Small Aircraft; Low Wing; 1 Eng; Fixed Gear
Air Traffic Control Fully Certified
Air Traffic Control Time Certified In Pos 1 (yrs) 9.0
Confusion; Training / Qualification
ATC Issue All Types; Deviation / Discrepancy - Procedural Published Material / Policy; Inflight Event / Encounter Loss Of Aircraft Control
Air Traffic Control Provided Assistance
Company Policy
I was merely the TMC (Traffic Management Coordinator) in the room when the event occurred. Aircraft X was inbound and lost his auto pilot. It appeared that the pilot was a little too panicked to fly the airplane on an instrument approach and was struggling to hold a heading and an altitude. A Controller was working the emergency at the time and by the Controller in Charge's (CIC) account; was doing a good job. The OM (Operations Manager) decided to send a Supervisor to take over the position; even though the Supervisor isn't certified at all on satellite sector. The CIC said that this caused a little chaos initially; but then it settled down. All of us in the room were scratching our heads as to why you'd pull a full time controller off the position to plug in a supervisor that controls 8 hours a month and isn't certified on the position and no; he isn't pilot either. Maybe this is a new FAA policy? If so; not a good one. As a part time controller myself; I would never want to take a position from a Controller on a position that I don't work and work an emergency. Staffing was not an issue and I can't fathom why the OM would put the supervisor in that position and why the pilot didn't get the more experienced person available. My recommendation would be to let the controller do their job.
Traffic Management Coordinator reported an Operations Manager assign a non certified Supervisor to work a sector during an aircraft emergency event.