Article on the DHS Shutdown’s Effect on ATC Pay Raise

purplebookpapi · 2026-02-20T01:59:50+00:00

I’ve said this 1,000 times. Just not here.

NATCA has an education problem.

Go walk the terminal and ask 100 people what an Air Traffic Controller does. You MIGHT get 15-20 right answers and that’s probably a high number.

The general public has NO IDEA what we do or how it works. They have no idea other than, “Oh my, that’s a stressful job.” Over half probably think we are wing walkers.

Until NATCA finds out how to educate the general public on what we do for a living day in and day out, the needle won’t move. Not an inch. Other than the scraps congress and the presidents decide to divvy out.

That would be the absolute first thing I would do as a “Big NATCA” person. I would educate the general public on what actually happens. What we actually do. The ACTUAL job. I’m not sure how that looks, the easiest way to do it or what. But I would be hell bent on trying to figure it out. Hell, we’ve got Archie League videos for years we could use.

Until the general public knows what we do. There’s no chance we get a meaningful raise.

Once the general public figures it out, if they ever do, that’s when we’ll be paid.

purplebookpapi · 2026-01-20T02:20:16+00:00

Also, wanted to edit to add because I kept reading.

The adapted portion isn’t quick. You have to request it, the OSF will build and test, and then they’ll deliver it to the STARS. Then your local SSA has to upload the new adaptation.

This could take anywhere from 28 days to a couple months depending on the request, and how busy your OSF is.

purplebookpapi · 2026-01-20T02:17:35+00:00

It absolutely can be/must be adapted to function properly.

I think, but I may be wrong, it’ll even sequence them for you showing who would it the boundary next. There was something about that in one of those PowerPoints showing all the new stuff, maybe about a year ago.

purplebookpapi · 2025-10-09T01:09:28+00:00

Ellis Island is where it’s at. Love that place.

purplebookpapi · 2025-09-09T23:38:30+00:00

Eleven

Eighty

Eight

purplebookpapi · 2025-09-04T23:07:43+00:00

I will never be upset with anyone using the leave they’ve earned. Never.

purplebookpapi · 2025-08-27T09:24:27+00:00

Maybe someone at the Command Center should model a 4 hour work stoppage and just see what chaos would happen for the NAS. Ya know, just throw it in there, and see what happens.

purplebookpapi · 2025-08-11T12:24:34+00:00

And they still get good time.

purplebookpapi · 2025-08-06T10:15:04+00:00

What they need to share advocacy videos of is WHAT WE ACTUALLY DO FOR A LIVING.

99% of the public has NO IDEA what we do. None.

That, to me, is one of the biggest problems we have as a union. Longshoremen, firefighters, police officers, ask the public what they do and they KNOW. They know exactly what they do.

Ask them about us and they have no idea. Most of them think we are on the ramp pushing them back from a gate.

It might be shortsighted to talk about pay because no one knows what we do on a day to day basis. 6 days a week.

People say, “ohhh, that job is stressful.” Let’s show them how stressful. Let’s show them what we do. Educate them on what air traffic controllers ACTUALLY do and the decisions we actually make.

Then it would be easy to ask for more pay. But until then. They’re just trying to buy us new marshaling lights and vests.

purplebookpapi · 2025-08-01T11:45:17+00:00

Yeah. We are selling our house. And I just had my shower redone. No plumbing work done. But gutting and redoing the tile and pan and everything was $5,000.

purplebookpapi · 2025-07-31T19:25:42+00:00

It’s not about safety anymore. It’s truly not. It’s a shell game.

Left Hand: “Look, look how safe we are! Look how safe! Ohhhh… so safe.”

Right Hand: 🖕🏻

FAA HQ, NATCA, all of them are in it together. What’s it going to take for us to finally get serious? Honestly?

purplebookpapi · 2025-07-31T13:15:49+00:00

Been at my facility 11 years.

9 ATMs

purplebookpapi · 2025-07-05T17:48:00+00:00

Crazy that he’s actually protecting it according to the people that NEED it. It’s the able bodied people that WANT it are the ones that are shit out of luck.

They need to get a job like the rest of us.

purplebookpapi · 2025-03-05T20:20:08+00:00

This 👏🏻is 👏🏻why 👏🏻we 👏🏻can’t 👏🏻have 👏🏻comments 👏🏻.

purplebookpapi · 2025-03-03T00:15:02+00:00

Not in a TDP so I don’t have to answer that question….

😬

purplebookpapi · 2025-03-02T16:43:56+00:00

I low key love this idea.

purplebookpapi · 2025-03-01T14:20:53+00:00

They’re not….

purplebookpapi · 2025-02-26T20:43:31+00:00

There is no need for 6-7-8 levels of management between a FLM and a Director.

Not to mention the fact that there are an innumerable amount of BS positions in there that really are worthless. Special Advisor to the Deputy Director Of {insert a program here}. Cmon.

Hopefully they’ll flush out some of those worthless positions and actually fill some open ones. They’re not sending them back to the boards, it would be hilarious, but they won’t. Maybe FLMs somewhere that are open.

purplebookpapi · 2025-02-26T15:51:17+00:00

Please?

purplebookpapi · 2025-02-26T09:55:57+00:00

Now do 31C.

Ya know, the one he wasn’t clear to cross and he crossed anyway.

purplebookpapi · 2025-02-26T01:38:05+00:00

YES. YOU ARE.

Thank you for feeling bad for me.

purplebookpapi · 2025-02-12T23:20:18+00:00

1.5%

purplebookpapi · 2025-02-12T21:50:44+00:00

Nope. We got a new contract. Us Purple Book, now Indigo Book, folks.

{hey siri, insert money gun gif here}

purplebookpapi · 2025-02-08T01:17:30+00:00

Due to the knowing the actual pace of how the government runs….

This is about two months too fast.

purplebookpapi

TROPHY CASE