ZHU CTLR DESCRIBED UNINTELLIGIBLE XMISSIONS; ALLEGING THIS FREQ PROBLEM HAS BEEN ONGOING.

Date: 2008-04

Anomalies: other-freq-failure

Synopsis

ZHU CTLR DESCRIBED UNINTELLIGIBLE XMISSIONS; ALLEGING THIS FREQ PROBLEM HAS BEEN ONGOING.

Narrative

133.75 IS THE S TEXAS HIGH ALT FREQ. IT HAS BEEN MALFUNCTIONING FOR YRS. CTLRS HAVE REVERTED TO SHUTTING ONE OF THE SITES OFF TO REDUCE THE AMOUNT OF STATIC AND NOISE ON THE FREQ. WE'RE MAKING UP OUR OWN METHODS FOR DEALING WITH THESE PROBS. THIS HELPS SOMEWHAT; BUT WE HAVE PROBS COMMUNICATING WITH ALL ACFT. I SPENT THE ENTIRE SHIFT WORKING THIS SECTOR BECAUSE I WAS TRAINING A NEW CTLR. DURING OUR SESSIONS WE HAD SEVERAL INCIDENTS IN WHICH WE COULD NOT TALK TO PLTS OR UNDERSTAND PLT COMS. THE PROB BECOMES UNMANAGEABLE DURING HVY RAIN OR TSTM ACTIVITY IN THE VICINITY OF THE SITES. JUST WHEN WE NEED IT MOST; IT IS AT ITS WORST. DURING ONE SESSION; WE INSTRUCTED AN ACFT TO TURN 20 DEGS R AND HE TURNED 20 DEGS L. THE READBACK WAS UNINTELLIGIBLE; BUT BY THE TIME WE CORRECTED HIM AND COULD UNDERSTAND WHAT HE HAD SAID; HE WAS IN CONFLICTION WITH THE ACFT WE WERE TURNING HIM AWAY FROM. MY STUDENT DID NOT QUESTION THE READBACK. THIS LEADS ME TO BELIEVE THAT CTLRS ARE ACCEPTING THE COM PROBS WITH MULTIPLE FREQS AT ZHU AND ARE BECOMING COMPLACENT ABOUT READBACKS AS A RESULT. THERE WERE NUMEROUS TIMES WE HAD TO TELL ACFT SO 'SAY AGAIN.'

Source: NASA Aviation Safety Reporting System (public domain). Reports are voluntary submissions and are not verified by NASA.