Air Traffic Controllers

The air traffic controller relies on a combination of radar and visual observation to help control the flow of traffic in and out of an airport. Safety is a paramount concern and controllers also monitor weather changes and keep pilots abreast of them. More than one controller is responsible for each plane that arrives or departs from an airport. The pilots communicate via radio with the controllers on departure or takeoff. The controller keeps a copy of the plane’s flight plan and observes its movement on radar. When the coast is clear, so-to-speak, the controller directs the pilot to land or takeoff, but if the airport is busy the controller organizes the traffic pattern of all the planes and fits them into a particular route. A ground controller also dire

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hich often result in fatalities. While the air traffic safety record has been improving, despite increases of air traffic in the era of deregulation, there are still many near midairs which occur annually. Near midairs occur when two planes come dangerously close to one another in takeoff, flight or landing. These incidents have been on the increase at a rate that worries many within and outside of the air traffic industry, “311 in 1982, 475 in 1983, 589 in 1984, 777 in 1985, at least 812 in 1986. Commercial airliners were involved in 35% of the 1986 incidents. What the air-travel industry too gently calls ‘runaway incursions’ are also on the rise” (Magnuson, 1987, 24). Many contend that these close calls are the result of an understaffed air-safety system. They argue that as air traffic continues to grow at a rapid pace, there are not enough qualified controllers with a level of experience necessary to insure safe operations. While many argue that air traffic controllers work diligently and hard to insure air traffic safety, deregulation and Ronald Reagan’s abrupt firing of air traffic controllers have led to a lack of fully qualified controllers. Still, others point to safety records as proof of the qualifications of ai
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Approximate Word count = 1939
Approximate Pages = 8 (250 words per page)

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