A320
Air Traffic Control Fully Certified
Air Traffic Control Time Certified In Pos 1 (yrs) 8
Workload; Situational Awareness; Communication Breakdown
ATC Issue All Types; Airspace Violation All Types; Deviation / Discrepancy - Procedural Clearance; Deviation / Discrepancy - Procedural Published Material / Policy; Inflight Event / Encounter Weather / Turbulence
Air Traffic Control Issued Advisory / Alert; Air Traffic Control Issued New Clearance; Flight Crew Requested ATC Assistance / Clarification; Flight Crew Exited Penetrated Airspace
Company Policy; Human Factors; Staffing; Weather; Airspace Structure
We had weather forecast for the southeastern US. As the day moved on; the weather started to move eastbound and build; as forecast in my pre-duty weather briefing. Warning Areas were active. About an hour before things started getting pinched; I heard at least 3 controllers inform the Supervisor that if we did not get the Warning Area released; we were going to need another plan. The Supervisor called TMU (Traffic Management Unit) and relayed them this information and requested the Warning Area to be recalled. As time moved on; aircraft started deviating further and further east; ZZZ arrivals were having to be restricted to 24000 feet (Letter of Agreement calls for 34000 feet) in order for us to safely run departures and arrivals head on with each other. Still manageable at this point; although the level of safety was suspect. The morning continued to roll-on and the weather continued to move east with multiple controllers; including myself; informing our supervisor that this plan wasn't going to work in the next 20 minutes. The response he was given from TMU was 'I have your request'. Next thing you know; aircraft were deviating into the Warning Areas. We had at least 2 get in there with point outs and managed to keep most of them outside the airspace with some persuasive suggestion. The Warning Area Controllers began to say unable to take hand offs for our sectors. One sector had at least one aircraft get into the Warning Area on an emergency squawk. Another sector had multiple aircraft requesting deviations into the Warning Area. That sector then had to shutoff the adjacent sector from all directions and another sector shut off departures out of another airport. The East Area had to hold our aircraft as well. TMU did not seem to have a plan or reroute anyone until after our controllers shut the door. Multiple controllers holding; multiple sectors shut off with weather; multiple aircraft in the warning areas. I wish I could say this is an isolated incident. However; this is routine at this Center. We continuously push the envelope of safety just a little bit more each time. We've been here once before; until CAR (Corrective Action Report) came about. CAR helped for awhile; but we've slowly crept back to where we were before it was implemented as part of our 7110.65. Appendix B in our 7110.65 addresses this very topic. It was a direct result of CAR some years ago. TMU absolutely did not comply with this directive. This is not the first time; and I'm certain it will not be the last. We frequently request things from TMU; it falls by the way side; or we're told we don't need it; or we have your request. This is not safe. We are not staffed appropriately to be doing the jobs of two and three people with weather deviations and no support from our own unit tasked with protecting us. A plan needed to be implemented two hours prior; like our own Facility SOP calls for. Something needs to change and people need to be held accountable.
I was the D-side at a sector when the event occurred. Aircraft X was enroute to ZZZ and was deviating; as all aircraft were through this area. A severe line of thunderstorms was moving eastward affecting all traffic. The Warning Areas were active FL500 and below. The Warning Areas are located east of where the line of weather was heading. All aircraft northbound and southbound were going through the same hole. Aircraft X was unable to turn south or southwest bound away from the warning area. I called to point the aircraft out to the Warning Area controlling agency. They were unable to accept it because of active fighters in that block of airspace. I advised them the aircraft was coming into the airspace and to keep the fighters away from the aircraft. They asked if it was an emergency aircraft and I said no. At that point; I advised the Radar Controller to have the aircraft squawk the emergency code. Aircraft X continued on the deviation and exited the Warning Area airspace about 5 minutes later. None of this should have occurred. Our Supervisor at the time had advised TMU (Traffic Management Unit) that we were not going to be able to accept traffic through this area. I called TMU 45 minutes prior to advise them that the hole was closing as the weather moved east; and that we had about 15 minutes before we would have to shut traffic down. I truly don't know if TMU did anything to reroute traffic away from these sectors but the traffic kept coming. It was extremely busy and chaotic. This is not the way traffic should be managed. I've been a controller for over 30 years; working in different Centers. [This Center] is notorious for pushing the limits with the Warning Areas. When I arrived in [this] ARTCC there was a strip in the area with a statement to read to the pilots 'I understand you are unable to comply with ATC commands and are using your emergency authority as Captain and [requesting priority handling]'. I'm probably paraphrasing but the bottom line is that [this Center] wanted us to give the aircraft a choice between a thunderstorm or the Warning Area; possibly active fire or active fighters in the Warning Area.That was unacceptable to me then and it still is. [This Center] has been much better over the last few years but there seems to be a regression over the last year or two. This has to stop. Those two days had major traffic; weather and woefully bad staffing. We have a severe shortage of controllers in [this Center] and can't get D-sides or trackers when needed. I went over two hours and 30 minutes on position one day and so did all my coworkers. We are dedicated to safety and hard workers in a very complex environment and this shortage needs to change immediately.Our TMU should have routed traffic on the west side of this line well before it became an issue. This was a well-defined line of weather; not pop up thunderstorms; and the Warning Area Controllers had fighters in the blocks and wouldn't accept point outs. Absolutely none of us should have been put in this situation. It's unacceptable. It's completely unsafe.
ZJX Center Controllers reported the Traffic Management Unit refused to provide adequate flow control through their sectors and aircraft were forced to deviate into hot Warning Areas.