Air traffic control
The primary purpose of ATC is to prevent collisions, organize and expedite the flow of traffic in the air, and provide information and other support for pilots.[1] Personnel of air traffic control monitor aircraft location in their assigned airspace by radar, and communicate with the pilots by radio.[2] To prevent collisions, ATC enforces traffic separation rules, which ensure each aircraft maintains a minimum amount of 'empty space' around it at all times.The first of several air mail radio stations (AMRS) was created in 1922, after World War I, when the U.S. Post Office began using techniques developed by the U.S. Army to direct and track the movements of reconnaissance aircraft.The first air route traffic control center (ARTCC), which directs the movement of aircraft between departure and destination, was opened in Newark in 1935, followed in 1936 by Chicago and Cleveland.After the 1956 Grand Canyon mid-air collision, killing all 128 on board, the FAA was given the air-traffic responsibility in the United States in 1958, and this was followed by other countries.A controller must carry out the job using the precise and effective application of rules and procedures; however, they need flexible adjustments according to differing circumstances, often under time pressure.[12][13][14] Displays for the air traffic controllers may be live video, synthetic images based on surveillance sensor data, or both.Some busier airports have surface movement radar (SMR),[15] such as ASDE-3, AMASS, or ASDE-X, designed to display aircraft and vehicles on the ground.[15] Air control gives clearance for aircraft takeoff or landing, whilst ensuring that prescribed runway separation will exist at all times.When weather or extremely high demand for a certain airport or airspace becomes a factor, there may be ground 'stops' (or 'slot delays'), or re-routes may be necessary to ensure the system does not get overloaded.In this case, the en-route centre or a neighbouring terminal or approach control may co-ordinate directly with the tower on the airport and vector inbound aircraft to a position from where they can land visually.At some of these airports, the tower may provide a non-radar procedural approach service to arriving aircraft handed over from a radar unit before they are visual to land.While IFR flights are under positive control, in the US and Canada, VFR pilots can request 'flight following' (radar advisories), which provides traffic advisory services on a time permitting basis, and may also provide assistance in avoiding areas of weather and flight restrictions, as well as allowing pilots into the air traffic control system prior to the need to a clearance into certain airspace.Controllers record information on flight progress strips, and in specially developed oceanic computer systems, as aircraft report positions.[17] This technology is currently used in portions of the North Atlantic and the Pacific by a variety of states who share responsibility for the control of this airspace.Errors generally occur during periods following times of intense activity, when controllers tend to relax and overlook the presence of traffic and conditions that lead to loss of minimum separation.However, at some ACCs, air traffic controllers still record data for each flight on strips of paper and personally coordinate their paths.Constrained control capacity and growing traffic lead to flight cancellation and delays: By then the market for air-traffic services was worth $14bn.Additionally, it is the right of the air traffic controller to change the 'audio' call sign for the period the flight is in his sector if there is a risk of confusion, usually choosing the aircraft registration identifier instead.[22] Some tools are available in different domains to help the controller further: In the United States, some alterations to traffic control procedures are being examined: In Europe, the Single European Sky ATM Research (SESAR)[26] programme plans to develop new methods, technologies, procedures, and systems to accommodate future (2020 and beyond) air traffic needs.In October 2018, European controller unions dismissed setting targets to improve ATC as "a waste of time and effort", as new technology could cut costs for users but threaten their jobs.In April 2019, the EU called for a 'Digital European Sky', focusing on cutting costs by including a common digitisation standard, and allowing controllers to move to where they are needed instead of merging national ATCs, as it would not solve all problems.Both proponents and opponents of privatisation recognise that stable funding is one of the major factors for successful upgrades of ATC infrastructure.[36] Proponents argue that moving ATC services to a private corporation could stabilise funding over the long term which will result in more predictable planning and rollout of new technology as well as training of personnel.This is the model used in the United Kingdom, but there have been several issues with the system there, including a large-scale failure in December 2014 which caused delays and cancellations and has been attributed to cost-cutting measures put in place by this corporation.In fact, earlier that year, the corporation owned by the German government won the bid to provide ATC services for Gatwick Airport in the United Kingdom.[39] Air traffic control is operated by national governments with few exceptions: in the European Union, only Italy has private shareholders.Privatisation does not guarantee lower prices: the profit margin of MUAC was 70% in 2017, as there is no competition, but governments could offer fixed terms concessions.HungaroControl offers remote airport tower services from Budapest, and since 2014 provides upper airspace management for Kosovo.
Air Traffic Control (band)Maybe I'm DreamingAir controlMumbai International Airportair traffic controllersairspacepilotstraffic separationprivatemilitarypilot in commandAeronautical phraseologyAviation EnglishInternational Civil Aviation OrganizationCroydon AirportairportU.S. Armyreconnaissance aircraftflight service stationsFederal Aviation Administration22 Air Route Traffic Control Centers1956 Grand Canyon mid-air collisionBeneluxEurocontrolMaastricht Upper Area Control CentreEuropean UnionSão Paulo–Guarulhos International AirportBirmingham AirportRäyskälä Airfieldnautical mileskilometressecondary surveillance radarsurface movement radaradvanced surface movement guidance and control systemairport apronRemote and virtual towerPope Fieldaviation light signalscell phoneASDE-Xgo-aroundCrew resource managementaerodromeautomatic terminal information serviceTerminal control areaTRACON (series)Potomac Consolidated TRACONWarrenton, VirginiaLondon Terminal Control Centreprocedural approachArea control centerLeesburg, Virginiavisual flight rulesinstrument flight rulesFlight Information Serviceflight information regionarea control centreflight information regionsprocedural controlflight progress stripsNorth Atlantic TrackNav Canadaautomatic dependent surveillance – broadcastnavigationair forcessearch and rescuemapping of flightsNational Business Aviation AssociationFlightradar24Air traffic flow managementcontrailsrunwayholdingDallas/Fort Worth International Airportthunderstormsflight cancellation and delaysholding patternsairwayscall signsscheduled flightsmilitary flightsregistration numberNATO phonetic alphabetInternational Air Transport AssociationaerodromesAmerican AirlinesalphanumericLufthansaPrimarysecondary radarssituational awarenesstransponderMode AMode CMode Sflight planoperational display systemsLondon Area Control CentreSwanwickWest DraytonLondon Heathrow AirportLockheed-MartinShort-term conflict alertMinimum safe altitude warningdeparture managerNational Air Traffic ServicesDeutsche FlugsicherungSingle European Sky ATM ResearchController–pilot data link communicationsCNS / ATMAir Navigation Service ProviderAlbcontrolAirservices AustraliaRoyal Australian Air ForceAustro ControlCivil Aviation Authority, BangladeshSkeyesDepartamento de Controle do Espaço AéreoTransport CanadaCanadian ForcesNaviairEastern Caribbean Civil Aviation AuthorityFinaviaHellenic Civil Aviation AuthorityCivil Aviation DepartmentISAVIA