J. Cleary • Charles T. Clemens • Timothy Louis Clemens • Brian Keith Clement • John Clement • William Clement • George M. Clements • Paul J. Clements • Sean M. Clements • Travis Edwin Clementsmith • Charles E. Clemons • Christophe R.<br />

Clemons • Tammy J. Clemons • Alan Clendenin • Howard J. Cleveland • Larry K. Cleveland • Susan Cleveland • Wayne Cleveland • William Wayne Cleveland • Dianna Cliatt • Dale E. Click • Nancy L. Click • Ka<strong>the</strong>rine L. Clifton • Michael D. Clifton • Scot V.<br />

Cline • Lyle Alden Clingman • David M. Clinkscale • Howard A. Clodfelter • Troy A. Clogston • Steven L. Cloose • Bruce E. Clough • James E. Clough • Marsha L. Clough • Jack P. Cloughley • Kimberly R. Cloutier • Robert B. Clowney • Jose A. Clue • Christian N.<br />

Cluff • Brenda L. Clyde • Joe W. Clyde • Donald L. Coard • Richard B. Coate • Donald C. Coats • Michael S. Coats • Theron K. Coats • William G. Cobb • Santiago L. Cobos • Jerry W. Cochran • Mark E. Cochran • Keith A. Coddington • Paul A. Codispoti • Douglas<br />

A. Coe • Joseph D. Coelho • Jeffrey A. Coffey • Kathleen Ann Coffey • Gary L. Coffman • Jerry W. Coffman • Norma J. Coffman • Laura Kimberly Coggin • Adam F. Cohen • Jack A. Cohen • Pedro Cohen • Hildred Cohill • Bret A. Coil • Anthony W. Coiro • John W.<br />

Coker • Joseph R. Colagreco • Vincent R. Colaianni • Thomas J. Colarossi • David W. Colasanto • Joseph Colasanto • Carol E. Colbenson • Gregory M. Colclasure • Lisa M. Colclasure • Alan R. Cole • Donna Ann Cole • Ellen S. Cole • Eric R. Cole • Eric Cole • Isabel<br />

A. Cole • Jay Cole • Jeffrey D. Cole • Joel P. Cole • Kelly A. Cole • Kenneth E. Cole • Martin W. Cole • Richard G. Cole • Richard Garcia Cole • Robert A. Cole • Robert B. Cole • Shannadee Cole • Susan M. Cole • Terry L. Cole • Willie G. Cole • James E.<br />

Colella • Scott A. Colella • Ca<strong>the</strong>rine M. Coleman • Cynthia M Coleman • Debra S. Coleman • Loyle L. Coleman • Raoul T. Coleman • Robert Scott Coleman • Steven R. Coleman • Thomas M. Coleman • Todd A. Coleman • Jeffrey R. Coley • Richard W. Coley • Steven<br />

L. Colfer • Thomas R. Colgan • Anthony M. Collazo • Michael A. Colle • Jason P. Collette • Jeanne L. Collette • William H. Collette • Donald L. Colley • Paul E. Colley • Ricky W. Colley • Robert E. Colley • Bryan W. Collier • Curtis C. Collier • Daniel J. Collier • Joe<br />

M. Collier • Callen R. Collins • David W. Collins • G. Michael Collins • Gregory T. Collins • Herbert F. Collins • James A. Collins • Mark R. Collins • Mark Collins • Marlena M. Collins • Marsha Ann Collins • Nicholas F. Collins • Pamela Collins • Robert J.<br />

Collins • Ronald R. Collins • Russell B. Collins • William R. Collins • Steven E. Collison • Robert G. Colman • Eligio R. Colon • Luis R. Colon • Marco A. Colon • James D. Colson • Michael Colson • Daniel Stephen Columbus • Gregory W. Colyer • Lisa Coleen<br />

Colyer • Bonny Combs • Dina M. Comeau • John A. Comeau • Brent M. Comeaux • Mark A. Comer • Deborah A. Compel • Angela Compton • Richard K. Compton • William R. Compton • Patrick R. Comte • Charles R. Conant • Mark T. Conaway • Albert<br />

Concha • Scott Chapin Conde • Joseph Fred Condina • Barry L. Condon • Francis T. Condon • Charles Michael Conely • John Conklin • Mark C. Conklin • Ann M. Conley • Mark W. Conley • Mark Conley • Mitchell A. Conley • Richard E. Conley • Susan J.<br />

Conley • Robert F. Connell • Michael J. Connelly • Vincent J. Connelly • Barry D. Conner • Donald P. Conner • Jenny M. Conner • Michael James Conner • Michael T. Conner • Sheila R. Conner • Steven P. Conner • David C. Connett • Brendan J. Connolly • John E.<br />

Connolly • Joseph A. Connolly • Karen M. Connolly • Ronald J. Connolly • Donald Connor • John F. Connors • Eric J. Conrad • Constance J. Conroy • Daniel J. Conroy • John M. Conroy • Barry Eugene Constant • Richard T. Contatore • Thomas J. Conte • Michael<br />

C. Conti • Robert S. Convery • Bruce L. Conze • Beverly A. Cook • Clark G. Cook • Cnthia A. Cook • David W. Cook • Diane Cook • Fulton Cook • Jack E. Cook • Jody D. Cook • John G. Cook • Jonathan Dale Cook • Julian Cook • Kenneth R. Cook • Richard<br />

G. Cook • Ricky A. Cook • Robert S. Cook • Rodney L. Cook • Teresa Y. Cook • William Paul Cook • Mark C. Cooke • Robert R. Cooke • Steven G. Cooke • David A. Cookfair • Jeffrey S. Cooksey • Mark J. Cool • Kimberly Ann Cooley • Michael W. Cooley • Paul A.<br />

Cooley • Sidney W. Cooley • William M. Cooley • Thomas Coolidge • Andrea Lynn Coombs • James Gerald Coon • Mark E. Coon • Joseph Coonce • Gerard L. Cooney • Jay Cooney • Angela Grass Cooper • Clifford J. Cooper • Gloriane M. Cooper • James R.<br />

Cooper • Joseph Bruce Cooper • Lorraine P. Cooper • M. Karen Cooper • Robert N. Cooper • Russell G. Cooper • Sharon S. Cooper • William J.K. Cooper • Kyle Cooperson • Pamela M. Coopwood • Gary A. Coots • Darlene A. Copeland • Marty V.<br />

Copeland • Darrell R. Coplen • B. Dwayne Copley • Michael K. Copp • Michael Coppa • Jeffrey Copping • Dawn Marie Coppock • Joseph Coppola • Richard A. Coppola • Mat<strong>the</strong>w Corak • Stephen M. Corbett • William B. Corbett • Frederick N. Corbin • Angel M.<br />

Corchado • Pedro J. Corcino • Frank Corcoran • Grover E. Corcoran • Patrick Corcoran • Sean M. Corcoran • Stephen J. Corcoran • Kathleen V. Cordaro • Pamela S. Cordell • Joe Corder • Miguel Cordero • Steven F. Cords • Jim L. Corey • Ken K.<br />

Corippo • Victoria E. Corman • John J. Cormier • Todd D. Cormier • James A. Cornbrooks • Richard A. Cornejo • Charles D. Cornelius • Erwin D. Cornelius • Thor B. Cornell • Charles A. Cornett • Eddie R. Cornett • Johnny W. Cornett • Scott Cornett • Walter<br />

Cornett • Douglas R. Cornman • Thomas F. Coronite • Javier Correa • Kevin S. Corson • Lonnie M. Cortese • Deborah A. Cortina • Enri J. Cortina • Joseph Cortina • Victor P. Cortner • John C. Cosgrove • Gordon D. Cosier • Dale J. Cossette • Brian E.<br />

Costa • Michael J. Costanzi • David M. Coste • Jesse L. Costeino • Brian Costello • John Charles Costion • Darrin V. Costlow • Dana J. Cothran • Rick G. Cotrell • Charles A. Cotten • Timothy L. Cotter • David M. Cottingham • Anthony Cottrell • Richard T.<br />

Cottrell • Melody G. Coughenour • Joseph C. Coughlin • Michael R. Coulter • James B. Countess • Todd D. Couper • Darlene Kay Courier • Mark S. Courier • James Courtade • James G. Courtney • Kelvin L. Courtney • Phillip Curtis Cousins • Antonio<br />

Couto • David C. Coutts • Steven M. Couturier • Teddi-Jann Covell • John M. Covino • Stephen J. Covino • Charles Cowan • Jerry A. Cowart • William G. Cowles • John T. Cowne • Brian H. Cox • David Paul Cox • Gregory C. Cox • James B. Cox • James D.<br />

Cox • James J. Cox • Jeffrey Thomas Cox • Jim L. Cox • Mat<strong>the</strong>w G. Cox • Paul S. Cox • Richard S. Cox • Robert A. Cox • Tommy H. Cox • William Paul Cox • Barbara J. Coy • James D. Coy • Thomas W. Coy • Michael J. Coyle • David L. Coyne • John B.<br />

Cozart • John M. Crabtree • Tim L. Crady • Terry L. Craft • Carl D. Craig • Dana L. Craig • Donald R. Craig • Lisa Craig • Michael T. Craighead • Rafael Crame • Daniel L. Cramer • Kevin J. Cramer • Andrew T. Crampton • Kimberly Ann Crandall • Curtis Andrew<br />

Crane • Dara G. Crane • James Derek Crane • Kevin K. Crane • Steven R. Crane • Thomas R. Craner • Spencer R. Cranford • Victor Crant • Davud G. Craven • Ned R. Craver • Andrea Lynne Crawford • Craig A. Crawford • Gregory E. Crawford • Jana K.<br />

Crawford • Jeffrey C. Crawford • John A. Crawford • John K. Crawford • Michael R. Crawford • Robert M. Crawford • William O. Crawford • Aaron Crawley • James E. Crawley • John Craycraft • Michael S. Creager • Patrick M. Crean • Daniel F. Creedon • Brian<br />

G. Creelman • Richard S. Creese • Paul W. Creighton • Alan D. Cress • Larry G. Cribbs • Timothy L. Cripe • Samuel D. Crisp • Dwaine D. Criss • Claire Crist • Matt R. Crist • Tom Roy Crist • Keith M. Criswell • Leigh A. Criswell • William J. Critchfield • Randall<br />

Crnobrnja • Sally Ann Crocker • Thomas R. Crockett • Jennifer R. Croft • Louis F. Cronan • Timothy L. Crone • Albert A. Cronin • Robert F. Cronin • Terrance F. Cronin • Rick Crook • Robert Lee Crook • Mark R. Crooks • Paula S. Crooks • John W. Cropsey • Rick<br />

L. Crose • Autumn Cross • Darren W. Cross • David Cross • Todd Jeffrey Cross • Leonard M. Croteau • George E. Crotts • Paul B. Crotty • Jonathan W. Crouch • Linda M. Crouch • Jack L. Crouse • Tina L. Crouse • Anthony S. Crow • Brian M. Crow • Norman<br />

Harlan Crowder • Sarah Crowder • Timothy H. Crowder • Lloyd G. Crowl • John A. Crowley • Patricia E. Crowley • Timothy A. Crowley • William Dean Crowson • James M. Cruikshank • David R. Crump • Terry W. Crump • Catina Cruz • Wilfredo Cruz • Mark<br />

S. Cucura • Robert K. Cuddy • Steven J. Cudney • Brian S. Cugno • Sean T. Culbert • Chris Paul Culbertson • Wendell Terry Culbreth • Susan L. Culhane • Brian Steven Cull • Amy Lynn Cullen • Steven L. Cullen • Betty L. Cullins • Deborah M. Culver • Regina J.<br />

Culver • David A. Cumberland • Brian P. Cummings • Evongelon Cummings • Glen T. Cummings • Melissa A. Cummings • Michael J. Cummings • Richard Cummings • Wayne R. Cummings • Brian E. Cummins • Leonard M. Cummins • Patrick E. Cummins • James D.<br />

Cumpton • Craig A. Cunningham • Daniel A. Cunningham • Deborah S. Cunningham • James Scott Cunningham • Paul J. Cunningham • Randy J. Cunningham • Steve C. Cunningham • Tonya N. Cunningham • Lloyd A. Cupiccia • Judy A. Cupp • Pamela Curington • James<br />

C. Curl • Robert D. Curlin • William S. Curnias • Dale W. Curran • Edward F. Curran • Michelle A. Curran • Steve Curran • Charles Bradley Currier • David W. Curry • David W. Curry • William C. Curry • Donald R. Curtis • Shad G. Curtis • Marie L. Cusenza • J o h n<br />

Cushman • David J. Cushwa • Jane E. Cuthbertson • Kevin K. Cuthbertson • William Edward Cutts • James H. Cutuli • Scott Cuyler • Philip S. Czervinske • Michael J. Czub • Jeffrey S. Czysz • Chris G. DaCosta • Robert T. D’Addario • James R. D’Agati • Daniel J.<br />

D’Agostino • Bruce L. Dahl • Douglas Dahl • Kristi Lynn Dahl • Chris James Dailey • Randall L. Dailey • David A. Dakins • Michael Daknis • Timothy William Dalbey • Elizabeth L. Dale • Russell E. Dale • Steven L. Dale • Terry M. Dale • Wesley L. Dale • William D.<br />

Dale • Steven D. Dallanegra • Elliot R. Dallavalle • Diosdado D. Dalmacio • Michael G. Dalmaso • William Anthony D’Alo • David P. Dalsanders • Martin J. Daly • Darlene M. Damico • Fred Damico • Julie F. Damico • Sheldon Scott Damron • Kenneth Ray<br />

Dancy • Chad E. Daniel • David W. Daniel • Diana L. Daniel • Robert Glenn Daniel • Terry W. Daniel • Willie J. Daniel • Douglas R. Daniels • Glen F. Daniels • Kinneth Monroe Daniels • L. Daryl Daniels • Troy E. Daniels • Edward A. Daniocek • Jonathan J.<br />

Danko • Daniel A. Danyluk • Camille Danzi • Philip H. Darche • Lawrence W. Darling • Michael E. Darling • Clarice Spencer Darnell • Clayton R. Darr • James Clinton Darr • Dan Daudier • James P. Dauer • William E. Daughtrey • David C. Daum • Gregory A.<br />

Davenport • William Lloyd Davenport • Marilyn K. Davey • Michael J. Davey • Robert A. Davey • Chris B. David • Donny P. David • Monte J. David • Carl W. Davidson • James M. Davidson • John A. Davidson • Ronny D. Davidson • Stephen J. Davidson • Paul<br />

Davied • John Davies • Karen Davies • Carol E. Davila • Kim S. Davila • Allan P. Davis • Andreese Davis • Brian E. Davis • Bruce W. Davis • Cary D. Davis • Charles C. Davis • Clarence Davis • Comodore Davis • Dale T. Davis • Darrell L. Davis • David A.<br />

Davis • Dean E. Davis • Deborah Davis • Douglas W. Davis • Edward F. Davis • Gail Davis • Gary Lee Davis • Harold E. Davis • James Duane Davis • Jeffrey L. Davis • Jennifer Davis • Jerry L. Davis • Joan Davis • Jody L. Davis • John Earl Davis • John P.<br />

Davis • Kathleen A. Davis • Kathleen Marie Davis • Kent B. Davis • Kevin E. Davis • Laurie J. Davis • Lenore D. Davis • Marie Burnette Davis • Melvin Davis • Michael D. Davis • Michael Wade Davis • Michael Davis • Michelle L. Davis • Michelle M. Davis • Perry<br />

Davis • Richard F. Davis • Rick L. Davis • Roberstine H. Davis • Robert A. Davis • Ronald L. Davis • Russell D. Davis • Scott A. Davis • Sean Eric Davis • Seth Davis • Sherri M. Davis • Steven H. Davis • Timothy H. Davis • Todd Owen Davis • Trent D. Davis • Walter<br />

Davis • Donald M. Davison • Gerry S. Davison • Joseph A. Davoust • Darrel K. Dawson • Gary A. Dawson • Michael Eugene Dawson • Richard E. Dawson • Sabrina Y. Dawson • Samuel K. Dawson • Andrea Bolding Day • April L. Day • Craig E. Day • Darren J.<br />

Day • James R. Day • Kathleen Day • Michael J. Day • Stephen R. Day • William Martin Day • James M. Daye • Carol Ann Dayton • Robert G. Dazey • Nancy Eva DeLaCruz • Jay R. DeLosSantos • Monica Lynn DeRojas • Edward G. Deacon • William J. Deacy • Gregory<br />

W. Deagon • David E. Dean • Edward S. Dean • Fred Dean • Joseph R. Dean • W. Clifford Dean • William M. Dean • Willie Richard Dean • Richard E. Deaner • James Whittmann Dear • Terry Deatrick • James C. Deaver • Mark L. DeBack • Dennis DeBello • Kevin<br />

N. DeBenedittis • Randall D. Debnam • Keven K. DeBoard • William Earl DeBolt • Deidra D. DeBorde • Joseph L. DeBrohun • Robert E. DeBrule • David K. DeBusk • Ann Darcy DeCastro • Jesse DeCastro • Kenneth M. Dech • Dennis H. Decker • Dexter<br />

Decker • Donald D. Decker • Robert Guy Decker • Stephani A. Decker • Troy S. Decker • Tim C. Deckert • Eric R. Deckman • Ronald W. DeCost • John A. DeCuir • James L. DeDauw • Hector Emilio DeDominicis • Howard M. Dedow • Susan R. Deegan • Terrell<br />

E. Deering • Brian Dees • Kent L. Dees • Pamela Anne Dees • Robert N. Deese • Scott D. Deeter • Daniel H. Defenderfer • Ca<strong>the</strong>rine A. Defilippo/Perry • Heidi DeFor • Herbert M. Degan • Mark P. Degani • Kevin B. DeGarmo • Ralph J. DeGennaro • Robert<br />

DeGennaro • Dennis E. DeGraw • Randall Bret DeHaan • David J. DeHart • William G. Dehler • Jerold R. Dehmer • Robert G. Dehning • Gregg E. Deiboldt • James D. Deignan • Philip O. Deitsch • Nicole Lee DeKlyen • Theodore Louis DelNegri • Edgar<br />

DelValle • Leonel Delamo • Gerald Michael DeLane • Harold L. Delaney • Kevin Timothy Delaney • Elizabeth J. Delano • Steven DeLaurentis • Everett Paul Delay • John A. Delay • Michael F. DelBalzo • Carrie S. DeLeon • Dennis T. DeLeonardis • Leroy<br />

Deleston • Paul M. Delfine • Cherie Delgado • Dwight D. Delgado • Martha M. Delgado • Thomas S. Delgado • Thaddeus Glen DeLille • Gary M. Delise • James E. Delisio • Lawrence R. Delisle • Robert A. DeLisle • Edward John Delius • Brian DellaPorta • David C.<br />

DellaPorte • Darryl Dellarossa • Thomas DellaVecchia • Gerard M. Dellemann • Robert A. Dellicarpini • Lisa A. Dellinger • Chris M. Delnegro • Patrick A. Delozier • David Delshad • Stephen R. Delude • Henry J. DeLugt • Jeb J. Delzer • Kimberly A.<br />

DeMarco • Nicholas J. DeMarco • John C. Demaree • Marcia A. DeMatteo • Marlene M. DeMatteo • Raymond C. DeMatteo • Michael John Demboski • Darryl A. Dembski • Daniel DeMers • Dennis R. DeMers • Lafayette M. Demory • Bruce W. DeMotts • Derrick L.<br />

Dempsey • James Donald Deneweth • Benjamin J. Dengler • Corey M. Denham • Michael R. Denison • Thomas Michael Denison • Larry M. Denmark • Lilliana E. Denneson • Glen R. Denning • Rashell D. Denning • Berlon E. Dennis • Paul K. Dennis • Steve J.


Names of charter members are in bold<br />

Dennis • Steven M. Dennis • Jonathan W. Denny • Wiley D. Denson • Chandra Sargent Denton • David M. Denton • Jay L. Denton • Kathleen Joan Denton • Richard A. Denton • Alan E. Denzer • Sushil Deodhar • John A. DePasquale • Anthony J. DePietto • Thomas<br />

W. Deppmeyer • Vaughn P. DeRamus • Brian K. Deren • Stacie A. Derepentigny • Timothy R. Derepentigny • Camille J. DeRosa • Joseph R. DeRosa • Brent S. Derrick • David T. Derrickson • Larry Vincent Derrickson • James S. DeRuby • Jerry DeSantis • Richard C.<br />

DeSantis • Brent Descalopoulis • Guy K. DeShazo • Mike DeSimone • Raymond E. Deskins • Edward J. Desmond • Raymond Desmond • Norman A. Desnoyer • Craig M. DeSpain • Bruce T. Despommier • Russell A. Desrocher • Walter K. DeTeresa • Edwin L.<br />

De<strong>the</strong>rage • Brian V. Dethier • Robert Anthony DeThomas • Chalmer E. Detling • Gary Dettloff • William E. Dettwiller • John C. Deutscher • Michael W. Devenport • Kevin J. Devery • Robert Michael Devery • John A. Devine • William T. Devine • Della M.<br />

DevineMonagle • Sandra Joan Devito • Richard J. Devivo • Michael Ray DeVor • Stacy L. DeVorak • Frank DeVries • Edward L. Dewar • Michael O. Deweese • Louis P. Dewenter • William Edward Dewey • Kenneth Lewis DeWitt • Marlene DeWitt • Richard<br />

DeWitt • Sheila R. DeWitt • Paul Richard DeWitte • Terry Lee DeWitte • Bruce A. Dexter • Scott M. DiPiazza • Woody Dias • Edgar Diaz • Jose L. Diaz • Luis Diaz • Paul DiBenedetto • Salvatore DiBetta • Lorna S. Dibkey • Donald E. Dice • Michael R.<br />

Dickason • Ralph A. Dickerman • Simon Gordon Dickerson • Veronique Dickerson • Nicole E. Dickey • Steven S. Dickey • Jason Dickhans • Charles E. Dickinson • Peter J. Dickinson • Ross L. Dickinson • Troy Diedrich • Lawrence A. Diehl • Kurt L. Diemler • Gary<br />

W. Dienhart • Janet L. Dierdorf • Michael A. Dietrich • John R. Dietz • Thomas A. DiFilippo • Stephen M. Dignam • Yolanda Dijkstra • Frank Diliberto • Michael C. DiLisio • Carl Danny Dill • Mark A. Dill • Robert L. Dill • Curtis L. Dillahay • Marilyn Q.<br />

Dillard • Nina Dillard • Keith K.A. Dilliner • Carol Noelle Dillon • James Peter Dillon • Jeffrey S. Dillon • Mark J. Dillon • Mark Dillon • Michael D. Dillon • Michael J. Dillon • William C. Dillon • Joseph B. Dimas • Nunzio A. Dimillo • Wayne E. Dimmic • Daniel P.<br />

DiMura • Michael F. Dinard • Bryan M. Dinello • Emad Dinkha • Mark A. DiPalmo • Tomaso DiPaolo • John F. DiPetta • Giovanni DiPierro • James W. Dippel • Lisa M. Dippel • Andrew P. Diragi • Peter Dirks • Kevin A. Dirrim • Kenneth P. Discoli • Charles M.<br />

Diseker • Frank Rhyan Disher • Tameria J. Dishman • John R. Disney • Ronald W. Disney • Scott Dittamo • Thomas D. Dittmer • Richard Ditto • King A. Divers • Charlie W. Dixon • Chauncey Owen Dixon • Christopher Mark Dixon • Frank O. Dixon • George<br />

Dixon • Harriet A. Dixon • Lawrence N. Dixon • Maurice V. Dixon • Robert J. Dixon • William R. Dixon • Bill Q. Do • Quy T. Do • Trinh Do • Richard A. Doak • Craig A. Doan • Daryl E. Dobbins • Larry D. Dobbins • Mark D. Dobbs • Michael A. Dobens • Christopher<br />

R. Dobinson • Lydia L. Dobis • Michael R. Dobso • Richard S. Dobso • Steven John Docalavich • Eric Lee Dodd • Richard H. Dodd • Jeffrey James Doden • Brent D. Dodge • Danny Dodge • Dennis J. Dodge • Richard Dodge • Stanley R. Dodge • Debra L.<br />

Dodson • Blane S. Doege • Jeffrey Alden Doege • Daniel Eric Doerr • Mike Doerr • Thomas G. Doerr • Adam C. Doescher • Robert W. Dofflemyer • Perry J. Doggrell • Robert L. Dogherty • Daniel N. Doherty • Lonnie N. Doherty • David J. Dohlman • Daniel B.<br />

Dohner • Richard J. Dolan • Andrew G. Dole • Edward J. Dolen • Paul Dolezal • James W. Dolphin • LeeAnne P. Domben • Wayne S. Dombroski • James C. Dombrowski • Mark J. Dombrowski • David C. Dominguez • James D. Dominguez • Todd A. Domini • Tracie<br />

L. Dominy • Scott A. Dommin • Dennis L. Donahue • Michael Donahue • Donald S. Donaldson • Edward B. Donaldson • George L. Donbrosky • Gene C. Dong • Dennis M. Donlon • Brian K. Donnelly • Kevin J. Donnelly • Maureen M. Donnelly • Michael G.<br />

Donnelly • Philip C. Donnelly • Regina R. Donnelly • John Donohue • William A. Donohue • Bryan E. Donovan • Daniel Joseph Donovan • Eugene L. Donovan • Gerard J. Donovan • Paul L. Donovan • Richard E. Donovan • Roger R. Dooley • Vincent B. Doran • John<br />

Daniel Dorgan • Richard M. Doring • Frank E. Dorman • Randall Reed Dorman • Steven Thomas Dorman • Robert C. Dornhagen • Joseph G. Dorr • James I. Dorrance • D. James Doskow • Terry J. Doss • William M. Doss • James E. Dossing • Phillip M.<br />

Dostalik • Michael E. Dostert • Bobby J. Dotson • Joseph H. Dotterer • Robert A. Dotts • Chadwick D. Doty • William Brad Dotzel • James A. Doucet • Richard Doucette • Vincent E. Doud • John M. Dougherty • John Thomas Dougherty • Kenneth Dale<br />

Dougherty • Charles F. Doughty • Lee A. Doughty • Robert D. Doughty • Howard J. Douglas • Marvin S. Douglas • Robert E. Douglas • Jeffrey Alan Douglass • Joseph Michael Doumont • Dennis C. Dover • Brian J. Dowd • David D. Dowd • Kelley J. Dowd • Michael<br />

Dowd • Charles K. Dowell • Evanna A. Dowis • Kathleen Ann Dowling • Kevin Dowling • Ronald N. Downen • Deborah R. Downer • Richard A. Downer • Jack L. Downie • Donald W. Downing • Steven L. Downing • Brian Eric Downs • O. Ear<strong>the</strong>rline Downs • Kenneth<br />

W. Doxey • Vera M. Doy • Donna M. Doyen • Philip E. Doyen • Gene L. Doyle • James T. Doyle • Kevin E. Doyle • Thomas J. Doyle • William M. Doyle • Paul A. Dozois • Roland E. Drabek • Teresa L. Dragonetti • Walter Dragonetti • Karen L. Dragotta • Craig C.<br />

Drake • David M. Drake • Lorna Drake • Terry W. Drake • David E. Drashil • Kathleen M. Draughon • Michael K. Dray • Thomas J. Dray • Michael P. Dreger • Michael W. Drennan • Don W. Drennen • Knute R. Dresden • Keith L. Dresow • Robert Dressler • Jerome<br />

C. Drew • Mark S. Drew • Barbara Jean Drewry • James O. Driggers • Stephen Driggers • Margie Drilling • Mat<strong>the</strong>w R. Drinen • Robert D. Drinkall • Brent Driscoll • Charles F. Driscoll • Sean J. Driscoll • Johnnie K. Driver • Thomas Frank Drop • Randolph William<br />

Drose • Brian Drouillard • Dominika Drozdzal • Tim Druffel • Timothy E. Drumm • Gwin Drummond • Herbert R. Drury • Jean A. Drury • Minh Tan Du • Christopher C. DuPuy • Erik J. Dual • Brian E. Dubay • James A. Dubay • Bradford D. DuBois • Bruce R.<br />

DuBois • James P. DuBois • Kenneth G. Dubois • Chris T. DuBose • Alan B. DuBrow • Barrett D. Duchene • George J. Duckett • Andrew J. Duda • Duke A. Dudley • Elizabeth Anne Dudley • Gerald M. Dudley • John W. Duer • Chris E. Duerden • David N. Duff • Dean<br />

S. Duff • Jon R. Duffett • Timothy Duffrin • Glenn J. Duffy • Kevin M. Duffy • Timothy P. Duffy • Kevin R. Dufour • Daniel A. DuFresne • Renee’ F. DuFresne • Terrance J. Dugan • Jeff L. Duggan • Sheila L. Duhn • James M. Duke • David Dukeman • Gregory J.<br />

Dukeman • Jacek O. Dulczewski • Joseph S. Dulemba • Daniel S. Dumas • John R. DuMiller • Jason S. Dunaway • Michael J. Dunbar • Bradley L. Duncan • Jacq A. Duncan • John W. Duncan • Mark D. Duncan • Michael E. Duncan • Scott A. Duncan • Steven T.<br />

Duncan • David C. Dunham • Michael K. Dunhom • Donald R. Dunivant • Sally Sue Dunivant • John A. Dunkailo • John T. Dunkerly • Diane L. Dunkman • Robert D. Dunlap • Gregory Alan Dunlop • George W. Dunn • Gregory Dunn • Harold T. Dunn • Sherie J.<br />

Dunn • Steven E. Dunn • Peter P. Dunne • Stacey Alan Dunning • Daniel P. Dunphy • Ronald Dupaty • Lonnie C. Dupree • Tommy Dupree • Pamella J. Duquette • Stephanie Durall • Carlos Duran • James T. Duran • Phillip R. Durben • Gregory A. Durbin • Ronald<br />

L. Durbin • Michelle A. Durenberger • Barry S. Durham • Richard J. Durham • Scott R. Durham • T. Glenn Durham • Derek Durkee • Douglas P. Durst • Mark S. Durtschi • Paul R. Duschane • Russell E. Dusenberry • John H. Dutto • Anthony Wayne Dutton • Randell<br />

L. Dutton • Scott Allan Dutton • Jeffrey J. Duttweiler • Andrew Bradley Duvall • David M. Dworek • James T. Dwyer • Mark A. Dwyer • Peter Sean Dwyer • Robert M. Dwyer • Jed Dybvik • Lorraine T. Dycha • James N. Dyckman • Barry C. Dye • Charles B. Dye • Jon<br />

David Dyer • Timothy A. Dyer • John J. Dykema • Christine R. Dykeman • Cindy Dymond • Gregory A. Dyson • Bradley M. Eades • Diane S. Earhart • Portia J. Earl • Kenneth G. Easley • Dennis J. Eason • Joel J. Eason • Lloyd D. Eastburn • Diana J. Easterday • Karen<br />

Eastland • Jeffrey J. Eastlick • Lee Anne Eastlick • Chris J. Eaton • Rosanne Eaton • Eric D. Eberhardt • Kimberly Ann Eberhart • Patrick M. Eberhart • Robert Eberly • Brian L. Ebey • John D. Eby • Leslie D. Echols • Robert J. Eck • John H. Eckert • Joseph L.<br />

Eckert • Jason F. Eckl • Steven C. Eckman • Elizabeth Eddy • Rocky D. Eddy • Larry N. Eden • Roger Ederle • Phillip C. Edgar • Mark A. Edge • Timothy Hughlin Edge • Dwight Dean Edgington • Shawn M. Edlund • Gordon A. Edmiston • John J. Edmonds • Michael E.<br />

Edmonds • Michael Scott Edmonds • Chris W. Edmonson • Amy E. Edmunds • James C. Edmunds • Jeff Edmunds • Martin D. Edo • John P. Edoff • Craig Scott Edwards • Johnny T. Edwards • Kathleen Edwards • Monte W. Edwards • Patrick K. Edwards • Phillip M.<br />

Edwards • Stephen M. Edwards • Steven W. Edwards • Teresa Edwards • Willie J. Edwards • Layne P. Efta • Douglas C. Egan • Michael E. Egan • Alfred G. Eggers • Thomas R. Eggert • Timothy R. Ehler • Dean E. Ehrgott • Donna Jean Ehrgott • Gary M. Ehrhard • Peter<br />

C. Ehrlein • Ralph J. Ehrman • Tyler L. Eichhorn • Duane A. Eidenier • Lisa Eidson • Daniel L. Eifert • Donald K. Eiford • Stacy L. Eisen • Thomas C. Eisenmayer • Joseph R. Eisert • James A. Ekins • John D. Eklund • Yvonne Elder • Bradley D. Eldevick • Lance Lee<br />

Eldredge • Diana J. Eldridge • Ca<strong>the</strong>rine L. Elens-Lucero • Janis A. Elia • Andrew C. Elias • Alexander Elijew • Louis Andrew Eliopoulos • Alfred P. Elizondo • Elias Elizondo • Mat<strong>the</strong>w Joseph Elker • James R. Elkins • Tamra J. Elkins • Daniel J. Ellenberger • Carol L.<br />

Elliott • Daniel G. Elliott • Dean L. Elliott • Gerald R. Elliott • John L. Elliott • Karen Elaine Elliott • Lisa Elliott • Michael E. Elliott • Robert M. Elliott • Scott L. Elliott • Adrian P. Ellis • Ben E. Ellis • Brian D. Ellis • Kendall M. Ellis • Kenneth R. Ellis • Lisa Ellis • Mark<br />

Ellis • Michael Lee Ellis • Robert E. Ellis • Sigrid J. Ellis • Beverlyn T. Ellison • Bobbi J. Ellison • Ernest J. Ellison • Raymond G. Ellison • Steven B. Ells • Thomas W. Elmer • Krystal D. Elrod • Frank L. Elsholz • Walter J. Elsmore • Patrick A. Elster • Gregory<br />

Elwood • Karl W. Elwood • Norma J. Ely • Eric K. Elya • Jack S. Emberg • Gregory S. Emberland • Erik B. Embree • Tambra R. Embry • Kelly R. Emde • John M Emerson • Barry S. Emge • Dennice M. Emge • Joseph F. Emilio • Charles H. Emmons • Charles Steven<br />

Enders • Nathan J. Enders • Daniel C. Endres • Paul G. Endres • Todd W. Engebretson • Frederick Engel • Richard J. Engel • Robert E. Engelhardt • Walter E. Engelhardt • Gentri L. Engelke • Steven A. England • Todd Michael England • William D. England • Duane A.<br />

Engle • Jeffrey Lee Engle • Glenn T. Englehart • Diane M. English • Mark I. English • Gary Philip Enis • James J. Ennis • Robert W. Enos • Sean K. Enos • Daniel L. Enright • Patrick A. Enriquez • Albert E. Ensell • Alan Ravon Ensley • Karen L. Ensley • Frank L.<br />

Ent • Steven S. Entis • Kurt R. Erath • Lindsay Ericksen • Timothy Erickson • Todd E. Erickson • Jay S. Ericson • Burton W. Erikson • Larry D. Erland • Michael W. Erlbacher • Robert F. Erlwein • David J. Ermer • Guy L. Ernest • Paul A. Ernhart • Andrew McCue<br />

Ernst • Daniel R. Ernst • Joni Ervin • Carolyn G. Erwin • Thomas G. Erwin • Michael J. Esau • Jesse Thomas Escamilla • Peter R. Escobar • Kevin J. Escribano • Ricci R. Escudero • Frances C. Esmond • Efrain E. Esparza • Harry R. Espey • Leopoldo M. Espino • Ronald<br />

D. Espinosa • Juan J. Espinoza • Brian P. Essenmacher • Joan G. Essex • Craig R. Esslinger • Rafael A. Esteban • Andrew H. Esterly • Darin J. Esterly • Donald L. Estes • James A. Estes • James M. Estes • Robert R. Estes • Stephen Frederick Estes • Bret E<strong>the</strong>ridge • David<br />

K. E<strong>the</strong>ridge • David A. Ethington • Jack C. Eubanks • William F. Eubanks • Benet Roger Euler • Jeffrey L. Evagues • Michael L. Evangelista • Barbara J. Evans • Benjamin E. Evans • Benjamin S. Evans • Carter Evans • Donald K. Evans • Gene Kevin Evans • J. Brent<br />

Evans • Jeffrey S. Evans • Kenneth Evans • Lee William Evans • Michael Scott Evans • Michele Lyn Evans • Nancy E. Evans • Rainer L. Evans • Richard D. Evans-Kaplan • John T. Evanusich • Gary Evenson • Jack A. Everett • Sandra L. Everett • Robert J.<br />

Everhart • Paul A. Evermon • Thomas J. Everson • Henry Eviota • Jeffrey D. Ewing • Matt Ewing • Michael L. Ewing • Ralph R. Ewing • Alexander R. Ewings • Charles H. Exline • Marc L. Eyraud • Ellis Randall Ezell • Robert H. Ezzard • Gregory Ezzell • Steve B.<br />

Fabela • Joseph D. Fabian • Philip J. Fabricatore • Brian E. Fabry • Michael H. Fadelici • Jack R. Fader • Stanley Fadrowski • Patrick J. Fagan • Larry Fagerland • Richard H. Fagg • Mary Fahey • Patrick T. Fahey • Timothy L. Faile • William Failor • B o h d a n n a<br />

Fairchild • John A. Fairchild • Kimberly D. Fairman • Lauren J. Faith • Kenneth E. Fajfer • Robert M. Fakouri • Manuel G. Falcon • Christopher C. Falcone • Joseph C. Falcone • Benjamin J. Falen • Jonathan Falen • Christie A. Falkner • Bret Jay Fallers • Walter G.<br />

Fallin • Brian J. Fallon • Edward D. Fallon • Francis J. Fallon • Lillian Fallon • John F. Famularo • Michael Patrick Fannin • David W. Fanning • Steven R. Fanno • Scott G. Fansler • Robert E. Fanucci • Sue Y Farabaugh • Steven E. Faraday • David S. Faramarzpour • Paul<br />

C. Farina • Orlando Farinas • Karen J. Farley • Shannon D. Farley • William A. Farmin • Rupert Andrew Farr • Michael E. Farrell • Raymond P. Farrell • Richard H. Farrell • Chunsei Lee Farren • Lee Farrier • Clifford L. Farrior • Stephen E. Farris • Scott E.<br />

Farrow • James Farslow • Steven T. Fasig • Charles J. Faso • Douglas M. Faucher • Cassandra Y. Faulk • Brett L. Faulkner • Jack G. Faulkner • Jeremy E. Faust • Robert L. Faux • William A. Faville • Debra A. Fay • James R. Fazekas • Cori Lyn Fazio • James T.<br />

Fazio • James Fearn • Mark L. Fears • Mark S. Fearson • Kevin A. Fea<strong>the</strong>ringill • Arthur A. Fedak • Aaron Feder • Chris J. Federico • Corina Fedorowicz • Michael J. Fedowitz • James R. Feehan • Brian J. Feeney • David J. Feeney • William R. Feger • Timothy Alan<br />

Fehr • Greg Feige • Bridget Feise • Norman B. Felder • Jon J. Feldt • Albert Feliciano • Stephen L. Felkins • David P. Felling • Michael T. Fellows • Jason Felser • Richard J. Felton • Richard W. Fendley • Larry M. Fennell • Edward C. Fens • Jeremy A. Ferg • Andre’<br />

A. Ferguson • Bruce R. Ferguson • Charles E. Ferguson • Edward L. Ferguson • James M. Ferguson • Joe Ferguson • Linda K. Ferguson • LuAnn Ferguson • Michael James Ferguson • Victor W. Ferguson • Victor Ferguson • Richard Walter Fernald • Wallace L.<br />

