Air Traffic Controller Makes Shocking Claim In A Viral TikTok Video

The viral video, which has over 711,000 views, was posted last week by air traffic controller and TikToker Doaviation (@doaviation) who has over 123,900 followers for his videos about his experience in the aviation industry.

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The aviation professional, posting anonymously as @doaviation on TikTok, responded to another TikToker who asked users to "name one thing in your industry or profession that the general public would be shocked to know about."

“I’m an air traffic controller and there are about 139 federal standalone air traffic control towers in the United States, I work at one,” the TikToker responds to the prompt. “Every night 84 of those, about 60%, shut down and all the controllers go home and there’s nobody there to work traffic.” 

“During those hours, when the control tower is closed, it’s the pilot’s responsibility to talk to other pilots and make sure that they’re not going to hit each other,” the TikToker elaborates. 

“Air traffic control isn’t 24/7 at some places,” the video’s caption reads. 

Air traffic controllers coordinate with pilots to maintain distance between airplanes and other aircraft and prevent collisions. Controllers work in towers, route centers, and control facilities. According to the United States Federal Aviation Association (FAA), there are 520 air traffic control towers, 21 route centers and approximately over 14,000 air traffic controllers in the United States.

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The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) told Newsweek in a statement, "If an air traffic control tower is closed, it is usually during hours where there is limited or no air traffic. Every air traffic control facility has standard procedures to operate safely when it's closed."

"Once they're in the tower's airspace, pilots know to communicate their positions on the airport's common frequency," a spokesperson said.

The video stirred controversy in its comments section over the lack of air traffic controllers at night. Many users were shocked or upset by the news. 

“Do not fly at night got it thanks,” one user commented. 

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Others argued about whether the practice was safe or not. 

“That’s still more than 50 towers with 24/7 coverage. It’s more than adequate for the traffic,” one user argued. 

“Other towers pick up the traffic of the towers that close for the night. if Peoria closes, O’Hare picks it up,” another user commented. 

Air traffic controllers have raised an alarm about their staffing conditions in the past. A partial government shutdown in January 2019 forced controllers to work long hours without payment, according to the National Air Traffic Controller Association. Employees also worried about safety, saying that a new text messaging system to communicate directly with pilots in the cockpit was stalled by the shutdown.

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In 2018, an air traffic controller became "incapacitated" while working alone during a busy shift at the Las Vegas airport. The controller slurred her words in communication with 29 pilots both in air and on the ground for about 40 minutes before losing consciousness.

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In response, the FAA modified its staffing rules to require two controllers in a tower "until a certain time," according to KSVN-TV.

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However, the agency said that two controllers would not be required to work after midnight, telling the station that "facilities will not combine to one position prior to midnight or 90 minutes after the start of the shift, whichever is later."

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People were understandably un-thrilled with the idea that most of the airports in the U.S. just close up their air traffic control towers at night and go home.

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Not only did people say that they felt less safe flying at night though, but it could also provide an explanation as to why many night flights are either severely delayed or ultimately canceled.

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At least major airports do, for the most part, have fully manned air traffic control towers, 24/7. The closures are usually reserved for non-massive airports.

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Still, this video will make many people change their travel plans because it is better to be safe than sorry.