ATC

The media team at Kirtland AFB in Albuquerque, New Mexico, first reported the story of how a civilian air traffic controller—Wendy Smith—working in Kirtland Tower saved the six-person flight crew of an Air Force CV-22, and avoided a $90 million accident. Cassidy is a 12-year veteran controller at Kirtland. “They were taking off on a […]

Based on the demands of the current marketplace—as in much reduced air traffic as a result of the worldwide pandemic—Nav Canada is considering reducing the number of air traffic controllers it employs at a handful of locations. In a news release, Nav Canada referred to the review as a method to “streamline the nation’s ATC […]

All too often, pilots think air traffic controllers are just voices in their headset handing out instructions designed to keep them separated from other nearby aircraft—and also to annoy them, some pilots might add. But when pilots fly themselves into danger, or find themselves in charge of a malfunctioning airplane, grabbing the mic and calling […]

A court in the Russian Federation recently handed down prison sentences of between five and six years to three air traffic controllers for their roles in an October 2014 accident at Moscow’s Vnukovo Airport. The court said the controllers violated Russian safety rules for transportation by allowing a Falcon 50 to strike a snowplow during […]

Aircraft accident investigations often take years as the players sift through the physical evidence, voice and radar recordings and interview witnesses trying to piece together the cause. The ongoing investigation into last January’s crash of the helicopter (N72EX) carrying basketball legend Kobe Bryant, his daughter and seven others, took an interesting twist last week after […]

Before GPS, when Rand McNally’s paper maps ruled the day, pulling over on a country road in a small town to ask for directions never felt like failure to me. I saw it as a chance to meet someone new, maybe find out where to get lunch. Likewise, when flying, I am not a man […]

FAA Safety Briefing Editor, general aviation pilot, and flight instructor Susan K. Parson recently published a list called Rules for the Radio that spells out some proper and incorrect radio etiquette when communicating with air traffic controllers. These tips are suitable for seasoned pilots as a refresher, but are incredibly valuable for student pilots or […]

The FAA’s federal contract tower program consists of 254 facilities located in 46 states. The FCT program was created in 1982 in order to allow airports that would be unable to afford the price of a traditional FAA operated tower to enjoy the benefits of ATC services. Those towers and their 1,400 controllers manage 28 […]

Some 100 FAA control towers around the US will soon have their operational hours temporarily culled due to significant COVID-19-based reductions in local air traffic. The agency said in a news release, “Making these adjustments allows for continued safe operations throughout the national airspace system while minimizing health risks to our workforce.” The control towers […]

In FAA lingo, the phrase “ATC Zero” means an air traffic control facility is unable to offer ATC services. Chicago Center went ATC Zero in November 2014 when an FAA contract employee cut communications lines that normally kept controllers and pilots in radio contact with each other before he set fire to the center’s equipment […]