Fernandez • Pamela J. Fero • Albert A. Ferranti • James L. Ferrara • Brian P. Ferreira • Jerry L. Ferrell • Michael K. Ferrell • Robert D. Ferrell • Stacy Dean Ferrell • Terry James Ferrell • Spencer W. Ferrington • Sharlene M. Ferrio • Joyce M. Ferris • Richard D.<br />

Ferris • Nicholas J. Ferro • Kevin G. Ferros • Rex D. Fetters • Michael J. Ficarro • William F. Fick • Michael L. Fiddes • William J. Fiedler • John L. Field • Robert M. Field • Carl R. Fields • Floyd D. Fields • Michael A. Fields • Michael Fields • Phillip R. Fields • Shawn<br />

P. Fields • Warren Fields • Luis E. Fierro • Robert S. Fierro • Richard Fiesel • Javier E. Figueroa • John A. Figueroa • Karsten K. Figueroa • Joseph D. Figura • Cailin C. Filhiol • Michael B. Filhiol • Michael J. Filimon • Joyce Filipiak • Mark A. Fillion • Susan A.<br />

Finan • Brad L. Finch • John H. Finch • James J. Fincher • Timothy M. Fincher • Gerald B. Fink • Carl W. Finkbeiner • John J. Finkbeiner • David A. Finkbiner • Brian G. Finlayson • Patrick M. Finn • Steven Finnerty • Lawrence J. Finney • Bruno R. Fiore • John J.<br />

Fiorilli • Raymond E. Firkins • Michael Fischback • Curt Jurgen Fischer • Nathan T. Fischer • Ronald A. Fischer • Steven D. Fischer • Mat<strong>the</strong>w W. Fiscus • Robert K. Fish • Walter C. Fish • Brian P. Fisher • Dale E. Fisher • Dawn A. Fisher • Eric D. Fisher • Frank A.<br />

Fisher • Jeffrey J. Fisher • Jeffrey James Fisher • Jesse L. Fisher • John B. Fisher • Larry Fisher • Paul J. Fisher • Richard J. Fisher • Robert M. Fisher • Aaron Fishman • Linda S. Fisk • Gary M. Fiske • Daniel P. Fitas • Scott William Fitch • Christina A. Fitz • Don E.<br />

Fitzgerald • Donna K. Fitzgerald • John J. Fitzgerald • John K. Fitzgerald • Sean M. Fitzgerald • Thomas W. Fitzgerald • William G. Fitzgerald • John R. Fitzgibbons • Stephen Wade Fitzpatrick • Lawrence J. Fitzsimmons • Patrick Fitzsimmons • Chris L. Fitzwater • Daniel<br />

R. Fiumano • Lorn L. Fjeldstad • Terri A. Fjosne • Colin M. Flaherty • Toye M. Flaherty • Charles M. Flanagan • Joseph E. Flanagan • Michael E. Flanagan • Susan Flanagan • David W. Flatt • Paul E. Fleck • Norman L. Fleek • Gregory A. Fleetwood • Steven D.<br />

Fleetwood • Jayme L. Fleig • Frank J. Fleischer • Steven Fleischer • Becky Jean Fleming • James Hunter Fleming • Kelly E. Fleming • Patricia L. Fleming • Suzanne E. Fleming • Ted R. Fleming • William Lee Fleming • Kent M. Fleshman • Clayton B. Fletcher • Jeffrey E.<br />

Fletcher • Stephen Peter Fletcher • Steven C. Flickinger • David F. Flint • Glenn G. Flint • Charles J. Flood • Billy J. Florence • Glenn Michael Flores • Mario A. Flores • Tim Flores • Lori A. Florian • Robert J. Florian • Stephen M. Flowers • Daniel S. Fly • Cheryl K.<br />

Fly-Edwards • Andrew Flynn • Asela Telorah Flynn • David M. Flynn • Diane M. Flynn • David K. Foddrill • Timothy J. Fodor • Danielle D. Foege • Michael Alan Fogg • Peter B. Fogg • Mat<strong>the</strong>w D. Fogie • Daniel G. Foisy • Ronald Anthony Foley • Ruben Foley • William<br />

J. Foley • Ulises Folh • Kevin J. Follo • Chris M. Followell • Mark D. Folz • Cleighton P. Fong • James V. Fontana • William Fontana • Larry Fontenot • Melissa M. Foote • Michael D. Foote • Edward Eugene Forbes • Ivan Forbes • Gregory W. Ford • James E.<br />

Ford • Kevin M. Ford • Margaret J. Ford • Maria C. Ford • Ouida K. Ford • Sheila Ford • Steven R. Ford • Cynthia M. Fordney • Paul J. Foreman • Frank R. Foresta • Jeffrey M. Forhan • Todd M. Forkey • Michael L. Forman • Wayne H. Formby • Joseph P.<br />

Formoso • Thomas K. Forney • John T. Fornito • Brian E. Forrest • Timothy R. Forrestor • Patrick R. Forrey • David Forsberg • Chris E. Forsy<strong>the</strong> • David H. Fort • John F. Forte • Victoria A. Forte • James P. Fortenberry • Michelle D. Fortin • Julie F. Fortman • Russell<br />

L. Foss • Chris W. Fossen • Cynthia Foster • Ernest S. Foster • George A. Foster • Jackie B. Foster • James Michael Foster • Jeffrey David Foster • Kendal L. Foster • Michelle Renee Foster • Pamela Foster • Richard Allen Foster • Sharon M. Foster • Stephanie D.<br />

Foster • Stephen F. Foster • Steven Foster • Susan J. Foster • Warren S. Foster • William Foster • Michael R. Fountain • Richard C. Fountain • David A. Fournier • Timothy J. Fournier • Robert J. Foust • David L. Foutch • Maurice E. Fouts • Ingrid A. Fovargue • Cprby<br />

Fowler • John S. Fowler • Lorraine A. Fowler • Mark D. Fowler • Mat<strong>the</strong>w Fowler • Nathaniel E. Fowler • Samuel L. Fowler • Bobby Joe Fox • Guy R. Fox • James E. Fox • Lonnie Lee Fox • Ronald G. Fox • Scott R. Fox • Aarson Foxwell • Curtis J. Foxworth • Robert<br />

H. Fraboni • Gregory S. Fraga • Jennifer L. Fraga • Steve K. Fragas • Larry G. Frailey • Michael Franc • Arden E. Francis • Diane C. Francis • Eric A. Francis • George W. Francis • Harry L. Francis • Robert J. Francis • Carl D. Franco • John F. Franco • Arnold S.<br />

Frank • Mary C. Frank • Richard J. Frank • Richard K. Frank • Drew M. Frankel • Michael L. Frankel • Mark A. Franklin • Paul M. Franklin • Robert G. Franklin • Dale A. Franks • Robert A. Franks • Terry Allen Franseen • David A. Frantz • Frank J. Franze • Debra<br />

Ann Franzen • Randy K. Franzen • Bruce L. Frappied • Daniel Fraschilla • James W. Frascone • Daniel A. Fraser • Michael A. Fraser • Tami L. Fraser • Jeffrey Lee Fray • Austin S. Frazao • Barry D. Frazier • Darrell E. Frazier • Gary F. Frazier • Michael E. Frazier • V. The<br />

NATCA Family


The NATCA Family<br />

Names of charter members are in bold<br />

William Frazier • David W. Frechette • Kathleen D. Frederick • William M. Frederick • Raymond Scott Fredericks • Eric J. Fredricks • George M. Fredricks • Thomas E. Fredrickson • Lucius V. Free • Philip C. Freed • Donald J. Freedenberg • Brett A. Freeman • Donald<br />

L. Freeman • Mat<strong>the</strong>w D. Freeman • Michael E. Freeman • Paul A. Freeman • Scott E. Freeman • Victor W. Freeman • Kevin E. Fregosi • Mark A. Freiburger • Ramona A. Freiburger • Dietrich Freigang • David J. Freitas • Larry D. French • Robin L. French • Scott<br />

Robert French • Stephen T. French • Steven E. French • John Freund • Janice A. Frey • Kenneth W. Frey • Charles F. Frick • Craig J. Fricke • Scott Aaron Friday • Bennett J. Friedman • Sandra Friedrich • John J. Friedrick • Michael R. Friman • Barry Dwayne<br />

Frisbee • Allen R. Fritz • David M. Fritz • John T. Fritz • Karen L. Fritz • William G. Fritz • Scott A. Frizen • Ronald A. Froats • Keith Froebel • Francis Michael Froehlich • Sheri L. Froehlich • Susan A. Frohnhoefer • Gerald R. Frost • Jonathan P. Frost • Rhonda J.<br />

Frost • Joseph S. Fruscella • Larry A. Fry • Jeffrey D. Frye • Michael J. Frye • V. Bryce Fuday • Richard M. Fuga • Joseph C. Fuhrer • Randall T. Fuhrman • Danny T. Fuimoano • Dwayne T. Fukui • Perry R. Fulford • Charles P. Fullen • Bryan Wells Fuller • Felicia L.<br />

Fuller • Jennifer L. Fuller • Marcus Fuller • Nicholas Fuller • Ann J. Fuller-Bazzell • James Ian Fullmer • Gary R. Fulmer • Kimeri C. Fulmer • Dean M. Funk • Erwin D. Funk • Kevin P. Furey • Anthony J. Furman • Joseph M. Furman • Annette Fusco • William M.<br />

Futrell • Michael F. Gaar • Douglas G. Gaasvig • Barbara Ann Gabba • Harold W Gabbard • Mitchell J. Gaboriault • Steven Gaboriault • Michael A. Gabrick • Gregory W. Gabriele • Robert E. Gabrielson • Elaine M. Gachette • George H. Gaddie • Stephanie M.<br />

Gadson • Jeffrey M. Gaffney • Nelson S. Gaffney • Joseph V. Gagliano • Patricia A. Gagliano • Marc Gagne • Daniel J. Gagner • Ronald C. Gagner • Michael L. Gagnon • Thomas J. Gagnon • Michael S. Gaillard • Andre S. Gaines • Darren Todd Gaines • Deborah J.<br />

Gaines • Eric D. Gaines • John W. Gainey • Gary M. Gainley • Alyssa Gainor • Frank Bruce Gai<strong>the</strong>r • Bruno Gaizutis • William A. Galarneau • Debra A. Galassini • Donna Galbraith • James S. Galbraith • Ronald L. Galbraith • John A. Galego • Marc J. Galeski • William<br />

A. Galicic • Kenneth J. Galitsky • Beth A. Gallagher • Brien P. Gallagher • Donald A. Gallagher • Gerard J. Gallagher • John K. Gallagher • Kevin M. Gallagher • Patrick J. Gallagher • Patrick O. Gallagher • Philip F. Gallagher • Thomas A. Gallagher • Mark R.<br />

Gallant • Carlos G. Gallardo • John C. Gallegos • Ronald F. Gallegos • Pamela S. Gallien • Paul J. Galligan • Renette K. Gallo • Stephen Gallo • Tom Gallo • Jack J. Galloway • Jack P. Galloway • John A. Gallucci • James L. Galo • Timothy Paul Galo • David P.<br />

Galuszka • Joseph M. Gambino • Richard W. Gambino • Brian G. Gamble • Patrick M. Gamble • William F. Gamble • Barry J. Gamblin • James R. Gamel • Bernie Games • Mat<strong>the</strong>w Granville Gammon • Patrick W. Gancel • David F. Gandolfo • Carolyn M. Gandy • Ron<br />

Gandy • Troy A. Gandy • Gilbert L. Gann • Ronnie Eugene Gann • Edward J. Gannon • John James Gannon • Kevin Ray Gannon • Michael M. Gannon • Joseph L. Gant • Lance T. Gant • Arthur U. Gapasin • Glenn E. Garasic • Abdulmalik Garba • Charles J.<br />

Garbarino • William R. Garbe • Gary T. Garber • James W. Garber • Alan Garcia • Alfredo E. Garcia • Anthony Garcia • Carleen V. Garcia • Daniel Garcia • David K. Garcia • David Louis Garcia • Eduardo V. Garcia • Edward O. Garcia • Gilbert T. Garcia • Gregory<br />

J. Garcia • Luis G. Garcia • Mary Garcia • Michael E. Garcia • Randolph M. Garcia • Thomas P. Garcia • Vernon J. Garcia • Victor H. Garcia • Robyn M. Garcia-Romero • Jay C. Gard • Marie Kennington Gardiner • Richard W. Gardini • Brian Keith Gardner • Brian Scott<br />

Gardner • Chris Gray Gardner • Dennis Gardner • George N. Gardner • Jere G. Gardner • Larry J. Gardner • Lloyd Gardner • Michael T. Gardner • Russell L. Gardner • Terrence L. Gardner • Deforest V. Garfield • Camille Garibaldi • John Garibay • Brad A.<br />

Garland • Neil M. Garland • David Garner • Jeffrey A. Garner • John P. Garner • Charles Garrett • Cheryl L. Garrett • James A. Garrett • James K. Garrett • James Garrett • Jimmy R. Garrett • Karen L. Garrett • Teri Lea Garrett • Barbara Garside • Richard T.<br />

Garwood • Barton E. Gary • Willard E. Gary • Raul Garza • Troy M. Gascoyne • Gayla A. Gaskin • Kenwyn Gaskin • Manuel A. Gaspar • Gregory J. Gass • James M. Gass • Chad J. Gassmann • Michael B. Gateley • John Gates • Malcolm Joel Gates • Steven R.<br />

Gatewood • Mark Reid Gatzke • Rudy A. Gaubert • Karen Ann Gauby • Kim Michael Gaudette • Carrie R. Gault • William S. Gaunt • James Gausepohl • Michael W. Gavin • Chris Gavriel • Gene M. Gawley • Robert J. Gawrys • Joseph G. Gay • Pamela Gayde • Drew<br />

M. Gaydos • Gilbert Rick Geagan • Roy A. Geary • Thomas A. Geary • Es<strong>the</strong>r Rae Gebhardt-Field • Albert L. Gebrosky • David M. Geddes • Jeffrey David Geddes • Karen L. Geddings • Vernon G. Geddings • Peter W. Geddis • Richard B. Gee • Robert J. Gegen • Jeffery<br />

C. Gehring • Richard W. Gehringer • Ronald R. Gehrman • Daniel W. Gehrmann • Lola L. Gehrt • Eric Geier • John C. Geier • David B. Geiger • Jeffery M. Geiger • Mark D. Geimke • Jenna R. Geiser • Robert W. Geith • Gerard M. Gelardo • Donald R.<br />

Gellerman • Todd C. Gellner • David Joseph Gelmini • Nancy D. Gemmill • Donald Gendreau • Gretchen Ann Gendreau • Michael Gendron • Christophe J. Genoter • William G. Genovese • Deborah Sue Gentry • James A. Gentry • Ronald P. Geoffroy • William<br />

Geoghagan • Daniel G. George • Martin S. George • Sara George • Salvatore G. Geraci • Jeffrey A. Gerber • J. Michael Gercke • Francis Joseph Geremski • Charles Mark Germain • Anthony J. Germann • Vincent Gerry • James M. Gersh • Diana P. Gerwig • Philip<br />

James Gesumaria • Michael J. Getchman • Chad A. Geyer • Lee A. Geyer • Ronald L. Geyer • Gary Alan Gfroerer • Hamid Ghaffari • Damon P. Ghee • Lawrence G. Ghersi • Zulema Ghersi • Wendi M. Ghiloni • Robert V. Giabbai • Thomas P. Giacomini • Robert J.<br />

Giacopasi • George Gianakas • Louis P. Giancamillo • Michael B. Gianfalla • Ronald Giannettino • John J. Giannetto • Pamela E. Giannetto • Patricia L. Gibbons • Raymond J. Gibbons • Steven L. Gibbons • Bill Lee Gibbs • Brenda E. Gibbs • Marc P. Gibbs • Marilyn<br />

Gibbs • Michael R. Gibbs • David B. Giberson • Robert G. Gibney • David R. Gibson • David S. Gibson • Jodi K. Gibson • Kenneth Gibson • Kwame R. Gibson • Lisa A. Gibson • Steven M. Gibson • Leslie I. Gicewicz • Louis J. Giddens • Stephen C. Giddens • Kurt<br />

Gifford • Robert A. Gigeous • Michael L. Giggie • Cheryl D. Gilbert • Colleen M. Gilbert • John K. Gilbert • John Michael Gilbert • John W. Gilbert • Kathy I. Gilbert • Margaret M. Gilbert • Patricia C. Gilbert • Rae Lynn Gilbert • Richard F. Gilbert • Stephen K.<br />

Gilbert • Walter J. Gilbertson • James J. Gilboy • James Gilbride • Jeffery Scott Gilde • Christy A. Giles • Cindy S. Giles • Richard N. Giles • Roger A. Giles • James Vincent Gill • Rex D. Gill • Rick E. Gill • Robert Earl Gill • Robert W. Gill • Ma<strong>the</strong>w T.<br />

Gillespie • Thomas Andrew Gillespie • Jon Gillett • Ronald L. Gillette • James H. Gilliam • Michael D. Gilliam • John E. Gilliard • Robert N. Gilliland • Frank D. Gillingham • Graciela S. Gillis • Jonathan R. Gillis • James R. Gillman • Rex Gillmer • Kara K. Gills • Arthur<br />

N. Gilman • Gregory D. Gilman • Gregory J. Gilman • Timothy E. Gilmartin • Ca<strong>the</strong>rine V. Gilmore • Cherye Gilmore • David M. Gilmore • Peter J. Gilmore • Douglas L. Gilomen • Scott C. Gilson • Lynson Gilstrap • William Gin • Russell A. Gindhart • John A.<br />

Gingrich • Scott A. Ginsburg • Susan K. Ginsburg • Keith W. Gin<strong>the</strong>r • David A. Gioffre • Vito Gioia • Joe Giompaolo • James J. Giovengo • Mic Giralte • Peter M. Girard • David A. Gish • Gregory L. Gish • Lee D. Gitlin • Vincent Giuliano • Stephen P.<br />

Given • Valerie Marie Gladitsch • Stephen Blair Glaeser • Daniel J. Glancey • Terry L. Glant • Gregory A. Glaser • William N. Glaser • Richard W. Glass • John Glasserman • Thomas R. Glaze • Rick W. Gleason • William Dean Glen • Gary R. Glenisky • Kenneth G.<br />

Glenn • Jaimeson Glennen • Robert W. Glibowski • Douglas C. Glick • Wayne A. Glifort • George Glock • Steven D. Glore • Barry A. Gloth • Daniel Wayne Glover • Timothy E. Glover • George M. Gmitro • Terry L. Gnepper • Jerry W. Goad • Melvin L.<br />

Goble • Timothy M. Goddard • Craig R. Godfrey • Earnest R. Godfrey • Chandler Godin • Frederick G. Godsey • Walter A. Goebel • Glen Erik Goehrs • Scott A. Goerdt • Keith Goering • Paul Alan Goess • Chris Howard Goff • Jeffrey S. Goff • Patsy W.<br />

Goff • William E. Goins • Chris L. Gokey • Daniel W. Goldberg • Mark D. Goldberg • Wayne Goldberg • Andrew P. Golden • Michael Golden • Judy M. Golder • Peter G. Golder • Greg David Goldfarb • Thomas A. Goldman • Jack H. Goldsberry • Michael A.<br />

Goldschmidt • Mark A. Goldstein • Jose A. Gomez • Robert M. Gomez • Richard L. Gomski • Todd Gonnella • Robert W. Gonyea • Jeffrey R. Gonzales • Minerva Gonzales • Robbie P. Gonzales • Abe L. Gonzalez • Armando M. Gonzalez • Daniel E. Gonzalez • Gary<br />

L. Gonzalez • Jose Juan Gonzalez • Louis A. Gonzalez • Michael A. Gonzalez • Pamela M. Gonzalez • Pedro Gonzalez • Robert Gonzalez • Susan Gonzalez • William E. Gonzalez • Dwayne D. Good • John T. Goodall • John C. Goodin • Jay L. Goodman • Robert T.<br />

Goodman • Tara Goodman • David W. Goodnough • John L. Goodson • Michael L. Goodson • Angela B. Goodwin • Clayton W. Goodwin • Joe Goodwin • Joel B. Goodwin • Eric Paul Goozen • Mark Gordhamer • James L. Gordon • Kenneth Gordon • Lewis M.<br />

Gordon • Mark E. Gordon • Meghan Gordon • Samuel L. Gordon • Marilyn J. Gore • Natalie J. Goren • John F. Goris • Gregory S. Gorlich • David L. Gorman • Mark P. Gorman • Roger A. Gorman • Jason Gose • Jon D. Gosnell • Benjamin Goss • Edward M.<br />

Gosselin • Ronald W. Goudreau • Allan M. Gough • Kathleen Gough • Michael A. Gould • Rick Gould • Brian I. Gouldthorpe • Joseph M. Gouvela • Randy J. Gowin • Brenda K. Grace • William A. Grace • Mark Gradney • Josephine A. Graf • Reubin Graf • Timothy<br />

J. Graf • John W. Gragg • Bradley E. Graham • Devin Graham • Ellen B. Graham • Furman J. Graham • Gerald W. Graham • Jeff S. Graham • John E. Graham • Kevin D. Graham • Tommy A. Graham • William L. Graham • Joseph J. Gramlich • Joseph D. Gramm • Kevin<br />

J. Grammes • Michael S. Grammo • Joseph Paul Granata • Carol A. Granberg • David P. Grandinetti • Paul D. Grandinetti • Charles H. Grandison • James K. Grandy • Kurt B. Granger • Bradley E. Grant • Cary E. Grant • James D. Grant • Julia E. Grant • Rohn K.<br />

Grant • Stanley R. Grant • U.S. Grant • William J. Grant • Gary R. Graswald • John G. Gratys • William D. Gratzke • Daniel J. Gravelle • Timothy C. Gravens • Carl L. Graves • Coolidge M. Graves • Ian Richard Graves • Michael D. Graves • Wade H. Graves • William<br />

E. Graves • Audrey Gray • Danny R. Gray • John Michael Gray • Jon D. Gray • Lisa M. Gray • Mary Beth Gray • Michael T. Gray • Robert S. Gray • Thomas R. Gray • William T. Gray • Terry T. Graybeal • Anita Marie Graziane • Richard L. Greathouse • Peter O.<br />

Grebenschikoff • Bobby L. Green • Charles L. Green • George H. Green • Glenn E. Green • Gordon Green • James B. Green • James S. Green • Jed Green • Jonathan B. Green • Karen R. Green • Richard F. Green • Robert E. Green • Roger N. Green • Roy Lee<br />

Green • Scott Gene Green • Stan Emil Green • Steve L. Green • Susan M. Green • Terry L. Green • Timothy Green • Vernard Green • Yvonne L. Green • Lenard L. Greenberg • David K. Greenburg • John F. Greene • Robert H. Greene • Robert Phillip<br />

Greene • Roman E. Greene • George L. Greenfield • Steven R. Greenhalgh • Stephen Greenheck • Brian L. Greenwald • Robert N. Greenway • Ken Martin Greenwood • Michael L. Greenwood • Cynthia Greer • Donald M. Greer • Thomas A. Gregg • Mat<strong>the</strong>w<br />

Thomas Gregor • Christine E. Gregory • Walt Gregulak • Robin T. Greisen • John Grenert • Gary Gretencort • David E. Grevis • Glenn L. Gribble • Lori M. Gribble • William Todd Gribble • Vivien A. Grice • Joseph F. Gricius • Eric Jason Grider • Joseph A.<br />

Gridley • Daniel J. Grieco • James L. Grieger • Patty A. Grieger • William Griek • Joe D. Grier • Steven W. Grier • Mark S. Gries • Leonard F. Grieser • Denton L. Griest • Joseph L. Grieve • Charles W. Griffin • David W. Griffin • Jay K. Griffin • Mark A.<br />

Griffin • Ryan N. Griffin • Stephen W. Griffin • Wendy L. Griffin • Bruce William Griffiths • John G. Griffiths • James A. Grigg • James W. Griggs • Keafur Grimes • Cynthia J. Grimm • James P. Grimm • William D. Grimm • James W. Griner • Jerry W. Grinnell • Larry<br />

D. Grisham • Gary M. Grissom • Scott Grissom • Chester K. Groce • Darren P. Groce • Robert H. Groce • Mark E. Grocky • Jerry G. Groendyke • Lisa Groene-Brass • Kenneth K. Gronberg • Carolyn S. Groom • Marc Howard Groom • James M. Gropp • Brian<br />

Groseclose • Ira Gross • Maureen E. Gross • Michael P. Gross • Stuart C. Gross • Robert A. Grosse • Bryan D. Grossman • John Grotefend • Bernard Al Groves • Byron R. Grubbs • James Kevin Gruenewald • Robert Grunau • Eric Grundmann • William B.<br />

Grundmann • Patricia J. Gruss • Joseph J. Gryzbek • John A. Guadnola • Donato J. Guaglione • Frank D. Gualillo • Beth A. Gualtieri • Robert F. Guardino • Anthony Guarnieri • Michael Guarnieri • Laura Lynn Guarracino • Debra A. Guarriello • Bryan T. Guasto • Gary<br />

A. Gubbings • Ernest Gubry • Craig Guensch • David F. Guensch • Russell M. Guen<strong>the</strong>r • Gustavo Guerra • Karin L. Guerra • Robert Guerra • Francisco G. Guerrero • Elizabeth Z. Guerrie • David C. Guess • James E. Guess • Kelly M. Guess • Samuel Emmit<br />

Guess • Barry M. Guest • Micaela I. Guetzko • Ernie Guevara • Patrick J. Guider • Douglas W. Guidish • Sonya K. Guidish • Timothy E. Guidish • Bradley W. Guilmino • Richard J. Guisinger • Ca<strong>the</strong>rine Guitar • Jason Charles Guitar • Kirk B. Gullach • Ryan D.<br />

Gullett • Robert W. Gulley • Jeffrey Vincent Gullo • Peter M. Gullo • William M. Gumm • James F. Gummerson • Karen N. Gundersen • Geoffey G. Gunderson • Ricky L. Gunn • Edward Alan Gunnels • Fredric Gurman • Lance J. Gurney • Thomas A. Gurule • Charles<br />

R. Gussett • Gene L. Gustad • Bruce S. Gustafson • David H. Gustafson • Gordon H. Gustafson • Jon David Gustafson • Wayne W. Gustafson • Roy E. Gustavson • Randall L. Gustin • John R. Guth • Patrick E. Guthrie • Arturo R. Gutierrez • Baldemar<br />

Gutierrez • Joshua Gutierrez • Shane C. Gutierrez • Xavier D. Gutierrez • Ben Guttery • Gregory M. Guttman • Robert E. Guyton • Mark S. Guzik • John J. Guzman • Kevin D. Guzowski • Carl E. Gysler • Todd R. Haack • Brian J. Haag • Melissa A. Haak • Dale K.<br />

Haas • David W. Habecker • Mark Allen Habecker • Rebecca Haberbush • Thomas L. Haberin • Jeffrey K. Haberland • Leslie B. Habig • Karen S. Hable • Patrick Edward Hable • Ted E. Habuda • Brian C. Hach • Elizabeth G. Hackbart • Timothy D. Hackett • Bruce K.<br />

Hackler • David T. Hackney • Louis R. Haddad • Nancy J. Haddorff • Van A. Haddox • Sara Hadfield • Earl P. Hadler • Anne E. Hadley • Jerry P. Hadley • Jody G. Hadley • John Hadley • Kerry S. Hadley • Kristin K. Haeckel • Robert D. Haefner • Ronald F.<br />

Haegele • Frank Joseph Haelle • David A. Hafner • Larry P. Haftel • Jonathan D. Haga • Terence M. Haggerty • Timothy Alan Hagins • John R. Hagy • Ronald Haig • Timothy W. Haines • William G. Haines • Andrew E. Hale • Greg D. Hale • Harry Hines Hale • Kelvin<br />

E. Hale • Mark A. Hale • Mark T. Hale • Richard Charles Hale • Stanley K. Hale • Timothy C. Hale • Arthur P. Haley • John D. Haley • Andree C. Hall • Barbara A. Hall • Charles C. Hall • Chris E. Hall • Christopher J. Hall • Christopher L. Hall • Deanna C.<br />

Hall • Donald C. Hall • Douglas R. Hall • Glenn Hall • Guy P. Hall • Howard B. Hall • James M. Hall • Jason Hall • Jeffrey M. Hall • Jeffrey Mat<strong>the</strong>w Hall • Jennifer Hall • Jerry D. Hall • John H. Hall • John P. Hall • John Hall • Josiah A. Hall • Leslie L. Hall • Mark E.<br />

Hall • Michael A. Hall • Michael L. Hall • Rice E. Hall • Ronald G. Hall • Thomas A. Hall • Walter Dean Hall • Walter T. Hall • William J. Hall • William L. Hall • Oscar M. Halldorson • Eric R. Haller • Stephen J. Haller • Russell L. Halleran • Perry W. Halls • Roger<br />

W. Hallsell • Lawrence Neal Halpern • Thomas B. Halpin • Tricia Halpin • Terry Halsey • Robert G. Halvorson • Roger J. Halye • Liane Hamamoto • Marie Elizabeth Hamby • Heidi L. Hamel • Steven S. Hamel • Mary G. Hamer • Ross L. Hamer • Daniel M.<br />

Hamilton • Glenn B. Hamilton • James P. Hamilton • Jeff W. Hamilton • Nathaniel Ramsey Hamilton • Richard M. Hamilton • Roger D. Hamilton • Rozie Hamilton • Thomas E. Hamilton • Irvin Lee Hamlet • James C. Hamm • William John Hammel • Brian Robert<br />

Hammerle • Walter C. Hammerle • Gregory B. Hammond • Shawn C. Hammond • Steve M. Hammond • Gregory C. Hammonds • MacDonald J. Hamner • Jeffrey C. Hampson • Arthur L. Hampton • Eddie W. Hampton • Gregory V. Hampton • William T.<br />

Hampton • Steve J. Hamre • Gerald Hamrick • Sun N. Han • Keith A. Hanauer • Gary G. Hancock • Jerry Vick Hancock • Mat<strong>the</strong>w L. Hancuh • Gary Allen Handley • Randy J. Handt • Tony L. Hanel • William T. Hanes • Brandee M. Haney • Daniel K. Haney • David<br />

T. Haney • Donald Kevin Haney • Donald Lynn Haney • Timothy C. Haney • Michael Bryon Haniuk • Richard M. Hanke • James S. Hankins • Robert C. Hankins • Jay N. Hanks • Diana Hanley • Kim R. Hanley • Rhonda C. Hanley • Ronald T. Hanley • Scott J.<br />

Hanley • Brian C. Hanlon • Reginald W. Hanlon • Rory A. Hanlon • Neal A. Hann • Mark L. Hanna • Paul M. Hanna • William Hannan • James W. Hanner • Karl B. Hanner • Daniel P. Hannigan • Clayton J. Hanninen • Kevin Charles Hanning • Stacy M. Hannon • Russell<br />

A. Hannu • William M. Hansard • Brian R. Hansen • Darcy Lynn Hansen • Eric Hansen • JoAnn Lisa Hansen • Paul C. Hansen • Robert H. Hansen • Robin E. Hansen • Scott K. Hansen • Stephen J. Hansen • Steven W. Hansen • Thomas P. Hansen • Roxanne M.<br />

Hanshaw • Ana T. Hansmann • James D. Hansmann • Amy Rebecca Hanson • Douglas W. Hanson • Judy Lynn Hanson • Kirk A. Hanson • Rodney R. Hanson • Gene D. Hapip • Kirk K. Hapke • John T. Harbin • Kami Rene Harcrow • Brian Harcula • Steven J.<br />

Hard • Ronald M. Hardecki • Fred P. Hardee • S. Dale Hardee • Steven R. Hardee • Jack C. Harden • Jeffrey M. Harden • Eddie B. Hardimon • Chris Keith Hardin • Robert V. Hardin • Tommy C. Hardin • Robert W. Harding • William Ray Harding • Charles T.<br />

Hardison • John D. Hardman • Robert C. Hardman • Christopher L. Hardnett • Carlton F. Hardy • Janette Hardy • Karlos M. Hardy • Michael D. Hardy • Paul W. Hardy • James Louis Haren • Emil M. Harenberg • Steven M. Haresnape • Kari Harkey • Brian M.<br />

Harkins • Steven M. Harless • Cynthia A. Harlow • Timothy P. Harman • John Patrick Harmon • Ronald L. Harmon • Rudolf Harmon • Linda J. Harms • Michael L. Harms • Janine R. Harnden • Robert L. Harness • David A. Harp • Duane L. Harpel • David E.<br />

Harper • James R. Harper • Jeffery L. Harper • Ronald K. Harpold • Denise L. Harrell • Harris G. Harrell • William M. Harrell • David P. Harrington • Michael J. Harrington • Terry V. Harrington • Andre Harris • Ann C. Harris • Cynthia S. Harris • David L.<br />

Harris • David R. Harris • Donald R. Harris • Douglas Alan Harris • Douglas M. Harris • Erik M. Harris • Gary A. Harris • Gerome C. Harris • Gregory W. Harris • Jeffrey D. Harris • Joan C. Harris • John R. Harris • Kathleen A. Harris • Kevin J. Harris • Larry<br />

Harris • Mark Joseph Harris • Mark K. Harris • Mark Russell Harris • Phillip C. Harris • Robert T. Harris • Robert W. Harris • Rodney A. Harris • Roy J. Harris • Samuel W. Harris • Stephen L. Harris • Steve R. Harris • Terrance Keith Harris • Timothy R.


Names of charter members are in bold<br />

Harris • Charles C. Harrison • Dean A. Harrison • Deborah A. Harrison • Richard G. Harrison • Richard S. Harrison • Tamara G. Harrison • Thomas Keith Harrison • Troy M. Harrison • Winford J. Harrison • Isadore Harry • Jack L. Harry • Jeffrey S. Harsey • Lynn<br />

A. Harshman • Ivan S. Harstvedt • Douglas A. Hart • Jeffrey Allen Hart • Jodie Rae Hart • Kevin S. Hart • Patrick W. Hart • Randolph John Hart • Ray A. Hart • Richard Hart • Russell C. Hart • Stephen Hart • Thomas D. Hart • Robert W. Hartell • Monica R.<br />

Harten • Patrick Harten • Kenneth D. Hartenstine • Betty Harter • Dorothy E. Hartigan • Steven R. Harting • Roger Hartje • Rick R. Hartley • Thomas H. Hartley • William J. Hartley • John G. Hartling • David W. Hartman • Dennis M. Hartman • Douglas P.<br />

Hartman • Margaret Hartman • Scott D. Hartman • Shelley D. Hartman • John J. Hartnett • Robert Paul Hartnett • Razmik Hartounian • Steven M. Hartsoe • Gary T. Hartsough • Bruce A. Hartt • David Allen Hartung • Mia Hartvikson • Scott N. Hartwig • Harold<br />

Clark Hartzell • Clarence T. Harvey • David D. Harvey • Edward W. Harvey • Eric John Harvey • J. Francois Harvey • James C. Harvey • Marylynn H. Harvey • Randy D. Harvey • Richard J. Harvey • Steven Michael Harvey • Dean J. Hasenpflug • Robert H.<br />

Hashimoto • Mark H. Haskell • Stephen K. Haskell • Russell J. Hasselbach • David R. Hastings • Phillip M. Hata • Danny C. Hatch • Herbert Henry Hatch • Ronald M. Hatch • Deidre A. Hatchard • David Hatcher • John A. Hatcher • Robert L. Hatem • Jeanette E<br />

Hatfield • Melissa Hatfield • Timothy Ray Hatfield • Chuck L. Hathaway • Sean Hathaway • Jacqueline A. Ha<strong>the</strong>way • George William Hatley • Robert J. Hatmaker • John D. Hatt • Cynthia F. Hatten • Thomas L. Hattori • Toby L. Hauck • John Haugan • Alan D.<br />

Haugen • James Haugen • Mat<strong>the</strong>w R. Haugen • David A. Hauger • Jerry L. Haun • Scott Haupert • John Haupt • David E. Hause • Charles J. Hauser • Mark R. Hauser • Robert L. Hausman • Jeffrey A. Hauth • John A. Haveman • Robert Haveman • Jon R.<br />

Havens • Sharon M. Havers • Chris Haviland • Jon W. Hawbaker • Angela R. Hawkins • Bryan C. Hawkins • Clarence David Hawkins • Devry L. Hawkins • James C. Hawkins • John Lee Hawkins • Kenneth L. Hawkins • Everett E. Hawks • Richard K. Hawks • Alex M.<br />

Hawley • Christine A. Hawley • Elizabeth A. Hawn • Rick G. Hawpe • Yvonne Hawpe • Terrence M. Hay • David S. Hayden • Chris A. Hayes • Dale E. Hayes • Daniel J. Hayes • Daniel R. Hayes • DonnaJean Hayes • George E. Hayes • Gerald B. Hayes • Janis<br />

Hayes • John C. Hayes • Ken Hayes • Mat<strong>the</strong>w W. Hayes • Morey B. Hayes • Thomas J. Hayes • Timothy D. Hayes • Earl L. Haymaker • Desmond L. Haynes • Gail R. Haynes • Gerard S. Haynes • Linda M. Haynes • Lonnie E. Haynes • Mark A. Haynes • Tammy Denae<br />

Haynie • Thomas M. Hays • Christopher S. Hayth • Mickey J. Hayward • Roosevelt H. Haywood • Shawn L. Hazel • Donald Hazelwood • Scott B. Hazelwood • David Chris Head • Donald A. Head • Mark A. Head • Jeffrey A. Heagy • Julie Marie Healey • Peter J.<br />

Healy • John B. Heamstead • Ty B. Hearnsberger • Austin Lee Hearst • Clifford Heart • Horace J. Heath • Michael D. Heath • Steven M. Heath • Wendy L. Heath • Belinda Anne Heaton • William R. Heaton • Cynthia M. Heavrin • Thomas W. Heck • William D.<br />

Heckel • David J. Heckler • Gary C. Heckler • Laura L. Heckman • Richard H. Heckman • John A. Hed • Thomas James Hedeen • Chris J. Heden • Lewis M. Hedgepeth • Kathleen M. Heet • Jeremy J. Heetland • Brenda K. Hefferon • Gerald S. Heffner • Steven A.<br />

Hefley • Joe W. Heflin • Kieron M. Heflin • Mark A. Heflin • Donald M. Heggland • Ryan Hehir • John D. Heidemann • Jesse L. Heier • Andrew C. Heifner • Richard E. Heil • Faith A. Hein • Steven M. Hein • Robert Heintz • Gary Heinz • Martin J.<br />

Heischberg • Christopher L. Heisler • Steven J. Heitstuman • James M. Heitz • John J. Hellander • Charles T. Heller • James D. Heller • Richard T. Hellner • Daniel J. Helm • Alisa Glee Helmer • Lewis E. Helmig • Gary L. Helms • George Eric Helms • Timothy Scott<br />

Helsing • Edward J. Helton • Daniel G. Hemenway • Michael W. Hemmer • Barbara A. Henderson • Barbara J. Henderson • Danny B. Henderson • David R. Henderson • Gregory A. Henderson • Guy David Henderson • James Henderson • Jeffrey S. Henderson • Keith<br />

B. Henderson • Kristin E. Henderson • Pamela B. Henderson • Stephen L. Henderson • William E. Henderson • William L. Henderson • Clarissa H. Hendricks • Cynthia A. Hendricks • Gregory E. Hendricks • James H. Hendrickson • Melodye A. Hendrickson • Brian<br />

Scott Hendrix • John T. Hendrix • Victor C. Hendrix • Mona L. Hendry • Mat<strong>the</strong>w M. Henesy • Guy Heney • Carlos Henley • Phillip W. Henley • Gerald B. Henline • Joseph C. Henn • Patricia E. Henn • David C. Hennequin • Gary F. Hennessey • James J.<br />

Hennessey • Joseph Hennessey • Donald A. Henney • Karl Henning • Michael J. Henning • Todd D. Henning • Stephen H. Henrich • Mark Craig Henricks • Alan L. Henrickson • Nancy J. Henrickson • Lisa A. Henrikson • Julio A. Henriques • Charles K. Henry • Gary<br />

