http://www.onwis.com/news/metro/dec99/fly07120699a.asp

Link

Y2K issue isn't up in the air, officials say

Computers for flights are expected to work properly, but most people don't take planes on New Year's Eve

By Larry Sandler of the Journal Sentinel staff

Last Updated: Dec. 6, 1999

No matter how paranoid you might be about the Y2K bug, you have nothing to fear from flying at midnight Dec. 31.

That's because the moment of truth for aviation worldwide actually will come at 6 Milwaukee time that night. For the aviation community, midnight is when Big Ben in London strikes 12, not when the Allen-Bradley clock does.

Computer systems in aircraft and air traffic control towers are set to Greenwich Mean Time, also called Universal Coordinated Time, because airplanes are constantly flying across time zones. Local time is used in unrelated ground systems, such as those that control airport security and airline crew scheduling.

Regardless of when the witching hour comes, airline passengers shouldn't worry about the glitch that could cause computers to malfunction when the year changes from 99 to 00, said John Yowell, Y2K program manager for Midwest Express Airlines, and Elizabeth Corrie, a spokeswoman for the Federal Aviation Administration regional office in Des Plaines, Ill.

The aircraft systems that use dates have nothing to do with keeping planes in the sky, and even a wrong date wouldn't affect safety, Yowell and Corrie said Monday. Nevertheless, all systems aboard planes, in control towers and on the ground have been checked and should work properly, they added.

For many travelers, however, the issue won't even come up. Relatively few airliners will be in the sky on New Year's Eve.

Airlines said they're cutting back their New Year's schedules for lack of passengers, not fear of year 2000 computer problems.

"It's a big party, and people want to be at their destination," said Sophie Bethune, a spokeswoman for the Air Transport Association, a Washington-based organization that represents major airlines.

A recent poll conducted for the association showed most air travelers are confident that the date change won't cause major problems, and only 9% have switched their plans because of Y2K fears, Bethune said.

The last Midwest Express flight on New Year's Eve is scheduled to land at 5:55 p.m. at Mitchell International Airport, Yowell said. He called the landing time, just before the Y2K moment of 6 p.m., a coincidence.

A few other airlines have scheduled flights later that night, but none is to land or take off at Mitchell or the Dane County Regional Airport in Madison after about 11:30 p.m., airport officials said. At Mitchell, "red-eye" flights from Las Vegas have been canceled, and a charter flight from the Caribbean has been rescheduled from a 12:05 a.m. arrival.

The flight cancellations reflect a typical pattern of people choosing to fly before and after major holidays, not on the holiday, said Lisa Bailey, a Midwest Express spokeswoman in Oak Creek, and Kathy Peach, a Northwest Airlines spokeswoman in Eagan, Minn.

But the schedule changes are interfering with FAA chief Jane Garvey's plan to fly across the country on New Year's Eve as a show of faith in the air traffic system, Corrie said.

"She's been canceled out a couple times," Corrie said.

Even if Garvey can't make her trip, FAA staffers are delivering her message that the aviation network will function properly on New Year's Eve and in the days that follow.

FAA air traffic control systems have been tested and certified as Y2K-compliant, Corrie said. An FAA review found no Y2K problems with other key systems at Mitchell, Dane and airports in Green Bay, Appleton, Eau Claire, La Crosse, Mosinee, Oshkosh, Rhinelander, Kenosha and Janesville.

Mitchell has finished upgrading critical systems, Deputy Airport Director Jim Kerr said. And the Madison airport is replacing its security system, which should be done this month, Business Manager Douglas Pickard said.

The FAA also did not find any Y2K problems with leading Wisconsin airlines: Midwest Express and its commuter subsidiary, Skyway Airlines (The Midwest Express Connection); Appleton-based Air Wisconsin, which flies as United Express; and Northwest. Midwest Express and Northwest have finished upgrading their systems to deal with Y2K issues, Bailey and Peach said.

But just to be sure, Midwest Express might send an airliner into the skies as a test about 2 a.m. Jan. 1, to double-check how all air and ground systems are working, Bailey and Yowell said.

International air travel remains a major question. The FAA and the State Department are posting information on the Internet about the Y2K readiness of foreign airlines and airports.

As for domestic air travel, Corrie said: "Safety and security is what we're all about. We're really working hard to make sure that everything is safe and secure on New Year's Eve."

Appeared in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel on Dec. 7, 1999.

-- Homer Beanfang (Bats@inbellfry.com), December 07, 1999

Answers

With our without computer problems -- airline travel has become a big expensive time-consuming pain in the ass. How many folks got stuck in airports last year, for whatever reason? I can remember when flying used to be fun, but not for the last ten years at least.

-- staying home (for@the.holidays), December 07, 1999.

Did I get fatter or are the seats smaller?

-- Susan Barrett (sue59@bellsouth.net), December 07, 1999.

Everyone who believes that the top dog of the FAA can't wrangle a flight.....I've got some sea side property to sell you right here in Oklahoma!

-- citizen (lost@sea.com), December 07, 1999.