Air Controllers in Drug Probe Take Own Test

Representatives of 34 Southland air traffic controllers under investigation for suspected off-duty narcotics use said Wednesday that many of the controllers have been vindicated after taking their own voluntary urinalyses tests.

In the first public appearance by any of those under investigation, two controllers told a crowded news conference that most of their colleagues have gone to independent laboratories after being forced to take a first round of drug tests by the Federal Aviation Administration.

Of the 20 independent tests checked so far, the results have been negative in each case, said the controllers, Kathy Heet and Dennis Cottle.

The spokesmen said controllers hope to use these test results to strengthen their demand for immediate reinstatement while the Federal Aviation Administration investigation proceeds.

The FAA on Aug. 21 pulled the controllers off their radar screens, administered drug tests and reassigned them to “administrative duties”--in some cases simply instructing them to stay home this week with pay.

The agency has refused to disclose its suspicions beyond saying it is investigating reports from inside and outside the FAA that controllers have used cocaine and hashish off duty.

Responsible for Guiding Airplanes

The 34 controllers work at the Los Angeles Air Route Traffic Center in Palmdale, which is responsible for guiding all airplanes in and out of dozens of Southern California airports once they leave the jurisdiction of local airport control towers. About 160 controllers work at the center.

The investigation began with the July 8 arrest of a secretary at the Palmdale center on drug-possession charges. Evidence obtained during a search of the secretary’s home focused the FAA’s attention on an April 17 party held to celebrate the promotions of Heet and another controller. Heet and Cottle said that controllers who have been interrogated by FAA investigators have been repeatedly asked about whether drugs were used at the party.

The secretary and four other non-controller employees at the Palmdale center have been reassigned as part of the drug investigation.

Heet and Cottle said they do not use drugs and have yet to be confronted with specific allegations.

They said that while they support the FAA’s goal of disciplining drug users, and are not opposed to drug testing, they believe that the agency acted overzealously in this case.

Heet complained that besides refusing to “allow us access to their evidence,” the FAA has denied the controllers legal counsel during interrogation and has used coercive questioning tactics.

May File Suit

Both controllers declined to go into detail about their complaints, hinting that they and other controllers may file suit to force the FAA to reinstate them.

Spokesmen for the FAA said they would have no comment on any of the controllers’ allegations, and said they expect to announce the results of their investigation next week. Controllers found to have used drugs will face penalties ranging from being placed in rehabilitation programs to dismissal.

The appearance of the two controllers was coordinated by the National Air Traffic Controllers Assn., which is trying to win federal certification as a nationwide controllers union and which says it represents a majority of the 34 controllers.

Damaged Her Reputation

Heet, a controller for 3 1/2 years, said the FAA has permanently damaged her reputation by reassigning her.

“Some people at work are always going to say, ‘They’re the people who were suspected of drugs,’ whether you’re exonerated or not,” she said.

Cottle, a five-year veteran, said that as national sentiment for drug testing mounted, controllers at the Palmdale facility had believed that they would be among the first to be subjected to mandatory drug testing.

The reasons, he said, were the fact they work in a safety-related position, live in a state with a reputation for drug use and are not represented by a union.

The controllers’ union was disbanded after the federal government fired its entire unionized staff of controllers in 1981 after they went on strike.