D. Henry • James A. Henry • Joyce A. Henry • Kip M. Henry • Tony L. Henry • William B. Henry • Julie M. Henshaw • John C. Hensley • John R. Hensley • Kaye A. Henson • Stephen C. Henson • William C. Henwood • Kenneth W. Henze • Theresa L. Henze • Robert<br />

David Hepler • Albert E. Herazo • Randall L. Herbert • William H. Herbert • Stephen A. Herbruck • Thomas Grey Herd • Alex J. Herda • Ronald L. Herda • Jared C. Herdey • John Herlien • Gregory Herman • Max J. Herman • Robert Alan Herman • Frank Douglas<br />

Hermann • Stephen Wayne Hermann • Martin G. Hermens • John R. Hermes • Enrique J. Hermosillo • Abel A. Hernandez • Dale A. Hernandez • Edwin Hernandez • Nelsido J. Hernandez • Traian Hernandez • David S. Hernley • Mark A. Herriage • Gary D.<br />

Herrick • J. Mitchell Herrick • James P. Herrin • Frank H. Herring • Jonathan Herring • Laurie Herring • Richard T. Herring • Ricky D. Herring • Harland Blaine Herron • Jeffrey W. Herron • Gary B. Hersh • Preston Todd Hertzler • John Arthur Hertzog • Joseph L.<br />

Hertzog • Robert J. Hertzog • Aaron Michael Herum • Anna M. Herzog • Charles E. Hess • David D. Hess • Gary R. Hess • Sherri L. Hess • Daniel T. Hesse • Paul Andrew Hesse • Heidi L. Hessert • Chris D. Heston • Daniel B. Hetland • Skip Hetterscheidt • Raymond<br />

F. Heustis • Jeffrey M. Hewitt • Kenneth L. Hewitt • Larry E. Hewitt • Rodney A. Hewitt • Steve L. Heying • Lana Hurley Heyns • Patrick Heyob • Steve R. Heywood • Barry W. Hiatt • Bradley J. Hiatt • Shannon M. Hickman • Duane O. Hickok • Anthony C.<br />

Hicks • D’Andre Hicks • Gary D. Hicks • Rodney C. Hicks • Stuart M. Hicks • Edward Hickson • Christine Hiebel • Kurt L. Hiebel • Don E. Hiebert • Paul W. Hiel • Chad William Hiemenz • Rodney W. Hieronymus • Robert Dale Hietala • David T. Higa • Glenn Y.<br />

Higa • Edward W. Higginbotham • Jennifer A. Higginbotham • Joseph L. Higginbotham • Craig Higgins • John J. Higgins • Paul Joseph Higgins • Stan E. Higgins • Kevin D. Higginson • Michael Higgiston • Emilia W. High • George C. High • Jimmie G. High • Donna L.<br />

Hightower • John T. Hightower • Neal Hightower • Roger Hightower • James D. Hildbold • Mark D. Hildebrand • Edward W. Hildenbrand • Marie N. Hiligh • Colleen M. Hill • Daniel F. Hill • Darrin P. Hill • Donald B. Hill • Douglas R. Hill • Garry S. Hill • John A.<br />

Hill • John M. Hill • Lance E. Hill • Lawrence L. Hill • Lawrence P. Hill • Lori J. Hill • Mark L. Hill • Olin T. Hill • Robert C. Hill • Robert Hill • Rodney H. Hill • Timothy J. Hill • Steven J. Hillerud • Jay Hilligrass • William D. Hills • Joseph E. Hillyer • Steven L.<br />

Hillyer • Richard O. Hilmoe • Reed Hiltermann • Jeffrey A. Hilton • Terry L. Hilton • Wendi Jo Hiltwein • Robert O. Hinchliffe • James Hinds • Samantha Hinds • Donald D. Hinebaugh • Charles A. Hines • Deric R. Hines • Mark C. Hines • Laura L. Hinkebein • Mike<br />

Hinkebein • Frank M. Hinman • Carlos R. Hinojosa • Enrique E. Hinojosa • Bruce A. Hinote • Michael P. Hinson • Dennis E. Hinton • James A. Hinton • Douglas R. Hintz • Michael J. Hintz • Shawn N. Hintz • Timothy F. Hipsher • Myles M. Hirahara • Timothy S.<br />

Hirsch • Robert A. Hissom • Rebecca Lyn Hitchcock • Jeffery P. Hitchings • Chris L. Hite • Daniel V. Hittner • Jon A, Hjelm • Tom C. Hjelmgren • John E. Hlavka • Edmund Ho • Deborah E. Hoagland • Mark D. Hoagland • Penny L. Hoban • Timothy M. Hoban • Charles<br />

Hobbs • John E. Hobbs • Kimberly A. Hobbs • Steven Robin Hobbs • Bryan N. Hobgood • Peter M. Hobiger • Fred C. Hochreiter • Delwyn E. Hocker • Robert G. Hocking • Jesse L. Hodel • Eric Hodge • Simpson Craig Hodge • DeWayne Allen Hodges • Philip<br />

Hodges • Richard E. Hodges • William C. Hodges • Benjamin T. Hodgkins • Mark A. Hodgkins • Kelly Jean Hodgson • Lars D.T. Hodgson • Ronald E. Hodowaine • Jeffrey H. Hodsdon • Michael B. Hodson • James R. Hoeksema • John A. Hoelscher • Ferdinand H.<br />

Hoepner • Geoffrey A. Hoertz • George M. Hof • Jessica Lynn Hoffbeck • Allen C. Hoffman • Bobbi S. Hoffman • Brian D. Hoffman • Chris T. Hoffman • Derek L. Hoffman • George Rande Hoffman • Gerald L. Hoffman • Maurice J. Hoffman • Owen Philip<br />

Hoffman • Stephen J. Hoffman • Jill I. Hoffmann • John J. Hoffmann • Mary Lynne Hoffmann • Kathryn I. Hoffsetz • Thomas A. Hofius • Kevin L. Hofmann • Amanda Hogan • Charles C. Hogan • Damon L. Hogan • Gregory Hogan • Mark A. Hogenson • John C.<br />

Hogueisson • Mark David Holben • John Mark Holbrook • Stephen C. Holbrook • Evangeline H. Holcomb • Norval J. Holcomb • Sandra Hope Holcomb • Aaron K. Holden • Edward C. Holden • Gary W. Holden • Robert D. Holderby • Frederick I. Holdgate • Monica<br />

Duran Holguin • Salvador R. Holguin • Brian T. Holgun • David J. Holland • Jeffrey E. Holland • Jeffrey L. Holland • Michael Q. Holland • Terry D. Holland • Walter L. Holland • William T. Holland • Kris P. Hollarbush • Gerald R. Holle • William J. Holley • Kermit B.<br />

Holliday • Rene’ Michael Holliday • Shelley K. Hollingshead • Christopher L. Hollingsworth • Dean Alan Hollingsworth • LouElla A. Hollingsworth • Alan Hollis • William N. Hollis • Derald A. Holloway • Stephanie Aileen Hollowell • Edward K. Holman • Gene A.<br />

Holmes • Melissa Holmes • Neil C. Holmes • Willard P. Holmes • William C. Holmes • David E. Holroyd • G. Bruce Holstad • Byron L. Holt • Don B. Holt • Robert H. Holt • Robert W. Holt • Timothy E. Holt • Valerie J. Holt • James G. Holtz • William L.<br />

Holtzman • Peter C. Holysz • Lester E. Holz • Brett W. Holzschuh • Michael E. Hommowun • Stephen B. Hommowun • Buster Lee Honaker • Joseph Dean Honea • Albert J. Honegger • Robert A. Honey • Wuon Chol Hong • Heath W. Honse • Cindy T.<br />

Hood • Edward R. Hood • John R. Hood • Kathleen Marie Hood • Keith Hood • Mark A. Hood • Alyce V. Hood-Fleming • Dennis R. Hoodlet • Patricia T. Hooge • James Neale Hooker • Todd Hooks • David S. Hooper • Denne Hoover • John M. Hoover • Susan J.<br />

Hoover • Kenneth E. Hopf • Bruce M. Hopkins • Jean M. Hopkins • Linda K. Hopkins • Marty L. Hopkins • Paul M. Hopkins • Robert J. Hopkinson • John Hoppe • William L. Hoppe • Ann-Marie T. Hopper • Dale J. Hopwood • Mitchell Ross Horacek • Thomas R.<br />

Horcher • John R. Hord • Edward Horn • JoAnne Horn • Michael A. Horn • Susan E. Horn • Rueben Robert Hornberg • Gary L. Horne • Gregory A. Horne • Jonathan Horner • Joseph E. Horner • Paul A. Horner • Randal Eugene Horner • William T. Horner • Samuel<br />

I. Horney • Kenneth K. Hornisch • David A. Hornung • David Robert Hornung • Rich T. Horrocks • Chad Horton • David E. Horton • Glenn F. Horton • John D. Horton • Lois J. Horton • Mack P. Horton • Michael J. Horvath • Douglas J. Horwath • Daniel J.<br />

Horwitz • George L. Hosford • Patricia C. Hosier • Janet L. Hoskins • Richard K. Hoskins • Robert E. Host • Fred B. Hostettler • Albert J. Hott • Edward T. Hottman • David M. Houck • Kenneth Alan Hougey • John H. Hough • Daniel J. Houlihan • Ernest<br />

House • Joseph N. House • Jenny B. Householder • Jeff Housend • Lewis V. Houser • R.J. Holt Houser • Ralph B. Houser • Steven W. Houser • Denise J. Houshel • John A. Houston • John S. Houston • Johnny Houston • Andrew P. Houzenga • Stephen M.<br />

Hovis • Alan L. Howard • Charles E. Howard • Davi Howard • David Martin Howard • Gerald M. Howard • Janet M. Howard • John William Howard • Jonathan W. Howard • Mark A. Howard • Michael L. Howard • Robert J. Howard • Roger D. Howard • Russell<br />

Joseph Howard • Susan K. Howard • Dennis A. Howarth • Curtis G. Howe • Jason J. Howe • Barbara A. Howell • Lisa J. Howell • Michael R. Howell • Steve R. Howell • Teddy V. Howell • William Thomas Howell • Melissa J. Howes • Kathleen L. Howeth • Karyn<br />

Howland • Michael D. Howse • Thomas W. Howting • Bruce M. Hoyer • Cheryl A. Hoyt • James M. Hoyt • Nicole Lynn Hradil • Warren A. Hragyil • William L. Hribal • Michael Hrizuk • Jeffrey J. Hruby • David Y.J. Hsu • Son T. Hua • Ruey-Long Huang • James Lee<br />

Hubbard • Jason S. Hubbard • Johnny M. Hubbard • Daniel W. Hubbartt • Harold W. Huber • James F. Huber • James M. Huber • Kathleen F. Huber • Mark A. Huber • Phillip L. Huber • Richard F. Huber • Scott Huber • Jeff B. Hubert • Ronald M. Hubrich • Raymond<br />

Huck • Bryan Shawn Huckaby • Dan Huddleston • Mark Hudgins • Thomas J. Hudnall • Joseph G. Hudson • Rex H. Hudson • Shane Andrew Hudson • Steven C. Hudson • Thomas G. Hudson • John Hudy • Frank E. Hudzinski • Ka<strong>the</strong>rine Huebner • Rodrigo J.<br />

Huete • Denise Lynn Huey • Gregory T. Huey • Charles R. Huff • William T. Huff • Douglas W. Huffman • Vernon C. Huffman • Brian D. Hugge • Monte E. Hugget • Gladys J. Huggins • Jeanne M. Huggins • Arthur K. Hughes • Camille D. Hughes • Daniel K.<br />

Hughes • David C. Hughes • Eric K. Hughes • F. James Hughes • James P. Hughes • Jason R. Hughes • Jeffrey Alan Hughes • Jeremy L. Hughes • John R. Hughes • Johnny C. Hughes • Larry R. Hughes • Mark J. Hughes • Patrick L. Hughes • Paul Gregory Hughes • Philip<br />

T. Hughes • Richard Hughes • Susanne M. Hughes • Thomas K. Hughes • Timothy R. Hughes • William E. Hughes • William F. Hughes • William James Hughes • James N. Huhta • William C. Hui • Byron W. Hull • Michael A. Hull • Michael J. Hull • Richard M.<br />

Hull • Terry L. Hull • Edward W. Hulsey • Tod E. Hulsman • Christina Marie Hulsmeyer • Renae Lynn Hultgren • Bradley John Hultquist • Mack H. Humphery • David C. Humphrey • Mark Anthony Humphrey • John W. Humphreys • Sarah M. Humphreys • Stan G.<br />

Humphreys • Kirby R. Humphries • Allen Hundal • Donald M. Huneke • Stephen L. Hungerford • Thomas H. Hungerland • Dennis A. Hunsinger • Donald F. Hunt • Jeffree A. Hunt • Kenneth N. Hunt • Mark A. Hunt • Patrick Lee Hunt • Asia Lynn Hunter • Donald R.<br />

Hunter • Gregory S. Hunter • James E. Hunter • Mark F. Hunter • Morace B. Hunter • Owen W. Hunter • Philip L. Hunter • Alan P. Huntley • Hugh R. Hunton • Greg L. Hurd • Patrick J. Hurd • Deborah Hurley • LeRoy F. Hurley • William J. Hurley • Mark Edward<br />

Hurmence • James Allen Hurst • Jamison Hurst • Janice P. Hurst • Todd Charles Hurta • Jeff W. Huschka • Tim Glen Huseby • Steven R. Huser • Lawrence J. Huskey • Michael J. Huskey • Daryl Hustead • Amy L. Huston • Elena Huston • Amy C. Hutcherson • Royce<br />

B. Hutcherson • Robert W. Hutchins • Fenton Hewes Hutchinson • Jerry F. Hutchinson • Gerald W. Huthoefer • Kim F. Hutnik • Karen K. Hutsell • Michael D. Hutson • Bennie R. Hutto • Harry J. Hyaduck • Michael L. Hyde • Raymond A. Hyde • Robert L.<br />

Hyde • Troy T. Hyder • Kenneth J. Hyer • Todd A. Hyland • Steven R. Hylinski • Tanya L. Hyman • Teal N. Hyman • Zishoni D. Hymes • Samuel D. Hyte • Dean Iacopelli • Charles R. Ibold • Mona L. Iddings • Vincent Ifill • Alex C. Iglesias • Gilberto P.<br />

Iglesias • Rosemary D. Igrec • Larry Ihlen • John V. Ikeda • Jon M. Ikeda • Joyce E. Ikemire • Delroy M. Iles • Jeff Ilich • Jeffrey A. Imel • Michael Imes • Rico F. Imundo • Dawn M. Indrisek • Milan S. Indrisek • Mark B. Ingersoll • R. Allen Inglett • John<br />

Ingman • David R. Ingraham • Charles A. Ingram • William D. Ingram • Jimmy R. Inman • Ken K. Inouye • Russell T. Inouye • Joseph Iovanisci • Mary Irby • Danny L. Ireland • Mark A. Ireson • Jose Angel Irizarry • Thomas L. Ironside • Neil Irvin • Michael S.<br />

Irving • Steven C. Irving • Kenneth L. Irwin • Michael C. Irwin • Marion Isaac • Mark D. Isaacks • George L. Isaacs • Michael Isaacs • Gina Isaak • Jeffrey G. Isbister • Colleen Marie Ishaug • Kathi Naomi Ishimaru • Jayson K. Isler • Dexter R. Ithal • Carlos<br />

Iturbe • Russell Itzkin • Allen W. Ivy • Eva R. Ivy • George P. Ivy • Scott T. Iwamoto • Chris G. Iwanski • George E. Jackman • Bryan Edward Jackson • David J. Jackson • David W. Jackson • Donald R. Jackson • Eric Donald Jackson • Erwin B. Jackson • Gregory Wayne<br />

Jackson • Hea<strong>the</strong>r C. Jackson • Leonard A. Jackson • Lora J. Jackson • Mary M. Jackson • Paula A. Jackson • Rexford A. Jackson • Roxanne Jackson • Russel A. Jackson • Stephen R. Jackson • Teronda V. Jackson • Thomas Daniel Jackson • Wayne R. Jackson • William<br />

Neal Jackson • Moni Jacob • Gregory S. Jacobs • Jon H. Jacobs • Kurt A. Jacobs • Steven Earle Jacobs • William T. Jacobs • Joseph D. Jacobsen • Andrea Mary Jacobson • Todd E. Jacobson • Jon R. Jacobus • Susan Lemonds Jaeger • Rodney P. Jaehn • Beverly<br />

Jaffe • Helen Jafolis • Mary W. Jagiello • Chris Joseph Jahn • Andrew Jaimes • Edward L. Jakowski • Belinda Jalilpour • John R. Jamboretz • Dale A. James • Dennis Michael James • Thomas A. James • Charles P. Jamison • John F. Jamison • Robert E. Jamison • Chris<br />

Jamotta • Paul Anthony Jan • Paul C. Janak • Michael Janicke • Jerome J. Janik • Randy A. Janowski • James L. Janssens • Richard J. Janusz • John L. Japez • Alfred Jaramillo • James M. Jarvis • Jeffrey R. Jarvis • Michael P. Jarvis • Mitchell P. Jarvis • Sharon<br />

Jarvis • William Joe Jarvis • Manzoor H. Javed • Stanley J. Jaworski • Charles D. Jaynes • Joseph A. Jeanes • Alan J. Jefferies • Christopher Jeffers • Carol I. Jefferson • Gordon V. Jefferson • Richard K. Jefferson • Larry Michael Jeffs • Goran Jelenic • Tye H.<br />

Jelle • David J. Jenkins • Martin A Jenkins • Robert Jenkins • Sherry K. Jenkins • Thomas H. Jenkins • Dorothy Ann Jenks • Louisa E. Jenks • Charles U. Jennette • Candaisy Jennings • David J. Jennings • Dean G. Jennings • Gerald A. Jennings • Kurt W. Jennings • Victor<br />

F. Jennings • William L. Jennings • Carl M. Jensen • Carl R. Jensen • Harry A. Jensen • James Jay Jensen • James Lawrence Jensen • Karl F. Jensen • Richard L. Jensen • Robert C. Jensen • Mark A. Jernigan • Jillian Jerrolds • Byron Paul Jespersen • David D. Jessen • Robert<br />

B. Jesser • Diana J. Jessop • Charles A. Jetel • Kimberly Jetel • Ricardo Jimenez • Susana Jimenez • Victor Jimenez • Richard Jimonson • Elizabeth H. Jinks • Karl R. Jiricek • John M. Jirschefske • Randall J. Job • Joye L. Jobe • Joseph W. Jochheim • William K.<br />

Johannes • Eric Brian Johansen • Mike Johanson • Clay H. John • Erik J. John • Beary M. Johns • Paul Johns • Randal J. Johns • John T. Johnsen • Vince Johnsen • Chris T. Johnsey • Adam Andrew Johnson • Amy L. Johnson • Andrew R. Johnson • Barry S.<br />

Johnson • Benjamin G. Johnson • Brenda J. Johnson • Brenda Lee Johnson • Brian John Johnson • Brian T. Johnson • Bruce L. Johnson • Chad Noland Johnson • Charles D. Johnson • Chris L. Johnson • Chris S. Johnson • Chris T. Johnson • Christine Johnson • Christopher<br />

H. Johnson • Christopher R. Johnson • Cory W. Johnson • Cristofer L. Johnson • Curtis A. Johnson • Curtis Johnson • Danal R. Johnson • Darrell Lee Johnson • David A. Johnson • David C. Johnson • David M. Johnson • David S. Johnson • David W. Johnson • Debra<br />

K. Johnson • Donald Johnson • Douglas Mark Johnson • Edward S. Johnson • Eric Johnson • Frederick M. Johnson • Gary M. Johnson • Hal P. Johnson • Harry L. Johnson • James David Johnson • James G. Johnson • James Nolen Johnson • James R. Johnson • James The<br />

NATCA Family


The NATCA Family<br />

Names of charter members are in bold<br />

R. Johnson • Jason Johnson • Jayne L. Johnson • Jeffery Lee Johnson • Jeffrey A. Johnson • Jeffrey R. Johnson • Jerry J. Johnson • John E. Johnson • Kathleen M. Johnson • Keith Dwayne Johnson • Keith N. Johnson • Keith W. Johnson • Kelly Robert Johnson • Kenneth<br />

N. Johnson • Kenneth W. Johnson • Kent A. Johnson • Kent J. Johnson • Kevin D. Johnson • Kyle L. Johnson • Lane Donald Johnson • Larry K. Johnson • Louis Thomas Johnson • Mark Allen Johnson • Mark D. Johnson • Mark R. Johnson • Mark S. Johnson •<br />

Marvin B. Johnson • Melvin L. Johnson • Michael B. Johnson • Michael Keith Johnson • Michael R. Johnson • Michael W. Johnson • Michael W. Johnson • Mitchell E. Johnson • Ollie Johnson • Paul A. Johnson • Paul Johnson • Perry D. Johnson • Peter H. Johnson • Phillip<br />

W. Johnson • Randall Brent Johnson • Randol D. Johnson • Rashun Johnson • Regginale E. Johnson • Reginald A. Johnson • Rex A. Johnson • Rhonda A. Johnson • Richard C. Johnson • Richard Johnson • Robert E. Johnson • Robert J. Johnson • Robert L.<br />

Johnson • Robert Johnson • Roger D. Johnson • Ruth E. Johnson • Ruthann Johnson • Samuel J. Johnson • Sasha Rae Johnson • Saundra I. Johnson • Schubert C. Johnson • Sharon A. Johnson • Stefanie Ann Johnson • Stephen C. Johnson • Steven J. Johnson • Steven<br />

M. Johnson • Terry A. Johnson • Thomas A. Johnson • Thomas Francis Johnson • Thomas R. Johnson • Timothy D. Johnson • Timothy L. Johnson • Timothy Johnson • Tony M. Johnson • Tracy L. Johnson • Vernon Johnson • Virgil Lee Johnson • Wade Johnson • Walter<br />

R. Johnson • Wayne D. Johnson • Wayne E. Johnson • William D. Johnson • William G. Johnson • William Pryor Johnson • Allen J. Johnston • David L. Johnston • Diana Johnston • James J. Johnston • James R. Johnston • James R. Johnston • Jerry Lee<br />

Johnston • Roxann Johnston • Scott B. Johnston • William Johnston • Scott A. Johnstone • James Michael Joiner • Gregory S. Jok • David E. Jolley • Robert Jolley • Kevin G. Jolliffe • Juli A. Jonas • Kenneth D. Jonassen • Alan E. Jones • Beverly J. Jones • Brian K.<br />

Jones • Brian W. Jones • Bryan E. Jones • Byron Keith Jones • Carol J. Jones • Casey A. Jones • Charles B. Jones • Dana C. Jones • Daniel W. Jones • Darnell A. Jones • Darrin L. Jones • David M. Jones • David W. Jones • Donald Vann Jones • Douglas M.<br />

Jones • Duncan M. Jones • Durwin W. Jones • Edgar G. Jones • Edward L. Jones • Felicia L. Jones • Frederick A. Jones • George L. Jones • Glen Jones • Gordon B. Jones • Gregory Jones • Jeanne L. Jones • Jeffery D. Jones • Jeffrey A. Jones • Jeffrey T. Jones • John P.<br />

Jones • Ka<strong>the</strong>rine S. Jones • Kathy Lee Jones • Kennedy Jones • Kitty A. Jones • Krisleen A. Jones • Leon T. Jones • Lewis A. Jones • Lori A. Jones • Lynn H. Jones • Mat<strong>the</strong>w W. Jones • Melvin B. Jones • Michael E. Jones • Michael P. Jones • Michael Phillip<br />

Jones • Nathaniel T. Jones • Randy T. Jones • Richard Jones • Robert David Jones • Robert L. Jones • Robert L. Jones • Scott A. Jones • Scott Jones • Steven Jones • Thomas S. Jones • Todd M. Jones • Wardell Jones • Warren Bailey Jones • Wayne C. Jones • William<br />

Harold Jones • Jennifer Jones-Smith • Eric H. Jonke • Anthony D. Jopling • Bryan Keith Jordan • Daniel B. Jordan • Douglas A. Jordan • Juanita Jordan • Mark D. Jordan • Peter S. Jordan • Seann P. Jordan • Lynn R. Jorde • Joseph P. Jorge • Kirk R. Jorgensen • Richard<br />

G. Jorgensen • Scott A. Jorgensen • Steven M. Jorgensen • Thomas L. Jorgensen • Terra Ann Jorgenson • John W. Joseph • Kosly Joseph • Malcolm W. Joseph • Ron M. Joshua • Carrie R. Joslin • Mark T. Joswick • Valerie Ann Jovel • Cherie J. Joyal • Thomas E.<br />

Joyce • Timothy K. Joyce • Bobby Anthony Joyner • Gregory D. Joyner • Philip R. Joyner • William C. Joyner • Michelle L. Juarez • Stephen T. Jubb • Tom Juday • Dallas Gene Judkins • David P. Judson • Jason Todd Judy • Dale S. Juhl • John William Julian • Dennis<br />

Julianna • Mary K. June • Jude Juneau • Abraham Jung • Craig M. Jung • Gil Y. Jung • Lisa A. Junkins • Charles Benjamin Justice • Hugh L. Justice • Patricia A. Justice • Wirge Justusson-Rivera • Clarence D. Kabat • Cynthia M. Kacher • Michael J. Kacher • Mat<strong>the</strong>w D.<br />

Kachur • James A. Kadrmas • Robert J. Kaemmer • Sanford K. Kaga • Ayaz G. Kagzi • Cynthia E. Kahl • Mark E. Kahl • Philip J. Kain • Brandon D. Kaiser • Frederick C Kaiser • Sanjeev Kalani • Steven F. Kaldahl • Mark A. Kallio • Alexander Kalmykov • Andrew L.<br />

Kalnoske • Timon A. Kalpaxis • Steven Kalvelage • Bernie Kamali • John M. Kamer • Thomas Kenneth Kamman • Joseph Kammerlocher • Scott Allen Kamph • Mat<strong>the</strong>w S. Kamplain • Walter L. Kamps • Ken Kamrath • Wayne T. Kanagusuku • Edward J.<br />

Kane • Thomas J. Kane • David W. Kangas • Joseph Kenneth Kann • David A. Kannberg • Leanne R. Kannegieter • Glen S. Kanow • Dale I. Kanten • Thomas Stephen Kantola • Tammy Kantorowicz • Michael A. Kanyuh • Mark A. Kapeghian • James Kaping • Eugene<br />

Kapinos • Antonia A. Kaplan • Dennis Keith Kaplan • John T. Kaplun • William L. Kappa • Robert D. Kappel • Daniel W. Kaps • John A. Kaps • Steven Kapsalis • Gail A. Kapusnick • John R. Karafa • Frederick C. Karam • Tim P. Karavas • Greg Kardong • Lisa<br />

Kardos • Robert A. Kareff • Naomi E. Karkanen • Francis R. Karkula • James A. Karlovich • Aaron Karlson • Susan K. Karlson • Kenneth B. Karnath • John M. Karnbach • Christian M. Karns • John C. Karnstedt • Jo A. Karp • Kenton B. Karr • Robert J. Karras • Jerome<br />

A. Karrels • Robert Karsky • Kathleen Ann Karsten • Mary J. Karsten • Thomas E. Karstetter • Sandra L. Karwoski • Timothy J. Karwoski • Jim Kasara • John Michael Kasel • Vincent F. Kashuda • Joseph F. Kashula • Tina M. Kask • Kevin P. Kasparek • Corey J.<br />

Kaster • Janet M. Kath • Randy E. Kath • Larry W. Kattner • Bruce Howard Katz • Steven D. Katz • Martina C. Kauffman • Vance G. Kauffman • Robert E. Kaufman • Rudolf Kaufmann • David A. Kaupp • Richard Kawaguchi • John G. Kay • Dean S. Kaye • Craig E.<br />

Kayler • Brian Kayner • Omid Kayvan • David Allen Kazyaka • Mat<strong>the</strong>w D. Kealy • Patrick Martin Keane • Shawn E. Keane • Kreg A. Kearley • George W. Keaton • Michael F. Keaveney • Glenn R. Keck • James M. Keck • Kevin Patrick Kee • Craig R. Keech • Terence<br />

M. Keefe • Aaron Zackary Keel • Ronald H. Keel • Victor Keela • Jennings D. Keele • Amy Jo Keeler • Tina Keeling • Thomas A. Keenan • Robert M. Keene • Forest J. Keener • Kevin M. Keener • James D. Keeney • Shane Keenley • Ryan Keesecker • James B.<br />

Keesling • Dennis T. Keeton • Jerome W. Keever • Mat<strong>the</strong>w S. Keffer • Ralph H. Kegel • James G. Kehoe • David D. Keifer • Chris Keil • Scott W. Keiling • Clifford J. Keirce • Elmo E. Keirsey • Gerald B. Keiter • Claude Keith • Duane Keith • Gary S. Keith • James<br />

N. Keith • Kenneth K. Keith • Lia M. Keith • Kristin L. Keitzer • David E. Kellar • Bernhard Karl Keller • Cathy Keller • Donald Michael Keller • Douglas Keller • Forrest Keller • Henry Lee Keller • Jesse L. Keller • Richard S. Keller • Scott Keller • Terry D.<br />

Keller • Donald E. Kellett • Eric Kelley • Eugene T. Kelley • Glenn P. Kelley • James M. Kelley • James M. Kelley • James Mike Kelley • John V. Kelley • Kimberly A. Kelley • Mary J. Kelley • Rohn Kelley • Scott L. Kelley • Steven K. Kelley • Thomas W. Kelley • Timothy<br />

C. Kelley • William R. Kelley • Susan M. Kelley-Marino • Brian Frank Kellman • Amy S. Kellogg • Marcey L. Kellogg • Richard Earl Kellogg • James L. Kellum • Anthony Kelly • Clinton L. Kelly • Daniel W. Kelly • Daniel Kelly • David Wade Kelly • Dennis E. Kelly • Hugh<br />

J. Kelly • James J. Kelly • James M. Kelly • James P. Kelly • John David Kelly • Kenneth V. Kelly • Kerry Lynne Kelly • Kevin John Kelly • Kim E. Kelly • Milton Cardell Kelly • Robert D. Kelly • Stephen E. Kelly • Thomas F. Kelly • Michael Keltz • Robert L.<br />

Kelzenberg • Clifford M. Kemler • Michael W. Kemmis • James E. Kemp • Lars W. Kemp • Gary D. Kempe • Kevin Kempton • Douglas P. Kenaga • John F. Kendall • John Glenn Kendall • Kelly B. Kendall • Leonard M. Kendall • Steve Kender • Lamonte M.<br />

Kendzierski • Brian K. Kenemer • Robert John Kenna • E.J. Kennedy • Houston R. Kennedy • John Carroll Kennedy • John J. Kennedy • Josh H. Kennedy • LeAnne Kennedy • Linda C. Kennedy • Michael E. Kennedy • Michael S. Kennedy • Norman O.<br />

Kennedy • Norman T. Kennedy • Randy L. Kennedy • Ronald Edward Kennedy • Steven S. Kennedy • Teah D. Kennedy • Terrence L. Kennedy • Wade A. Kennedy • Warren D. Kennedy • Larry Richard Kennell • Scott S. Kenner • Richard N. Kennington • Roy A.<br />

Kennis • Ryan P. Kennley • Mary Anne Kenny • Alvin D. Kent • James D. Kent • Paul C. Kenward • Kimberly S. Kenyon • Steven D. Kenyon • Phalla Keo • Carl D. Kerby • James M. Kerekes • Todd Michael Kerekes • Paul H. Keriazes • Dennis A. Kern • Gary R.<br />

Kern • Konrad Kern • John L. Kernan • John B. Kerr • Mark W. Kerr • Randolph D. Kerr • Raymond B. Kerr • Robert A. Kerr • Teresa A. Kerr • Wendy Kerr • Robert A. Kersey • Carl A. Kertis • Michael R. Kerwin • Christophe M. Kesler • Robert E. Kesler • Mary<br />

L. Keso • Bruce A. Kessler • Keith H. Kessler • Louis I. Kessler • Ricky Ketchmark • Roy Ketchum • James Donald Kettenhofen • Monica Y. Keyes • Robert C. Keyes • Hani Khalil • Varun Khanna • Paul Khatcherian • Talal Khawatmi • Audrey L. Kidd • David J.<br />

Kidd • Henry J. Kidd • James R. Kidd • Kraig S. Kidd • Paul B. Kidd • Clinton F. Kidwell • William A. Kieffer • Chris J. Kiely • Randy R. Kienitz • Mary R. Kiger • Delisa Kik • Michael E. Kik • Edward F. Kiley • Patrick M. Kiley • Frederick L. Kilgo • David P.<br />

Kilgus • Chris M. Killian • David Killmer • Edward J. Kilroy • Peter Kily • Paul Y. Kim • Tim Kim • Wonbae Kim • LaDonna L. Kimble • Randolph L. Kimble • Paula J. Kimbrell • Janine I. Kimmes • Greg S. Kimzey • James D. Kincaid • Tommy Kincaid • Wilburn<br />

M. Kincaid • Gregory L. Kindred • Lynwood D. Kindt • Sandra A. Kindt • Antoinette King • Benjamin F. King • Chris K. King • David J. King • David L. King • Deborah B. King • Donna G. King • Erwin T. King • Eustace Eugene King • Gregory F. King • Herbert T.<br />

King • Jol R. King • Kevin F. King • Lawrence N. King • Lawrence T. King • Lynn A. King • Michael K. King • Nancy Jean King • Paul Eddie King • Ralph J. King • Richard D. King • Robin C. King • Scott King • Shirley King • Thomas L. King • Gary W. Kingsbury • Mark<br />

C. Kingsbury • Gary Brent Kingsley • Michael Ralph Kingsley • Noel N. Kingston • Cecil Kinion • James L. Kinkelaar • Duane R. Kinney • Mitchell P. Kinney • Patricia K. Kinney • Thomas M. Kinney • Michael E. Kinsella • Debbie D. Kinser • Henry S. Kinsler • Kenneth<br />

E. Kinyon • Susan J. Kinyon • Anthony C. Kirby • LouAnn Kirby • Noel Andrew Kirby • Paul T. Kirby • Scott E. Kirby • Dean R. Kirchoff • Michael Dean Kirk • Michael J. Kirk • Paul M. Kirk • Richard John Kirk • William J. Kirkbride • Michael D. Kirkby • Bruce E.<br />

Kirkendoll • Edmund J. Kirker • Daniel W. Kirkes • Edmund Randall Kirkland • Jimmy D. Kirkland • George N. Kirkpatrick • Kevin F. Kirkpatrick • Eric P. Kirner • Kevin C. Kirsch • Robert L. Kirsch • Robert A. Kirtley • Robert K. Kiser • Wayne A. Kish • Gary L.<br />

Kishbaugh • Chester Kisling • Thomas W. Kisling • Kevin W. Kiss • William A. Kisseadoo • Barbara E. Kissee • Paul E. Kisselburg • Robert M. Kissling • Billy R. Kitchen • Deron J. Kitchen • Edward T. Kitchens • John H. Kitchens • Kevin D. Kitson • Donna Marie<br />

Kitta • David J. Kittle • Michael Albert Kitto • Malcolm Kittrell • Karl D. Kivela • James S. Kizer • Keith L. Kizziar • Anthony Edward Klancher • John A. Klarich • Steven D. Klarich • Ca<strong>the</strong>rine B. Klatt • John D. Klatt • James D. Klausing • William K. Klausner • John<br />

E. Klear • Russell E. Klecka • Alan R. Klein • Jeffrey J. Klein • Linda J. Klein • Michael J. Klein • Steven R. Klein • Chris A. Kleine • Scott A. Kleinhaus • Richard J. Kleinheinz • Chris Carl Klevesahl • Robert A. Klier • Diane L. Kline • Michael S. Kline • Bruce Daniel<br />

Klinger • David M. Klinger • Michele Kloft • Cecile M. Kloman • Chris Kloman • Steven J. Klongerbo • Thomas John Kloos • Blair A. Klotzbach • Karla M. Kluesner • Kenneth L. Kluge • Leigh Ann Kluge • Barry W. Klunder • John E. Klunk • Michael R.<br />

Klupenger • Kevin M. Kluver • James C. Kmetz • Mark W. Knabel • Carl W. Knapp • Derek A. Knapp • Gary E. Knapp • Michael G. Knaup • Donald F. Knehr • Richard A. Knepfle • Nick Knezevich • Michael Knezovich • James R. Knickerbocker • Kevin P.<br />

Knickerbocker • Beatrice S. Knight • Deborah J. Knight • Eric J. Knight • James D. Knight • Kelly R. Knight • Leonard R. Knight • Shawn Gerald Knight • Terence A. Knight • Larry M. Knighten • Carey Knoerdel • Joseph B. Knoetgen • Ross Barry Knoll • Andrew J.<br />

Knopp • William P. Knost • Rick Knowles • Robert M. Knowles • Todd M. Knowles • Charles J. Knox • Edward D. Knox • Ingrid D. Knox • Jackie Dale Knox • Jason C. Knudsen • Sharon K. Knudsen • David P. Knuebel • Mark G. Knupp • Jeffrey N. Knutson • Scott<br />

A. Knutson • John J. Knych • David L. Koch • John F.W. Koch • Lisa Marie Koch • Kimberly M. Kochis • Khalil E. Kodsi • George F. Koehler • Edward E. Koehn • Gustave F. Koehn • Keith D. Koenig • Keith M. Koenig • Kristopher Scott Koenig • Steve Koenigseder • Todd<br />

D. Koeppen • Mat<strong>the</strong>w Koester • Julie Koetz • Beverly D. Koffron • John P. Kofler • Louis H. Kohagen • Stanley E. Kohl • Dori S. Kohlberg • Michael E. Kohler • Sherry L. Kohler • William P. Kohler • Michael Kohner • Kelley S. Kohring • Nathan A. Kohring • Becky<br />

Ann Kohut • Adrian T. Koizumi • Kristopher M. Koke • Michael G. Kokes • Wayne Kokiadis • Jackie G. Kolberg • Garth Gene Koleszar • William J. Kollasch • Gloria J. Kollosch • Joseph Michael Kolock • Richard M. Kolodka • Anthony P. Kolonie • Jason<br />

Kolpen • Thomas B. Komer • Lisa Ann Konchar • Robert S. Kondracke • Joseph P. Konietzko • Mat<strong>the</strong>w J. Konig • Roman R. Konowka • Kurt A. Konrad • William D. Konrad • John J. Kontje • Es<strong>the</strong>r J. Kontos • Charles F. Konz • Jeffrey L. Konzal • Mike Koob • Richard<br />

S. Koogle • Mark Douglas Kooiman • Jeffrey W. Koon • Taylor L. Koonce • Mark R. Koos • Christine M. Kooser • Michael C. Koppes • Scott L. Kordes • Henry C. Korecko • Christophe S. Korkowski • Nicole MaryElizabeth Korkowski • Timothy Michael Korody • David<br />

G. Koroscik • John C. Korsman • Donald M. Korzep • Dean R. Kosen • Barry Kosmal • Jennifer L. Kossick • Leigh Ann Kost • Peter A. Kosterman • Daniel S. Koston • Donald E. Kostuck • John Kotlaba • John Kouloumbis • Charles B. Koury • Joseph L.<br />

Kovack • Donald L. Kovacs • Peter Kovalick • David J. Kovarik • Annette K. Kovite • Patrick L. Kowal • Gary M. Kowalski • Thomas F. Kozak • Francis E. Kozar • Arthur Eric Krachenfels • Anne C. Krachey • Glenn M. Krafcik • Janet L. Kraft • Edward F.<br />

