BLOUNTVILLE, Tenn. (WJHL) — A radar tower rotated in the background as Josh Campbell described why his job as a Federal Aviation Administration Airway Transportation System Specialist (ATSS) made him an essential employee — albeit one who's not getting paid right now.

"We keep that radar running so (air traffic controllers) can see airplanes coming and going and transiting across the airspace," said Campbell, a U.S. Air Force veteran who's spent the past 14 years in his civilian role.

"We also maintain the radios here at Tri Cities," Campbell said Tuesday morning. "If those radios are not working, they can't talk to airplanes. So essentially everything here that air traffic uses to see an airplane and talk to an airplane is our responsibility to maintain for them."

That puts the eight A

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