GOP lawmaker: Airport order 'typical bureaucratic response'

Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood may have violated Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) rules when he ordered Washington's Reagan National Airport to staff its air traffic control towers with at least two people, the chairman of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee said Thursday.
 
LaHood made the order after two planes were forced to land without assistance from the control tower when the airport's lone controller allegedly fell asleep. Both planes landed safely.
 
But by the time LaHood acted, there were no flights landing, Rep. John Mica (R-Fla.) said.
 
“This incident and other recent performance failures, including near-miss incidents, are matters of serious concern," Mica said in a statement.

"Unfortunately, the administration’s call for increased staffing at Reagan National, when there are no flights during the early morning hours, is a typical bureaucratic response. Increasing staff when there are no flights also violates FAA’s own management plan of staffing to air traffic," Mica said.
 
Mica questioned where the money for the increased air traffic control was going to come from.
 
“In difficult financial times for the nation, it is critical that we utilize our limited resources in the most responsible fashion without compromising safety,” he said.
 
Mica said Aviation subcommittee Chairman Tom Petri (R-Wis.) would investigate the Reagan National incident.
 
The FAA and the National Transportation Safety Board are also investigating the incident.