Kragh • Thomas A. Krajacic • Lee W. Kramer • Lonnie E. Kramer • Peter F. Kramer • Shawn C. Kramer • William S. Kramer • William C. Kramerick • Brandi Krance • Michael I. Krane • Mary L. Krasky • Barry S. Krasner • John P. Krasnovsky • Ted A.<br />

Kratochvil • Daniel H. Kraus • Dennis H. Kraus • Dean B. Krause • Stephen H. Kravitz • Karrie M. Krear • Ronald L. Krebs • Dayna Rachelle Kreider • Donald R. Kreider • Paul A. Kreinbrink • Leo H. Kremer • Lisa Kremer • Craig Krepps • Nicholas N.<br />

Kresovich • Steven H. Kretsinger • Brandon Kreutel • Timothy J. Krieger • James J. Krimm • Valri J. Kriner • Debra Dee Kring • Gloria J. Krisel • Scott E. Krisher • Troy Kristof • Keith M. Kristufek • Donald T. Krivohlavy • Brian K. Krizek • Tracy L. Kroeten • Billy<br />

Ray Krohne • David Krohnfeldt • Garin M. Kroll • Scott P. Kropelnicki • Gary W. Krouse • Olga Krsinic • Linda S. Krucky • Kurt Krueger • Randall G. Krug • Keith C. Krumwiede • Laurie A. Krumwiede • Gary E. Krupczak • Keith A. Kruse • Michael Leo<br />

Kryszczuk • Paul Krzyznieski • Michael James Kubinski • Terri J. Kubisty • Gerald S. Kubitza • Thomas J. Kubla • Thomas A. Kucala • Aleece Kuchler • Mark Geoffrey Kuck • Jeffrey J. Kudlo • Jennifer L. Kuehn • Gary E. Kueper • Jason J. Kufta • William T.<br />

Kuhar • Cary W. Kuhl • Timothy C. Kuhl • Kenneth S. Kuhlmann • George W.M. Kuhn • Thomas E. Kuhn • Kenneth A. Kula • Chris E. Kulas • Jeffrey R. Kulp • Dean W. Kulwicki • Kirby K. Kump • Michael E. Kunkel • David F. Kunkle • Michael Thomas Kunst • Edward<br />

L. Kunz • Kathryn L. Kuper • Richard Kupfer • Mary Ann Kurle • Karen Kurowski • Todd B. Kurteff • Dragan Kurtin • Margaret Kurtin • Christine M. Kurtz • James I. Kurtz • Kristina M. Kurtz • John R. Kurtzman • James L. Kurz • Michael A. Kurz • Geoffrey Jon<br />

Kusel • Philip C. Kush • Wesley E. Kutch • David M. Kutsch • Thomas E. Kutsch • Tracy A. Kutsch • David Toby Kuykendall • Derk J. Kuypers • Dwight M. Kuzanek • John Kwiecinski • Jerry J.H. Kwock • James M. Kyne • Jonathan Kyser • James B. Laabs • Eric G.<br />

Labardini • Nicole A. Labate • Michael J. Laboi • Charles LaBombard • Raul E. LaBoy • JoAnne M. LaBrecque • John LaBrecque • Ronald W. LaBrecque • Chester W. LaBruyere • Roy A. Laccone • Jason Lacefield • Jeffrey S. Lacey • Steven L. Lachance • Dean S.<br />

Lacharite • Edwin L. Lacher • Augustin D. Lachowsky • Ronald Allen LaCour • Brian LaCross • Mark A. Lacy • Brian J. Ladd • Keith Ladderud • Darryl Alan Ladnier • John LaDonna • Anne Marie Lafave • John L. LaFave • Richard M. Lafferty • Ronald L.<br />

Lafferty • Brian J. LaFleur • Ryan D. LaFramboise • Scott Lagasse • Daniel T. Lage • Neil P. Lageson • Michael C. Lagrange • Cynthia L. Lagrassa • Nicholas Blake LaGrone • Lawrence P. Lahay • Dean W. Laigle • William E. Laing • Gregory S. LaJuene • Jimmy J.<br />

Lake • Arun K. Lal • Craig A. Lallak • Edward Lalputan • Steve Lam • Daniel Wade LaMaster • Darlene M. LaMaster • Cynthia N. Lamb • David M. Lamb • Marvin Robert Lamb • Richard T. Lamb • Ronald G. Lamb • Zaven Lambajian • Brian L. Lambert • Dawn E.<br />

Lambert • Don Lambert • Donna M. Lambert • Jeff M. Lambert • John V. Lambert • Joseph Mat<strong>the</strong>w Lambert • Kempton Lambert • Mary Lou Lambert • Michael H. Lambert • Patrick L. Lambert • Scott R. Lambert • Steven G. Lambert • Vernell J. Lambert • William<br />

J. Lambert • Donald E. Lamoreaux • Kenneth Lamoureux • Theodore J. Lamparty • Bruce A. Lampert • William Lampiris • Steven D. Lampman • Dennis Gerald Lamy • Scott M. Lana • Anthony Jason Lancaster • Kenneth Lee Lancaster • Leslie M. Lancaster • Ronald<br />

L. Lancaster • Douglas L. Lance • Stanley P. Lande • Mark E. Landers • Billy L. Landes • John A. Landi • Bryon L. Landis • Patrick S. Landis • Eric P. Landon • Steven S. Landon • Michael M. Landry • Christopher E. Lane • Jerry R. Lane • Kerry R. Lane • Michael J.<br />

Lane • Robert S. Lane • Stephen M. Lane • Barry R. Lang • David D. Lang • John Lang • Scott H. Lang • Eric L. Langdon • Brent W. Lange • James S. Lange • Jonathan P. Lange • Karen A. Langer • Karl R. Langer • Robert W. Langerveld • Miles H. Langston • Paul D.<br />

Langston • Steven N. Langston • Tod R. Lanham • Kevin Charles Lanier • Richard D. Lanier • Stephen W. Lanier • Bill B. Laningham • Jason D. Lanning • Michele Lee Lanoue • Thomas C. Lanouette • Rand A. Lanterman • Donald W. Lantz • Glenn R. Lantz • James G.<br />

Lanum • Michael Lapan • Thomas A. Lapedota • Mark W. Lapham • Kenneth A. Laponis • Phillip B. Lapp • Steven Lardinois • Cathy A. Larkan • Lonnie E. Larkan • Todd R. Larkee • Salvadore John LaRosa • David M. Larsen • John D. Larsen • Norma C. Larsen • Brent<br />

Alan Larson • Candice G. Larson • Christy J. Larson • David W. Larson • Don M. Larson • Donald C. Larson • Erik M. Larson • James Larson • Jay A. Larson • Jeffrey L. Larson • Karin R. Larson • Kenneth J. Larson • Kenneth W. Larson • Larry C. Larson • Nancy L.<br />

Larson • Nathan A. Larson • Rebecca Larson • Rick E. Larson • Scott Anthony Larson • Chris L. LaRue • Sharon Lynn LaRue • Cindy J. LaRuffa • Chris Allen Laschinger • Warren M. LaSelle • Ernesto Lasen • William C. Lash • Jon E. Lashier • Larry A. Last • Paul L.<br />

Lastrapes • Gerald R. Latessa • Verne O. Latham • Chris J. La<strong>the</strong>row • Mary M. Latimer • William A. Latta • Gail Lattrell • David M. Lau • Jerry S. Lau • Robert R. Lau • Robert Lau • Walter C. Lau • Kristen M. Laubach • Marilyn J. Lauber • Louis Lauck • Anita


Names of charter members are in bold<br />

Louise Lauer • Kenneth J. Lauer • Steven Thomas Lauer • Douglas E. Laughter • Jeffrey Alan Lauk • Michael E. Launsby • Thomas W. Lauridsen • Dennis T. Lautenbach • Robert G. Lautenslager • Mark Lauterbock • Jean P. Lavaud • Todd W. Laveen • Todd M.<br />

LaVelle • Terence John Lavery • Tracey L. Lavery • David J. Lavikka • Gary D. Lavimoniere • Brian Leo Lavoie • Donald S. Lawless • James P. Lawless • Richard L. Lawless • Dana M. Lawrence • Daniel J. Lawrence • John R. Lawrence • Joseph Stephen Lawrence • Randal<br />

S. Lawrence • Sheila K. Lawrence • Stuart D. Lawrence • Tony H. Lawrence • Jeffrey Dale Laws • Bruce A. Lawson • Kirsten Noel Lawson • Michael J. Lawson • Paul Lawson • Stephen R. Lawson • Jeff P. Lawton • Dora Lawyer • Lyndon E. Lawyer • Lourdes Maria<br />

Lay • Phillip W. Layman • Corazon G. Layon • Elizabeth M. Layton • Lon Warren Layton • Thomas C. Layton • David C. Lazer • Daniel J. Lazuka • Son T. Le • Tuan M. Le • Stephen W. Lea • Vivian D. Leach • Donald D. Leaf • Kerry Leahy • Michael L. Leahy • Sereiryth<br />

Leandre • Greg A. Leary • Michael T. Leary • Tadd W. Leary • Thomas J. Leary • Laura A. Lease • Frederick M. Lea<strong>the</strong>rs • Gregory E. Leathley • Carmen Leavitt • Thomas E. Lebbano • Fred N. Lebhart • Gary J. LeBlanc • Michael R. LeBlanc • Michele E.<br />

LeBlanc • Randall S. LeBlanc • Lisa J. LeBlond • Andrew J. LeBovidge • Kyle D. Lecates • George R. Lechleitner • Dean C. Lechner • Valerie Lechner • John LeClaire • Larry Lederer • Jeffrey W. Ledford • Albert L. Lee • Anthony Stephen Lee • Bradeford Paul<br />

Lee • Carrie M. Lee • Charles Lee • Dong Hun Lee • Jane G. Lee • Janet L. Lee • Karen Marie Lee • Lawrence R. Lee • Leung Lee • Michael A. Lee • Stanley Y. Lee • Stephanie D. Lee • Stephen Lee • Steven Lee • Terry R. Lee • William W. Lee • Gary V.<br />

Leech • Glenn D. Leengran • Charlotte Leeper • Michael E. Leffelman • Charles R. Legee • Timothy Allen Legel • Gregory B. Leger • Albert E. Leggett • Eli K. Leggett • Tim Wayne Leggett • Steven W. LeGrand • Robert C. Legrys • Brett Lehigh • Bryan K.<br />

Lehman • Douglas A. Lehmann • Stephen P. Lehmann • Mark A. LeHosit • Morris Leichter • Stephen R. Leichty • Christopher A. Leigh • Wesley E. Leighton • Scott H. Leininger • David L. Leister • Daniel W. Lekovish • Geoffrey A. Lelliott • Jenny Lelm • Steven R.<br />

LeMaster • William C. LeMay • Dwight C. LeMelle • Gregory J. Lemieux • Ralph T. Lemieux • James K. Leming • Patrick M. Lemire • Gary D. Lemley • Robin B. Lemley • Susan W. Lemley • Gary T. Lemmons • Steven F. Lencioni • Victor A. Lendermon • Roger E.<br />

Lenentine • Steven J. Lenertz • Donna M. Lenhart • Wal<strong>the</strong>r Lenk • Joseph M. Lennon • Thomas J. Lennon • Christophe J. Lenox • John P. Lensch • Karl M. Lense • Ronald E. Lent • Thomas A. Lento • Russell W. Lenz • Bruce A. Leonard • Charles L.<br />

Leonard • Charles W. Leonard • Daniel W. Leonard • Donald J. Leonard • Inge M. Leonard • Jody L. Leonard • Kenneth C. Leonard • Samuel J. Leonard • Staci O. Leonard • Timothy M. Leonard • Stephen L. Leone • Frederick K.M. Leong • Geoffrey Alan Lerch • James<br />

R. Lerda • Larry Lescanec • David Leske • Melvin C. Leskinen • Ambrose A. Lesniak • Carol L. Lesniak • Lisa J. Lesperance • Mat<strong>the</strong>w H. Lessor • Pamela J. Lessor • Craig S. Lester • Steven L. Lester • Susan Letcher • Lee J. Letourneau • Randall J. LeVangie • Charles<br />

H. Leverknight • Allan R. Leverone • David B. Levesque • Kenneth A. Levin • Zoltan G. Levister • Peter A. LeVoci • Mark B. Levy • Frank J. Lewandowski • Joseph S. Lewandowski • Jerrell Q. Lewellen • Andrew C. Lewis • Barrett C. Lewis • Carolyn A. Lewis • Charles<br />

David Lewis • Craig A. Lewis • Donald D. Lewis • Douglas C. Lewis • Dwayne R. Lewis • Elza Lewis • Eric Gordon Lewis • Francis Keith Lewis • Gordon P. Lewis • Jeffrey David Lewis • Jeffrey L. Lewis • Jeffrey N. Lewis • Jeffrey T. Lewis • Jerry C. Lewis • Jerry David<br />

Lewis • Jesse A. Lewis • Joseph M. Lewis • Keith C. Lewis • Kimberly C. Lewis • Kreis L. Lewis • Michael Lewis • Raquel Lewis • Rodney N. Lewis • Ronald R. Lewis • Samuel W. Lewis • Sarah L. Lewis • Scottie Lewis • Steven W. Lewis • Thomas A. Lewis • Thomas<br />

Lewis • Timothy R. Lewis • Timothy Russell Lewis • Todd F. Lewis • Trentus Lewis • James M. Lewkowicz • John F. Leyden • Robert L. Lezon • Demetrios J. Liadis • Mark W. Libby • Kevin M. Liber • William H. Liberty • Marina C. Liburdi • Vincent Licata • Michael H.<br />

Licht • Wade C. Lichti • William D. Lichty • Joseph Licini • Mark A. Lickliter • Ruben Licon • Daniel J. Liechti • Guy Lieser • Joseph J. Lieser • Patricia A. Lie<strong>the</strong>n • George S. Liggett • Marjean M. Liggett • Cynthia Light • Jeffery James Light • Robert J.<br />

Lignelli • Ronald W. Liguori • Dana E. Lilja • Laura A. Lilljedahl • Eric M. Lillvis • Gary W. Lilly • Ronald B. Lilly • Wallace K. Lilly • Alfred R. Limatoc • Michelle M. Limber • Anthony Limon • Tammy L. Limon • James I. Limongelli • Audrey S.J. Lin • Isaac J. Lind • John<br />

Henry Lind • Leslee A. Lindahl • Rodney L. Lindbeck • Alan K. Linder • David Eric Lindholm • Steven M. Lindholm • Russell W. Lindman • Scott E. Lindquist • John W. Lindsay • Reginald C. Lindsay • Steven W. Lindsay • William David Lindsay • Claire Lindsey • David<br />

H. Lindsey • Richard A. Lindsey • Roy A. Lindsey • William K. Lindsey • Linda J. Lineweaver • Ferdinand A. Ling • Russell G. Lingafelter • Charles H. Lingle • Robert L. Lingo • Donald L. Lingren • Gregory C. Link • Gregory P. Link • Cameron L. Linn • Mat<strong>the</strong>w A.<br />

Linn • Joseph M. Lipinski • Craig S. Lippert • Thomas G. Lipscomb • James S. Lipsett • Anthony John Lisauckis • Martha J. Lisauckis • Bruce J. Lisicky • Jonathan Liska • Rachel C. Lisle • Anna G. Lissak • Paul C. Litke • Steven C. Litke • William J. Litke • Robert S.<br />

Litman • Roanna M. Littell • Byron F. Little • Laura K. Little • Robert James Little • Timothy R. Little • David A. Littlefield • Gary W. Littlefield • Ronald R. Littlejohn • Laurence Litvin • Frances Liu • Joseph K. Liu • Tyvonne A. Liverman • Gayle Lynne Livesay • Russell<br />

L. Livingston • Michael J. Lizzio • John J. Lizzul • Charles R. Llamas • Gilbert F. Llewellyn • Austin T. Lloyd • Dennis R. Lloyd • George A. Lloyd • Kenneth J. Lloyd • Lawrence W. Lloyd • Penelope Lloyd • Randall L. Lobaugh • Edwin J. Locke • Kenneth A.<br />

Locke • Robert E. Lockwood • Sam L. Lockwood • Dennis F. Lodovici • Jacqueline K. Loeber • Dennis John Loerch • Richard W. Loewen • Michael J. Lofaso • Robert A. Lofaso • Adam P. Lofton • Donald P. Loftus • Robert A. Loftus • Benna T. Logan • Brent A.<br />

Logan • Thomas I. Logan • Tammy J. Logan-Gardner • Gary E. Logelin • Richard F. Logue • Frank R. Logullo • Eric J. Lohrman • Timothy P. Loisel • Mikel J. Lokensgard • John S. Lolio • Laurie M. Lolio • Eric Todd Lomascolo • David B. Lombard • Michael<br />

Lombardi • Robert A. Lombardi • Marc H. London • Charles V. Long • Clinton L. Long • Daniel D. Long • Jill R. Long • Kevin D. Long • Kyle Long • Robert A. Long • Robert Alan Long • Robert J. Long • Victoria J. Long • W. Glenn Long • Albert A. Longo • Jesse A.<br />

Longoria • Jeff R. Longua • Steven M. Longway • Todd R. Longworth • Richard Lonto • Charles E. Lontz • Jonathan H. Look • Lisa Gaye Look • Steven V. Looper • John R. Lopata • David Bryan Loper • Kevin G. Lopes • Arturo Lopez • David A. Lopez • Edward<br />

Lopez • Gregory C. Lopez • Gustavo Lopez • Irma P. Lopez • Jesse Lopez • Joe Lopez • John P. Lopez • Joseph F. Lopez • Miguel A. Lopez • Chad Lord • Michael G. Lorenzo • Poliala Lorenzo • Shawn K. Lorenzo • Gerald F. Lorig • David A. Loring • Douglas A.<br />

Loriz • Richard E. Lorton • John B. Lott • Bettye Y. Lottes • Robert J. Lottman • Mark S. Loudon • Michael Loughman • Jacqueline Y. Loui • Elizabeth Louie • Carla B. Lounsbury • Dennison R. Love • Randy M. Love • Richard A. Lovell • Philip A. Lovesee • Arthur G.<br />

Lovett • John T. Lovett • David William Loving • Charles S. Lowe • Connie H. Lowe • Larry Allen Lowe • Martin H. Lowe • Brian M. Lowery • James X. Lowery • Jason Lowery • John E. Lowery • Robert W. Lowery • Glenn S. Lowrey • David N. Lowry • Julie S.<br />

Lowry • Michael J. Lowry • Shawn B. Lowry • Timothy S. Low<strong>the</strong>r • Franklin A. Loy • Joseph A. Lozano • Michael A. Lozinski • Carole A. Lozito • Richard L. Lozito • Thomas R. Lozito • Neil A. Luban • Lori O. Lubline • Craig R. Lucarelli • S. Scott Lucas • Gail S.<br />

Lucero • Natasha Jeanne Luch • Robert M. Lucht • Leonard J. Luciano • Louis J. Luciano • Joel R. Lucier • Gregory S. Lucker • Robert C. Luckey • Jeffrie T. Lucore • Melvin C. Ludvigson • Karl D. Ludwig • John R. Luebben • Thomas A. Luebbert • John Scott<br />

Lueckert • Gregory L. Lueke • Todd W. Luepker • James J. Lugowski • Scott J. Luka • Michael W. Lukasik • Sally Anne Luke • Steven R. Lukkes • Richard R. Lukon • William G. Lukos • Vivian M. Lumbard • Kenneth J. Lumetta • Lawrence H. Lund • Rick M.<br />

Lund • Steven Lund • Bruce Lundberg • Tim W. Lundberg • Dorothy Lundy • Robert Lundy • Tristan J. Lundy • Victor Lung • Dennis R. Lunsford • Wade S. Lunsford • Thomas G. Lusch • Gina Luscinski • John R. Lusinger • Anita R. Lutz • John A. Lutz • Kevin<br />

C. Lutz • Erika M. Lux • Nguyen C. Ly • Sandy B. Lyens • Thomas J. Lyens • Kathryn M. Lyman • Daniel J. Lynch • Edward J. Lynch • Geoffrey M. Lynch • Jeffry Dean Lynch • John J. Lynch • Kenneth J. Lynch • Stephen M. Lynch • Thomas R. Lynde • Patrick Lynn • Robert<br />

W. Lynn • James W. Lyon • Timothy M. Lyon • Anthony L. Lyons • Jeffrey Lyons • Brett R. Lystad • Raymond D. Maas • Frederick Maass • Angela Linn Mabardy • Kenneth B. Mabry • Douglas M. Macaulay • John M. Macchiaroli • Dwight D. MacConnell • Alan D.<br />

MacDonald • Arthur M. MacDonald • Chris H. MacDonald • Jeffrey F. MacDonald • Timothy S. MacDonald • Gary L. Mace • Jennifer K. Macejka • James W. Machado • John M. Machado • Scott D. MacHose • George E. Maciulewicz • Charles Mack • Patrick Mack • Paul<br />

K. Mack • Regan R. Mack • Steven R. Mack • Douglas A. MacKay • Lisa Mackertich • Gregory A. MacKey • Louise N. Mackey • Robert M. Mackey • Robert W. Mackey • Stephen E. Mackey • Walter L. Mackey • Joseph T. Mackie • Donald E. MacKnight • Debra Lee<br />

MacNeill • James A. Macomber • Shawn A. MacQueen • Danny R. Madden • David Edwin Maddox • David S. Maddox • Joseph J. Madeja • Paul S. Mader • Robert P. Mader • Shawn Thomas Madera • Shannan M. Madery • Mike M. Madlom • Joseph P. Madonia • Phillip<br />

Madrid • Anna Madsen • Kevin James Madsen • Lyle R. Madsen • Lance Maeda • Bert T. Maekawa • David Maes • Ruth L. Maestre • Martin K. Magana • Isabel Magarino • Charles C. Maggiore • Kevin Maggiore • Richard A. Magill • Bradley A. Magnuson • Richard<br />

W. Magoon • Amy Magstadt • Alan W. Maguire • Darren Maguire • Leslie E. Mahaffey • Terry S. Mahaffey • William B. Mahaffey • Cynthia Jean Mahafkey • Michael S. Mahakian • Joel C. Mahaney • David R. Maher • Dennis E. Maher • Alan G. Mahilo • David H.<br />

Mahler • David E. Mahnke • James R. Mahoney • Margot C. Mahoney • Richard A. Mahoney • Robert B. Mahool • Michael F. Maikowski • Karen K. Mailo • Gregory S. Maitland • Sharon E. Majeski • Harla Major • Richard L. Majoras • Edward L. Majors • Ronald G.<br />

Majtyka • Linnea K. Makela • James P. Makers • Paul J. Makowski • AnaLiza S. Malabanan • Jacques E. Malboeuf • William K. Malchow • Frank M. Maldonado • Raymond D. Maldonado • Erich Malits • James M. Mallaber • James E. Mallett • Andrew D. Mallory • Arthur<br />

J. Malm • Abbey Malmir • David D. Malone • Scott Maloney • Kenneth J. Malott • Mark S. Malott • Cameron Maltby • William Maltese • Robert B. Malthouse • Paul A. Malushizky • Daniel Mamlic • Mark G. Mammini • William T. Mamola • Charles Louis<br />

Manbeck • Richard D. Manchester • Rod J. Manchette • Gordon K. Mandell • Kevin J. Maney • Paulde H. Mange • David Mangene • Elmer L. Mangham • Steven A. Mangiapane • John P. Mangin • Douglas S. Mangrum • Mary E. Manifold • Jennifer L. Manion • Kenneth<br />

J. Manion • Louis N. Maniscalco • Wendell Glenn Mankins • Darron W. Manley • Gerald Brian Manley • Philip A. Manley • Danny J. Mann • Homer E. Mann • Jeffery A. Mann • John J. Mann • Kendall S. Mann • Kenneth S. Mann • Scott William Mann • Terry Max<br />

Mann • Thomas F. Mann • Michael D. Manners • James Eugene Manning • Michael D. Manning • Rob S. Manning • Robert C. Manning • Terry Howard Manning • William C. Manning • Jamie L. Mannon • John J. Manring • Joseph M. Manring • Lisa Mansfield • Thomas P.<br />

Manson • Joseph J. Mantello • James E. Mantz • Laura L. Mantz • Ellis D. Manuel • Anthony Dail Manzione • Bruce A. Manzke • Cynthia E. Mapes • Michael E. Maples • Robert B. Mapp • Kurt T. Mara • Mark A. Marasco • Ernest Marbury • Johnny P. Marceau • Anthony<br />

Richard Marchese • William M. Marcks • Michael J. Marcotte • Ronald Wayne Marcus • Robert L. Mardis • George P. Margetan • Todd A. Mariani • Richard A. Mariano • Sheila I. Mariano • Domenick A. Marinaro • Robert G. Marincic • Carmine Marinilli • James Frank<br />

Marinitti • Anthony L. Marino • Gaetano Paul Marino • Christine A. Markham • Timothy P. Marko • Dale R. Markowski • Aaron Blane Marks • Kenneth A. Marks • Robert L. Marks • William C. Marks • Darren L. Markwardt • Stephen J. Marlar • John D. Marley • Ruth<br />

E. Marlin • Scott P. Marlin • Jose Danilo Marmol • Bruce K. Marolf • Flora L. Maroney • Sol Maroof • Andy Marosvari • Bard A. Marques • Richard J. Marquez • Patrick J. Marr • Mark Marrero • Raul Marrero • Richard T. Marriott • Alfred J. Marro • Claude E<br />

Marsaw • Gary G. Marschheuser • Pauline M. Marsden • G. Elliott Marsh • Nancy H. Marsh • Richard A. Marsh • William A. Marsh • Brian D. Marshall • David P. Marshall • Jerald Marshall • Joseph P. Marshall • Kristopher I. Marshall • Michael L. Marshall • Paul D.<br />

Marshall • Rainee Marshall • Richard A. Marshall • Robert K. Marshall • Sherry Marshall • Thomas Eugene Marshall • Randy W. Marshburn • Todd A. Martenson • Andrew G. Martin • Bryan D. Martin • Carmie F. Martin • Darrell D. Martin • David G. Martin • David<br />

Philip Martin • Dennis E. Martin • Donald A. Martin • Gary H. Martin • George H. Martin • Gregory V. Martin • Jack D. Martin • Jay A. Martin • Jeanette M. Martin • Jeffrey S. Martin • Jerry D. Martin • John L. Martin • Keith D. Martin • Kenneth Martin • Larry D.<br />

Martin • Lisa R. Martin • Marilyn Martin • Mark E. Martin • Mark J. Martin • Michael A. Martin • Michael W. Martin • Michael Martin • Paul W. Martin • Pharaoh O. Martin • Randall J. Martin • Ricky F. Martin • Robert S. Martin • Shannon Martin • Stephen B.<br />

Martin • Stephen D. Martin • Stephen L. Martin • Strand E. Martin • Theodore Rodney Martin • Tom V. Martin • William M. Martin • Adamy Martinez • Corlan J. Martinez • Geoffrey Martinez • Jesse T. Martinez • Oralia Martinez • Ramiro Martinez • Raymundo V.<br />

Martinez • Richard Martinez • Andrea Martin-Foley • Sara E. Martin-Hite • Anthony Paul Martini • Perry D. Martini • Brazalino Martins • Peggy Martinson • Robert L. Martone • Monica Martorano • Troy S. Marty • Conrad A. Martz • James A. Martz • Dale<br />

Maruschak • Kelly L. Marvin • Jeffrey L. Marzula • Gordon T. Marzzacco • Mark Masaitis • Dennis Lynn Mascarenas • Edward J. Maschek • Anton Mascolo • Patrick D. Masin • Bruce R. Mason • Christopher P. Mason • Gary R. Mason • Kalya A. Mason • Pamela Kay<br />

Mason • Robert S. Mason • Shirley Marie Mason • William H. Mason • Ronald Masse • Brendan J. Massett • Buckley D. Massey • Mark Wade Massey • Michael P. Massie • Tiki L. Massie • Sandra Lea Massimino • Linda L. Masters • Robert A. Masters • Tony J.<br />

Masters • Edward J. Mastrangelo • M. Allen Matakovich • Clinton Marvin Ma<strong>the</strong>ny • Michael T. Ma<strong>the</strong>rne • Gregory L. Ma<strong>the</strong>s • Alex Ma<strong>the</strong>ws • Walter Douglas Ma<strong>the</strong>ws • Michael A. Ma<strong>the</strong>wson • Roger L. Mathieu • Teresa J. Mathieu • Charles H. Mathis • Gary J.<br />

Mathis • Richard S. Mathis • John R. Matis • Michael F. Matrone • Alan Matsumoto • David J. Mattern • David A. Mat<strong>the</strong>ws • Gary J. Mat<strong>the</strong>ws • Gerald K. Mat<strong>the</strong>ws • Michael J. Mat<strong>the</strong>ws • Ted Mat<strong>the</strong>ws • Thomas J. Mat<strong>the</strong>ws • Donna Marie Mattioli • Robert J.<br />

Mattmann • Lisa Gayle Mattson • Lauren A. Matus • William E. Matus • Brian J. Matyas • Chris J. Mauk • Jerry D. Maune • Tim Maune • Peter G. Maunsell • Vincent A. Mauriello • Amber Mauro • Joseph V. Mauro • Robert R. Maury • Jerry D. Maus • Chris L.<br />

Mautino • Russell Maw • Gregory T. Mawyer • Molly B. Maxton • Charles T. Maxwell • Eric J. Maxwell • George F. Maxwell • Rita J. Maxwell • Steven J. Maxwell • Andrew May • Asa A. May • Charles Edward May • John Cory May • Michele A. May • Robert Alan<br />

May • Rodney Dale May • Stephen T. May • Barbara A. May-Dawes • Michael A. Maye • Richard S. Mayer • Randall C. Mayfield • Paul M. Mayhew • Russell James Mayhew • Joseph S. Mayhoff • Bradley R. Mayhugh • Allen E. Maynard • Mark Maynard • Kurt James<br />

Mayo • Marvin Mayo • Sidney A. Mays • Micah Wesley Maziar • Kevin B. Mazuc • David A. Mazure • Timothy J. Mazurek • Peter J. Mazurowski • Chris R. Mazza • Steven Mazzie • Kenneth R. McVay • Karen E. McAdam • Christina M. McAdams • Charles R.<br />

McAleavy • James F. McAllister • Kurt W. McAninch • Ruth M. McAninch • Jerome D. McArthur • Michael L. McArthur • Ronald E. McAuley • David J. McAuliffe • Edward P. McAuliffe • Michael C. McAvoy • Dorothy A. McBride • Joel L. McBride • Charles P.<br />

McCabe • Kevin J. McCabe • Peter S. McCabe • Betty N. McCain • Dennis J. McCall • Wyman O. McCall • Kevin M. McCallin • Robert R. McCallister • Sundee-Gay B. McCanless • Kimberly P. McCann • Kevin Scott McCarrick • Robert P. McCarron • Donnie K.<br />

McCarter • Dennis J. McCarthy • Francis P. McCarthy • Jerome W. McCarthy • Joseph T. McCarthy • Kevin C. McCarthy • Martin T. McCarthy • Paul J. McCarthy • Thomas F. McCarthy • Jeffrey K. McCarty • Patricia A. McCarty • Michael T. McCarver • Kenneth J.<br />

McChord • Daniel S. McClain • Stephen A. McClain • Terrence L. McClain • Ronnie J. McClanahan • Linda T. McClary • Robert P. McClary • Bernard M. McCloskey • Peter M. McCloskey • Shawn R. McClosky • Dena L. McClung • Andrew P. McClunie • Daniel T.<br />

McClure • John Paul McClure • Mark S. McClure • Mat<strong>the</strong>w L. McCluskey • Russell J. McColl • D. Michael McCollum • Marvin Jay McCombs • Kenneth C. McConahay • Steven C. McConaughy • Judy Gail McConnell • Rosanne McConnell • Walter W. McCord • Michael<br />

C. McCorkell • Brian T. McCormack • Alfred E. McCormick • Charles S. McCormick • Daniel B. McCormick • Jeffery Dean McCormick • John Michael McCormick • Mark K. McCormick • Michael J. McCormick • Patrick J. McCormick • Patrick L. McCormick • Rhonda<br />

Sue McCormick • Lisa M. McCorry • Kevin L. McCown • Robert T. McCown • Charles A. McCoy • Gregory A. McCoy • James A. McCoy • Jason McCoy • Jenifer McCoy • Marsha M. McCoy • Michael K. McCoy • Michael P. McCoy • Michael Patrick McCoy • Richard<br />

L. McCoy • Sheila McCoy • Stephen McCoy • Johnny L. McCracken • Robert J. McCracken • Anthony G. McCray • Brian Charles McCreary • Gary Dale McCreery • Michael A. McCrory • Wilton T. McCrory • John C. McCullough • Karen S. McCullough • Lawrence<br />

W. McCullough • Margaret V. McCullough • Tammy R. McCullough • Vince E. McCullough • Dan McCune • Daniel A. McCurdy • Mark A. McCurdy • Saundra McCurdy • Jerry O. McCurry • David A. McCutchen • Wendy McDade • James A. McDaniel • Jerry Wayne<br />

McDaniel • John P. McDermott • Paul G. McDevitt • Bonnie E. McDonald • Mark S. McDonald • Martin W. McDonald • Mary E. McDonald • Michael D. McDonald • Michael R. McDonald • Patrick J. McDonald • Richard S. McDonald • Sheila D. McDonald • Susan L.<br />

McDonald • Thomas F. McDonald • Jay M. McDonough • Jennifer G. McDonough • Patrick J. McDonough • Patrick Joseph McDonough • Jay C. McDougall • Michael McDowell • Phillip S. McElrath • Dawn M. McElvain • Jeff McElvain • Michael E. McEntee • Patrick<br />

Thomas McEntee • Scott M. McEowen • James T. McEwan • Harold Scott McEwen • Paul A. McEwen • Craig M. McFadden • Sean T. McFadden • Gregory C. McFarland • Hugh A. McFarland • Mark J. McFarland • Walter J. McFarland • Craig S. McFarlen • Thomas W. The<br />

NATCA Family


The NATCA Family<br />

Names of charter members are in bold<br />

McGarr • Deborah L. McGarrity • Mark J. McGarrity • Patrick J. McGarvey • Todd E. McGaughey • Dennis M. McGee • Donald T. McGee • George G. McGee • John T. McGee • Michael C. McGee • James M. McGhee • Joseph McGillicuddy • Michael Gerald<br />

McGinn • Scott Andrew McGinn • Jay C. McGinnis • Paul A. McGinty • David A. McGlauflin • Mat<strong>the</strong>w A. McGovern • Terrance L. McGovern • Brian McGowan • Richard J. McGowan • William A. McGowan • William J. McGowan • Kevin F. McGrath • Kevin J.<br />

McGrath • Johnny W. McGrew • Dan P. McGuane • Kevin E. McGuckian • Michael B. McGuigan • Brian McGuire • Gary Dean McGuire • Dennis A. McHale • Timothy S. McHale • James Frederick McHugh • James R. McHugh • Timothy M. McHugh • Scott I. McIlvain •<br />

Barney J. McIlvaine • Tracey A. McInnis • Chris Dale McIntosh • Franklin J. McIntosh • John W. McIntosh • Joseph M. McIntosh • Raymond E. McIntosh • James W. McIntyre • John R. McIntyre • Charles B. McKay • John V. McKay • John McKay • Keith M. McKay • Patrick<br />

W. McKay • Craig McKeand • Charles B. McKee • David C. McKee • Frank D. McKee • Margit McKee • Christophe McKeever • Mark J. McKelligan • John S. McKelvey • Chris James McKenna • James M. McKenna • Robert A. McKenna • Wayne B. McKenna • Francis<br />

X. McKenney • Douglas B. McKenzie • Gary A. McKenzie • Mark W. McKenzie • Patrick C. McKenzie • Steven P. McKenzie • Thomas P. McKenzie • Michael McKeon • Patrick J. McKeon • Ronald W. McKeska • Keith A. McKinley • Brad McKinney • Gerald Marc<br />

McKinney • David A. McKinnon • Jay I. McKinty • John Lawrence McKinzie • David R. McKissick • Paula M. McKnight • William C. McKnight • Scott B. McLaggan • Patrick V. McLain • Timothy D. McLauchlin • Brian McLaughlin • Charles Brett McLaughlin • Daniel G.<br />

McLaughlin • Garry J. McLaughlin • James P. McLaughlin • Kevin J. McLaughlin • Laura E. McLaughlin • Michael G. McLaughlin • Neil C. McLaughlin • Mark V. McLaurin • Rayton G. McLawhorn • Deborah J. McLean • Dwayne E. McLean • Robert J. McLean • Paul<br />

Anthony McLeod • Raymond W. McLeod • Mark McLernon • William S. McLoughlin • Chris G. McMahon • James McMahon • Stephen J. McMahon • Thomas F. McManus • Dean McMath • Bruce W. McMeans • David L. McMichen • Timothy G. McMillan • Vance M.<br />

McMillan • William J. McMillan • Jefford McMillen • Sean P. McMorris • Andrew T. McMullen • Lee P. McMullen • Ronald Charles McMullen • Shawn McMullen • Dawn Christine McMullin • Dewayne McMurtrey • Terrance M. McNabb • David W. McNally • Michael P.<br />

McNally • David L. McNamara • Kevin F. McNamara • Michael McNamara • David K. McNay • John Leon McNee • David G. McNeel • Michael McNeilly • Herbert McNett • Rodney E. McNutt • Roy N. McPeak • Herbert M. McPherson • David A. McQueen • David<br />

C. McQueen • Duane C. McQuillin • Michael K. McRae • Patricia S. McRae • Henry J. McVeigh • W. Scott McVicker • Patrick Wayne McWhorter • Tamra J. McWhorter • Carrie L. McWilliams • Keith D. McWilliams • Kathryn A. Meacham • Cathy Meachum • Darrell<br />

T. Meachum • Donald Dale Mead • Thomas G. Meade • Walter Meade • Clifford Meadows • Curtis L. Meadows • Donald E. Meadows • Robert R. Meadows • Tiffany T. Meadows • Ryan Lee Meagher • Robert A. Meano • Bruce E. Means • Michael T. Mearkle • Edward<br />

J. Mears • Edwin G. Mears • Steven P. Mechelke • James R. Meckes • Thomas A. Medcalf • Joey L. Medders • Mark E. Medeiros • Miguel A. Medina • Norberto J. Medina • Rodrigo Medina • Mark S. Medlenka • Michael R. Medley • Charles A. Meek • James W.<br />

Meek • John Meekins • Kelly Jean Meeks • Richard A. Meggett • Peter Megna • Richard H. Mehlhoff • Paul R. Mehltretter • James A. Meier • John J. Meier • Barry L. Meierbachtol • Douglas R. Meikle • Steven D. Meinders • Gilmore T. Meise • Thomas C.<br />

Meismer • Richard J. Meitz • Steven G. Meitz • Tito Mejias • James G. Melchior • Michael A. Mele • John R. Melecio • Alfred Roger Melend • Marcos N. Melendez • Nancy Melendez • Jane A. Melle • Douglas G. Melton • Larry D. Melton • Michael S. Melum • Lee<br />

Anthony Melvin • Carl Menard • Angela H. Mencarelli • John J. Menchaca • Marlene Marie Mendel • Mat<strong>the</strong>w P. Mendelsohn • Robert J. Mendelsohn • Jon A. Mendelson • Amy L. Mendenhall • Philip G. Mendenhall • Steven W. Mendenhall • Gerardo Y.<br />

Mendiola • Gilbert Mendoza • Refugio Mendoza • RoseMarie S. Mendoza • Kurtis A. Mengel • Charles Mercado • Mark A. Merced • Eric S. Mercer • Mark Mercer • Theodore R. Mercer • Thom Mercer • Guy Mercier • John J. Merck • William Lee<br />

