Sunday, March 7, 2010

Kids in the Control Tower

A 9-year-old child's voice could be heard for a short period in the recent release of a control tower recording at New York's JFK Airport. The 9-year-old was a child of an air traffic controller. The controller was suspended, since this was clearly against regulations. Taking your child to work for a day is a good idea, but how involved should they get in their parent's job? The kid was cute, smart and under supervision, but the incident does make light of a very serious job where people's lives are on the line. Air traffic controllers have just as vital a role in air safety as the pilots. The issue drew lots of calls to our show on Thursday, with the prevailing opinion somewhat sympathetic to the control tower employee. While few callers thought putting a child on with a pilot was a good idea, no one really thought the father should have been fired. My audience was a bit more lenient than I was, but I think a suspension is enough.

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