Again there was no response over his headset. And while the controller saw that the green triangle with the designation “G901” did turn, he quickly realized that it had not come around far enough. After seeing that the new projected glide path of the aircraft was south, and parallel to the runway, the controller could feel his anxiety level ratchet up a few notches. As distressing as this new development was, at least the altitude readout under the G901 on his screen wasn’t changing. Instead of continuing its descent, Global 901 was now holding at an altitude of just under one thousand feet above ground level.

Vacillating between anger and panic as his commands were ignored, the controller keyed the mike a third time. “Global 901, this is Boise Control. You are not lined up with the runway. Your current glide path will take you well south of it.” Then to cover his bases he added, “If you have an emergency please state the nature of your emergency and any assistance you require.”

The controller’s supervisor, watching a screen on the other side of the room, overheard this last part. Panicked, she dropped what she was doing and moved over to where the controller speaking to Global 901 was waiting for an answer. “Has he declared an emergency?” she asked.

Frustrated, the controller leaned back in his seat and waved a hand over the screen in frustration. “He hasn’t declared shit. He just keeps coming on, ignoring me all the way.”

For a second the supervisor lingered as both she and the controller watched the green triangle designated “G901” continue to slow down while maintaining a course south of and parallel to the runway at an altitude of one thousand feet. Drawing in a deep breath, the controller finally broke the silence. “We’d better notify emergency services,” he stated flatly. “I think we have a problem here.”

With no need to see or hear more, the supervisor left the controller’s station, rushed to her own, and initiated a warning that was not at all appropriate for the true emergency that was unfolding before their very eyes.