Past event: Air Traffic Control: How it REALLY works! Seminar

This seminar provides attendees with a broad and in-depth understanding of the workings and interactions of the operational components of the U.S. Air Traffic Control (ATC) system. Topics range from fundamental ATC procedures, principles, and constructs, to the unique operational objectives and situations facing air traffic controllers in Airport Traffic Control Towers (ATCTs), Terminal Radar Approach Controls (TRACONs), Air Route Traffic Control Centers ARTCCs), and the national traffic flow management facility (ATCSCC).

While the concept of ATC is simple, the execution is not. At any moment, air traffic controllers are: (a) managing and ensuring the safety of arriving and departing aircraft taxiing to and from hundreds of airport parking locations,(b) ensuring the safety of aircraft taking off and landing on multiple and possibly crossing runways, (c) sequencing arriving aircraft with different operating characteristics to different and possibly crossing runways, (d)separating and managing enroute aircraft heading in all directions to thousands of destinations, all crossing through the altitudes of other aircraft, (e) establishing the traffic flows and streams into multiple airports, and finally (f) monitoring and managing the arrival demand at multiple airports to ensure that airborne holding and other airborne delays do not exceed acceptable levels.

Accomplishing these complicated and inter-dependent tasks requires close and sophisticated interaction and coordination among multiple individual controllers and between multiple ATC facilities. This seminar will address how this task is accomplished

In addition, the seminar topic will cover additional aviation related topics such as Visual Flight Rules (VFR) vs. Instrument Flight Rules (IFR), Special Use Airspace (SUA), Airspace integrity procedures, flight plan processing, airspace structure and allocation, wake turbulence, and controller training. The topic is also augmented by videos and ATC game simulations that will give attendees a sense of what it feels like to be working as an air traffic controller so they can experience the sensation of approaching their own human limitations.

Integrated into the presentation will be discussions of the applicability and/or utility of current efforts and concepts intended to enhance the efficiency of the ATC system. The driving assessment is whether or not the proposed technology applications are compatible with the current and future human centered ATC.

Why should you attend:

The concept of air traffic control (ATC) is basic and simple, however the procedures, principles, and constructs that underlie the ATC process are not. If you are an aviation professional dedicated to enhancing the operational capabilities of the ATC system, a high level or superficial understanding of the ATC process will almost certainly guarantee a high level or superficial solution to a highly complex problem. At any moment, the ATC system must mange thousands of aircraft with different operating characteristics, flying in all directions, at all altitudes, between thousands of airports, in all kinds of weather conditions. A safe, smooth, and orderly flow of aircraft through the ATC system is a symphony of highly complex and sophisticated procedures that does not just happen naturally.

An ATC technology development approach that expects or assumes ATC subject matter experts or field personnel to eventually make it work operationally after the basic design concept is in motion is not a viable development approach. Even in, perhaps especially in, the earliest stages of design, developers also must have a fundamental understanding of ATC operational nuances and human controller limitations if they are going to create effective and deployable ATC technologies. Currently, ATC is almost unique in the degree to which the development of new functions is performed and led by people with a less than comprehensive understanding of the real world operational environment in which their new technologies will be expected to function. This disconnect has presented a significant challenge to the deployment of sophisticated new ATC functionality and is a major roadblock in the long-term development of automated tactical ATC capabilities.

Areas Covered in the Session:

• Foundational ATC Concepts
• --Basic terms
• --Visual Flight Rules (VFR) vs. Instrument Flight Rules (IFR)
• --ATC facilities
• --Airspace structure, allocation, and restrictions
• --Special Use Airspace
• --ATC Enabling Technologies
• --Airspace integrity procedures
• --Wake vortices
• Airport Traffic Control Tower (ATCT) operations
• --Clearance Delivery
• --Ground Control
• --Local (Tower) Control
• Terminal Radar Approach Control (TRACON) Operations
• --Departure Control
• --Arrival Control
• Air Route Traffic Control Center (ARTCC) Operations
• --Non-Radar Operations
• --Radar Operations
• --Local/Regional Traffic Flow Management
• Traffic Flow Management (TFM)/Collaborative Decision Making (CDM) Operations
• --Flight data management
• --Radar data management
• --Collaborative Decision Making process
• --National Traffic Flow Management Strategies