Date: 201602
Local time of day: 0001-0600
Location: S46.TRACON, WA
Aircraft: Light Transport
Operator: Air Taxi
Operating under: Part 135
Flight plan: IFR
Mission: Ambulance
Flight phase: Descent
Airspace: Class E S46
ATC / advisory: Center ZSE; TRACON S46
Reporter organization: Government
Reporter function: Approach
Reporter qualification: Air Traffic Control Fully Certified
Human factors: Situational Awareness; Workload; Communication Breakdown
Second reporter function: Enroute
Anomaly: ATC Issue All Types; Airspace Violation All Types; Deviation / Discrepancy - Procedural Published Material / Policy; Deviation / Discrepancy - Procedural Clearance
Detector: Person Air Traffic Control
When detected: In-flight
Result: Air Traffic Control Issued New Clearance; Air Traffic Control Provided Assistance; Air Traffic Control Issued Advisory / Alert; Flight Crew Exited Penetrated Airspace
Contributing factors: Manuals; Human Factors; Chart Or Publication; Airspace Structure; Procedure
Primary problem: Procedure

Narrative: I was working the position with very poor weather. The traffic complexity and volume was managed very well by the Traffic Management controller. They then left for lunch; with the situation under control; then the Supervisory Traffic Management Coordinator (STMC) came in and changed the rate from a manageable 36 arrival rate to a 48 rate with very poor weather. We ended up with too many airplanes in the airspace; the final almost extended outside of the airspace and both arrivals are vectoring into a deep downwind. I was vectoring to gain some miles for the final controller and reel the final back in.We were having to blend airplanes from the base into the downwind using appropriate speeds and very precise vectoring. I was talking to six airplanes but at the time Aircraft X checked on I was in the middle of hitting a hole for the final. I acknowledged Aircraft X thinking it was on a vector to join the arrival or a vector to go east. I never gave it any thought that the ARTCC would fly an aircraft through the restricted area. As soon as I took radar contact on the aircraft I had less than a minute to talk to the airplane and coordinate a turn for the airplane with the center since the aircraft was doing four hundred knots right at the restricted area. I later heard from another party that direct routing was coordinated by a supervisor as I was too busy to talk on the line. If the center did call I did not hear it. I recognized the situation and take evasive maneuvers to get that aircraft away from the restricted area.Change the Letter of Agreement to not allow ARTCC to send planes direct fixes when the restricted area is active at or above 10;000 feet. All coordination by a supervisor should be done over a recorded line; not the telephone; as I never approved an airplane to go through an active restricted area or gave approval for anyone to coordinate that in my airspace. If the arrival rate is too high and there was a mistake made; fix it by putting in an arrival coordinator; or even another set of eyes.


Second narrative: Restricted airspace was active surface to 14000 feet and I was unaware of it. I cleared Aircraft X direct to a fix on the RNAV arrival; and issued the restriction to cross the fix at and maintain 13000 feet. This clearance was in direct conflict with the Restricted Area. I shipped the aircraft level at 13000 feet to TRACON about 15 miles away from the Restricted Area. After the aircraft was in their airspace; a supervisor came up to me to say that TRACON wants to remind me that Restricted Areas are active to 14000 feet.This was the first I had heard of it. I pulled the data block back up to see that TRACON had given roughly a 60 degree left turn to avoid the airspace. There was no airspace strip at the sector; and I do not recall being briefed on it. The airspace was lit up orange on the scope; and the EDST likely showed the conflict. However; the Restricted Area is very commonly active to very low altitudes that don't affect our operation at all; and the EDST will still show flight plans conflicting with the airspace when approach control assures us that they are not.I told the Supervisor that I didn't have an airspace message; and he didn't offer the strip; so it may not have even been available. I made a message to post on the sector. I found out later that someone had been told verbally by a supervisor that the airspace would be active; but no message was ever sent; and the message got left out of a relief briefing somewhere during the day. The supervisor at the time told me that he looked at the replay; and it did not look like an airspace violation had occurred; so I didn't report it right away until I was told a week later that I was a contributing factor to an airspace violation.Flight progress strips for airspace must be posted at the sector which they affect; and should be briefed!


Synopsis: A Center Controller issued a routing to an aircraft which would have penetrate Restricted Areas.