Mercker • Lawrence F. Mercurio • Michael L. Meredith • Joseph P. Merigold • David T. Merkel • Todd A. Merkel • James P. Merkelz • Stephen J. Merlin • Gary C. Merlino • Aaron D. Merrick • Robert W. Merrilees • Gillian Anne Merrill • Rodney S. Merrill • Carmen P.<br />

Merritt • William Merritt • Timothy G. Merryfield • Paul Mershimer • Jan E. Merva • Dennis Mesa • Eugene H. Messal • David C. Messer • Maria B. Messier • Anthony Messina • Darren A. Messina • Jason P. Messina • Salvatore Messineo • Darren M.<br />

Metcalf • William S. Metzgar • Mark A. Metzmeier • Mark A. Meuwissen • Alvin C. Meyer • Chris Charles Meyer • Dustin B. Meyer • James R. Meyer • Jennifer E. Meyer • Mary E. Meyer • Thomas P. Meyer • Timothy A. Meyer • Jeffrey S. Meyers • Michael L.<br />

Meyers • Richard A. Meyers • William A. Meyers • William J. Meyers • Darian Meza • Tracy Denise Michael • Burke E. Michaels • Chris P. Michaels • James J. Michalak • Theodore Michalakes • Michael Michalik • Cynthia L. Michalski • Walter Michalski • Jason R.<br />

Michaud • Richard Michelini • Robert O. Michels • Genevieve Michelsen • Julie Micholski • Eric L. Mickelsen • Glenda E. Mickens • Timothy A. Micklow • Robert J. Mickolayck • Ian L. Middleton • John E. Middleton • Samuel A. Midkiff • Charles L. Mielke • Karla R.<br />

Mielke • Martin W. Mielke • Anthony J. Miell • Douglas R. Mieth • Larry R. Miffleton • James E. Mignogna • Steve M. Mihalchick • James A. Mihalek • Marc A. Mike • Alex Mikhalek • Gerianne M. Mikols • Charles A. Milan • Thomas M. Milano • Robert F. Milau • Edward<br />

S. Milbradt • James A. Milby • Robert M. Mildice • Claire Ann Mileca • Blair Miles • Carroll B. Miles • Terrance M. Miles • Lawrence P. Milillo • Mark C. Milkie • Donald M. Millard • Alan C. Miller • Angela Fay Miller • Anthony E. Miller • Barry L. Miller • Brenda<br />

Miller • Brian D. Miller • Bruce A. Miller • Caroline D. Miller • Daniel F. Miller • Daniel L. Miller • Danny Lee Miller • Darrin Ray Miller • David A. Miller • David Allen Miller • David Brook Miller • Derrick L. Miller • Diana J. Miller • Diana L. Miller • Donald E.<br />

Miller • Dustin J. Miller • Frances L. Miller • Gizelle A. Miller • Hugh J. Miller • Jerry W. Miller • John Robert Miller • Joseph D. Miller • Joshua J. Miller • Kenneth L. Miller • Kenneth R. Miller • Kevin J. Miller • Kurt T. Miller • Lance Miller • Larry G. Miller • Larry W.<br />

Miller • Laura Christine Miller • Lawrence M. Miller • Lewis M. Miller • Mark G. Miller • Mark W. Miller • Melissa A. Miller • Melissa J. Miller • Michael L. Miller • Natasha O. Miller • Nick Miller • Patricia K. Miller • Pedro Miller • Peter J. Miller • Raymond B.<br />

Miller • Reed T. Miller • Robert L. Miller • Rodney G. Miller • Ronald L. Miller • Russell M. Miller • Sandra Miller • Stephen A. Miller • Steven M. Miller • Terrence E. Miller • Thomas G. Miller • Timmy E. Miller • Timothy W. Miller • Tobin H. Miller • William R.<br />

Miller • William Miller • Anthony W. Milligan • Connie M. Milligan • Frank C. Milling • Kenneth G. Milling • Nancy A. Million • Brandie K. Mills • Donn M. Mills • John Jacob Mills • Michael Mills • Pam Mills • Stephen J. Mills • Walter D. Mills • Kathy J.<br />

Millsaps • Harold Scott Milner • Jeannette Neille Milrot • Wayne D. Mims • Eric W. Miner • Mat<strong>the</strong>w M. Miner • Robert C. Miner • Brian Joseph Mines • Michael J. Ministero • Jeffrey W. Minnich • Marshall D. Minnie • John P. Minnix • Maurice J. Mintzer • Carlos E<br />

Miranda • Julie A. Mirfield • Robert Theodore Mischke • Jonathan Mishler • Gregory Mishloney • Robert M. Misick • Edward S. Misik • Michael A. Mislin • John E. Misner • Edward J. Mistach • AnnaMarie Roth Mitchell • Brian A. Mitchell • Clyde A. Mitchell • David<br />

A. Mitchell • David Allen Mitchell • David S. Mitchell • Erskin Mitchell • Francis J. Mitchell • J. C. Mitchell • Kenneth A. Mitchell • Kenneth C. Mitchell • Kent B. Mitchell • Kent M. Mitchell • Kobi K. Mitchell • Mark D. Mitchell • Michael E. Mitchell • Pamela C.<br />

Mitchell • Robert Adam Mitchell • Robert S. Mitchell • Shad Joseph Mitchell • Stephen D. Mitchell • Steven M. Mitchell • Thomas L. Mitchell • David Chuck Mitchusson • Steven K. Miyamoto • Robert L. Mizell • Nils Sven Moberg • Daniel R. Modglin • James E.<br />

Moellendorf • Marcia J. Moeller • Ronald A. Moen • Ronald T. Moen • Jay Moffat • James Negus Moffett • Amy R.M. Mogil • David Wesley Mohr • Robert Molden • Gary Molen • KeriAnn E. Molfetto • Jose M. Molina • Marco A. Molinar • Ann C. Mollica • Anthony<br />

J. Mollica • Edward P. Molloy • Natalie K. Moloney • Jerold A. Mona • Edward A. Monaghan • Thomas A. Monaghan • Edward J. Monahan • Chris G. Monaldi • Virginia E. Monaldi • Perry Monaster • Jeffrey W. Money • William E. Monfort • Erwin D.<br />

Monhemius • Robert H. Monroe • Richard C. Montague • Francisco Montes • Chris D. Montgomery • Clyde L. Montgomery • Jesse B. Montgomery • Miguel Montgomery • Ralph E. Montgomery • Robert J. Montgomery • Guy A. Montinola • Joseph Montore • John<br />

F. Montoya • John Scott Montroy • J. Craig Moody • Robert Moody • G. Todd Moon • Terri Lee Moon • Brenda M. Mooney • Brian P. Moore • Curtis Scott Moore • Deborah L. Moore • Dennis D. Moore • Dennis Moore • Donald W. Moore • Douglas Edward<br />

Moore • Douglas S. Moore • Gary D. Moore • George Clayton Moore • George E. Moore • Joe R. Moore • John T. Moore • Keith C. Moore • Kenneth C. Moore • Kenneth J. Moore • Kenneth Todd Moore • Marcus L. Moore • Marvin H. Moore • Michael Anthony<br />

Moore • Michael L. Moore • Nitahi Moore • Paula D. Moore • Richard J. Moore • Robert A. Moore • Robert Carter Moore • Robert David Moore • Robert G. Moore • Roger O. Moore • Scott D. Moore • Scott T. Moore • Stephen W. Moore • Susan A.<br />

Moore • Terence E. Moore • Thomas K. Moore • Tia L. Moore • Tina M. Moore • Mat<strong>the</strong>w D. Moorhead • Ronald J. Moorhead • David L. Moosa • Michael A. Moose • Michael E. Moose • Kristine D. Mooso • Lewis Ray Morales • Norman P. Morales • Roberto<br />

Morales • Angela J. Moran • John M. Moran • Maria S. Moran • Patrick J. Moran • Peter J. Moran • William Moran • Michael J. Moravec • Michael R. Moreau • Theresa M. Morehouse • Gary J. Morello • Anthony Moreno • John A. Moreno • Julie Moreno-<br />

Fresquez • Mark R. Moretti • Bruce A. Morey • Jeffrey A. Morfitt • David L. Morgan • Garth S. Morgan • Gary D. Morgan • Greg Morgan • Leslie J. Morgan • Michael J. Morgan • Michael S. Morgan • Patrick J. Morgan • Rickey L. Morgan • Sharon E. Morgan • Steve A.<br />

Morgan • Susan Morgan • Timothy C Morgan • Wayne A. Morgan • Charles D. Morganti • Roger T. Morimoto • Elaine L. Morin • George J. Morin • Michael J. Morin • Richard P. Morin • Thomas M. Morin • Thomas J. Morio • Karen L. Moritz • Kurtis J.<br />

Morley • Michael F. Morley • William K. Morley • Ralph P. Mormile • Kevin James Moro • Brent J. Morris • Brian Ray Morris • Clayton R. Morris • David C. Morris • Earl Morris • Gary J. Morris • Gregory L. Morris • Howard P. Morris • James S. Morris • Jeanie M.<br />

Morris • Lisa A. Morris • Bernard Berl Morrison • Donald H. Morrison • Mable I Morrison • Mark Morrison • Ranee B. Morrison • Scot A. Morrison • Steven G. Morrison • Stuart R. Morrison • Charles Morrow • David N. Morrow • John D. Morrow • Kenneth A.<br />

Morrow • Scott C. Morrow • Thomas L. Morrow • Diane I. Morse • James H. Morse • Linda J. Morse • Charles Peter Mortensen • Mat<strong>the</strong>w R. Morter • James R. Morton • James R. Morton • Victor J. Morton • Marc A. Moscatelli • Augustin A. Moses • Cliff G.<br />

Moses • Colter Hamilton Moses • Leonard Edwin Moses • Melba H. Moses • Donald A. Mosher • Cassandra Moskal • Edward A. Moskal • Mark L. Moskal • Larry D. Mosley • Tyrone B. Mosley • Jacqueline H. Moss • John A. Moss • Patricia L. Moss • Perry L.<br />

Moss • Jeffrey G. Most • James T. Mostrando • Charles R. Mote • Bernard James Motl • Levi K. Motoki • Daniel F. Mott • Michael P. Motta • Lalaoue A. Moulay • Terry L. Moulder • Billy Dewayne Mouliere • Donald S. Moulton • James Thomas Mounce • Heidi L.<br />

Mountain • Timoleon Mouzakis • Susan M. Mowery • Robert W. Moye • Jack L. Moyer • Kenneth N. Moyer • Thomas A. Moyer • Joseph W. Moylan • James T. Moynihan • Daniela Mrejeru • Nathan M. Mrosla • Salvatore Muccio • Benjamin H. Muedeking • Frederick<br />

Muehlen • Francis J. Mueller • Michael H. Mueller • Paul J. Mueller • Raymond J. Mueller • Sean M. Mueller • Stephen John Muenster • Monica J. Muenstermann • Dolores Mugica • Scott J. Muir • Clifford S. Mulbarger • Debra A. Mulder • Mark W. Mulder • John L.<br />

Mulford • Hugh P. Mulholland • Scot R. Mulholland • Corinne A. Mullally • Mark J. Mullane • Daniel F. Mullen • Kenny M. Mullen • Jody A. Mullens • Margaret E. Muller • Timothy D. Mullican • Charles L. Mullick • Diane K. Mulligan • Michael F. Mulligan • Daniel P.<br />

Mullin • Edward F. Mullin • Jeffrey T. Mullins • Stephen E. Mullis • Clare A. Mulvenna • Raymond G. Mulvihill • Randall A. Mumm • Dru A. Munch • William F. Mungo • Charles A. Munoz • Henry W. Munoz • Jose C. Munoz • Randall D. Munoz • Stephen D.<br />

Munroe • Michael Muratore • Mat<strong>the</strong>w D. Murawski • Clifford S. Murdock • Judith M. Murdock • Dan Murdy • Laura E. Murillo • Margaret M. Murillo • Kent K. Murley • Betty J. Murphy • Brian C. Murphy • Brian J. Murphy • Daniel E. Murphy • Daniel F.<br />

Murphy • Daniel R. Murphy • David A. Murphy • David J. Murphy • David M. Murphy • Donald L. Murphy • Eileen M. Murphy • Francis P. Murphy • James T. Murphy • John K. Murphy • Kathryn A. Murphy • Kevin J. Murphy • Kevin James Murphy • Mark A.<br />

Murphy • Michael D. Murphy • Patrick G. Murphy • Patrick J. Murphy • Paul E. Murphy • Richard A. Murphy • Robert J. Murphy • Sean D. Murphy • Thomas A. Murphy • William M. Murr • Arnold B. Murray • Bennie L. Murray • Gaye Y. Murray • Glen R.<br />

Murray • Grady C. Murray • James R. Murray • Kelly P. Murray • Mark Ross Murray • Mat<strong>the</strong>w J. Murray • Rex Larry Murray • Samuel W. Murray • Tamela Jeune Murray • Todd R. Murray • Tricia L. Murray • Sidney L. Murry • John R. Murtha • Philip E. Murtha • Gary<br />

M. Murzyn • Michael A. Muscavage • Deborah F. Muscha • Charles L. Music • Jerry Tigere Muskwe • James Patrick Musone • Wylie R. Musselwhite • David D. Musser • Donald J. Musser • Ramon Edward Muxo • James Stephen Myak • Ken P. Myak • Robert W.<br />

Myer • Deborah Lynn Myers • Derek Evin Myers • James W. Myers • Joseph E. Myers • Mitchell Roger Myers • Ronald B. Myers • Ronald G. Myers • Steven A. Myers • William E. Myers • George C. Mynatt • Roy A. Mynatt • Johnny O. Myrick • Stephen<br />

Myrosh • Richard L. Myrup • Arthur W. Myshrall • Robert A. Naaktgeboren • Larry A. Nabors • Vincent S. Nacin • Stephen Douglas Nadaud • Joseph J. Nadock • Leonard M. Nagata • David P. Nagle • Mark Nagoda • Henry P. Nagy • Scott M. Nagy • Norman<br />

Nahar • Andy Nahle • Michael L. Naiman • Daniel Nakamitsu • Stacey Nakamura • Joe A. Nakanishi • Myron H. Nakano • Clendon S. Nakasone • Michael D. Nall • John S. Nalley • John Francis Nally • Kenneth W. Nance • Ronald Nang • Timothy S. Napier • Serge<br />

Napoleon • JoAnn Napolitano • Patrick Napolitano • Anthony Nappi • Thomas J. Nardozzi • Michael A. Narducci • Mitchell Narzem • Paul J. Nasci • William A. Nascimento • David W. Nase • Charles F. Nash • Gerald M. Nash • James M. Nash • Larry S.<br />

Nash • Michelle M. Nash • Samuel R. Nassar • M. Nashaat Nassr • Richard C. Nastawa • Michael C. Nathan • Peter W. Nathaniel • Dan Naumann • Jose R. Navarro • Manuel DeJesus Naveiras • Michael J. Navrat • Jerald R. Naylor • Robert Naylor • Sandra A.<br />

Nazar • Glenda L. Nazarowski • J. Alan Neace • Bryan A. Neal • Donna E. Neal • James Burt Neal • Larry W. Neal • Robert A. Neal • Willette Yolanda Neal • Queenie Neason • Todd A. Neaveill • Kenneth L. Necochea • Robert Frank Necochea • Roger A.<br />

Necochea • Faye Nedderman • James G. Nedelco • Jean E. Needham • David R. Neef • Emilie Neel • Kenneth R. Neel • Harry T. Neff • Jessica Neff • John P. Neff • Jason Neft • Ramon L. Negron • Leopoldo Negron-Burgos • Anthony Neidecker • Scott A.<br />

Neil • Kyle B. Neilson • Glen I. Neisen • Kenneth E. Nellis • Brian Keith Nelms • Paula G. Nelsen • Brian A. Nelson • David Allen Nelson • David I. Nelson • Douglas B. Nelson • Douglas T. Nelson • Eric A. Nelson • George P. Nelson • Jeffrey R. Nelson • John F.<br />

Nelson • Joseph E. Nelson • Joseph G. Nelson • LeKhanh T. Nelson • Mark D. Nelson • Mark F. Nelson • Mat<strong>the</strong>w F. Nelson • Melissa L. Nelson • Michael A. Nelson • Michael J. Nelson • Michael Paul Nelson • Patricia A. Nelson • Richard A. Nelson • Richard D.<br />

Nelson • Rocky J. Nelson • Sallye D. Nelson • Scott W. Nelson • Timothy T. Nelson • William O. Nelson • Joseph C. Nemec • Chad Nemes • Michael J. Neppl • Allan R. Nesbitt • Dennis G. Nesbitt • Paul H. Nesbitt • Peter Daniel Nesbitt • Mark E. Nesfeder • Michael<br />

R. NeSmith • Kyle D. Ness • William H. Ness • Mary C. Nestell • Brent L. Nesting • George A. Nestojko • Julie K. Ne<strong>the</strong>rton • Donald O. Netzke • Beth A. Neu • Randy M. Neu • Daniel R. Neubecker • Randy Joseph Neuberger • Kelly D. Neuhaus • James B.<br />

Neuman • Timothy J. Neuscheler • Lori L. Neville • Carmela Newberry • David B. Newby • William A. Newby • Donald L. Newcomb • Henry Newcomb • Richard S. Newcomb • Allan L. Newell • Mark D. Newell • Melody L. Newell • Michael J. Newell • Beverly K.<br />

Newkirk • Connie M. Newkirk • Ronald D. Newkirk • Larry S. Newlin • Allan Newman • Craig R. Newman • James G. Newman • Mervyn L. Newman • Roberta Ca<strong>the</strong>rine Newman • Jerreld L. Newquist • Robert A. Newray • Roy T. Newsom • Lawrence R.<br />

Newsome • Ann M. Newton • Jean A. Newton • Kara L. Newton • Michael L. Newton • Patrick C. Newton • Vernon C. Newton • John J. Ney • Kai Ho Ng • Paul Ng • Chiu M. Ngai • Calvin Ngo • Diep N. Ngo • Ai Van Nguyen • Chong T. Nguyen • Ha A.<br />

Nguyen • Khoat Nguyen • Minha T. Nguyen • Nhan Nguyen • Patrick V. Nguyen • Phillip Nguyen • Ricky A. Nguyen • Thuy T. Nguyen • Keith Francis Nicholas • Robert M. Nicholas • Edward J. Nichols • J. Dan Nichols • Jeffrey Dale Nichols • Leonard A.<br />

Nichols • Martin Nichols • Sue A. Nichols • Velvet K. Nichols • David W. Nicholson • Eleanor D. Nicholson • Ernest L. Nicholson • Kent D. Nicholson • Roderick T. Nicholson • Richard B. Nickeson • Terry Nickisch • Thomas Nicklow • Philip J. Nicola • Philip<br />

Charles Nicoletti • David J. Nicolich • Alan L. Nicoll • James J. Nicosia • Bruce E. Niederriter • Marc S. Niedzwicki • John M. Niehoff • Richard E. Nielsen • Thomas A. Nielson • James M. Niemann • Donald B. Niemiec • Thomas G. Niepoth • Brian G. Nies • Zabdi A.<br />

Nieves • Mark E. Nighswonger • Charles R. Nightingale • Wayne M. Niimi • Mark Nikas • Don Nikolich • Peter G. Nikolich • Paul B. Niles • Stacee L. Nimetz • Lori J. Nims • Manuel Nino • Joey E. Nippert • Jason M. Nishioka • Harold A. Nitowitz • Kevin J.<br />

Nitsche • Karen F. Nitschke • Dennis M. Nitzsche • Donald Gary Nix • Howard W. Nix • Danny Glen Nixon • Anthony A. Nobach • Brian Todd Noble • David K. Noble • Jeremy L. Noble • Michael Kevin Noble • Ralph Noble • Robert C. Noble • William C.<br />

Noble • John M. Noblitt • Ronald E. Noblitt • Michael T. Nodley • Byron V. Noehl • Hugh Noel • Cynthia L. Noeth • Jon M. Noffsinger • Stephen Nogar • Gary L. Nogle • John K. Nolan • Kevin J. Nolan • Richard T. Nolan • Russell T. Nolan • Todd N. Nolan • Mat<strong>the</strong>w


Names of charter members are in bold<br />

Q. Nolin • Herbert Noll • Michael J. Nolle • Charles Norberg • Kenneth A. Norberg • KC Norcross • Mark A. Nordeen • Jeffrey R. Nordell • David R. Norden • Rodger L. Nordlund • Jenifer Lynda Nordstrom • Gary A. Norek • Michael G. Norin • David<br />

Norloff • James M. Norman • Jerry G. Norman • Mark K. Norman • Tammy Lee Norman • David A. Norris • David B. Norris • David T. Norris • Richard A. Norris • Robert D. Norris • Tracy J. Norris • Wayne J. Norris • Tim B. Norrod • Cathleen M. North • Mat<strong>the</strong>w<br />

W. North • Thomas Edward Northam • Gregory D Northcutt • Brian C. Norton • Dale Lee Norton • David M. Norton • Will T. Norton • Tom W. Norwood • Dale L. Noss • Debora G. Nottolini • Anthony Novak • Elisha Novak • John C. Novak • Timothy L.<br />

Novak • George A. Novakowski • Timothy M. Novotny • Gernot D. Nowak • John Nowakowski • Dennis Nowicki • Kenneth R. Nowosatka • Randolph L. Noyes • Mark S. Nullman • Anthony Nunez • Lawrence G. Nuorala • Chris B. Nurding • Dale R. Nuss • Richard<br />

C. Nuss • Carey P. Nussbaum • Colleen M. Nutter • Kerry M. Nutter • Frans F. Nyhuis • Peter T. Nyquist • Sokil O • W. Bryant Oaks • Thomas M. Obarski • Timothy L. Oberdoerster • Ronald J. Oberg • Ronald A. Oberhauser • Daniel H.D. Obert • Danielle L.<br />

O’Brien • Dennis O’Brien • Donald O’Brien • Jack L. O’Brien • James Weston O’Brien • Shannon Marie O’Brien • Sidney L. O’Brien • Timothy P. O’Brien • William Joseph O’Brien • Michael O’Bryan • Paul Jeremy Ochsenreiter • Brenda Ocker-Wozniak • Douglas<br />

E. O’Connell • Kathleen A. O’Connell • Kathleen M. O’Connell • Robert B. O’Connell • William C. O’Connell • Michael J. O’Conner • April O’Connor • Chris Kevin O’Connor • John M. O’Connor • Joshua D. O’Connor • Kristin C. O’Connor • Michael<br />

O’Connor • Robert Keith O’Connor • Wendy L. O’Connor • William G. O’Connor • Cynthia K. O’Conor • Douglas B. O’Dell • Nenita Odesa • Scott E. Odle • Gregory R. Odom • Al O’Donnell • George L. O’Donnell • Lisa Ann O’Donnell • Michael P.<br />

O’Donnell • William John O’Donnell • Michael Odryna • William O’Dwyer • Stephen C. Oeder • Ryan Oelrich • Kathryn B. Oestricher • Merlin R. Oetken • Henry Offermann • Stephanie Offhaus • Mat<strong>the</strong>w C. Ogden • Robert Charles Ogden • Scott J.<br />

Oggeri • Quentin G. Ogilvie • Michael Ogles • Morris T. Ogunleye • Richard Lee O’Hara • Timothy G. O’Hara • Dennis E. Ohlenkamp • Patricia Oien • Chris D. Oines • John A. Ojile • Michael J. O’Kane • Kevin R. O’Keefe • Michael L. O’Keefe • Yvette C.<br />

O’Keefe • Ike K. Okuda • Neil N. Okuna • German Olan • Lars A. Olander • Douglas S. Oldham • Eldon C. Oldnettle • Bruce T. O’Leary • Steve C. Olesen • John N. Olinger • Ramon C. Olivas • Donald M. Oliveira • Bonnie E. Oliver • Brian Oliver • Craig<br />

Oliver • Deborah L. Oliver • Elton Maurice Oliver • Gary M. Oliver • Lisa R. Oliver • William M. Oliver • David L. Olivier • Dennis J. O’Loughlin • Albert H. Olsen • Diane M. Olsen • Karen J. Olsen • Lewis D. Olsen • Steven R. Olsen • Brian H. Olson • Carly<br />

Olson • Darryld Andrew Olson • Elaine Olson • Eric B. Olson • Jeffery B. Olson • Jeffrey D. Olson • Jeffrey W. Olson • John C. Olson • Randall S. Olson • Richard J. Olson • Steven C. Olson • James Donald Olznoi • David C. O’Malley • Ka<strong>the</strong>rine T.<br />

O’Malley • Kenneth T. O’Malley • Kevin Michael O’Malley • Michael O’Malley • James M. Oman • Mark T. Ommundsen • James M. O’Neal • Mark O’Neil • William C. O’Neil • Patrick J. O’Neill • Terrance M. O’Neill • Thomas J. O’Neill • John P. Onken • Stephen<br />

Onusko • William J. Ooms • Gregory Paul Oothoudt • Joseph G. Opatovsky • Mat<strong>the</strong>w C Opperman • Ricky Alan Opperman • Gary M. Opseth • Johnny B. O’Quinn • Michael A. Oram • Barbara Ann Orandello • Sheila O’Regan-Bade • Mary O’Reilly • Thomas J.<br />

O’Reilly • Julie K. Orentas • Lisa Marie Orff • James G. Organist • Thomas F. Orlowski • Douglas K. Ormston • Bradford B. Orndorff • Jeffrey Neil Orr • John M. Orr • Jon W. Orr • Mark Duane Orr • Brian A. Orris • Michael W. Ortega • Robert Ortega • Steven E.<br />

Ortega • Ernest Ortiz • Julio A. Ortiz • Saul Ortiz • Van A. Ortiz • Wilfido Ortiz • Jacquelyn K. Osberg • Crystallin Osborne • Jeffrey A. Osborne • Steven T. Osborne • Harry J. Osburn • Michael Ray Osekowski • Barbara R. O’Shea • George M. O’Shea • Stephen<br />

S. Oshiro • Michael P. Osiadacz • Eron K. Osman • David D. Osolnik • Richard C. Ossana • Donald M. Ossinger • David L. Osteen • Dennis W. Osterhage • Michael J. Ostrander • Margaret Oswald • Theresa L. Oswald • Ronald E. Oswill • John S. Oszczakiewicz • Carlos<br />

V. Otero • John D. Otey • Neil F. Otey • Jeffery Paul Otlowski • Gary T. O’Toole • Neil E. O’Toole • J. Scott Otoupal • Melissa Rene Ott • Rodney J. Ott • David R. Otten • David A. Otterblad • Gregory G. Otterson • Bruce E. Otto • Jon P Otto • William B. Otto • Jill<br />

H. Ouellette • Jerry Ouillette • Guy M. Outten • Harold B. Over • Richard H. Overby • Daniel J. Overgaard • Jack B. Overholser • Duane L. Overlid • John F. Overman • Robert S. Overstreet • Larry G. Overton • Chris Owen • Paul R. Owen • Richard M.<br />

Owen • Clifford C. Owens • Dawn M. Owens • Eran A. Owens • Eric K. Owens • Linda J. Owens • Robert A. Owens • Sally Owens • Charles R. Owings • Robert P. Oxenburg • Nancy Eileen Oxford • Carolyn H. Oxley • Kelvin Oya • Gary C. Oyster • David C.<br />

Pace • Ramey G. Pace • Laurie L. Pacheco • Melinda L. Pacheco • Billy J. Pack • Thomas C. Pactol • Gean D. Paden • Christine Padgett • Grady C. Padgett • Robert L. Padgett • Thomas John Padgett • Stacy L. Padhye • Jeffery D. Padia • Cynthia L. Padilla • Jimmy M.<br />

Padilla • Victor A. Padron • Kent E. Pafford • Donna Marie Paffrath • Stephen J. Pagano • Darlene L. Page • Douglas J. Page • Jeffrey J. Page • Leslie Freeman Page • Randell C. Page • Robert J. Page • Susan L. Page • Ralph D. Pagington • Curtis A. Paige • Daniel L.<br />

Paige • Edward V. Paige • Richard W. Paige • Kerry A. Painter • John D. Paiva • Christine Pak • Harvey M. Pake • Robert J. Pakosinski • Cynthia M. Palamara • Daniel Anthony Palermo • Daniel R. Palermo • Cheryl A. Palko • Daniel L. Palko • Mark A. Pallone • Gary<br />

A. Palm • Vincent Charles Palmby • Charles S. Palmer • Jeff C. Palmer • Jeffrey S. Palmer • JoElla Palmer • Kenneth W. Palmer • Lance L. Palmer • Laura Ann Palmer • Marcus J. Palmer • Rick Dane Palmer • Steve Earl Palmer • John M. Palmersheim • Anthony<br />

Palmieri • Michael A. Palmieri • Chris D. Palmisano • Thomas J. Palowitch • Larry D. Pals • Lee F. Pals • John A. Palumbo • Michael J. Palumbo • Charles R. Pampuch • Hongye Pan • Rosalie Panagopoulos • Ramin H. Panahi • Philip W. Panelli • Feliciano Bud<br />

Pangan • Nicholas Panico • Thomas L. Pankow • Kimberly A. Panter • Thomas B. Pantle • Thomas A. Panzarella • Victor Panzica • Sandra Papadimitriou • Andrew C. Papageorge • Vasilios Papageorgiou • Fred T. Paparelli • Michael L. Paplow • Frank N. Papp • Renee<br />

C. Paradis • Nicholas G. Paraskevas • Henry J. Pardo • Johnny W. Pardue • Brian K. Parenteau • Charles Parenteau • George N. Paresa • Luis D. Paret • Todd R. Parham • Richard A. Paris • Donald A. Pariseau • Charles R. Parish • Brian R. Park • Cara Park • Jason<br />

A. Park • Benjamin R. Parker • David Lee Parker • Deborah L. Parker • Gay Ann Parker • Jeffrey A. Parker • Patrick L. Parker • Robert C. Parker • Sandra K. Parker • Todd C. Parker • Wendy Parker • Glenn D. Parks • Michael R. Parks • Timothy L. Parks • Dennis<br />

J. Parman • Kristi Hea<strong>the</strong>r Parman • Benjamin L. Parmer • Joseph H. Parnacott • Sue A. Parness • Robert J. Paro • James F. Parr • Timothy Lee Parr • Mat<strong>the</strong>w Parra • Daniel Parrillo • Chris E. Parris • Jeffrey L. Parrish • Steven Parrish • John G. Parsell • Patricia<br />

Marie Parsh • Leon M. Parshook • Larry M. Parsons • Mary Elizabeth Parsons • Richard. J. Parsons • Narzell Partee • Stanley A. Parulski • Mark C. Paschal • Donn G. Pascoe • John R. Pasola • Michael Todd Pasquini • Kenneth D. Pass • Alan J. Passero • James J.<br />

Passiales • Socrates S. Passialis • John Joseph Pastore • John R. Pastorelli • Wesley A. Pate • William A. Pate • Pravin H. Patel • Zoem Patel • Glenn A. Paterson • Marco Patino • George P. Paton • Gary J. Patrician • Brian G. Patrick • Kimberly Ann Patrick • Lawrence<br />

E. Patrick • Marianne Patrick • Robert C. Patrick • William L. Patrick • Melanie L. Patry • Lawrence K. Patt • Allen D. Patterson • C. Duke Patterson • Danny Ray Patterson • David E. Patterson • Kenneth E. Patterson • Michael J. Patterson • Tara M. Patterson • Joel<br />

J. Patti • John E. Pattison • Todd E. Pattison • David J. Patton • Robert Stephen Patton • Randall L. Paul • Robert Marvin Paul • Robert T. Paul • Shannon T. Paul • Krista S. Pauley • Michael P. Pauley • Kristen E. Paulik • Jay J. Paulinski • Kenneth J. Paull • John Mark<br />

Paulus • William S. Pavlik • Jon Pawelkop • Leo J. Pawlowski • Mark L. Pawlowski • Donald J. Paxson • David K. Paxton • Mona S. Payette • Dexter Payne • Douglas E. Payne • Lindsay D. Payne • Mark A. Payne • Michael J. Payne • Raleigh H. Payne • Richard C.<br />

Payne • Thomas J. Payne • Travis C. Payne • William J. Payne • Jeffrey Robert Paynter • Brian Curtis Paysinger • Eddie Peace • Jeffrey K. Peace • Maxine L. Peace • Charles S. Pearce • Gerald L. Pearce • James C. Pearce • Allen L. Pearcy • George T. Pearcy • William<br />

W. Pearman • B. J. Pearson • Douglas Charles Pearson • Gerald S. Pearson • Glen A. Pearson • Roger C. Pearson • Ronald Dale Pearson • Scott H. Pearson • William E. Pease • Renee Peavey • Robert Alan Pebley • Darrell S. Peck • Jonathan Neal Peck • Richard E.<br />

Peck • Russell W. Peck • Thomas W. Peck • Trent D. Peckosh • Richard A. Pecoraro • Charles R. Pedersen • David J. Pedersen • Jeffrey M. Pedersen • Steven J. Pedersen • Noel N. Pederson • James Pedra • Rodney Wayne Peek • Paul G. Pegadiotes • Kory<br />

Pehl • Richard G. Peiffer • William J. Pekarna • Sonja M. Pekarna-Midtbo • Lafe Pelissier • Steven R. Pelissier • Patrick J. Pelkowski • Dean W. Pelland • Alan Pellegrini • Frank Pellegrino • Michael L. Peltier • James F. Pelton • Paul R. Peltonen • Todd A.<br />

Pemberton • Daniel J. Pemrick • Ralph S. Pendlebury • Daniel S. Penfound • Mitchell G. Penfound • Joseph A. Penna • Harrison Pennel • Carl Pennica • Joseph Pennington • Mark L. Pennington • Shawn M. Pennington • Douglas Richard Pennock • Ken J.<br />

Penoyer • Darlene L. Penrose • Gregory T. Peoples • Kenneth J. Peppard • James Thomas Pepper • John Robert Perczak • Dean E. Perdue • Mark Pereira • Alfred Perez • Caroline Perez • Eddie Perez • Franchisco D. Perez • Jaclyn R. Perez • Miquel A. Perez • Moises<br />

Perez • Oscar Perez • Philip G. Perez • Stephen Vince Perez • Frank T. Perino • Ronald A. Perino • Armond Perkins • Earnest W. Perkins • Murray S. Perkins • Peter N. Perkins • Robert D. Perkins • Donald Joseph Permoda • Joseph W. Perrone • William J.<br />

Perrotti • Almetta Perry • Edmond Michael Perry • Jolene M. Perry • K. Douglas Perry • Rene’ L. Perry • Robert J. Perry • Timothy Perry • Wesley F. Perttula • Dean A. Pesato • Cliff Peschansky • Thomas L. Pesnicak • Rick A. Petermann • Bethany A. Peters • Bryant<br />

M. Peters • Donald Peters • Gary L. Peters • Lathaniel Peters • Michael J. Peters • Ronald R. Peters • William T. Peters • Frederick J. Petersen • Jacqueline C. Petersen • Kevin R. Petersen • Linda Jean Petersen • Mark P. Petersen • Thomas K. Petersen • Thomas M.<br />

Petersen • Bradley J. Peterson • Bradley R. Peterson • Brian D. Peterson • Bruce A. Peterson • Cody A. Peterson • David D. Peterson • Dennis Peterson • Donald B. Peterson • Douglas P. Peterson • Eric J. Peterson • Erik O. Peterson • Fay A. Peterson • James Q.<br />

Peterson • John A. Peterson • Joseph E. Peterson • Julie Ann Peterson • Kevin E. Peterson • Ned A. Peterson • Robert L. Peterson • Ronald W. Peterson • Sheila M. Peterson • Laura Iris Petraglia • William J. Petras • Philip J. Petre • Rodger W. Petre • James M.<br />

Petrell • Dominic Petrelli • Mark A. Petri • Ronald I. Petri • Barbara Ann Petricka • Brian A. Petrilla • George Petrovich • Scott H. Petrucha • John Petrulis • Peggy Ann Petry • Walter W. Petry • Nicole R. Petrykowski • Mark Petsche • Gary Pettengill • Kim M.<br />

Pettis • Henry A. Pettway • Darla A. Pettyjohn • Kevin C. Pettyjohn • Joseph Petzel • Richard J. Petzold • Gary G. Peurifoy • Kelly H. Peurifoy • Richard S. Pew<strong>the</strong>rs • Michael J. Peymann • Robert A. Pfeifer • Timothy A. Pforsich • Thomas M. Phan • Natalie Phan-<br />

Tran • Connie Phelan • Joseph R. Phelan • Lisa Marie Phernetton • Harold E. Phifer • Sandy Joseph Philips • Anita M. Phillips • Brian K. Phillips • Calvin D. Phillips • Charles H. Phillips • Chris D. Phillips • David N. Phillips • Donna L. Phillips • Gregory T. Phillips • James<br />

A. Phillips • James H. Phillips • Jeffrey W. Phillips • Jennifer L. Phillips • John P. Phillips • Mark D. Phillips • Mary Ann Phillips • Mat<strong>the</strong>w F. Phillips • Patti L. Phillips • Richard A. Phillips • Ronald Allen Phillips • Stephen G. Phillips • Steve Phillips • Steven L. Phillips • Steven<br />

T. Phillips • Ted Lee Phillips • William T. Phillips • Benjapol Phimsoutham • Kevin L. Phinney • Gary A. Phipps • Heidi Phipps • Scott R. Phipps • William J. Phipps • Edward W. Pianka • Douglas G. Picard • Robert D. Picard • Chris J. Piccola • John Piccola • Ethan D.<br />

Piche • Larry A. Pichoff • Mark L. Pickerel • James H. Pickering • Michael A. Pickering • Timothy W. Pickering • Daniel G. Pickert • Mark Alan Pickett • Thomas N. Pickett • Paul E. Pieper • Anna M. Pierce • Brenda L. Pierce • Harold F. Pierce • John C. Pierce • John<br />

E. Pierce • Ralph E. Pierce • Robert Lowell Pierce • Robert Michael Pierce • Robert S. Pierce • William T. Pierce • Christopher M. Piercy • Leslie E. Piercy • Franco Pieri • Saida O. Pierri • Daniel L. Pierson • David J. Pierson • David L. Pierson • Mark D. Pierson • Tobin<br />

M. Pierson • James S. Pieser • Donald Gene Piet • Steven J. Pietroforte • Robert L. Pietrzak • James R. Pigeon • Lee Patrick Pigford • Kenneth A. Pignotti • Robert H. Pike • Timothy B. Pike • Glen W. Pilant • Joseph L. Pilcher • Joseph B. Pilgrim • Bryan K.<br />

Pilkenton • Jaime Pina • Douglas G. Pincock • John G. Pingol • Mario Z. Pinheiro • Steven Pinkerton • Richard E. Pinkston • George Pirotis • Anthony M. Pisanti • Theodore E. Piskur • David Piszczek • David M. Piteri • Michael M. Pitt • Lori Beth Pittman • Douglas<br />

R. Pitts • Patricia A. Pitts • Terrence L. Pitts • Robert D. Piverotto • Joseph D. Pivonka • Andrew A. Plamondon • Nathaniel B. Plance • John P. Plank • James F. Platt • Paul O. Pleasants • Jeffrey A. Plendl • Eric Bob Plentl • Rebecca L. Plentl • Joseph D. Pleskac • Tim<br />

Plezbert • Jenice N. Plisko • Brian Plona • Douglas C. Plume • Cheryl Z. Plumeri • David A. Plummer • Harry Lee Plummer • Michael J. Plunkett • James L. Plymel • Chris T. Plympton • Melissa L. Poces • Christopher S. Podbielski • Elaine Poe • Lawrence G.<br />

Pogorzala • Caroline G. Pogue • Kerry C. Pohlman • Ronald J. Poindexter • Derek T. Pointer • Martha J. Pointer • Paul G. Poirier • Steve Poirier • Michael H. Poisson • Peter Polakos • Gary J. Pole • Rick Polete • Doris J. Poling • Keith L. Poling • Donna J.<br />

