Manx Mole

15 minutes ago, Andy Onchan said:

If he's that well qualified and experienced why is here in this 'backwater'? 

Coz it's only here here he gets to be Santa obviously.

57 minutes ago, Roger Mexico said:

it's still a better cv than Spake.

Spake's could have been written by James Thurber.

2 hours ago, Ringy Rose said:

I’m going with “unpleasant boss, emboldened after seeing off Spake and Reynolds, has become more unpleasant”.

Just a theory though. I don’t know people at the airport. But I’m aware of at least one ATC who went through their training but then left for a lower-paid job not in ATC.

Indeed. He was appointed by Ann Reynolds after the job description was changed by her to fit the person. His job was to 'sort the tower out'. However, the love in with her and Spake was short lived because he soon realised the problem didn't lie in the tower, but with them. He got that bit right.

His military MO and abrasive style has proven to be a poor fit in the civil environment. It is a cause of much discontent and has made staff retention difficult. I have worked with many who have transitioned from military roles into equivalent civilian positions. The ones who do well are the ones who realise there are differences in the way things are done and change. You need to do a lot more than just take the uniform off.

I hope that somebody digs into his background and realises, before any more cash is thrown his way, that he was a chancer with no real qualification to do the job in the first place. 
 

He claims to have worked 110 hrs a week, yet he contracted in LeMauray (aquantaintace of his from Southend) to do large proportions of this work, then signed it off as his own.  Despite his claimed high workload, he still found time to swan off to the UK to do TV work.

1 hour ago, gerremonside said:

Anyone who spoke truth would have commanded respect.

But someone who claimed to fly Airbuses for Aeroflot in his spare time despite having written in a magazine article that his eyesight precluded an aviation medical? Judge for yourself. 

He never did bring his Sukhoi aerobatic plane over from Colchester International Aerodrome and take Annie for a spin either.

Nobody in Government had the knowledge, experience or desire to challenge him. Those professionals at the Airport who did were branded as bullies…

9 minutes ago, Roger Mexico said:

Presumably he was able to get away with it when his protector Reynolds was there.

Almost exactly that.

I do know that many of the ATC staff saw through him almost immediately. He had a mole in there who was eventually outed and left shortly thereafter.

They raised concerns, but as usual, and as still the case, it fell on deaf ears.

I wouldn’t be surprised if Mr Spake’s claimed work induced anxiety and stress stemmed from the fact that he knew that people had realised he wasn’t up to the job and a lot of his claimed qualifications and experience were specious.

He certainly espoused a lot of BS which a lot of the intelligent professionals who worked at Ronaldsway - including those in ATC - could smell a mile off, and had started to call him out for.

He probably realised the game was up.

I am also intrigued by the fact that he saw himself as a whistleblower.

In other news, one of the new qualified ATC appointees has just resigned.

On 9/14/2023 at 9:42 PM, Banker said:

ATC issues at Gatwick, suppose 2112 will blame Alf & IOMG for this as well !

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-sussex-66813440

It sounds like a fairly acute problem down at LGW, perhaps illness  (the dreaded Rona?) spreading between staff. Lets hope something similar doesn’t happen here at Fraggle Rock International as we have no excess ATC manpower whatsoever. 

Meanwhile back here at FRI, I understand that one of the three trainees who was supposed to start around about now decided not to come, and that the experienced controller who started recently did not have the required boxes ticked to allow them to start their local training straight away. Apparently this is because they haven’t controlled in the UK for a while and they need something called a ‘confirmation of previous competence’. This requires attendance at some courses at a facility across. As this blooper was only discovered when the person started their employment here, the earliest course date that could be secured was in February next year. These courses will take time to complete, and apparently a lot of money, £20K I was told.

You’d have thought that whoever was doing the recruiting would have asked about the candidate’s status in regards to this pre requisite? It makes you wonder if a proper recruitment process actually happened in the desperate rush to secure ATC staff.

Seemingly it’s just another avoidable airport management cock up that is seeing a new hire £100K pa employee twiddling their thumbs for several months.

I was speaking to someone at the Airport earlier who told me that another senior ATC officer has resigned and  is due to leave their post in August after working their notice. Bad enough, but I was also told that they were one of the only people who can do training for new staff. If true, this mess is going to get a lot worse before it gets better.

Just now, finlo said:

Expansion joints or lack of probably just like the pink concrete on the prom!

They are pieces of paper (strips) the controllers move around their desk like chess pieces to record and detail aircraft movements. 

Just now, Pipsqueak said:

you sound very in the know with the mention of movement strips

😉

Just now, Utah 01 said:

It's called an air traffic controller and the name gives the game away; he/she CONTROLS traffic so that only one runway is in use at any one time, be it for 5 minutes or 5 hours but the whole  idea is to give the airport operation some flexibility.

What procedures do you need?  You clear an aircraft to take-off/ land on runway X and if there is an aircraft  waiting to take-off/land on runway Y it is told to wait until the CONTROLLER gives it clearance to do otherwise.

This 'safety' is an excuse and utter BS.  There is no issue, there hasn't ever been an issue apart from the fuckwits that inhabit the tower and the tin-pot experts at that centre of aviation excellence in Douglas.

Apparently, the specific issue that was raised relates to the ‘movement strips’.  Perhaps someone with more knowledge on the subject than me can explain that to us.

It’s to do with the fact that it is a cross runway - ie crosses another runway.

There must be procedures in place to ensure that only one runway is being used at any time.

Someone highlighted that the extant procedures were not up to the required standard, although they’ve worked for the last 50 years just fine.

ATC Management mentioned the issue to the local CAA, who instructed them to come up with a solution.

They haven’t, so local CAA told them they can’t use 21-03 until they do.

The rest is history.

Why don’t they ask other airports who have cross runways how they do it?

2 hours ago, Gladys said:

What did he sub-out?

Production of operating procedures and manuals. 

3 hours ago, Augustus said:

Yes, but that all assumes that Spake was subject to "bullying and harrassment". The alternative view is that he should never have been hired in the first place, wasn't up to the job and didn't enjoy being exposed once his protector had been emptied out.

He was totally unqualified for the job, relying on his evident charisma to help keep those that could see right through him at bay. Work he should have been doing himself he sub contracted out at great expense to an individual abroad. He claimed to be an Aeroflot Airbus pilot, but didn't know the slightest thing about the things a pilot would know off by heart. 

It's a good thing that he has resigned.

9 minutes ago, Non-Believer said:

Or maybe somebody actually pointed out to him that he was shit at it. When he was actually here.

Overt bullying. 

If you are going to talk the talk, someone will eventually want to see you walk.

So he did.

Mr Spake has resigned with immediate effect.

2 minutes ago, dilligaf said:

So why were they speaking so authoritative about what "we" need.? It sounded like what they needed in that program.

Probably their 50 years of experience operating air services onto the IOM gives them some insight?

They are also both Island residents, and like the rest of us, have an interest in seeing reliable air services in the future.