Say Again?

Whenever there is an accident in aviation, those of us in the business start thinking of all the things that might have gone wrong. We try not to speculate (at least not in public) as we wait for the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) to conduct their investigation and let us know what happened.Most of […]

Yes, it’s coming! But don’t get excited. You don’t really want what is coming, but you’re going to get it anyway. Remember when I wrote Say Again? #49: Come Up a Bad Cloud? Well, the “storm” is here.They say everybody has a talent. I don’t know if you want to call this a talent or […]

Question: What were non-radar operations called before radar?Answer: Air Traffic ControlYou may wonder why I’m putting the very basics — the bedrock — of Air Traffic Control in an advanced class in my series of ATC courses. The answer is simple: Because it’s complicated. It also involves a lot of math. I hate math. Be […]

On January 1, 2006, Warren “Chip” Jones replaced Don Brown as the Facility Safety Representative of the National Air Traffic Controllers Association (NATCA) at Atlanta Center. Don will continue his work as a Safety Representative for NATCA while he prepares for his upcoming retirement. Don’s column this month is his advice letter to Chip. Dear […]

I‘m always fascinated by how little I know about the things I use every day. The ILS is one of those things. The ILS is the “bread and butter” of the instrument approaches. If there’s a choice, most pilots and most controllers will go with the ILS. (Actually, most would prefer a visual approach, but […]

I don’t know why air disasters take on the names of towns or places. I guess we have to give them some sort of name to catalogue them in our minds. Perhaps geography is just convenient. It does seem unfair to the towns. Lockerbie, Scotland, didn’t have anything to do with Pan Am 103 blowing […]

I said it before but I’m going to say it again: The job of an air traffic controller epitomizes the saying, “The more things change, the more they stay the same.” Imagine my surprise this morning when I saw a flight plan with BZM.T203.PSK in the route of flight. What the heck is T203? Turns […]

It’s time to pick annual leave for 2006 at Atlanta Center (ZTL). We pick our days off and two weeks of leave at the same time. I’ve been senior enough to get Saturday and Sunday off for some time now. Lots and lots of controllers get really excited about seniority. Me, I never give it […]

Airliner one twenty three, cleared to SHINE, hold northwest, as published, expect further clearance one five three zero.”Holding might not be ordinary to you, but in Atlanta Center (ZTL) it’s as ordinary as pine trees in Georgia. During normal business hours, somebody — somewhere — always seems to be holding in ZTL airspace. I think […]

Standard phraseology is the product of years of experience and has been developed to combine precision, brevity, and audibility. … Talk slowly and speak distinctly, do not run words together. Make the listener hear all you say the first time you say it.”That sounds like a quote straight out of the AIM, doesn’t it? It […]