Polinsky • Terence A. Polischeck • Jeff William Polk • Richard Polk • Vince S. Polk • Donald E. Pollard • Edward R. Pollard • James D. Pollard • Stanley A. Pollard • Mark Pollock • Stephen A. Pologruto • Anthony J. Polzin • Jill D. Poma • Glen T. Poncet • Gregory<br />

Pond • Aristotle C. Ponder • Barry H. Ponder • Christina Pond-Lagoski • William R. Pong • Samuel V. Pono • Charles E. Poole • Cynthia Ann Poole • David W. Poole • James S. Poole • Jason Poole • Todd A. Poole • Vanessa L. Poole • Donald R. Poore • Dennis J.<br />

Poorman • Patricia Pope • Ross Pope • Jon M. Popow • Richard Popp • William W. Poppleton • Peter Porcaro • Emanuel N. Porretto • Fredrick R. Port • Gary A. Porta • Carl E. Porter • D.F. Porter • Dale Lance Porter • Donald J. Porter • Glenn Scott<br />

Porter • Lawrence W. Porter • Michael D. Porter • Timothy L. Porter • Neil J. Portner • Jonathan A. Porto • David W. Porzel • Rafael Posadas • Charles L. Posey • John J. Posey • David A. Pospychala • Jackie E. Poss • Stephen R. Post • Morris A. Postlewate • Victor<br />

M. Poston • Jeffrey S. Potash • Marc Potash • Salvatore Potestivo • Joseph J. Potkanowicz • Brian C. Potter • Carrie Lynn Potter • Janne K. Potter • Michael D. Potter • Rodney J. Potter • Daniel H. Potts • Joseph B. Potts • Mariane Potts • Steven C. Potts • Greta<br />

Marie Potzmann • James H. Pouncy • Shawn R. Pound • Alexander A. Powell • Charles A. Powell • David J. Powell • Donald M. Powell • Henry K. Powell • Lawrence F. Powell • Patrick J. Powell • Richard K. Powell • Stephanie Rene Powell • Stephen W. Powell • William<br />

R. Powell • Stephen C. Power • Bret A. Powers • Craig F. Powers • David B. Powers • Jesse J. Powers • Liesl M. Powers • Lynn A. Powers • Patrick E. Powers • Philip V. Powers • Randolph Powers • Sheryl A. Powers • Thomas E. Powers • Timothy J. Powers • Wade<br />

Powers • Mark S. Prairie • Stephen Prater • David E. Pratt • Joel E. Pratt • Gregory M. Pratte • Lisa M. Prentice • Connie L. Presley • Roy F. Presley • Brian W. Preslin • Edward J. Presor • Jeffrey Scott Pressley • Josh Pressley • Thomas J. Prestia • Faro C.<br />

Prestigiacomo • Alvin L. Preston • Brian L. Preston • Roger A. Preston • Mark A. Prestrude • John B. Preuit • Andrew M. Price • Danny F. Price • David James Price • James William Price • Mark F. Price • Peter K. Price • Ralph D. Price • Richard R. Price • Susan C.<br />

Price • Thomas J. Price • Tony R. Price • Troy D. Price • William E. Price • Kevin A. Prickett • Raymond A. Pridemore • David John Pridgen • Angela Priebe • Thomas J. Priebe • Jurgen E. Priester • Bruce Leon Prieur • Steven J. Prigge • Karen E. Prijatel • Charles L.<br />

Prill • Darrell B. Primm • Ross Primm • Nathaniel D. Primus • Christophe A. Prince • Richard K. Prince • Richard Lee Prince • Colleen Marie Pringle • Hugh J. Prior • David A. Pritchard • Byron T. Pritchett • Randall L. Privett • Richard E. Privette • Philip L.<br />

Probert • Lisa M. Procaccini • David G. Prochaska • Dawn M. Prochaska • Jonathan Procter • Stephen W. Proctor • David Scott Proehl • Christa A. Proffit • Noel E. Proffitt • Michael Prokop • Robert A. Prokop • Kevin M. Propheter • Timothy D. Propst • Matt<br />

Proudfit • Scott Roger Proudfoot • David Shawn Prowant • Kevin G. Prude • Paul E. Prue • John R. Pruitt • Kevin A. Pruitt • Kevin M. Pruitt • Edward F. Prusak • Anthony T. Prwivo • Michael Pryor • Robert J. Pryor • Paul J. Pucci • Timothy E. Puckett • Jeffrey A.<br />

Puckey • Dennis W. Pugh • Idalia Pulido • Manuel Pulido • Tonya J. Pullich • William G. Pullich • Kenneth R. Pullis • Richard A. Puloma • Douglas Edward Purdy • Jillian B. Purdy • Rick Purdy • Gordon Purslow • Arlynn E. Purvis • Scott G. Purvis • Daniel M.<br />

Pushic • David M. Pustay • Donna J. Pusterla • John A. Pusztai • Daniel N. Puterbaugh • Edward E. Putz • Michael A. Putzier • Diane M. Puzas • George M. Puzen • Glenn Puzon • Rory Puzon • Richard A. Pyke • Robin Lynn Pyke • Ronald B. Pyron • Mark A.<br />

Qualey • Alfred J. Qualiardi • William J. Qualiardi • Mark I. Quam • John W. Quamme • David A. Quane • Patrick F. Quaranta • Miles D. Quarrington • Scott M. Querry • Jeffrey A. Quest • Chris Stephen Quigley • Timothy M. Quigley • Frank Charles Quinby • Michael<br />

S. Quincey • Timothy Micheal Quinlin • Sean L. Quinlivan • John Quinn • Michael J. Quinn • Norman J. Quinn • Timothy L. Quinn • Gerard David Quiroz • Leroy C. Raap • Violet E. Rabago • William T. Rabek • Jon C. Racine • Mark S. Radabaugh • Curt<br />

Rademaker • Craig W. Rader • Stephen S. Rader • Joseph C. Radocy • Michael A. Radtke • Harry J. Rafferty • Jeanne Rafferty • Alan Raffo • Laura Kaye Ragan • Paul E. Ragan • Howard W. Ragsdale • Robert M. Raikes • Stacey Lee Raines • Ralph Rains • J a m e s<br />

Raio • Dale E. Ralph • Robert D. Ralston • Michael A. Ramaker • Balram Rambrich • James A. Ramey • Alma L. Ramirez • Chris M. Ramirez • Gerardo Ramirez • Irene Ramirez • John B. Ramirez • Maria T. Ramirez • Edward Ramos • Herbert D. Ramos • Jason<br />

Ramos • Jusserand F. Ramos • Richard Ramos • William M. Ramos • Mark Ramp • Jeffrey C. Rampling • Ted E. Ramroth • Richard Allen Ramsdell • Jonathan E. Ramsden • Stephen W. Ramsden • Dennis A. Ramsey • Michael P. Ramsey • Timothy V. Ramsey • Tracy L. The<br />

NATCA Family


The NATCA Family<br />

Names of charter members are in bold<br />

Ramsey • William T. Ramsey • Eric A. Rand • Joseph Rand • Richard A. Rand • Steven Rand • David C. Randal • Jayne L. Randall • William D. Randle • Lois Randley • Jerry D. Raney • Robert A. Raney • Nicholas J. Rangel • Brian Patrick Rankin • Delores F.<br />

Ransom • George Michael Ransom • Curt D. Ranz • Claude R. Rapoza • Frederick P. Rasche • Robert G. Raske • Kerry C. Rasmussen • Ronald M. Rasmussen • Tony A. Rasmussen • Larry J. Rasnake • Barry L. Ratchford • Richard Jean Rathbun • Joseph F.<br />

Ra<strong>the</strong>r • James V. Ratkus • Richard Alan Ratliff • Kelly Field Raulerson • Michael D. Raulerson • Owen D. Raulerson • Steven E. Raulston • William James Rauscher • Scott A. Rautio • Kevin S. Rawlings • Ryan P. Rawski • Joe R. Ray • Mark A. Ray • Michael A.<br />

Ray • Richard G. Ray • Ricky S. Ray • Ryan T. Ray • James M. Rayfield • Jamey Raymond • Margaret C. Raymond • Joseph W. Rayter • Thai Rea • Dennis Wayne Read • Kirby C. Read • Michael Read • Richard A. Readdy • Cheryl A. Readio • Bruce R. Reagan • Martin<br />

J. Reaghard • Carmen N. Reale • Patrick J. Ream • John A. Reams • Anthony J. Reando • Elijah B. Rearden • James Reasoner • George Michael Rebello • Steven Scott Reberg • Lori Rebhan • Jason R. Rebmann • Stanley V. Recek • James M. Record • David E.<br />

Rector • Thuhang C. Reddick • Daniel J. Redding • Brian M. Reddy • Yashoda Reddy • James P. Redel • Alan H. Redfern • Raymond C. Redhead • Karl R. Redinger • William H. Redner • John B. Reece • Terry J. Reece • Bernard E. Reed • Joida Reed • Paul D.<br />

Reed • Richard B. Reed • Scott W. Reed • Steve R. Reed • Steven J. Reed • Timothy A. Reed • James D. Reedy • Michael J. Reedy • Michael J. Reese • Robert G. Reese • Ronald W. Reese • Cornelius A. Regan • Gary K. Regan • John R. Regan • Kathleen A.<br />

Regan • Michael J. Regan • Thomas G. Regan • Steven Wayne Regruto • Hassie L. Rehm • Kimberly A. Rehm • James G. Rehrl • Jerome F. Reichenbach • Dallas R. Reid • Harold V. Reid • Lisa A. Reid • Richard A. Reid • Richard S. Reid • Rodger M. Reid • Rudolph<br />

Horatio Reid • Tracy J. Reid • Daniel F. Reigle • Brendan J. Reilly • John F. Reilly • Michael J. Reilly • Nancy Ann Reilly • Nancy C. Reilly • Phillip David Reilly • William J. Reimer • Danny D. Reinders • Kurt A. Reinert • Michael F. Reinhard • Raymond H.<br />

Reinhardt • Charles M. Reininger • Brenda K. Reins • Bruce C. Reins • Gary W. Reising • Laurence A. Reising • Roger D. Reisinger • Steven D. Reiss • Thomas J. Reitano • Nancy S. Reiter • Robert A. Reiter • Richard M. Rejniak • David K. Relyea • Elaine J.<br />

Relyea • Robert J. Rembish • Daniel M. Remer • Arthur A. Remsik • Fred Renault • Joey M. Rendon • Dirk Renner • Ronald D. Renner • Stewart M. Rennie • Russell S. Renton • Dana Lee Reny • Stephen B. Repeta • Mat<strong>the</strong>w William Resciniti • Kenneth R.<br />

Resnick • Dean Alan Ressler • Cory Thomas Retzlaff • Stephen G. Retzloff • Eric P. Reumann • Steve Reutepohler • Fred S. Revels • William R. Revett • Arthur M. Rewinkel • Charles M. Rey • Antonio Reyes • John A. Reyes • Michael D. Reyes • Omar Reyes • Scott<br />

C. Reyna • Beverly Reynolds • Chris M. Reynolds • Craig A. Reynolds • Darius C. Reynolds • George K. Reynolds • James B. Reynolds • Jerry C. Reynolds • Joseph K. Reynolds • Kenneth D. Reynolds • Michael Andrew Reynolds • Rebecca Reynolds • Robert D.<br />

Reynolds • Stanley C. Reynolds • Timothy A. Reynolds • Wesley David Reynolds • Steven Ellis Rhineheimer • Dale M. Rhoads • William T. Rhoads • Birkely Rhodes • Bradley E. Rhodes • Charlotte Gay Rhodes • Gilbert B. Rhodes • Grant R. Rhodes • Jason L.<br />

Rhodes • Melissa D. Rhodes • Patricia H. Rhodes • Sean B. Rhone • Edward S. Ribeiro • Ronald C. Riccadonna • John W. Riccardi • David R. Ricco • Chris J. Rice • Glendon E. Rice • James F. Rice • Judy A. Rice • Patrick Sean Rice • Peter M. Rice • Willard E.<br />

Rice • Brian N. Rich • Ronald E. Rich • Samuel J. Rich • Thomas S. Rich • Charlene L. Richard • Karen S. Richard • Timothy J. Richard • Anthony W. Richards • Dale D. Richards • James C. Richards • Jeffrey D. Richards • Jeffrey L. Richards • John D. Richards • Robert<br />

P. Richards • William L. Richards • Andrew J. Richardson • Beth Anne Richardson • Brian P. Richardson • Cory N. Richardson • Curtis Todd Richardson • Jack W. Richardson • John H. Richardson • Joseph W. Richardson • Mark W. Richardson • Michael B.<br />

Richardson • Michael P. Richardson • Nicholas C. Richardson • Scott J. Richardson • Thomas L. Richardson • Timothy D. Richardson • Willis G. Richardson • Raul Richie • Dale Richmond • Fred B. Richmond • Darla E. Richter • Deborah A. Richter • Frederick G.<br />

Richter • Jason M. Rick • William R. Rickels • Tracy A. Rickey • Daniel E. Ricks • Joseph C. Ricks • Jody L. Riddle • Dana Rider • Stanley D. Ridge • Mark Ridges • David L. Ridgway • Lawrence L. Ridley • Louis C. Ridley • Stephen P. Rief • David L. Riefer • Michael<br />

S. Rieke • Paul T. Riemer • Maureen Riendeau • Howard Rifas • Jeffrey S. Rigdon • Gary W. Rigelman • James Riggins • Gary R. Riggle • Clifford A. Riggs • Andrea C. Rigney • David O. Rigney • Angela Riley • Anthony G. Riley • David C. Riley • David F. Riley • F.<br />

Lee Riley • Gene R. Riley • Hayward M. Riley • Jeff Riley • John B. Riley • John Craig Riley • John Michael Riley • Jon A. Riley • Michael M. Riley • Michael Riley • Tonya S. Riley • William W. Riley • Paul M. Rinaldi • Lance A. Rinck • Michael A. Rinck • John Randolph<br />

Rinehart • Steven Ring • Mark S. Ringham • Sue L. Ringham • Ted E. Ringler • Larry J. Ringwalt • Pablo Riofrio • Gary D. Riolo • Steve Riordan • Anthony L. Rios • Anthony Rios • Seferino Rios • Timothy L. Rios • Lori Michelle Ripple • Jeff R. Rippon • Thomas H.<br />

Risdal • Jan Risheim • Stewart Risher • Greg W. Rising • Michael Risley • Timothy W. Risley • David A. Ritchey • David Ritchey • Stephen W. Ritchey • Constance Ann Ritchie • John M. Ritmiller • John M. Rittenberry • Walter S. Ritter • Richard E. Rittmann • Raul<br />

C. Rivadeneyra • Andrew H. Rivas • Edward Rivas • Albert B. Rivera • Amelia G. Rivera • Camille J. Rivera • Edward E. Rivera • Enrique Rivera • Jorge Rivera • Ruben Rivera • David Rivero • Luis Andres Riverol • Brian L. Rivers • Roger D. Rivers • Charles N.<br />

Riviere • Elissa M. Rix • Thomas E. Rizzardo • Timothy Alan Roach • James J. Roarke • Roger D. Roath • Robert R. Robar • Michael Allan Robbins • Wayne C. Roberson • Anita J. Roberts • Cheryl A. Roberts • Chris E. Roberts • Chris M. Roberts • Gary L.<br />

Roberts • Harry A. Roberts • Jerry C. Roberts • John C. Roberts • John R. Roberts • Kenneth E. Roberts • Kerry E. Roberts • Kirsten Leigh Roberts • Lowell K. Roberts • Marilyn S. Roberts • Mark P. Roberts • Michael L. Roberts • Michael R. Roberts • Neil C.<br />

Roberts • Peter C. Roberts • Peter Roberts • Raymond V. Roberts • Richard K. Roberts • Ross C. Roberts • Scott George Roberts • Shawn Roberts • Thomas L. Roberts • William Darren Roberts • William T. Roberts • Dale Robertson • David M. Robertson • David<br />

P. Robertson • Earle D. Robertson • John J. Robertson • Kirk P. Robertson • Martin P. Robertson • Preston E. Robertson • Timothy W. Robertson • David J. Robichaux • Michael F. Robicheau • Scott Robillard • Billy R. Robinson • Brad J. Robinson • Corey<br />

Robinson • Dana D. Robinson • David W. Robinson • Debra Robinson • Ernest L. Robinson • Es<strong>the</strong>r C. Robinson • Herbert G. Robinson • James R. Robinson • John D. Robinson • Kenneth L. Robinson • Marquitta Robinson • Robert Lamar Robinson • Scott E.<br />

Robinson • Steve Robinson • Thomas D. Robinson • John E. Robison • Ronald J. Robison • Thomas B. Robison • William Robitsek • Monico Robles • Dale E. Robson • Carol A. Roby • James E. Roche • James W. Roche • Kevin P. Roche • Thomas Patrick<br />

Roche • Michael R. Rocheck • Kenneth D. Rochester • Richard Rochester • Michael C. Rockman • Kathleen A. Rockwell • William A. Rodda • Patrick J. Rodden • David J. Roddy • Kyle W. Roddy • Lee A. Rodels • Noreen M. Rodenhurst • William N. Rodenhurst • Mark<br />

O. Roderick • John Craig Rodgers • Philip G. Rodgers • Chris Joseph Rodriguez • Martin T. Rodriguez • Mat<strong>the</strong>w A. Rodriguez • Michael G. Rodriguez • Miguel A. Rodriguez • Orlando Rodriguez • Reynaldo Rodriguez • Richard G. Rodriguez • Ernesto Rodriguez-<br />

Acost • Alex E. Rodriquez • Ellen M. Rodriquez • Holly L. Roe • Joseph William Roe • Rodney D. Roe • Stephen C. Roebuck • Terrence K. Roeder • Kendall W. Roetzel • Rick Edward Roever • Steven Roewer • Bridget C. Rogers • Chris Rogers • Donald R.<br />

Rogers • Edward L. Rogers • Gina M. Rogers • Glenn Rogers • Joseph T. Rogers • Kevin L. Rogers • Kimberly June Rogers • Michael D. Rogers • Michael R. Rogers • Michelle L. Rogers • Richard J. Rogers • William M. Rogers • Tim Rogula • Calvin Rohan • James M.<br />

Rohde • Richard W. Rohde • William H. Rohder • Jeffrey M. Rohlmeier • Kevin L. Rohr • Charles W. Rohrer • Kevin J. Rojek • Mat<strong>the</strong>w Dean Rojohn • Mitchell L. Roland • Paul Rold • Theodore E. Roller • Cory L. Rollins • Herbert T. Rollins • Loretta Rollins • William<br />

Quint Rollo • Richard W. Rolls • Dan H. Rom • John C. Roman • Linda Roman • Patrick J. Roman • Frederic C. Romani • Gerald P. Romaniak • Robert Romano • Alexis Romero • Jorge D. Romero • Juan Romero • Mary L. Romero • Robert A. Romero • Samuel<br />

Romero • Jeffrey G. Romig • Billy J. Romines • Roger L. Rominger • Richard J. Rompala • Ronald C. Romuno • Serge Rondelez • Joshua P. Ronken • Daniel T. Ronning • Wilfredo C. Ronquillo • Bruce L. Rook • Robert J. Rooker • Jason H. Rooks • Brandon<br />

Roop • Kenneth A. Roosa • Chris B. Roppolo • Raoul P. Rosado • Randy R. Rosales • Margaret Rosander • Thomas J. Roscoe • Adam G. Rose • Anthony H. Rose • David L. Rose • Dexter Rose • DonnRae E. Rose • Douglas L. Rose • Ronney G. Rose • Susan F.<br />

Rose • Timothy S. Rose • Thomas R. Roseborrough • Joseph A. Roseman • Steve Rosenbaum • Minerva A. Rosenberg • Steven J. Rosenfeld • Carl R. Rosenow • Bradley K. Rosenthal • Robert G. Rosenthal • Keith Rosequist • Gregory A. Roshel • Curt Alan<br />

Ross • Erle M. Ross • Glyndon Ross • Jeffrey A. Ross • Jeffrey J. Ross • Jenny B. Ross • John E. Ross • Joseph P. Ross • Michael S. Ross • Michael Ross • Scott W. Ross • Sean Allen Ross • Steve Ross • Thomas H. Ross • William E. Ross • Gary B. Rosser • James<br />

Rossi • Daniel M. Rossmango • Debbie Roth • George W. Roth • Robert B. Rothbart • Mark J. Rothdiener • David J. Ro<strong>the</strong>ry • Joseph R. Rougeau • Susan J. Round • Gary J. Rounds • Michael V. Roundtree • Keshea L. Rounsaville • Brian Thomas Rountree • Clifton<br />

J. Rouse • Wesley D. Rouse • James R. Rousseau • Robert J. Routzahn • John L. Roux • Dino J. Rovito • Ronald E. Row • Ralph R. Rowand • Alan R. Rowe • Amy Louise Rowe • Jimmy D. Rowe • John L. Rowe • Tina R. Rowe • Kenneth W. Rowland • Ray C.<br />

Rowland • Neil M. Rowlett • Lynn D. Rowley • Brett R. Rowsam • Floyd Kenneth Roy • Kim A. Roy • Michael A. Roy • Rosalind J. Royal • James R. Royer • Michael R. Royer • Wayne E. Royse • Stanley Rozycki • Richard Rubenstahl • David Scott Rubert • Robert P.<br />

Rubertone • Augusto R. Rubia • Mitchell B. Rubin • William W. Rubin • Duane E. Rubino • Samuel J. Rubino • Thomas R. Rubrecht • William S. Ruby • Clarence S. Rucker • Edward F. Rucker • Thomas E. Rucker • Ralph M. Rud • Chinda P. Rudd • Thelma L.<br />

Rudd • James A. Ruddick • Joseph A. Ruddy • Geoffrey D. Rudes • David R. Rudolf • Thomas Rudolph • Johann Rudzitis • Roger W. Ruebush • Robert A. Ruegsegger • Daniel John Ruehl • Cynthia G. Ruenzel • Eric Lee Ruenzel • Robert W. Ruff • Anthony J.<br />

Ruffino • Michael Rufle • Robert T. Ruggiero • Edward D. Ruhbeck • David R. Ruiz • Dawna M. Ruiz • Ismael Ruiz • Luis Antonio Ruiz • James Kelly Rukes • Rosa M. RunsThrough • Ronald J. Runsvold • Mark Dean Rupert • Todd Arthur Rupert • William H.<br />

Rupert • Michael J. Ruple • John D. Rupp • Thomas J. Ruppert • Ralph H. Rupprecht • Harold Dwayne Rush • Hea<strong>the</strong>r K. Rush • Martha Ann Rush • Robin Rush • Clifton Rushing • Randolph A. Russ • Carroll G. Russell • Craig E. Russell • Cynthia Ann Russell • David<br />

E. Russell • Debra K. Russell • Donald R. Russell • Gary W. Russell • Jackie W. Russell • Jeffrey Dennis Russell • Joseph A. Russell • Mario C. Russell • Ray Russell • Robert Daniel Russell • Steven A. Russell • William J. Russell • Daniel J. Russo • James J. Russo • Dean<br />

R. Ru<strong>the</strong>r • Peter M. Ru<strong>the</strong>rford • Rickey M. Ru<strong>the</strong>rford • Robin C. Ru<strong>the</strong>rford • Ronald L. Ru<strong>the</strong>rford • Tony F. Ru<strong>the</strong>rford • Robert C. Rutter • Stephen R. Ruttman • Nathan M. Rux • Dan Ryan • Daniel T. Ryan • Erik Carl Ryan • John P. Ryan • Joseph P.<br />

Ryan • Michael Ryan • Patrick G. Ryan • Robert T. Ryan • Shawn K. Ryan • Steven G. Ryan • Terence M. Ryan • Timothy Ryan • William J. Ryan • Joseph W. Ryba • Marion Rybarczyk • Rosanne Ryburn • Steven B. Ryland • Gary A. Ryle • Chris K. Rzeszutko • Kristin<br />

Kay Saari • Alan L. Saber • Gary D. Sabo • Michael Sabutis • Joseph S. Sacco • Maria Sacco • John T. Sachon • Richard T. Sack • John F. Sadatis • Brian K. Sadler • Robert Sadowski • Al Saenz • Patrick Safarian • Kaiwan Safavi • David E. Safdy • Edwin I. Safer • Carl<br />

E. Sagerquist • Mark Saginario • Sean C. Saing • Doyle S. Saito • Ivan S. Sakihara • Linda A. Sakihara • Byron K. Sako • James Joel Sako • Eugene R. Sakrisson • Collin S. Sakuma • John S. Saladin • Brian Patrick Salaway • Erwin Stewart Salazar • Eric William<br />

Saldana • Joseph James Salerno • Aletta A. Salganek • Michael J. Salina • Jennifer Salisbury • Michael G. Salisbury • Richard C. Salmen • William L. Salopek • Charles R. Salvaggione • John A. Samacicia • Samuel J. Sambrano • George C. Sammeth • Andrew J.<br />

Samour • Larry H. Samowitz • Charles Sample • Guy W. Sample • Craig L. Samples • Alexander Sampra • Timothy John Samsel • Dale J. Samson • David L. Samson • Shorn A. Samuel • Dale P. Samuelson • Edwin Sanabia • Chris William Sanborn • A m a n d a<br />

Sanchez • Elena M. Sanchez • Gary Edwin Sanchez • Jacqueline V. Sanchez • Manuel A. Sanchez • Marcelino Sanchez • Micheal Sanchez • Nestor A. Sanchez • Patrick D. Sand • Richard A. Sand • David E. Sandbach • David Brent Sandefur • Robert A. Sander • Collier<br />

H. Sanders • Dan H. Sanders • Douglas A. Sanders • James M. Sanders • Jeffrey W. Sanders • Jere A. Sanders • Joseph Allen Sanders • Joshua B. Sanders • Michael R. Sanders • Terry B. Sanders • Kelly R. Sandfer • Patrick I. Sandorfi • Calen M. Sandoval • Ca<strong>the</strong>rine M.<br />

Sandoval • Elena M. Sandoval • Eloy C. Sandoval • Kathleen A. Sandoval • Phillip Sandoval • Clinton Russell Sands • Michael D. Sands • Michele H. Sands • Theodore L. Sandstrom • Rick S. Sandvig • John Sanfelippo • Bryan E. Sanford • Scott M. Sanford • Jayanti R.<br />

Sangani • Amritpal S. Sangha • Surinder S. Sangha • Paul J. Sangl • Peter J. Sanislo • Daniel M. Sanko • Michael H. Sanocki • Jean Garry Sanon • Leslie Susan Sanovich • George E. Sant • Richard T. Santa • Mark D. SantaCruz • Edwin Santiago • Marcos Santiago • Victor<br />

Santore • Jahil Santos • Joseph C. Santos • Ray Y. Santos • James P. Sanzone • Donald W.M. Sapp • Gregory D. Sapp • James G. Sappier • Eric Robert Sarbacker • George P. Sardineer • Sharon Sargeant • David L. Sargent • John Michael Sargent • Kenneth H.<br />

Sargent • Thomas M. Sargent • Jerry T. Sarkady • Mark W. Sarrasin • Eugene M. Sarrels • Patricia F. Sarubbi • John D. Sarver • Kenneth R. Sarver • Joseph M. Sas • Douglas C. Sasserson • Kenton E. Sassmann • Kelly Ann Satterfield • Daniel W. Sauer • Richard F.<br />

Sauer • Chris M. Sauld • Arturo R. SaulsBerry • Bryan T. Saunders • Chris S. Saunders • David M. Saunders • James W. Saunders • Mark F. Saunders • Martin J. Saunders • Timothy E. Saunders • Timothy K. Saunders • Michael J. Saupp • Vincent J. Sauret • Donald<br />

R. Savage • Gregory S. Savage • Sterling Savage • Frank J. Savasta • Latifa J. Saviet • Stephen E. Sawicki • Gary L. Sawyer • James L. Sawyer • Randall L. Sawyer • Robert J. Sawyer • MaryJane YanYi Saxe • Michael H. Saxe • Kay Saxton • Sone Sayamontry • Gary<br />

Nathaniel Saylor • Karen Saylor • Nicholas C. Saylor • Gary C. Saylors • Jeffrey C. Sayre • Stephen R. Sayre • Souradeth H. Saysana • Douglas Warren Scadden • Sean F. Scally • Patrick J. Scanlan • John E. Scanlon • Tandy M. Scantlen • Brian L. Scarbrough • Louis A.<br />

Scarozza • James S. Scarpelli • Anthony Scavone • Kathleen Scavone • Donald P. Schaak • Louise Schachter • Roger L. Schade • Karl W. Schader • Joseph Robert Schaefer • Thomas W. Schaefer • William A. Schaefer • John R. Schafe • Al G. Schafer • Sandra Lynn<br />

Schafer • Dean W. Schahrer • Cynthia H. Schamel • Steven J. Schaming • Margaret C. Scharnow • Paul S. Scharr • Jennifer L. Schaub • Kathryn L. Schauf • Paul E. Schauman • Joseph H. Scheer • Mark A. Scheid • Donald S. Scheie • Michael A. Schelper • Lee<br />

Schenck • Chris L. Schenk • Chester Schenkel • Jason A. Schenkel • Daniel T. Schenkenberger • Barbara Schennum • Paul D. Schennum • Brad Scherff • Mark E. Schermeister • Milton R. Scherotter • Dixie R. Scherzer • Patrick John Schettler • Steven Alan<br />

Scheuble • Richard J. Scheuer • Terry Scheuffele • David H. Schickram • Anthony J. Schifano • Carl J. Schildt • Chanel Marie Schilling • Edward M. Schilling • James E. Schilling • Joachim W. Schilling • Wayne Mark Schilly • Steven M. Schimming • Brian M. Schimpf • Greg<br />

L. Schindler • Gregory A. Schindler • Timothy J. Schindler • Dirk J. Schippers • E. Gordon Schiring • Alan J. Schirtzinger • David J. Schissler • Emil R. Schlabach • Donald E. Schlegel • Michael K. Schlegel • Vincent K. Schlegelmilch • Joseph J. Schleich • Trace<br />

Schlemeyer • Karl Schletzbaum • Allen D. Schlimper • Stephen R. Schmalz • Gregory A. Schmarr • Gerald B. Schmauch • Donald E. Schmeichel • Doug Schmer • Robert F. Schmid • Arthur E. Schmidt • Christopher Schmidt • Daniel John Schmidt • David P.<br />

Schmidt • James M. Schmidt • James Michael Schmidt • John J. Schmidt • Kim R. Schmidt • Michael J. Schmidt • Rick L. Schmidt • David A. Schmied • Mark H. Schmitt • Richard A. Schmitt • John J. Schmitz • Richard Schnedorf • Thomas B. Schneeman • Anita Marie<br />

Schneider • Bret Richard Schneider • Bruce F. Schneider • Chris J. Schneider • Darrell E. Schneider • Donald L. Schneider • Jeffery F. Schneider • John Schneider • Joseph F. Schneider • Penny Schneider • Russell L. Schneider • Wallace G. Schneider • William C.<br />

Schneider • Jimmy W. Schnell • Robert J. Schneller • Gary D. Schneringer • William J. Schnippert • David W. Schnoor • Ronda Joy Schnoor • David M. Schnur • David I. Schoen • Mark R. Schoenbauer • Emily S. Schoenberg • Paul C. Schoenen • Mark R.<br />

Schoenhoff • Mat<strong>the</strong>w Alec Schofield • Mark W. Scholl • Tom W. Schooler • Jesse D. Schools • Kevin W. Schott • Donald Schoux • Carole R. Schrader • David J. Schrader • Donald Lyle Schrader • Stephen J. Schreck • Dorene A. Schreckenghost • Mark D.<br />

Schreier • Casey Schreiner • Michael R. Schrick • Marc Douglas Schrier • John D. Schrock • Michael J. Schrock • Andrew B. Schroeder • Michael Schroeder • Milton E. Schroeder • Randy S. Schroeder • Richard E. Schroeder • Robin M. Schroeder • Thomas J.<br />

Schroeder • Anthony B. Schroedl • Edward J. Schroer • Kenneth J. Schroer • Jennifer Schroll • Karl Arnold Schubert • H. Dwayne Schuck • John Edmund Schuder • David W. Schuerhoff • Dean R. Schuette • Anton F. Schulden • Phillip W. Schuler • Michael J.<br />

Schuller • James C. Schultz • Jeffrey Stephen Schultz • John D. Schultz • Kurt C. Schultz • Paul A. Schultz • Ronald Lee Schultz • Mark S. Schumacher • Brian M. Schumaker • Christine E. Schumaker • Douglas Schunter • Peter H. Schuyler • Martin J. Schwab • Kurt<br />

Schwager • Keith W. Schwallenberg • Rene’ M. Schwanenberger • William F. Schwaner • Michael P. Schwartz • Paul D. Schwein • David Francis Schweitz • Christina Schwenker • Mark R. Schwingshakl • James R. Schwitz • Pamela S. Schwitz • Robert J.<br />

Scibran • Gregory Scoda • Edward P. Scofield • Gregory J. Scofield • John C. Scofield • Robert D. Scoggins • James M. Score • Artis Lee Scott • Barrett O. Scott • Byron C. Scott • Douglas O. Scott • Frederick M. Scott • Glen R. Scott • Glover E. Scott • Jack A.


Names of charter members are in bold<br />

Scott • James W. Scott • Kenji S. Scott • Lester N. Scott • Linda O. Scott • Marcia L. Scott • Mark W. Scott • Priscilla A. Scott • Richard H. Scott • Robert E. Scott • Robin E. Scott • Timothy Bryan Scott • Vincent P. Scott • William F. Scott • Mark Scovel • Maurice<br />

C. Scoville • Anthony V. Scozzafava • Dennis R. Scroggins • Glynn R. Scruggs • Melvin H. Scruggs • Linda Emily Scudder • Rebecca C. Scudder • Joseph F. Scuderi • John E. Scully • Gary D. Seacat • Marc A. Seals • Michael R. Sealy • Charles A. Seaman • Michael J.<br />

Seaner • Andrew P. Searles • Michael R. Seat • Brian M. Seavey • Gerald H. Seavey • William D. Seay • William D. Sebastian • Richard C. Seckinger • Clyde R. Seckler • Douglas E. Secor • Timothy A. Secrist • Peter L. Seddon • Amy Lynn Sedin • Patrick M.<br />

Sedlacek • John A. Sedlak • Lester A. See • Myron Douglas Seefeldt • Robert L. Seeger • Garth E. Seehawer • John W. Segelken • Mat<strong>the</strong>w Y. Segleski • Jose M. Segovia • Hector Segundo • John J. Segura • John L. Seidenspinner • Paul C. Seifert • Chauntel T.<br />

Seiler • Brad W. Seitz • Jadyne M. Seitz • Stephen R. Sekaz • David J. Sekelik • Mike R. Seko • Andrew P. Sekura • Rebecca D. Selesky • Jubran G. Selim • Audie Seljaas • Stephen Lee Selke • Russell C. Sell • Maxwell Alan Sellers • Scott Kevin Sellers • Jan W.<br />

Sellman • Robert H. Selph • Julie Ann Seltsam • James R. Selvey • Susan B. Selvey • Karen L. Selznick • Duane Semcken • Jeffrey D. Seng • Edward C. Senna • James L. Senne • Peter A. Sensenbrenner • Richard J. Sepulveda • Paul J. Serafin • Jerry A. Serafini • Joseph<br />

J. Serafino • Rosa Serai • Joseph T. Serba • Anthony J. Serino • David M. Serna • Merlinda M. Serna • Robert A. Serra • Alfredo J. Serrano • Kevin T. Serratt • Frank R. Servidio • Robert J. Serviss • Melissa L. Sestak • Thomas K. Sestak • Don J. Seth • Anthony E.<br />

Setterfield • James Severin • Barbara Susan Severson • Mark E. Severson • Howard L. Sevey • Richard F. Sevigny • Diane Kelly Sevin • Ron Sevin • Michael A. Sewell • F. Darrell Sexton • Jeffrey L. Sexton • Jerrold W. Sexton • Joseph E. Sexton • Stephen H.<br />

Seybt • Kenneth W. Seymour • Steven A. Sfameni • Robert W. Sgroi • Bruce L. Shackelton • Orrin L. Shackleford • Mat<strong>the</strong>w E. Shafer • Richard L. Shafer • Baxter N. Shaffer • Darwin J. Shaffer • Lloyd M. Shaffer • Gitesh Shah • Jeffery A. Shake • Brian K.<br />

Shallenberger • John A. Shanahan • Patrick T. Shanahan • Michael E. Shanholtzer • Steven M. Shank • John J. Shanks • Robert M. Shanks • Karen Elizabeth Shannon • Shane P. Shannon • Thomas Edward Shannon • Randy L. Sharbonno • Paul J. Sharga • Daniel P.<br />

Sharkey • John A. Sharkey • Lyman R. Sharp • Terry E. Sharp • Kenny B. Sharpton • Richard J. Shavensky • Adrian M. Shaw • Daniel L. Shaw • Dorothy Shaw • Doyle N. Shaw • Gregory W. Shaw • Karla W. Shaw • Mike E. Shaw • Robert Alan Shaw • Sharon C.<br />

Shaw • James W. Shaytar • Brendan J. Shea • Dennis Shea • John M. Shea • Thomas E. Shea • William F. Shea • William John Shead • Lee B. Sheaffer • David Shealy • Jason Richard Shearer • Toby Alan Shedd • Jonathan A. Shedden • Pamela A. Shedden • William A.<br />

Shedden • Michael J. Sheedy • Daniel M. Sheehan • Jon L. Sheehan • Lawrence Sheehan • Mark C. Sheehy • Alan Sheely • Dwayne E. Sheely • Timothy D. Sheffield • Kevin D. Shelar • John A. Shelden • Kimberly L. Sheldon • Scott R. Shelerud • Terry A. Shell • David<br />

L. Shellenbarger • Scott Robert Shelley • Dary G. Shelton • James D. Shelton • Natalie R. Shelton • Richard Gordon Shelton • Ruth E. Shelton • Neale D. Sheneman • Donald C. Shepard • Cory Shepersky • Harry J. Shephard • Robert S. Shephard • Edward E.<br />

Shepherd • Leonard Shepherd • Pamela D. Shepherd • Patrick Shepherd • Michael N. Sheppard • Eric Noel Sherer • John E. Sheridan • Timothy S. Sheridan • Jonathan B. Sherman • William D. Sherrard • Nathan K. Sherrell • John J. Sherry • Mark J. Sherry • Casey<br />

L. Sherwood • J. Kevin Sherwood • Charles Ray Sheufelt • Larry R. Shewmake • Todd Lee Shibata • Kenneth A. Shick • John R. Shields • Joseph A. Shields • Philip C. Shierk • Roy K. Shifflett • William P. Shifflett • Jonathan G. Shinabery • W. Grant Shinn • Raymond C.<br />

Shipley • Margaret M. Shipman • Rodney K. Shipp • Ben J. Shirey • Mark H. Shirley • P. Duncan Shoberg • Teddy B. Shobert • Richard C. Shockley • John T. Shoemaker • Frank R. Shomilak • Barbara Anne Shore • Robert D. Shore • Randy Dean Shorman • Gregory K.<br />

Short • Hope J. Shorten • Wendell N. Shrabel • Larry W. Shriver • David R. Shrout • Michael Richard Shrum • Richard C. Shrum • Stacy C. Shrum • Cindi L. Shubert • Donald W. Shugart • Gina Rae Shuler • James G. Shuler • Douglas E. Shull • Kevin Alan<br />

Shulman • William P. Shultz • Kenneth E. Shuman • David Shumate • Ron S. Shusterman • Gregory W. Shy • Mickey L. Shy • Raymond Sia • Jody M. Sibert • Troy L. Sica • Mark T. Sickle • Richard A. Sickle • James N. Sickler • Robert Edward Sickles • Stephan J.<br />

