Air Traffic Control Association
August 2013
The Glen Gilbert Trophy Gets a Facelift An in-depth look at the refurbishing of ATCA’s iconic award
IN THIS ISSUE: »» The History of the Glen Gilbert Trophy »» The Newest ATCA Members »» COMSOFT win Prestigious NATS Supplier Performance Award »» And More!
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PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE
August 2013 Published for
By Peter F. Dumont
President & CEO, Air Traffic Control Association
New Initiatives on the Horizon
I
am writing this message to you just after the closing ceremonies at the American Society of Association Executives (ASAE) Annual Meeting and Exposition, which I attended this year with a few members of the staff. I have said many times that our focus at ATCA is on continual improvement and ASAE provides us with continual professional training in all things association. It is a transfer, from association executives and their staffs, of best practices in the association world. It helps us become more relevant and valuable to you. One improvement you may have noticed recently is in our ATCA Headline News. We have updated the format as well as the functionality. The response so far has been very positive. Please give it a look and tell us what you think. We are also in the process of receiving bids to digitize all past issues of The Journal of Air Traffic Control. These will eventually be available and searchable to our members online. As you know, these past articles are scientific and informative, so we believe this initiative will be of tremendous value to our members. I would like to update you on a few items being established prior to the ATCA 58th Annual Conference and Exposition in October.
ATCA is putting together two ad hoc committees. The first will be an ATCA Committee on Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) Operations. The UAS Committee will be chaired by Gary Church of Aviation Management Associates, and will be responsible for developing a UAS white paper, an ATCA UAS position paper, and content for ATCA’s daylong UAS Operations Symposium, taking place November 1 (www.atca.org/UAS). The second will be a Safety Committee chaired by Mary McMillan of Tetra Tech. The purpose of this committee will be to produce a white paper on safety initiatives in our industry, an ATCA position paper, and content for the Flight Global Safety Conference taking place in London, England this December. If you are interested in participating in either of these committees, please contact Paul Planzer, Manager of ATC Programs, at Paul.Planzer@atca.org Our heavy involvement in industry discussions and collaboration over the next few months is encouraging to me and I hope you feel compelled to contribute to one of the above initiatives.
ATCA 58th Annual Conference and Exposition Gaylord National Resort & Convention Center National Harbor, Md. November 1, 2013
UAS Day Renaissance Arlington Capital View Arlington, Va. www.atca.org/UAS
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ATCA Bulletin | July 2013
President & CEO: Peter F. Dumont
Director, Communications: Marion Brophy
Communications Coordinator: Jessica McGarry Formed in 1956 as a non-profit, professional membership association, ATCA represents the interests of all professionals in the air traffic control industry. Dedicated to the advancement of professionalism and technology of air traffic control, ATCA has grown to represent several thousand individuals and organizations managing and providing ATC services and equipment around the world.
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Calendar of Events October 20 - 23, 2013
1101 King Street, Suite 300 Alexandria, VA 22314 Phone: 703-299-2430 Fax: 703-299-2437 info@atca.org www.atca.org
Distribution: Jen Holmes Winter 2013
ATCA Holiday Party Air Traffic Control Association Offices 1101 King Street, Suite 300 Alexandria, Va. March 4-6, 2014
World ATM Congress IFEMA Madrid, Spain
© 2013 Air Traffic Control Association, Inc. All rights reserved. The contents of this publication may not be reproduced by any means, in whole or in part, without the prior written consent of ATCA. Disclaimer: The opinions expressed by the authors of the editorial articles contained in this publication are those of the respective authors and do not necessarily represent the opinion of ATCA. Printed in Canada. Please recycle where facilities exist.
ATCA’s Newest Members Here are the newest members to the ATCA family! Welcome to the association! Michael E. Adams, General Dynamics IT Saam, Ahmadi, Mitre Michael Anstrom, Tetra Tech ATM Catherine Antonucci, Lockheed Martin Jason, Atwell, Sentel Everett Ayers, ARINC Geoffrey Barker, Architecture Technology Corporation Brian Bear, Raytheon David, Becker Samuel Biller, Raytheon Arianna Bocci, 1st American Systems and Services Spencer Boland, Selex Systems Intergration Kirsty, Boyd, Lockheed Martin Clark, Britan, Metron Aviation, Inc. Marc Bronsdon, Safety Net Solutions, Inc. Dean A. Brown, FAA Andrew Burnham Jacob Bynes Michael Caflisch, The Boeing Company Robert, Cassidy, Midwest ATC Charles Chen, Harris Corporation Lawrence Cogut, General Dynamics Information Technology Jim Crowell, ERAU Yalonda Dabney, AIREON Pablo Dezontini Avis Dillard-Bullock, JMA Solutions Ben Douglass, ERAU Chris Dromerick, HP Sarah Dunn, NATCA Josh Elliot, Booz Allen Hamilton Brian Elson, Rolls-Royce North America John Fischer, CSC Lynda Fortier, The Fortier Group Kathryn Frain, Raytheon Huina Gao, Metron Aviation, Inc. Gerald Gaskins, Lockheed Martin Corp Gary Gerberick, Boeing Kris Gibeau, USAF Katrina Gordon, Boeing Charles Grabenstein, Orbis Inc. Kevin Graff, Navy Mark A., Guiod, FAA Don Harroll, OSIsoft Kevin Hightower, Lockheed Martin David Hov, AECOM John Huffman, Midwest ATC Robert W. Hughes, Rockwell Collins John D., Hughes, FAA Brian Hughes, Unisys Corporation AJ Jaghori, B3 Solutions, LLC Brian Kane, Booz, Allen, Hamilton Stephen, Kazunas, Lockheed Martin Monica Keswani, Tantus Technologies, Inc. Vinayak “Vinnie” Khera, Harris Miller Miller & Hanson, Inc.
