Two Lubbock Preston Smith International Airport Air Traffic Controllers Suspended

WASHINGTON (AP) — Federal aviation officials say they're adding a second air traffic controller to midnight shifts at 27 airports around the country following the suspensions of controllers at three more airports in Nevada, Washington and Texas.

The Federal Aviation Administration said in a statement released Wednesday that an air traffic controller fell asleep at Reno-Tahoe International Airport while a medical flight carrying an ill patient was trying to land at about 2 a.m. The agency said the controller, who was out of communication for about 16 minutes, has been suspended.

The statement said two controllers in Lubbock, Texas, and another in Seattle have also been suspended.

The suspensions come less than a month after two airliners landed without assistance from a lone supervisor who fell asleep at Washington's Reagan National Airport.