Air Traffic Control Fully Certified
Air Traffic Control Time Certified In Pos 1 (yrs) 28
Troubleshooting; Workload; Distraction; Situational Awareness
ATC Issue All Types; Deviation / Discrepancy - Procedural Clearance; Deviation / Discrepancy - Procedural FAR; Deviation / Discrepancy - Procedural Published Material / Policy
Air Traffic Control Issued New Clearance; Air Traffic Control Provided Assistance
Company Policy; Human Factors; Procedure
This is a known event reported by the Tower Front Line Manager (FLM) using an internal worksheet for aircraft identification problems (attached). In this instance; two aircraft with identical call signs (Aircraft X); one an arrival and one a departure were airborne at the same time.This is the third such occurrence this month by [airline name removed] at IAD (in addition to 8 others since [date removed]). Each has been reported to FSDO; The airline. Feedback from the Principle Operations Inspector (POI) is that there is a difficult relationship between the FAA and this airline and since no regulation has been violated; the FAA cannot do an enforcement action against them.  Meanwhile; this unsafe situation continues.Please review the attachments.  You have my permission to share this report.1)  Airlines must be held accountable for educating their dispatchers to change call signs of the outbound leg if the inbound has not yet arrived. We don't see duplicate call signs with the major air carriers. Why can't the dispatchers for the regional carriers perform to the same standards? A simple fix; change the outbound flight's call sign to Aircraft X-A. If a regulation needs to be made; then let's write one.2) Another FSDO's APOI for [different airline] has had success in getting that airline to modifiy their procedures to prevent duplicate IDs.  [This other] Dispatch manager has offered to help Aircraft X's Airline with the issue. The Other FSDO APOI is also pursuing other avenues with his airline contacts.  Even as I write this; I've just heard where reporting FSDO had a telcon with [airline of Aircraft X] on this issue yesterday.  Aircraft X Airline is reaching out to [the other airline] to see if their procedure will work for them.3) Both TWR and RDR teams handled this situation very well; pre-empting a stop on departures.
IAD support specialist reports of a flight inbound and outbound to/from IAD that is using the same call sign at the same time. He reports this has been happening for over 7 months and nothing has been done about it.