Sickles • Paul Sickmann • Asif R. Siddiqui • James R. Sidebottom • Roberta Sides • Kenna Sides-Sinclair • Lori P. Siebert • Mat<strong>the</strong>w Scott Siebert • Phillip L. Siebert • James E. Sieffert • Jeffrey S. Siegel • John W. Siegel • R. Curtiss Siegel • Sue Siegle • Alison Kim<br />

Siegmund • Michael R. Siegmund • Robert J. Siegmund • William F. Siegmund • Patricia L. Siegrist • Anthony W. Siejka • Bruce A. Sienko • William J. Siergey • Joseph L. Siesener • Julie M. Siesener • James B. Sigmon • S. John Sigurdsson • William M. Silaghi • Victoria A.<br />

Silberberg • Darold Silcott • Scott James Sill • Garry D. Sills • Joseph A. Silva • Michael P. Silva • Richard A. Silva • Sesario Alex Silva • Anthony Silver • Sharon J. Silvering • Jason Silvertsen • Michael A. Silvestre • Michael Alan Silvius • Klint F. Simmel • Chris Kane<br />

Simmonds • Denzil B. Simmonds • Charles L. Simmons • James E. Simmons • Sandra L. Simmons • Stanley C. Simmons • Stephen Albert Simmons • Wayne O. Simmons • William P. Simmons • James E. Simms • Shawn J. Simms • Dennis Simon • Ralph D.<br />

Simoneau • Darcy J. Simons • Bret Alan Simpkins • Carolyn Michele Simpson • Craig Leigh Simpson • David W. Simpson • Dennis W. Simpson • Jacklyn Simpson • Karl A. Simpson • Paul C. Simpson • Scott F. Simpson • Tracy A. Sims • William M. Sims • Robert D.<br />

Sinclair • Sylvester Sinclair • Kathleen A. Singelyn • Dwight A. Singh • Parveen K. Singh • Annette Singleton • Scott L. Singley • Kimberly R. Siniard • Scott P. Sinkhorn • Richard A. Sinner • Richard Alan Sinner • Beverly Sinnott • Robert J. Siris • Billy S. Sisco • James<br />

Alan Sisco • Bruce D. Sistrunk • Hosea T. Sistrunk • Richard G. Sittig • Michael Charles Sizer • Todd Sjostrand • Allison Michelle Skabo • Steven Gordon Skaggs • Thomas M. Skahen • John Skahill • Felix J. Skarpa • Brett G. Skarstad • Ernest M. Skelton • Bonnie S.<br />

Skiles • Shawn E. Skiles • L. David Skillingstad • Harrison S. Skinner • Kathy A. Skinner • Martin A. Skinner • Michael T. Skinner • Anthony J. Skirlick • Michelle A. Skomars • Michael T. Skoric • Paul Skorniakoff • Richard M. Skotnicky • Michael J. Skubon • George Bias<br />

Skvicalo • Carl M. Slabicki • Kathleen A. Slabicki • Jacqueline C. Slade • William G. Slade • Thomas M. Slane • Trent Jeffrey Slate • Dennis J. Slater • William M. Slater • Charles S. Slaton • Samuel D. Slaton • Peter J. Slattery • Ken Slauson • Frederick K. Slavin • David<br />

N. Slee • Jacqueline Rae Slee • Derek L. Sloan • John S. Sloan • L. Russell Sloan • Richard J. Sloan • George R. Slobodnyak • Earl T. Slocum • Dannie D. Slone • Guy Lee Slone • Eric S. Slota • Dennis L. Slusher • Gary V. Smades • Barbara E. Small • Edward A.<br />

Small • James T. Small • Scott Andrew Small • David E. Smalley • John Hubert Smalley • Lisa Carolyn Smalley • Carl D. Smalls • Shona L. Smalls • James R. Smart • Steve A. Smart • Robert W. Sma<strong>the</strong>rs • Keith G. Smedema • Dennis D. Smederovac • Robert N.<br />

Smelley • Raymond S. Smid • Francis T. Smigelski • Alan J. Smith • Alan R. Smith • Alan W. Smith • Andrew C. Smith • Anthony M. Smith • Barry E. Smith • Barry W. Smith • Barry Smith • Brad W. Smith • Breck Ray Smith • Brent A. Smith • Bret A. Smith • Byron<br />

M. Smith • Calvin M. Smith • Carl R. Smith • Charles B. Smith • Charles E. Smith • Chevis Barry Smith • Clyde A. Smith • Craig A. Smith • Cynthia M. Smith • Daniel A. Smith • Daniel R. Smith • Daniel Z. Smith • Darrell G. Smith • David A. Smith • David B.<br />

Smith • David R. Smith • David W. Smith • Dean W. Smith • Deanna R. Smith • Don A. Smith • Donald E. Smith • Douglas Gene Smith • Duane D. Smith • Edward R. Smith • Edward Smith • Elizabeth S. Smith • Eric C. Smith • Fleming E. Smith • Frank E.<br />

Smith • Frederick P. Smith • Garrett R. Smith • Gene E. Smith • George F. Smith • Gerald L. Smith • Gregory James Smith • Gregory L. Smith • Gregory S. Smith • Gregory Smith • Harold C. Smith • Herbert D. Smith • James B. Smith • James B. Smith • James D.<br />

Smith • James E. Smith • James J. Smith • Jean Smith • Jennie Kathleen Smith • Jennifer Ann Smith • John Charles Smith • John E. Smith • John J. Smith • June M. Smith • Karl E. Smith • Kenneth G. Smith • Kevin B. Smith • Kevin R. Smith • Leigh R. Smith • Leonard<br />

R. Smith • Lu<strong>the</strong>r K. Smith • Marie R. Smith • Mark Alan Smith • Mark E. Smith • Mark J. Smith • Martin Byron Smith • Marvin E. Smith • Michael A. Smith • Michael D. Smith • Michael F. Smith • Michael L. Smith • Michael Smith • Michelle M. Smith • Mike G.<br />

Smith • Morton GeraldB. Smith • Natalie Ruth Smith • Norman B. Smith • Orville P. Smith • Pamela J. Smith • Patrick S. Smith • Paul Warren Smith • Phillip T. Smith • Rebecca L. Smith • Rebecca Smith • Richard B. Smith • Richard E. Smith • Richard J. Smith • Richard<br />

S. Smith • Richard Smith • Robby A. Smith • Robert A. Smith • Robert Cotting Smith • Robert H. Smith • Robert Hoyt Smith • Robert L. Smith • Robert Smith • Roger James Smith • Ronald W. Smith • Russell P. Smith • Russell W. Smith • Ruth A. Smith • Scott E.<br />

Smith • Shawn A. Smith • Stephen Randall Smith • Stuart K. Smith • Teresa Mae Smith • Terry L. Smith • Terry R. Smith • Thomas J. Smith • Thomas O. Smith • Thomas R. Smith • Timothy Allen Smith • Timothy D. Smith • Tobias D. Smith • Tommie L. Smith • Wayne<br />

E. Smith • William C. Smith • William E. Smith • William M. Smith • William X. Smith • John Michael Smithson • Damon A. Smithwick • Joseph A. Smoak • Curtis E. Smock • Robert M. Smo<strong>the</strong>rs • Robin A. Smuda • Timothy P. Smyth • Robert B. Snead • William T.H.<br />

Sneed • Frank E. Snell • Chad Martin Sneve • Joel C. Snider • Kenneth W. Snider • Bruce David Snoddy • Howard J. Snook • Benjamin L. Snow • David W. Snow • Edgar D. Snow • Edward G. Snow • Ernest E. Snow • Robert Snow • Scott Snow • Thomas J.<br />

Snow • Robert F. Snuck • Douglas E. Snyder • Ernest Roy Snyder • Fred J. Snyder • Harold K. Snyder • Leslie M. Snyder • Prescott C. Snyder • Thomas G. Snyder • Thomas Scott Snyder • William M. Snyder • Horace G. Soares • Christine A. Sobczyk • Donald B.<br />

Sobkoviak • Kevan Alan Soderberg • Philip C. Soehl • Gilbert Soerink • Renee D. Soerink • Mary J. Soha • John A. Sohl • Richard P. Sokol • John J. Sokolowski • Steven Martin Soler • Ellen B. Soletti • Charles F. Solie • Richard S. Solimine • Cassandra N. Sollie • Debra<br />

Anne Solomon • Ira D. Solomon • Mark B. Solomon • Paul D. Somerfeldt • Patrick A. Somersall • Keith David Sommer • Andrew Son • Gregory L. Sonnabend • Lu L. Sonnabend • Thor M. Sonoda • Michael Sonognini • Larry D. Sooby • Steve A. Soogrim • Chris<br />

Donald Sorah • Richard A. Sorbo • Dennis A. Sorce • Barbara Sordahl • Eric C. Sorem • Richard W. Sorensen • Steven P. Sorensen • Scott M. Sorenson • Jennifer L. Sorg • Trent Erik Sorheim • Edmund O. Soriano • Reny J. Sorrow • Erika L. Sorum • Ronald D.<br />

Sorum • F. John Soto • Johnny Soto • Jose D. Soto • James P. Soucek • Jeffrey M. Soucek • Richard W. Soucheck • Jeffery K. Soucie • David Soule • Jeffrey T. Soule • Terrell R. South • John W. Sou<strong>the</strong>rn • Brian Joseph Souza • Milton R. Souza • Michael D. Sova • John<br />

H. Sovis • Timothy B. Sowder • Scott E. Sowers • Charles Spadafore • Richard L. Spalinger • Patrick E. Spann • Kevin R. Spannagel • Frederick F. Sparhawk • John L. Sparks • Robert M. Sparks • Ronald Pat Sparks • Sharon L. Sparks • Jeffrey G. Sparrow • Eric S.<br />

Spaulding • Richard J. Specht • Roxanne M. Speck • Anthony C. Speer • Daniel L. Spence • Brian Henry Spencer • Denise N. Spencer • James A. Spencer • Jesse D. Spencer • Kelly J. Spencer • Kenneth W. Spencer • Melanie R. Spencer • Steven Craig Spencer • Terry<br />

F. Spencer • Thomas Sperellis • Fritz Eric Sperling • Ray L. Spickler • Mark J. Spies • Phillip C. Spikes • James T. Spillane • James Spille • Brelis M. Spiller • Marty L. Spiller • Anthony Spina • Terry G. Spinks • William M. Spinney • Sara L. Spotts • Alicia M.<br />

Spradley • Robert G. Spradlin • Daryl W. Sprague • Colleen N. Spring • Jesse J. Springer • Jude W. Springer • Steven Springer • Michael W. Sproston • Clay A. Sprouse • Chyral Ann Spurbeck • Salvatore A. Squillace • Adrienne W. Squires • Janette E. Sroka • Mark<br />

St.Amand • Frederick F. St.Amour • Robert J. St.George • Jeffrey Paul St.Germain • Jerry C. St.John • Lynne M. St.John • Timothy C. St.John • Michael G. St.Mary • Alan E. Staabs • Michael T. Stabenow • Andrew J. Stachowiak • James G. Stack • Mitchell Sean<br />

Stacy • William J. Stady • Conrad Scott Stafford • Donald E. Stafford • Larry R. Stafford • Mark Scott Stafford • Leslie W. Stafslien • David Stahl • Jason Stahl • Ruth M. Stahl • Richard Frank Stahler • Jennifer Stahley • Randy L. Stahley • Robert I. Stalker • Clyde A.<br />

Stallsmith • Chris C. Stallworth • Jeri B. Stalnaker • Robert B. Stamey • Cheri L. Stamper • Peter M. Stanco • Kyle A. Standow • Wade C. Stanfield • Bryan K. Stanley • Kenneth W. Stanley • Ray E. Stanley • Richard S. Stanley • Robin C. Stanley • Roy L.<br />

Stansell • Charles Blake Stanton • Chris L. Stanton • Heidi D. Stanton • Michael P. Stanton • Raymond S. Stanton • Ronald J. Stanton • William H. Stanton • William R. Staples • Andrea L. Stapleton • Joseph E. Stapleton • Thomas F. Stapleton • Richard Scott<br />

Stapp • Terry W. Starck • Randall G. Stark • Scott A. Stark • Stephen H. Stark • George S. Starkey • Joseph Starks • Chris C. Starleaf • Rickey D. Starr • Victor M. Starr • Stephen Joseph Stasek • Robert J. Stasiek • Andrew R. Stasiuk • Gary L. Statler • Vernell C.<br />

Staton • James G. Staudaher • Deborah Stauffer • Keith J. Stauffer • Mat<strong>the</strong>w C. Stauffer • Todd Andrew Stauffer • Joseph F. Stawash • Leon C. Stebbins • Tiffany L. Stecher • Richard David Steel • David E. Steele • Jenna L. Steele • Richard W. Steele • Tory D.<br />

Steele • William S. Steele • Donald B. Steeples • Michael Stefanick • Gregory Stuart Steffen • Harry W. Steffey • David A. Stefonowicz • Thomas J. Stefursky • Richard M. Stegura • William D. Stehle • Gary Donald Steichele • David V. Steidl • Robert P.<br />

Steidley • Richard Steiger • Deborah Sue Stein • Douglas R. Stein • Eric M. Stein • Gregory M. Stein • Jeffrey Charles Stein • Veronica Lynn Stein • Frederick W. Steinberg • James C. Steinbrecher • Jeffrey Steiner • Thomas J. Steiner • Rico Markus Steinhauff • Brett<br />

Allen Steinle • Leanne D. Steinle • Robert P. Steinwedel • Von Stell • Kathleen R. Stellmach • John Kevin Steltzlen • Mark A. Stempel • Michael J. Stendahl • Karen R. Stengel • Jeffrey R. Stenger • Laura G. Stensland • Timothy M. Stephani • Alfred B. Stephens • Boyd D.<br />

Stephens • Gary L. Stephens • Gregg A. Stephens • Gregory B. Stephens • John G. Stephens • Marie W. Stephens • Michael Scott Stephens • Mitchell R. Stephens • Troy R. Stephens • Bruce J. Stephenson • David C. Stephenson • Janice M. Stephenson • Kelly Lane<br />

Stephenson • Robert A. Stephenson • Robert C. Stephenson • Jason L. Stepp • Donald R. Sterling • Lee A. Sterling • Benjamin Stern • Deborah L. Stern • Jenelle L. Sternitzky • James D. Stetler • Donald S. Stetz • Jason R. Steury • Brian K. Stevens • Diane C.<br />

Stevens • Douglas S. Stevens • Jo-Ann Stevens • Mark Wayne Stevens • Michael S. Stevens • Paul L. Stevens • Richard E. Stevens • Sheila Stevens • Craig R. Stevenson • Neal P. Stevenson • Paul E. Stevenson • Shaun D. Stevenson • Mark M. Steward • Alynn R.<br />

Stewart • Barbara A. Stewart • Brent E. Stewart • Darla S. Stewart • David J. Stewart • James E. Stewart • Julie Lynn Stewart • Kristen K. Stewart • Marvin D. Stewart • Michael J. Stewart • Philip Stewart • Robert A. Stewart • Robert W. Stewart • Susan J.<br />

Stewart • Susan Stewart • Thomas J. Stewart • William S. Stewart • David L. Stice • Paul M. Stieglitz • Joanne M. Stiger • Greg M. Stiles • William B. Stine • Deanna L. Stinnett • Robert D. Stinnett • Kevin J. Stitz • David H. Stock • Thomas C. Stockham • Randal A.<br />

Stockman • Joel D. Stockseth • Veldon Carl Stoddard • Scott O. Stoeckle • David W. Stoehr • Barbara Denise Stoke • Keith E. Stokes • Walter A. Stokes • John P. Stokke • Mark A. Stoll • James R. Stolworthy • Alan J. Stone • David W. Stone • Margaret A.<br />

Stone • Mark R. Stone • Michael E. Stone • Robert J. Stone • Walter W. Stoops • Carlos E. Storch • Persephanie Green Storck • Patricia M. Storey • Jonathan S. Storhoff • Murray L. Storm • Tracy R. Storm • Eric C. Stormfels • Jonathan C. Storr • Leslie A.<br />

Stortz • Leonard N. Story • Ca<strong>the</strong>rine A. Stottlemyer • Julia M. Stoudt • James Truitt Stout • Clifton R. Stowe • Donald I. Stowell • James R. Stowers • Kevin M. Stoy • Scott Strader • Jesse L. Straessle • Jessica J. Strahley • Kevin T. Strand • David L. Strang • Robert<br />

M. Strange • Steven M. Strano • James P. Stransky • Melvin D. Strapp • Mark A. Stratmann • Joseph T. Straub • Scott Straub • Thomas J. Straub • Erik R. Strauss • Jeffrey A. Straw • Gary E. Strawderman • Edward P. Strayer • Sarah M. Strayer • Larry L.<br />

Strayhorn • Allen E. Stream • Jason Lee Strebig • Elizabeth A. Streed • Roger L. Streeter • Gary M. Streitman • Dennis Stremick • Carl Eric Strickland • Clois S. Strickland • Curtis W. Strickland • Gilford L. Strickland • Harold Leon Strickland • Louis W.<br />

Strickland • Russell James Strickland • Joseph R. Strietzel • John M. Striner • Renee Striner • Sherry Ann Strizak • Kerry C. Strnad • Richard J. Strnad • William P. Strobel • Karol L. Strommen • Robert L. Strong • Michael Eugene Stro<strong>the</strong>r • Derek Strothmann • Kathleen<br />

M. Stroud • John M. Stroup • Michael Mat<strong>the</strong>w Strukel • Robert J. Stru<strong>the</strong>rs • John Daniel Stuart • Robert S. Stuart • Jerry H. Stubbs • Kelley M. Stubbs • James L. Stuck • James R. Studstill • Kelly A. Studstill • Jennine M. Stuertz • Paul M. Stuertz • Robert Alan<br />

Stukey • John L. Stultz • William T. Stumbo • Tracey J. Stump • Dennis B. Sturdivan • Chris P. Sturm • Brad E. Sturman • Timothy R Stutts • Michael J. Styer • Alan S. Suarez • Jose M. Suarez • Michael E. Subia • Chris E. Such • Albert W. Suchcicki • Philip R.<br />

Sudano • Calvin George Suechting • Peter W. Sufka • David M. Sugarman • Vincent M. Sugent • Karl W. Suhsen • Brenda J. Sullivan • Craig A. Sullivan • Craig Sullivan • David L. Sullivan • Dylan R. Sullivan • Joseph M. Sullivan • Kevin Thomas Sullivan • Lisa M.<br />

Sullivan • Mark Kenneth Sullivan • Mat<strong>the</strong>w M. Sullivan • Michael D. Sullivan • Michael P. Sullivan • Michael R. Sullivan • Patrick J. Sullivan • Patrick J. Sullivan • Richard M. Sullivan • Richard W. Sullivan • Shaun F. Sullivan • Terence John Sullivan • William Sullivan • Jaime<br />

W. Sultzer • Alan M. Summerhill • Mark R. Summerlin • Margaret E. Summers • Robert B. Summers • Robert V. Summers • Kevin E. Summey • Brendt A. Sundermeier • Donald Sundheimer • Tony Sung • Jerry A. Sunman • Ken Superior • Gregory D. Sur • James<br />

Masten Surber • Richard J. Suren • Jeffrey A. Surette • Michael P. Suriano • William Susa • Steve S. Sutcavage • Chris S. Su<strong>the</strong>rland • Dennis R. Su<strong>the</strong>rland • Rhonda Faye Su<strong>the</strong>rland • Scott Sutphen • Craig Arnord Sutphin • Steve S. Sutphin • Peter P. Sutryk • Daniel<br />

J. Sutton • Marvin Sutton • Steven R. Sutton • Thomas C. Sutton • David Svrcek • Martin A. Swain • Whitmel B. Swain • Sterling W. Swan • Troy A. Swanberg • Blaine R. Swank • Leslie M. Swann • Stephanie R. Swann • Brett R. Swanson • Chris D. Swanson • David<br />

D. Swanson • David Swanson • Davyd R. Swanson • Judy T. Swanson • Larry R. Swanson • Mark S. Swanson • Stephen G. Swanson • Charles R. Sward • Charles E. Swardson • Douglas Swartout • Della Swartz • Ernest Joseph Swartz • James A. Swatek • Richard The<br />

NATCA Family


The NATCA Family<br />

Names of charter members are in bold<br />

Swauger • Cager Swauncy • Mark C. Swearingen • Rhonda Rowland Swearingen • Dennis M. Sweeney • Martin B. Sweeney • Terrance Sweeney • David A. Sweet • Jeffrey A. Sweet • Karl Sweisthal • Richard D. Swetnam • April C. Swetof • Dean Swickard • Charles<br />

Swierczynski • Gailan D. Swift • Michael D. Swift • Barry J. Swinburnson • Steven D. Swinehart • Shannon Walter Swing • Jonathan W. Swingle • Maliesa Ann Swinson • Mark S. Swinson • Steve M. Swisher • Steven A. Switaj • Steven R. Swoboda • Marlene Elisabeth<br />

Swofford • Jerry Swords • Michael R. Sybouts • Melvin H. Sydnor • James P. Sykes • Ivy C. Sylvain • Mark C. Sylvester • Robert M. Syms • Keith O. Syverson • Gabriel T. Szabo • Jeffrey P. Szakacs • Paul Alexander Szalai • Reed Szameitat • Adam Szczawinski • Edward<br />

C. Szczuka • Maureen Szczygielski • James J. Szendrey • Thomas A. Sztochmal • Robert H. Szymkiewicz • Peter V. Ta • Kevin Taaca • Derrick C. Tabb • Eileen M. Tabone • Gregory Francis Taccini • Kenneth B. Tackett • Rodney K. Tadlock • Beverly S. Taggart • Terrill<br />

Lee Taggart • AnnMarie Celeste Taggio • Rocco Taggio • John T. Tague • Lisa R. Tahtinen • James N. Tait • Mari Takahashi • Stan K. Takehara • Allison Talarek • Laurie Turman Talbert • John Tallarovic • Anthony Tallerico • Michael Tallerico • Johnny E. Talley • Judy<br />

M. Talley • Becky M. Tam • Enrique Tamargo • John D. Tambellini • Jawad H. Tamimi • Scheri Tamlyn • Craig A. Tammen • Eric Lee Tandberg • Timothy L. Tandy • Shigeo Tanji • Bruce A. Tanner • James K. Tanner • Linda L. Tanner • Larry A. Tanzie • Abel J.<br />

Tapia • Bruce E. Tarbert • Brian C. Targer • Mitchell S. Tarnoff • Marc W. Tarnosky • Thomas A. Tascone • David M. Tate • Pamela Jean Tate • William Frances Tate • Robert D. Tatosian • T. Rodney Tatum • Ronald H. Taube • John F. Tavano • Thomas P.<br />

Tavino • Anita J. Taylor • Blake W. Taylor • Charles Dempsey Taylor • Chris A. Taylor • Dale J. Taylor • Debra K. Taylor • Gayland W. Taylor • Gregory L. Taylor • James S. Taylor • James Taylor • John M. Taylor • Jonathan E. Taylor • Lawrence B. Taylor • Lee W.<br />

Taylor • Lloyd W. Taylor • Mat<strong>the</strong>w Taylor • Michael C. Taylor • Michael E. Taylor • Michael G. Taylor • Michael S. Taylor • Neil K. Taylor • Pat A. Taylor • Patrick R. Taylor • Raphell P. Taylor • Raymond Taylor • Robert D. Taylor • Robert E. Taylor • Robert M.<br />

Taylor • Robert S. Taylor • Rodney Joseph Taylor • Stephen M. Taylor • Susan M. Taylor • Terence K. Taylor • William F. Taylor • William Lawrence Taylor • Rachelle A. Taylor-Thran • Samuel D. Teague • Garrett C. Teames • Pamela S. Teasley • Maynard E.<br />

Tedder • Donald R. Tedrow • Michael L. Teel • Steven William Tefft • Richard Allan Teixeira • Johnny L. Temple • Joyce D. Temple • Scott Duane Tener • Dale S. Tengan • Andrew R. Tennison • Billy J. Tennison • John D. Terhark • Douglas R. Terhune • R o r i e<br />

Terhune • Frank C. Ternullo • Ronald D. Terpstra • William Forrest Terral • Bobby W. Terry • J. Robert Terry • Judy A. Terry • Nan L. Terry • Michael G. Tesmacher • Johnny R. Testerman • John A. Teuber • James R. Teubert • Eric P. Thacker • Mark D.<br />

Thacker • Charles L. Thackery • Richard F. Thackray • Patrick A. Thawley • Jane J. Thaxton • Terry W. Thayer • Paul E. Theriault • John F. Therrien • Greg M. Thibeault • Steven A. Thiebeault • Andrew J. Thieken • Guy C. Thiel • Rita M. Thiel • Neal C. Thigpen • Alan<br />

Thomas • Charles Andrew Thomas • Charles W. Thomas • Cheryl M. Thomas • Chris S. Thomas • Danny E. Thomas • Donald F. Thomas • Elizabeth A. Thomas • Freddie J. Thomas • Glenn B. Thomas • James J. Thomas • Jay D. Thomas • Jerome Edward Thomas • Julia<br />

M. Thomas • Keith Thomas • Kevin C. Thomas • Mat<strong>the</strong>w R. Thomas • Michael B. Thomas • Michael J. Thomas • Paul D. Thomas • Pauli Anton Thomas • Richard J. Thomas • Richard K. Thomas • Russell K. Thomas • Scott Thomas • Stephen G. Thomas • Tamarra<br />

Thomas • Thomas E. Thomas • Timothy D. Thomas • Trent N. Thomas • Victor P. Thomas • Walter F. Thomas • William C. Thomas • William J. Thomas • Elizabeth Ann Thomason • James Edward Thomason • Charlie W. Thomaston • Aaron D. Thompson • Barry L.<br />

Thompson • Bobby F. Thompson • Brent E. Thompson • Bryan E. Thompson • Candace Jill Thompson • Charles R. Thompson • Cheryl M. Thompson • David S. Thompson • Debra A. Thompson • Donald L. Thompson • Douglas C. Thompson • Douglas S.<br />

Thompson • Glenn W. Thompson • Gordon R. Thompson • John G. Thompson • Kevin L. Thompson • Lisa P. Thompson • Mark A. Thompson • Mark Anthony Thompson • Michael Dennis Thompson • Michael J. Thompson • Michael L. Thompson • Michael Scott<br />

Thompson • Michael T. Thompson • Richard E. Thompson • Richard Kenneth Thompson • Ricky R. Thompson • Robert M. Thompson • Roger Duane Thompson • Roosevelt Thompson • Steven J. Thompson • Terry W. Thompson • Thomas F. Thompson • Tony R.<br />

Thompson • William F. Thompson • Chris G. Thomson • Daniel A.M. Thomson • David M. Thomson • Thomas F. Thomson • Janis E. Thor • Thomas N. Thornbrugh • Greg W. Thorne • Robert L. Thorne • Patrick M. Thornley • Alan M. Thornton • Charles A.<br />

Thornton • Donna E. Thornton • Doyle W. Thornton • Dwayne T. Thornton • John F. Thornton • Richard O. Thornton • Scott A. Thornton • Stephen B. Thorp • Mark E. Thorpe • Dan Thorsen • Arvid Thorsland • Sharon Thrash-Alexander • Beverly A.<br />

Throckmorton • Kim A. Throckmorton • Randy Lee Throckmorton • Robert S. Throckmorton • Robert S. Thrutchley • Lisa Anne Thrysoe • Lane Alan Thuet • Mark A. Thuli • Michael Thummel • Philip Jon Thummel • Donald R. Thunberg • Rockton W.<br />

Thurman • Dean William Thurston • Thomas D. Thurston • Marlynda K. Tibbetts • Theodore J. Tibbetts • Robert J. Tibble • James R. Tice • Jack E. Tidwell • William L. Tidwell • Jerrold N. Tierney • Thomas Tierney • Stacy L. Tiffin • Grace Tighe • Lawrence J.<br />

Tighe • Sandra J. Tighe • Tara L. Tighe • Paul K. Tight • Kathleen A. Tigner • Stephen M. Till • Denise W. Tillack • William M. Tiller • Freddie R. Tillery • Jeffrey L. Tilley • Belinda Tillman • Lloyd C. Tillman • Mark Timken • Francis L. Timme • Charmaine P.<br />

Timmons • John J. Timony • Earl K. Tindall • Brian D. Tindell • Daniel G. Tinderholt • Patricia A. Tiner • William J. Tingler • Robert D. Tinkham • Scott A. Tinman • Kim M. Tinney • Joy L. Tippens • Floyd T. Tipton • Gregory G. Tipton • Larry J. Tipton • William<br />

Tirado • Richard Tishma • Gerald T. Titshaw • James G. Tittle • James Tlapak • Erwin J. Tobey • Kristine Marie Tobin • Devon L. Tobler • Marvin K. Tobosa • Gerald S. Todd • Georgia Lee Tolbert • Edison W. Toles • Eric C Toll • Preston N. Tolliver • James R.<br />

Tolson • Terry Tolster • Wing M. Tom • Jolene M. Toman • Dewayne H. Tomasek • Anthony P. Tomasi • David J. Tomczak • Joseph M. Tomich • Terri Lynn Tomisak • Valerie L. Tomko • Chris K. Tomlin • Marcus L. Tomlin • Samuel C. Tomlin • David L. Toms • Shane<br />

B. Toms • David Morris Toney • James W. Toney • Lai Tong • Paul Toomey • Renee Toone • Samuel Topete • Patrick M. Topham • Lynne B. Torbert • Whitfield Torbert • Domenic V. Torchia • Nancy Toren • S. Eric Torgersen • Jeffrey L. Torgerson • Thomas<br />

Toro • Dennis A. Torrence • Anthony G. Torres • Celso L. Torres • David Torres • Debora Torres • Elias Torres • Jerry Torres • Jesse J. Torres • Jose L. Torres • Lazaro Raul Torres • Phillip C. Torres • Roberto E. Torres • Xavier Torres • Pamela S. Torres-<br />

Synek • Philip Tortorice • Theresa Toscano • Edward M. Totedo • Josef J. Toth • Lawrence D. Toth • Shirley A. Toth • Deborah A. Totin • Robert S. Totman • David Wynn Touchton • Steven Toumanian • Frederick M. Tourin • Scott D. Tourin • Todd M. Tourin • Brian<br />

Tourkin • Ronald J. Tovar • Cheryl Ann Tovsen • Thomas D. Towle • Larry J. Towles • Edward Townend • Michael A. Townsend • Russell P. Townsend • Robert J. Toy • William J. Tracey • Daniel K. Tracy • Donna M. Tracy • Newell Dion Tracy • Robert D.<br />

Trader • Kevin Trafton • W. Scott Trafton • Cynthia E. Trahan • Kerry J. Trahan • Nolan James Trahan • Benjamin Jay Trainor • Joseph M. Trainor • Randy M Trainor • Donna D. Tramble • John L. Tramble • James D. Trame • Cathy D. Trammeli • George E.<br />

Trammell • Terry L. Tramp • Duong C. Tran • Kevin J. Trask • Samuel F. Travis • Timothy J. Travis • Patrick L. Treadway • Jerry W. Tredway • Timothy C. Treece • Ken J. Treglown • Leslie Lee Trejo • Jimmie A. Trekell • Gerard A. Tremblay • Laurel C. Tremblay • Paul<br />

D. Tremblay • James B. Trent • Mark R. Trent • Randall Trent • Russell A. Trester • Carlos G. Trevino • Frederick L. Trevino • Lee J. Trevino • James E. Trezvant • Mark J. Tribby • Thomas R. Tribou • David S. Trigg • Jeff Tripp • Joseph C. Trippy • John J.<br />

Trojanczyk • Cecil J. Trollinger • James M. Tromba • Peter J. Trono • Richard L. Troup • James D. Trout • Robert E. Troutman • Craig Stephen Troxclair • Bradley W. Troy • Timothy S. Truax • Chris Trudeau • Michelle Trudeau • Raymond C. Truelove • Glenn R.<br />

Truesdell • Anthony R. Trujillo • Lawrence Scot Trumbull • Hao P. Truong • Marilyn P. Trussell • Aline J. Trussoni • Steven W. Tryon • Alex Trzebiatowski • David Tsirkin • George J. Tsuchiyama • Geary R. Tubbs • Michael A. Tucciarone • Arthur C. Tucker • Benton<br />

T. Tucker • Charles W. Tucker • Chris B. Tucker • Gary W. Tucker • James E. Tucker • Mat<strong>the</strong>w C. Tucker • Michael F. Tucker • Ronald G. Tucker • James L. Tudor • Jenny Lynne Tudor • Paul N. Tue • Ronald J. Tumminello • Johnny R. Tune • Pierre R. Turcotte • Joseph<br />

John Turecamo • Francis Joseph Turek • Anthony N. Turiano • Steven S. Turk • Kevin Dale Turman • Allan R. Turmelle • Jay E. Turnberg • Gerald E. Turnbull • Alan P. Turner • Carlyle D. Turner • Claude W. Turner • Dale Lee Turner • David L. Turner • Elizabeth Anne<br />

Turner • Gregory Turner • J. Rodney Turner • Jeffery W. Turner • Joseph Turner • Michael K. Turner • Michael M. Turner • Michael Ray Turner • Ronald G. Turner • Russell Keith Turner • Tatchron Turner • John M. Turnquist • Linda M. Turton • Daniel<br />

Tussey • Dale E. Tutterrow • Everett W. Tuttle • Clifford M. Tvede • Sylvia C. Twa • Richard W. Twining • Brian C. Twomey • Bill L. Tyler • Jeff W. Tyler • Robert D. Tyler • Trent N. Tyler • William S. Tyler • James S. Tyler-Wall • John J. Tyndall • Kevin E.<br />

Tyner • Pamela J. Tyree • Duane Tyrell • Albert G. Tyson • David A. Tyson • David Mat<strong>the</strong>w Tyson • Eric Stanley Tyson • Robert Keith Tyus • Gerard S. Tzanetatos • Noel Felix Ugalde • Richard D. Uher • Edward W. Uhrich • Jonathan R. Ulanch • Mark E.<br />

Ulanch • Curtis J. Ulen • Gary Ulin • James A. Ullmann • Richard M. Ulmes • James L. Ulry • Deborah T. Umbaugh • Rusty D. Umbrell • David I. Umeda • Jennifer A. Umphenour • Chris Underhill • Dennis H. Underwood • Mark A. Underwood • Dawn Marie<br />

Unger • MaryAnn Unger • Anna B. Unruh • Jimmy M. Upchurch • Carrie Uphus • David Michael Uptain • Chris J. Upton • Ronald A. Upton • Richard James Urban • Thomas J. Urness • Richard L. Ussery • Karen Elaine Utley • Robert William Utley • Paul G.<br />

Utrata • Edward Vaca • Clifford E. Vacirca • Marcus I. Valdes • Michael Anthony Valencia • Angel E. Valentin • David S. Valentin • Bruce Valentine • Edward A. Valentine • Jeffery S. Valentine • Jeffrey S. Valentino • Valerie C. Valerio • Edgardo Valle • James W.<br />

Vallone • Vinh T. Van • John R. VanAlstine • Andrew T. VanAmburg • Jacqueline A. VanAntwerp • Gary S. VanCleave • Mark D. VanCuren • Brian VanDeBerg • Joseph R. VanDeBogert • Michel G. VanDerLinden • Gregory H. VanDine • Ellen VanEmbden • Richard K.<br />

VanFleet • Robert B. VanHassel • Gerald R. VanHook • Daniel J. VanHorn • Ronald K. VanLent • William VanLoan • John VanMersbergen • Joy E. VanNiel • Kenneth D. VanPelt • Stacey K. VanPelt • Amy J. VanSteenbergan • Ray C. VanTassell • Sandra E.<br />

VanTilburg • Kevin R. VanUden • Arie VanVugt • Bryan A. VanWinkle • Steven G. VanWinkle • James A. VanZee • Bradley S. Vance • Brian K. Vance • Lonnie R. Vance • Robert C. Vance • Scott Allen Vancura • Ka<strong>the</strong>y Lee VanDell • Gerrit D. Vandenberg • George<br />

T. Vandenbosche • Joseph Charles Vanderbeke • Gerald L. Vander-Heyden • Keith G. Vandersteen • Peter Vanderweel • George P. Vanechanos • Edward D. Vanek • Joseph Vangel • Michael D. Vantiger • James B. Vantine • Mark D. Varady • Tony Varda • Ramon<br />

Varela • Ricardo Varela • Mary Vargas • Ann C. Vargo • Daniel Varn • Richard K. Varner • James R. Varney • Stephen W. Varnum • Joseph A. Varradi • Carlos Vasquez • Heriberto Vasquez • Karla S. Vasser • Monica Leigh Vaughan • Frank E. Vaughn • Geoffrey K.<br />

Vaughn • Randy K. Vaughn • Richard L. Vaughn • William T. Vaughn • Anthony C. Vaught • Patrick D. Vaught • Lucy A. Vayo • David Alan Vechik • Gary John Veer • Luis H. Vega • Frank Randal Vegely • Kimberly J. Vela • Leticia B. Vela • Rodolfo R. Vela • Edward<br />

Velardi • Kathryn Ann Velardi • Bobby Velasquez • Fred M. Velasquez • Norfina A. Velasquez • Richard A. Velasquez • John R. Velazquez • Amaury Velez • Anthony C. Vella • Brent T. Veness • Louis Vengilio • Robert E. Venohr • Jonathan D. Ventre • Virgil S.<br />

Venzant • Kenneth F. VerStraten • Robert C. Verburg • Diane M. Vercella • Michael J. Verderamo • William T. Verderose • Susan W. Vereline • Jon W. Verhoev • William Verhoeven • Patrick H. Verhoff • Eric Vermeeren • Donald S. Vernam • Mary A. Verneer • James<br />

N. Veronico • Stephen Noel Verret • Tina Verret • Michael J. Verrett • Erik Verstraete • Troy A. Verville • Jane T. Vescovo • Tommy Darrell Vest • G. Stephen Veurink • Zoelea N. Vey • Deborah A. Vibbert • David Vick • Diane Vickers • Richard E. Vickery • Richard<br />

R. Vicor • Janet M. Victory • Joseph J. Vieau • Claude Anthony Vieira • Franklin S. Viernes • David E. Vigil • Phillip T. Vigil • James P. Vilasuso • Oma Anderson Viles • Richard Vilinsky • Nelson A. Villa • Christophe E. Villafranca • Ian P. Villafuerte • Paul<br />

Villagomez • Guillermo Y. Villalobos • Kenneth M. Villalobos • John J. Villarreal • Donald J. Vincelette • Dudley Vincent • Edwin C. Vincent • Michael D. Vincent • Dale R. Vinzenz • David M. Viparina • Berle E. Vircks • David S. Virden • Shelly K. Virtue • William<br />

Arthur Visconti • Rocco Viselli • Fred S. Visitacion • Paul V. Vitale • Christopher Vitaliti • Loreto A. Vitor • Michael S. Vitti • Douglas E. Voelpel • Wallis L. Vogan • Charles Ralph Vogel • John F. Vogel • Mat<strong>the</strong>w James Vogel • Roger L. Vogel • William I.<br />

Vogelgesang • Frederic H. Vogelpohl • John J. Vogelsang • Scott H. Voigt • Randy R. Voiles • Stephen J. Vollaro • Charles Vomacka • Anna M. VonWerder • Thomas Edward Vonasek • Karen S. VonMann • Neven E. Vos • William C. Voss • Samuel G. Vowels • James J.<br />

Vredenburg • Lai Joseph Vu • Thinh D. Vu • Steven T. Vurture • Evan A. Vutsinas • Melissa Wachal • Dennis H. Wachowski • G. Thomas Wade • James K. Wade • Randolph S. Wadle • William Paul Wadley • Michael S. Wages • Karan M. Waggoner • John A.<br />

Wagman • Carl F. Wagner • D. Scott Wagner • Douglas Wagner • Elizabeth E. Wagner • Floyd B. Wagner • Kenneth J. Wagner • Kurtis J. Wagner • Mark J. Wagner • Neil L. Wagner • Philip A. Wagner • Richard R. Wagner • William Warren Wagner • Barry J.<br />

Wagoner • John G. Wagoner • Keith A. Wahamaki • Mohammed A. Waheed • Raymond K. Wahl • William C. Wahl • Bradley Allan Wahlberg • David G. Wahto • David A. Waite • Anthony J. Wajda • Michael T. Wajda • David Wakefield • Michael Walborn • David<br />

S. Walczak • JefferyStewart Walden • Thomas C. Walden • Michael B. Waldera • Gilbert J. Waldo • George L. Waldrop • Alonzo G. Walker • Barry R. Walker • Bernadette E. Walker • Bonnie J. Walker • Brian Keith Walker • Daniel K. Walker • Daniel N.<br />

Walker • Darrel K. Walker • Elizabeth K. Walker • Elizabeth Walker • Howard E. Walker • James W. Walker • John C. Walker • Kevin Scott Walker • Kurt Walker • Laura Walker • Michael B. Walker • Michael J Walker • Michael S. Walker • Robert J.<br />

Walker • Ronald W. Walker • Russell D. Walker • Timothy H. Walker • Ursula Walker • Wesley Walker • William D. Walker • William E. Walker • Thomas D. Walko • Brian Wall • Dale R. Wallace • Danny M. Wallace • Dennis M. Wallace • Dennis W.<br />

Wallace • Gene Edward Wallace • Jason W. Wallace • Jason Wallace • Paul E. Wallace • Richard A. Wallace • Richard William Wallace • Steven Alexander Wallace • William O. Wallace • Raymond J. Wallach • Jeffrey L. Waller • Thomas S. Waller • William M.<br />

Wallick • Scott A. Wallig • John I. Wallin • Mat<strong>the</strong>w M. Wallitner • Brian E. Walljasper • Eric Robert Walls • Randy V. Walls • Timothy Edward Walls • Steven J. Walrath • Rebecca L. Walser • Anthony J. Walsh • Audrey J. Walsh • Brian J. Walsh • David A.<br />

Walsh • Gregory A. Walsh • Jeffrey H. Walsh • John E. Walsh • John M. Walsh • Michael P. Walsh • Ronald Joseph Walsh • Stephen G. Walsh • Steven M. Walsh • Terrence E. Walsh • William M. Walsh • Lisa A. Walter • Richard H. Walter • Stephen C. Walter • Bradley<br />

D. Walters • Dale L. Walters • Danny L. Walters • Donald G. Walters • James B. Walters • Marcia Walters • Barbara J. Walton • David L. Walton • Chris Scott Waltz • Tonya L. Waltz • Jeffery M. Walukonis • Robin M. Walukonis • Pamela L. Walz • Christopher D.<br />

Wampler • Scott Wampler • Tony Wang • Wego Wang • Larry L. Wanless • Daryl Y. Wannomae • Michael J. Wappelhorst • Anthony Paul Ward • Barry P. Ward • Carolyn A. Ward • Curtis Ward • Frank J. Ward • Gary A. Ward • Gary S. Ward • Lawrence J.<br />

Ward • Michael D. Ward • Michael L. Ward • Ricky J. Ward • William A. Ward • William G. Ward • Brett L. Warden • Buel Thomas Warden • Eric B. Ware • Dennis R. Warfield • Joan M. Warfield • Leslie A. Warfield • Jenniper L. Wargats • Todd E. Wargo • Scott<br />

Jay Waring • Alan D. Warmanen • Timothy A. Warmley • Harold L. Warncke • Cheri Warner • Ronald A. Warness • Bryan M. Warnica • Todd T. Warr • Andrew Scott Warren • Curtis B. Warren • Jack S. Warren • Mark E. Warren • Merle J. Warren • Robert A.<br />

Warren • Robert J. Warren • Tommy R. Warren • Valri L. Warren • Wendy G. Warren • Thomas E. Wartell • Stephen R. Wartenbe • Jeffrey L. Warters • John W. Warwick • Chester E. Waryasz • Sarah Wasbes • R. Scott Wasdin • Victoria A. Wasdin • James P.<br />

Wasgatt • Arthur J. Wash • Gary C. Washburn • Nikole N. Washburn-Cooper • David W. Washington • Marshall D. Washington • Melanie S. Washington • David W. Washino • Janice M. Wasmund • James M. Wassick • Steven H. Wasson • John W. Waterbury • Lisa<br />

Ann Waterbury • Jule Gary Waters • Linda Waters • Robert V. Waters • Billy R. Watkins • John Watkins • Marcella Watkins • Ronald L. Watkins • Keith B. Watness • Daryl W. Watson • David A. Watson • David L. Watson • Edward L. Watson • Gilbert M.<br />

Watson • Gregory Alan Watson • James L. Watson • LaTrice T. Watson • Lee H. Watson • Mark A. Watson • Ozzie Watson • Thomas Wayne Watson • William P. Watson • Benjamin Watters • Allison M. Watts • Conchita D. Watts • Daniel J. Watts • David Alan<br />

Watts • Kevin D. Watts • Paul Watts • William G. Watts • David M. Waudby • John Wawerek • David B. Wawrzynski • Jacqueline G. Wayson • Thomas R. Wayson • Paul J. Wazowicz • Joseph T. Wea<strong>the</strong>rly • Tracy E. Wea<strong>the</strong>rs • Bryan T. Weaver • C. Alan<br />

Weaver • Colin M. Weaver • Douglas Weaver • Jeffrey M. Weaver • John H. Weaver • Lisa F. Weaver • Lisa G. Weaver • Richard M. Weaver • Robert N. Weaver • Ronald W. Weaver • Stephen E. Weaver • Timothy J. Weaver • William G. Weaver • Alice J.<br />

Webb • Christine A. Webb • Danny R. Webb • Galen O. Webb • Jerry D. Webb • Loyal F. Webb • Mark E. Webb • Michael J. Webb • Patrick Gordon Webb • Steven Douglas Webb • Wayne H. Webber • William David Webber • Carl M. Weber • Donna J.<br />

Weber • Douglas B. Weber • Edward A. Weber • Glenn Weber • Henry G. Weber • Kurt R. Weber • Michael Weber • Richard Alan Weber • Robert L. Weber • Ronald Anthony Weber • Sabrina G. Weber • Tawnya A. Weber • Alan J. Webster • Chuck


Webster • David T. Webster • Patricia Webster • Paul G. Webster • James M. Wecht • Brent C. Wedderspoon • Eric J. Wedel • Dane R. Wedergren • Eric Jay Weeden • George Weeks • Gregory T. Weeks • John K. Weeks • Daniel D. Weems • Keith D.<br />

Weerheim • Richard J. Weese • James H. Wegner • David A. Wehking • Michael A. Wehrman • Bradley W. Weidner • Leonard M. Weidner • Steven Wayne Weidner • Paul S. Weikel • Edwin F. Weiland • Randall C. Weiland • Joel R. Weiler • Mitchell J.<br />

Weinbeck • Mat<strong>the</strong>w S. Weingart • Kevin M. Weinheimer • Winnie Weinrich • Dale A. Weir • Ann E. Weiss • Geoffrey D. Weiss • Richard J. Weissheier • Brian Anthony Weix • John Arthur Welborn • Dennis K. Welch • James J. Welch • Jeffrey Wesley Welch • Rita<br />

Welch • Abigail Welcyng • Jeffrey D. Weldon • Roger D. Welke • Jeffery D. Wellborn • Christopher S. Wells • Pattie R. Wells • Paul Arthur Wells • Thomas K. Wells • Thomas T. Wells • Jeffrey Jay Welsch • Molly A. Welsh • Ty D. Welsh • James R. Welte • Cydney<br />

A. Welter • David J. Welter • Russell H. Weltzien • Scott Charles Wenberg • Linda Marie Wendland • Chad E. Wendt • Thomas Wenneman • Craig A. Wenrich • Gary L. Wentz • Kirk Werlein • Charles Werner • John N. Werner • Thomas E. Werner • Alan Joseph<br />

Wernert • Larry Werth • Timothy A. Wertz • Jeffrey F. Wesche • Gerard W. Weschler • John R. Wesley • Michael S. Wessley • Christine B. West • David W. West • Dennis M. West • Earl W. West • James Richard West • Kenny West • Marshall West • Michael R.<br />

West • Robert A. West • Stacy M. West • Thomas L. West • William A. West • David E. Westbrook • W. Michael Westbrook • Drew Westendorf • Anthony D. Westfall • Lee A. Westfall • Dana Elizabeth Weston • Daniel A. Weston • Eric M. Weston • Herbert A.<br />

Weston • Mary Rebecca Weston • Penny L. Westphal • Patrick W. Westphall • Robert J. Westra • David F. We<strong>the</strong>rell • George A. We<strong>the</strong>rell • Richard J. Wetton • Douglas Wetzel • Patrick J. Weyand • Alan Weymouth • David P. Whalen • Melanie L. Whatley • Paul<br />

W. Whatley • Paul Whealan • Bruce A. Wheatley • Richard A. Wheatley • Brian Wheatman • David A. Wheeler • Elvin K. Wheeler • Lynn G. Wheeler • Monica Wheeler • Nelson Lee Wheeler • Steven K. Wheeler • Barry S. Wheeling • Peter D. Whelan • Robert<br />

M. Wherry • Hugh Ed Whicker • Peter John Whidden • Clarence M. Whipple • William M. Whipple • David K. Whisnant • David E. Whitaker • Andrea A. White • Anthony J. White • Antony M. White • Barry A. White • Brian A. White • Chris Dennis White • Donald<br />

G. White • Donovan O. White • Duane T. White • Gary Michael White • Geoffry D. White • Gregg E. White • Henry A. White • Jack White • James D. White • James Howard White • Jerry G. White • Jimmie White • John D. White • John R. White • Jonathan W.<br />

White • Kenneth A. White • L. Burton White • Leander John White • Mark D. White • Mart W. White • Pandora D. White • Philip L. White • Ralph E. White • Randall B. White • Richard J. White • Robert Craig White • Sean A. White • Steven E. White • Thomas<br />

W. White • Tobin White • Tony R. White • Troy White • William H. White • Winfield H. White • David A. Whitehead • Donald R. Whitehead • Harold K. Whitehead • Raymond C. Whitehill • Carrie M. Whiten • Michael A. Whitescarver • Vance E.<br />

Whitesel • Richard A. Whiteside • Michael S. Whitford • William J. Whitford • Brad R. Whitley • Ruth A. Whitley • Guy Joseph Whitlock • Raymond C. Whitlow • Chad M. Whitman • Dana B. Whitman • Edward G. Whitman • Garry Todd Whitman • Stephen S.<br />

Whitman • James Whitmarsh • Mark L. Whitney • Jerry L. Whittaker • Robert Alan Whittemore • Leslie A. Whitten • Scott Whitten • Alan L. Whittern • Mark Whittington • Georgia G Whittington-Hopkins • Craig A. Whitwell • Molly Whorton • Steven M.<br />

Whorton • David M. Wicker • Roger Douglas Wicker • Robert G. Wickman • Leslie E. Widick • Patricia C. Widomski • Paul James Widup • Judith Wiecki • Susan E. Wiedner • Roy D. Wiege • David M. Wiemer • Scott R. Wiening • Darrell J. Wieseler • Heidi<br />

Wiest • Wesley Clark Wiest • Michael R. Wiethorn • Peter D. Wiggin • Edward A. Wiggins • Gary M. Wiggins • Michael Brent Wiggins • Keith A. Wight • Charles Edward Wightman • Daniel M. Wiita • Talmadge Glen Wilbanks • Michael D. Wilcher • Benjamin P.<br />

Wilcox • Brian K. Wilcox • Kelly C. Wilcox • Rodney W. Wilcox • Scott W. Wilcox • Stephen D. Wild • John W. Wilder • Michael E. Wilder • Ricky Wilder • Larry A. Wildman • Michael J. Wiles • Eric Lee Wiley • George Wiley • Kay Frances Wiley • Dirk P.<br />

Wilhelm • Glen Wilhelm • Michael Gene Wilhelm • Todd L. Wilhelm • Jeffrey W. Wilke • Edwin Wilken • Michael A. Wilken • Bruce C. Wilkerson • Dennis Wilkerson • Jay L. Wilkerson • Leslye Oleta Wilkes • Richard W. Wilkes • Sharon E. Wilkins • Errol Anthony<br />

Wilkinson • Gregory M. Wilkinson • James Alan Wilkinson • Lawrence C. Wilkinson • Lavonzell Wilks • Randy O. Wilks • Susan G. Willadsen • Irene Willard • Dale Gerard Willer • Andrew J. Willgruber • Andre’s Williams • Annette M. Williams • Anthony J.<br />

Williams • Anthony Williams • Bruce V. Williams • Carolyn L. Williams • Carolyn Yvonne Williams • Daniel Duellen Williams • Daniel R. Williams • Danielle J. Williams • Darlene Williams • Denise Williams • Diane P. Williams • Erlinda C. Williams • Frank<br />

Williams • Gary A. Williams • Gary N. Williams • Herbert A. Williams • James A Williams • John Arthur Williams • John David Williams • John W. Williams • Leonard E. Williams • Mark C. Williams • Mark D. Williams • Mary I. Williams • Mat<strong>the</strong>w W.<br />

Williams • Michael C. Williams • Michael D. Williams • Michael G. Williams • Michael H. Williams • Nancy Juniel Williams • Nicholas M. Williams • Paul C. Williams • Paul M. Williams • Richard L. Williams • Robert C. Williams • Robert P. Williams • Robert T.<br />

Williams • Ronald D. Williams • Ronnie L. Williams • Rosa Amelia Williams • Sheldon B. Williams • Shirley A. Williams • Stacy Skobel Williams • Ted D. Williams • Timothy C. Williams • Tinamarie Williams • William H. Williams • William P. Williams • Andre G.<br />

Williamson • James J. Williamson • James M. Williamson • Charles E. Willis • Robin Elaine Willis • Sharon M. Willis • Wendell H. Willis • William L. Willis • Douglas A. Willman • Michael E. Willman • Michelle L. Willman • Regan J. Willmore • Jeffrey D. Willms • Cynthia<br />

K. Wills • Stephen D. Willson • Clarence C. Willwerth • Michael W. Wilmore • Angela M. Wilson • Barry A. Wilson • Brian J. Wilson • Carol R. Wilson • Carrie S. Wilson • Chad Prescott Wilson • Curtis L. Wilson • Danielle Wilson • Darrell L. Wilson • Dave H.<br />

Wilson • David L. Wilson • David Wilson • Deanna Wilson • Dennis C. Wilson • Douglas A. Wilson • Edward Wilson • Frank B.F. Wilson • Gregg A. Wilson • Harry Wilson • James N. Wilson • Jerry L. Wilson • Jerry W. Wilson • John H. Wilson • Julie Ann<br />

Wilson • Kathryn J. Wilson • Kelley M. Wilson • Kevin Alan Wilson • Lonnie A. Wilson • Lynden Kit Wilson • Marty D. Wilson • Maurice D. Wilson • Michael J. Wilson • Patricia J. Wilson • Rhonda Kay Wilson • Richard K. Wilson • Richard L. Wilson • Robert J.<br />

Wilson • Robert L. Wilson • Rodney Alan Wilson • Ronald Lee Wilson • Scott M. Wilson • Stephen J. Wilson • Timothy D. Wilson • Timothy Lee Wilson • Tonya M. Wilson • William T. Wilson • Troy L. Wilstead • George D. Wilton • Michael Alan Wimmenaver • David<br />

E. Winborne • Richard L. Wines • Charles D. Winfree • Joseph A. Winfree • James T. Wing • John Wing • Nancy E. Wingert • William Brian Winget • Kevin Wininger • J. Brian Winn • Kevin J. Winn • Thomas Jerome Winn • Dean R. Winslow • Kimberly C.<br />

Winslow • Larry F. Winsor • Gary D. Winsper • Robert Kelly Winston • Walter B. Winston • Jeffrey L. Winter • Mark L. Winter • Mat<strong>the</strong>w A. Winter • Courtney C. Winters • James A. Winters • John P. Winters • James B. Winton • Christina L. Winzer • Jeffrey David<br />

Wirs • Michael R. Wisdom • Melvin A. Wise • William C. Wise • Alec D. Wiseman • James B. Wiser • Dennis R. Wishart • Donald A. Wishowski • Kenneth M. Wisner • John W. Wist • James Wi<strong>the</strong>rs • Paul M. Wi<strong>the</strong>rs • Merle J. Withrow • Rosanne E.<br />

Withrow • Michael James Witschen • Ken L. Witt • Donna R. Witte • Michael P. Witte • Bruce R. Wittendorfer • Mark A. Wittman • Mark D. Wittmayer • Jeanne D. Witwer • Larry A. Wixom • Michael J. Wlodychak • Mark T. Wnetrzak • Dana Woeltje • Kevin L.<br />

Woertman • Robert L. Woeste • Jon Wohler • Hea<strong>the</strong>r S. Woiciechowski • Leon C. Woiciechowski • Thomas Wojciechowski • Gregory L. Wojcik • Joseph S. Wojcik • Mark S. Wojtulski • Michael L. Wold • Rolf Wold • Ronald Lee Wolf • Sharon J. Wolf • Jalunda<br />

Y. Wolfe • Terry S. Wolfe • Brad L. Wolff • Chris B. Wolfram • Timothy J. Wollenburg • Michael B. Wollert • Joseph R. Wolters • Clark Lewis Wolverton • Michael S. Wolvin • Robert K. Wolvington • Mat<strong>the</strong>w D. Womack • Joel D. Wong • Paul Wong • Peter<br />

Wong • Randall T. Wong • Samuel B. Wong • William D. Wong • Patrick T. Wongsam • James Wonneberger • Jeffrey J. Wonser • Bruce C. Wood • David C. Wood • Glen L. Wood • James Dean Wood • John M. Wood • Michael D. Wood • Richard A. Wood • Richard<br />

D. Wood • Robert D. Wood • Robert L. Wood • Ronald W. Wood • Stanton R. Wood • Wade P. Wood • William J. Wood • Craig L. Woodall • Brenda Woodard • Jimmy L. Woodard • Richard A. Woodbury • Douglas P. Woodcock • Ruth Woodford • Kenneth<br />

Woodham • Jason Daniel Woodin • Scott Ryan Woodley • Eric T. Woodring • Michelle L. Woodrow • Scott D. Woodrow • Kris E. Woodruff • Marceanne L. Woodruff • Alan S. Woods • Brenda L. Woods • Cameron T. Woods • Cecil Woods • Douglas L.<br />

Woods • Gregory Alan Woods • Jeffrey M. Woods • Michael J. Woods • Michael K. Woods • Robert J. Woods • Tena M. Woods • Thurston L. Woods • William E. Woods • Richard S. Woolbright • Annie K. Woolf • William E. Woolfolk • Bernard Woolridge • Steve<br />

Woolridge • Lisa C. Wooten • Steven C. Wooten • Tony E. Wooten • Terry J. Worby • R. Todd Worcester • Dennis M. Worden • Robin P. Worgull • Gayle A. Workman • Stuart Jay Workman • Bill L. Worrell • Joshua Lee Woten • Lorie Kay Woten • Daryl L.<br />

Wray • Abdul J. Wright • Aimee Wright • Barbara I. Wright • Barbara J. Wright • Eddie Wright • Frankland D. Wright • G. Ronald Wright • Geoffrey A. Wright • Herbert Wright • Ira S. Wright • Ivory E. Wright • James L. Wright • James M. Wright • Jane Elizabeth<br />

Wright • Jeff E. Wright • Jeff R. Wright • Jimmy Dale Wright • Joseph W. Wright • Josette L. Wright • Kevin H. Wright • Kevin S. Wright • Kevin Wright • Ronald C. Wright • Stanley W. Wright • Stephen A. Wright • Steven M. Wright • Wallace A. Wright • William<br />

D. Wright • William Joseph Wright • Willie A. Wright • Michelle A. Wrobleski • Gary Wu • Michael F. Wuenstel • Justin Lee Wulf • Mary M. Wunder • Daniel J. Wunrow • Jill E. Wurdell • Michael C. Wurst • Eric Wuttke • William Wuttke • Ronald A.<br />

Wutzke • Jeffery D. Wyatt • Mark W. Wyatt • Paul Richard Wyatt • Russel L. Wyatt • David L. Wyer • James Wygle • Greg Wyland • David Wynkoop • Peter Wynkoop • Robbin L. Wyrick • Gregory J. Wyse • Michael J. Xaver • William E. Xavier • John F.<br />

Xerri • Julius J. Yaeger • Kelly A. Yaeger • Kelly Yamakawa • Marilyn Ruth Yamamoto • Patrick Y. Yamamura • Fernando Yanez • Alban Yankauski • Keith E. Yanke • Joe Yannone • Kristy Yantos • Albert T. Yap • Clinton Yap • Jesse C. Yarbrough • John E.<br />

Yarbrough • Richard H. Yarges • David D. Yarnell • David M. Yates • Renee C. Yates • Ronald C. Yates • Brian T. Yax • Mark S. Yearwood • Aaron V. Yeary • Sheridan T. Yeary • David W. Yee • Patti J. Yennie • Nancy A. Yeomans • Robert W. Yerkes • Dennis F.<br />

Yesenowski • Karen Yeung • Neil P. Yingling • Jeff Yoby • Paula K. Yocum • Stephen L. Yocum • Mark Yogodzinski • Kochukoshy Yohannan • Kenneth C. Yohpe • Robert A. Yokota • Virgilio Q. Yolo • Gary P. Yordy • Warren Yoshizuka • Jeffrey K. Yost • Alan G.<br />

Young • Angela C. Young • Brent David Young • Chung-Der Young • Debbie Lyne Young • Douglas R. Young • Eric R. Young • Ernest Roman Young • Jeffry B. Young • John F. Young • John O. Young • Kali A. Young • Kendall L. Young • Kevin R. Young • Kyle<br />

Young • Marion A. Young • Maura E. Young • Michael J. Young • Nancy A. Young • Paul E. Young • Peter J. Young • Rexel S.L. Young • Richard J. Young • Richard Young • Robert N. Young • Thomas A. Young • Thomas Robert Young • Timothy E. Young • Tome<br />

Young • Travis K. Young • William O. Young • Deeja S. Youngquist • David B. Yount • Gary Yowell • Hanley Yu • James M. Yugovich • Joseph A. Yuhasz • Michael A. Yurasko • Anthony Yushinsky • Victor M. Yvellez • Robert A. Zabel • Alfred J. Zaccagnino • Thomas<br />

F. Zaccheo • Fred N. Zachary • Julie Zachary • Phillip D. Zacker • Felix J. Zaczek • Alfred W. Zadow • Voula Zaharopoulos • Kay A. Zahorik • William Zahul • Randy J. Zak • David C. Zakaski • Peter Alexander Zalewski • Nancy J. Zamoiski • Raul Zamora • Kenneth<br />

J. Zamzow • Lawrence J. Zan • Michael A. Zandi • Alice K. Zang • Mario Zapata • Charles A. Zapf • G. Jeffrey Zarella • Paul B. Zaroba • Harold L. Zarr • Andrew S. Zastrow • Glen Zastrow • Gonzalo D. Zavala • Gregg J. Zavodny • Michael J. Zdroik • Brady J.<br />

Zdrojewski • Scott G. Zeal • Joseph F. Zehren • Les Zeilnhofer • Gary J. Zeis • Philip F. Zelechoski • Alan G. Zeleznik • John Philip Zell • Jeffrey R. Zeman • Robert W. Zeman • Richard J. Zenoble • Robert E. Zepeda • Kenneth W. Zepnick • Charles W. Zerilli • K a r e n<br />

Zibolski • Kraig S. Zibolski • Gregory V. Zichichi • John F. Zickl • Anne Marie Zidar • Barry A. Ziegler • Charles R. Zielinske • John S. Zielinski • Michael Zielinski • Ma<strong>the</strong>w T. Zielsdorf • Dexter J. Zill • Bryan W. Zilonis • Darrell Zimmer • Roddy Mitchell<br />

Zimmer • Mark A. Zimmerlee • James A. Zimmerman • Michael D. Zimmerman • Perry J. Zimmerman • Ryan M. Zimmerman • Ted N. Zimmerman • William B. Zimmerman • Diane E. Zimmermann • Joseph L. Zimmermann • Myron L. Zimpfer • Joseph E. Zine • John<br />

V. Zinkus • David R. Zirkelbach • Dean Alan Zitek • William T. Zittle • Steven A. Zlogar • Patricia A. Zlotocha • Ricka Zobel • Scott E. Zoeckler • Nick Zoerb • Chris Zolton • Anthony Zombek • Dennis K. Zoss • Frederick J. Zotter • Kenneth J. Zufan • Anne M.<br />

Zurhorst • Christopher T. Zurhorst • Eric T. Zwicke • Zachary W. Zwicke • Steve Zwicker • Colleen Joan Zwirble • Mark A. Zwolenski • Edward A. Zydek<br />

<strong>National</strong> and Regional Office Staff Members<br />

Names of charter members are in bold<br />

Tom Bertelsman • Fran Bowman • Cheryl Cannon • Jose Ceballos • Lorraine Champ • Doug Church • Christine Corcoran • Candi Derr • Mike Doherty • Kathy Fincham • Selma Golding-Forrester • Shannon Grant • Kendal Guinn • Donna Gunter • Cecilia<br />

Harley • Lorri Hayes • Pauline Hines • Adell Humphreys • Terri Jeffries • Suzanne Johnson • Carolyn Kamara • Melinda Kim • Terri Lane • Tracy Levine • Greg Llafet • Pam Lochhead • Nicole Lofing • Maureen Malone • Ken Montoya • Claudia Moreno • Christine<br />

Neumeier • Ed Phipps • Courtney Portner • Dennie Rose • David Sandbach • Sallie Sullivan • Pamala Suttle • Laurelle Swanberg • Dick Swauger • Bob Taylor • Susan Tsui Grundmann • Terri Wayne • Katie Wittig • Lew Zietz The<br />

NATCA Family


250<br />

<strong>Against</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>Wind</strong><br />

Glossary<br />

AAS — Advanced Automation System: Proposed<br />

modernization of <strong>the</strong> air traffic control system<br />

under development during <strong>the</strong> 1980s. FAA Administrator<br />

David Hinson canceled most of <strong>the</strong><br />

program in 1994, citing delays, multibillion-dollar<br />

cost overruns, and flawed software.<br />

AATCC — American <strong>Air</strong> <strong>Traffic</strong> <strong>Controllers</strong> Council:<br />

Proposed labor organization formed by <strong>the</strong> American<br />

Federation of Government Employees (see<br />

AFGE) in 1984.<br />

Academy — FAA training facility at <strong>the</strong> Mike Monroney<br />

Aeronautical Center in Oklahoma City.<br />

AFGE — American Federation of Government Employees:<br />

Labor organization founded in 1932<br />

representing some 600,000 federal and District of<br />

Columbia workers nationwide and overseas.<br />

AFL-CIO — American Federation of Labor – Congress<br />

of Industrial Organizations: <strong>Association</strong> of unions<br />

representing more than 13 million workers.<br />

Agency — Common term for <strong>the</strong> Federal Aviation<br />

Administration (see FAA).<br />

ALPA — <strong>Air</strong> Line Pilots <strong>Association</strong>: Labor organization<br />

founded in 1931 representing 66,000 airline<br />

pilots at forty-three U.S. and Canadian airlines.<br />

ARTS — Automated Radar Terminal System: Computerized<br />

system used in conjunction with airport<br />

surveillance radar that was first installed at Atlanta<br />

Hartsfield <strong>Air</strong>port in 1965. A system called STARS<br />

is being deployed to replace ARTS.<br />

ATA — <strong>Air</strong> Transport <strong>Association</strong>: Trade group<br />

formed in 1936 representing twenty-two domestic<br />

airlines and four international carriers.<br />

ATCA — <strong>Air</strong> <strong>Traffic</strong> Control <strong>Association</strong>: Nonprofit,<br />

professional organization formed in 1956 to address<br />

air traffic control and aviation infrastructure<br />

issues.<br />

ATCSCC — <strong>Air</strong> <strong>Traffic</strong> Control System Command<br />

Center: The FAA manages <strong>the</strong> flow of air traffic<br />

within <strong>the</strong> continental United States from this<br />

facility in Herndon, Virginia.<br />

BGM — Binghamton (New York) <strong>Air</strong>port<br />

C90 — Chicago TRACON<br />

CAA — Civil Aeronautics Administration: Renamed<br />

from <strong>the</strong> Civil Aeronautics Authority in 1940, this<br />

Commerce Department agency was responsible<br />

for operating air traffic control services as well as<br />

implementing and enforcing aviation regulations.<br />

Center — <strong>Air</strong> traffic control facility responsible for<br />

separating aircraft in all controlled airspace that<br />

has not been delegated to a tower or TRACON,<br />

generally but not exclusively between 14,000 and<br />

60,000 feet. The FAA operates twenty-one centers<br />

in <strong>the</strong> United States.<br />

CERAP — Combined Center/Approach control facility:<br />

The FAA operates three CERAPs in Guam,<br />

Hawaii, and Puerto Rico (now referred to as Combined<br />

Control Facilities, or CCFs).<br />

Chapter 71 — A section of Title 5 of <strong>the</strong> United States<br />

Code granting federal workers <strong>the</strong> right to union<br />

representation and collective bargaining.<br />

Choirboys — Group of activist PATCO controllers<br />

who were selected in <strong>the</strong> late 1970s to help ensure<br />

a successful vote in <strong>the</strong> event of a strike.<br />

CLE — Cleveland Hopkins International <strong>Air</strong>port<br />

Control tower — See Tower<br />

CPC — Certified Professional Controller: Journeymen<br />

controllers qualified to work at every operating position<br />

within <strong>the</strong>ir areas of specialization (formerly<br />

known as an FPL).<br />

DAL — Dallas Love Field<br />

DCA — Washington <strong>National</strong> <strong>Air</strong>port<br />

DFW — Dallas-Fort Worth International <strong>Air</strong>port<br />

Deal — Colloquial term for an operational error, an<br />

event that results in <strong>the</strong> loss of required separation<br />

between aircraft.<br />

Developmental — Controller who has not been certified<br />

as a journeyman. They are also known as<br />

Certified Professional <strong>Controllers</strong> in Training, or<br />

CPC-Its.<br />

“D-side” — Data-side: A control position in an en<br />

route center. This position is responsible for maintaining<br />

<strong>the</strong> data associated with air traffic control<br />

and assists <strong>the</strong> radar controller position (see “Rside”)<br />

with coordination and communication between<br />

o<strong>the</strong>r air traffic controllers and facilities.<br />

DSR — Display System Replacement: Digital radar<br />

display installed in en route centers during <strong>the</strong><br />

late 1990s.<br />

En Route Center — See Center<br />

EWB — New Bedford (Massachusetts) <strong>Air</strong>port<br />

FAA — Federal Aviation Administration: Transportation<br />

Department agency created in 1958 to replace<br />

<strong>the</strong> Civil Aeronautics Administration (see CAA). It<br />

is responsible for operating <strong>the</strong> nation’s air traffic<br />

control system, implementing and enforcing aviation<br />

regulations, and promoting air travel.<br />

FAB — Facility Advisory Board: Worker-management<br />

committees formed by <strong>the</strong> FAA in early 1982 to<br />

help address airspace and procedural issues and<br />

improve employee morale.<br />

FAM — Familiarization trip: Enables controllers to<br />

observe pilots from <strong>the</strong> cockpit jump seat.<br />

FAY — Fayetteville (Arkansas) <strong>Air</strong>port<br />

FLL — Fort Lauderdale (Florida) International <strong>Air</strong>port<br />

FLRA — Federal Labor Relations Authority: Indepen-


dent agency responsible for administering <strong>the</strong> labor-management<br />

relations program for 1.9 million<br />

U.S. federal employees around <strong>the</strong> world.<br />

FPL — Full Performance Level: Journeymen controllers<br />

qualified to work at every operating position<br />

within <strong>the</strong>ir areas of specialization (now known<br />

as a CPC).<br />

Flight Strip — Paper strips that contain basic information<br />

about flights operating in <strong>the</strong> <strong>National</strong><br />

<strong>Air</strong>space System (see NAS).<br />

GS Scale — General Schedule pay scale for federal<br />

employees.<br />

HGR — Hagerstown (Maryland) <strong>Air</strong>port<br />

HRC — Human Relations Council: Worker-management<br />

committees formed by <strong>the</strong> FAA in early 1982<br />

to help address workplace issues and improve employee<br />

morale.<br />

IAD — Dulles International <strong>Air</strong>port<br />

IFATCA — International Federation of <strong>Air</strong> <strong>Traffic</strong><br />

<strong>Controllers</strong>’ <strong>Association</strong>s: Formed in 1961, IF-<br />

ATCA is composed of group members from more<br />

than 100 nations and represents controller issues<br />

to <strong>the</strong> International Civil Aviation Organization,<br />

which sets worldwide policies.<br />

MCI — Kansas City International <strong>Air</strong>port<br />

MEBA — Marine Engineers Beneficial <strong>Association</strong>:<br />

Labor organization formed in 1875 representing<br />

engineers and deck officers in commercial shipping.<br />

N90 — New York TRACON<br />

NAATS — <strong>National</strong> <strong>Association</strong> of <strong>Air</strong> <strong>Traffic</strong> Specialists:<br />

Labor organization formed in 1969 representing<br />

air traffic controllers working in Flight Service<br />

Stations.<br />

NAGE — <strong>National</strong> <strong>Association</strong> of Government Employees:<br />

Labor organization formed in 1961 representing<br />

federal, county, and municipal employees.<br />

NAS — <strong>National</strong> <strong>Air</strong>space System: Network of airspace,<br />

airports, navigation aids, and air traffic<br />

control equipment across <strong>the</strong> United States.<br />

NATCA — <strong>National</strong> <strong>Air</strong> <strong>Traffic</strong> <strong>Controllers</strong> <strong>Association</strong>:<br />

Labor organization certified in 1987 representing<br />

some 20,000 FAA and Defense Department<br />

employees as well as some controllers working in<br />

towers contracted out to private companies.<br />

NMI — NATCA Membership Investments Incorporated:<br />

Entity that owns <strong>the</strong> union headquarters<br />

building in Washington, D.C.<br />

NTSB — <strong>National</strong> Transportation Safety Board: Independent<br />

federal agency that investigates all major<br />

transportation accidents.<br />

OFF — Offutt <strong>Air</strong> Force Base in Nebraska (location of<br />

Omaha TRACON).<br />

ONT — Ontario (California) <strong>Air</strong>port<br />

ORD — Chicago O’Hare International <strong>Air</strong>port<br />

OQU — Quonset (Rhode Island) TRACON<br />

P50 — Phoenix TRACON<br />

PASS — Professional <strong>Air</strong>ways Systems Specialists:<br />

Labor organization formed in 1981 representing<br />

more than 11,000 technicians, safety inspectors,<br />

and o<strong>the</strong>r FAA workers.<br />

PATCO — Professional <strong>Air</strong> <strong>Traffic</strong> <strong>Controllers</strong> Organization:<br />

Labor group formed in 1968 representing<br />

some 17,000 FAA workers. The FLRA (see FLRA)<br />

decertified PATCO in October 1981 after a nationwide<br />

strike by many of its members.<br />

PVD — Providence (Rhode Island) <strong>Air</strong>port<br />

QTP — Quality Through Partnership: Program developed<br />

by <strong>the</strong> FAA and NATCA during <strong>the</strong> early<br />

1990s to foster collaborative labor-management<br />

relationships. Congress canceled funding for <strong>the</strong><br />

program in 1996.<br />

RFD — Rockford (Illinois) <strong>Air</strong>port<br />

“R-side” — Radar-side: The primary air traffic control<br />

position in an en route center, responsible for<br />

separating air traffic within an area of jurisdiction<br />

(sector). This position uses <strong>the</strong> radio (hence <strong>the</strong><br />

term “R-side”) to issue instructions to pilots. With<br />

Glossary<br />

251<br />

<strong>the</strong> introduction of radar, it has come to be known<br />

as <strong>the</strong> “radar-side.” A data controller (see “D-side”)<br />

often assists this position.<br />

Shrimp boats — Small metal or plastic devices containing<br />

flight information. <strong>Controllers</strong> pushed<br />

<strong>the</strong>se devices around on maps and early radarscopes<br />

to mimic <strong>the</strong> progress of airplanes under<br />

<strong>the</strong>ir responsibility.<br />

“Snitch” — Colloquial term for <strong>the</strong> Operational Error<br />

Detection Patch, a software program installed at en<br />

route centers during <strong>the</strong> mid-1980s to document<br />

loss of required separation between aircraft.<br />

“Squeal-a-Deal” — See “Snitch”<br />

STARS — Standard Terminal Automation Replacement<br />

System: Digital radar system designed to<br />

replace radarscopes at TRACONs.<br />

Terminal Environment or Facility — <strong>Air</strong>port control<br />

tower or TRACON.<br />

TMB — Tamiami (Florida) <strong>Air</strong>port<br />

Tower — <strong>Air</strong> traffic control facility responsible for<br />

separating aircraft landing at and departing from<br />

an airport. The FAA operates 352 towers in <strong>the</strong><br />

United States.<br />

TRACAB — Approach control facility operating in a<br />

control tower cab.<br />

TRACON — Terminal Radar Approach Control: <strong>Air</strong><br />

traffic control facility responsible for separating<br />

aircraft shortly after takeoff and before landing<br />

within some 60 miles of an airport. The FAA operates<br />

185 TRACONs in <strong>the</strong> United States.<br />

USATS — U.S. <strong>Air</strong> <strong>Traffic</strong> Services Corporation: Nonprofit,<br />

quasi-governmental entity proposed by <strong>the</strong><br />

Clinton administration in 1993 to operate air traffic<br />

control. The organization was never created.<br />

ZKC — Kansas City Center<br />

ZMA — Miami Center<br />

ZNY — New York Center<br />

ZSU — San Juan (Puerto Rico) Center, which later became<br />

a CERAP (see CERAP) and <strong>the</strong>n a CCF.<br />

ZTL — Atlanta Center


252<br />

<strong>Against</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>Wind</strong><br />

Bibliogr aphy<br />

Books<br />

1. Nolan, Michael S. Fundamentals of <strong>Air</strong> <strong>Traffic</strong> Control. 2d ed. Belmont, California: Wadsworth<br />

Publishing, 1994.<br />

2. Nordlund, Willis J. Silent Skies: The <strong>Air</strong> <strong>Traffic</strong> <strong>Controllers</strong>’ Strike. 2d ed. Westport, Connecticut:<br />

Praeger Publishers, 1998.<br />

3. Shostak, Arthur B., Ph.D., and Skocik, David, M.A. The <strong>Air</strong> <strong>Controllers</strong>’ Controversy: Lessons<br />

from <strong>the</strong> PATCO Strike. New York: Human Sciences Press, 1986.<br />

4. Department of Transportation. FAA Historical Chronology, 1926-1996. Washington: U.S.<br />

Government Printing Office, 1996.<br />

5. <strong>National</strong> <strong>Air</strong> <strong>Traffic</strong> <strong>Controllers</strong> <strong>Association</strong>. NATCA 2001-2002 Membership Directory &<br />

Guide Book. Washington: NATCA, 2001.<br />

Official Papers<br />

1. American Federation of Government Employees, Washington. Archival material.<br />

2. Marine Engineers Beneficial <strong>Association</strong>, Washington. Archival material.<br />

3. <strong>National</strong> <strong>Air</strong> <strong>Traffic</strong> <strong>Controllers</strong> <strong>Association</strong>, Washington. <strong>National</strong> Executive Board<br />

minutes, biennial convention transcripts, and o<strong>the</strong>r archival material.

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