Katherine Kondub Noblis Jonathan L. Koontz, FAA Timothy Lael, General Dynamics Information Technology Chris Lane, Indigo Arc, LLC Scott Larson, 1st American Systems and Services Michael, Marsili, Nexus Air Surface Consulting John McDade, CCSi Dan McGovern, Metron Aviation, Inc. Josh Nacol, Defense Point Security Reinaldo Negron, Lockheed Martin Monicarol Nickelson, FAA John Olson, Midwest ATC Aiden Ozuna, New Bedford Panoramix Gary Pierce, Midwest ATC Aline Portela, Brazilian Air Force Jason Radgowski, Tantus Technologies, Inc. Arun Raghu, B3 Solutions, LLC Joe Rex, Raytheon Company William, Richards, The Boeing Company Garrett Risinger, Midwest ATC Denny Roderick, ASEC Ronald Ruggeri, Vaughn College of Aeronautics & Technology Sarah Saleeb, The Boeing Company Dennis Sawyer, The MITRE Corporation Amanda, Schabowsky, Harris Corporation Robert Schickling, DFS David Schreck, Rockwell Collins Devin Seth, B3 Solutions Melissa Shoemaker, Metron Aviation, Inc. Ron S. Shusterman Colleen Slattery, EMC James Smith, North Star Group Rebel Smith Todd Snedden, L-3 Communications Craig Sorrentino, Foxhole Technology, Inc. Kent Statler, Rockwell Collins Peter Swan, VT MAK Wendy Swartz, Harris Zheng Tao, 1st American Systems and Services Bob Tobin, FAA/ATO Oscar Torres, FAA Elizabeth Tribelli, Booz Allen Hamilton Ryan Tribue, 1st American Systems and Services Ankit Tyagi, Intelligent Automation Inc. Luigi Valentini, MSAG James E. Villar, FAA Mark Wachter, Aerospace Industries Association Donald Weitzman Charles White, Semper Fortis Solutions, LLC Elliot Wiechmann Stephanie Wilcox, Evans Incorporated John Williams, Cyvision Technologies Stuart Wilson, Harris Corporation MatthewWittman, Midwest ATC
Corporate Members • 1st American Systems and Services, LLC • Aireon • BearDen Solutions, LLC • Coastal Environmental Systems, Inc. • IDS North America
On the Move • Motorola Solutions • Redhat, Inc. • Snowflake Software
Mariano Alicea, Sabre Systems, Inc. Agam N., Sinha
ATCA Bulletin | August 2013
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The Glen A. Gilbert Trophy Gets a Facelift
An in-depth look at the refurbishing of ATCA’s iconic award By Jessica McGarry
“T
PHOTOGRAPHY: ATCA/ALL-FREE-DOWNLOADS.COM
he initial challenge to update the Glen A. Gilbert trophy seemed simple enough,” said ATCA’s Membership Manager, Tim Wagner. “We had run out of space on the wooden base to place the trophy recipients’ names after 2011 and the solution seemed easy: adding another tier to the wooden base to make room for more name plates. Once the plan of action was approved, the real fun began.” If you have attended the Glen A. Gilbert Memorial Award Dinner in the past, you have probably seen the smaller version of the trophy that ATCA awards to each recipient. The real trophy clocks in at 100 pounds and was originally 32 inches tall. The design features a sculpted figure of Jupiter kneeling on the Earth, represented by crystal sphere with vertical facets floating in silver clouds and sitting on top of a wooden base. That base includes an award description and two broader but narrower tiers where recipient nameplates were attached. The trophy is currently on the first floor, north side of the Smithsonian’s National Air & Space Museum’s Milestones of Flight on exhibit. The trophy was created by artists and graphic designers at Hughes Aircraft Company’s Ground Systems Group. Wagner spoke with Werner Rentz, the original woodworker, and even after all these years he remembered the wood used in the basewas koa wood: a rare, exotic Hawaiian wood similar to rosewood. Rentz had long retired from woodworking, so the association searched for woodworkers who could acquire koa and knew how to work with it from specifications. Enter Alex Spencer – curator at the National Air and Space Museum – who, while not a woodworker himself, made himself
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ATCA Bulletin | August 2013
available and was extremely helpful throughout the reclamation process. Spencer brought to ATCA’s attention the possibility of having to purchase a new case for the trophy if the new base added too much height – at a cost of several thousand dollars. Just getting into the current case to get the size specifications was difficult, as it comes apart somewhat like a jigsaw puzzle. With sizes recorded, Wagner searched for a woodworker. The request for proposals landed two bids – one from California and one from Pennsylvania. Fittingly, the Californian won the bid. He ordered the koa from his supplier in Hawaii and fashioned 21 wedges to make the circular base to ATCA’s specifications. He kept ATCA informed, documented his progress along the way, and finally shipped the finished base to the association. The base was sent to the engraver to fit the nameplates on the new base and the 2012 and 2013 recipients’ names, which, fitting for this process, yielded complications. The original nameplates were made of stainless steel, which broke the engraving tools during the engraving process. After some back and forth, the engraver only agreed to complete these plates because ATCA was a strong, long-term customer. The trophy is now back in its current case, and the new base matches the original so well it is hard to tell there was a retrofit. ATCA has added enough name plates to take the award well into the next decade, and looks forward to adding the names of all future recipients. * The restoration of the base of the trophy was possible thanks to a generous donation by the Raytheon Company.
2011 Glen A. Gilbert Award winner, Jane Garvey, is presented with her trophy by Monte Belger
2012 Glen A. Gilbert Award winner, Peter Challan, is presented with his trophy by Neil Planzer
Who Was Glen A. Gilbert? Glen Alexander Gilbert (1913-1982) was a visionary who, along with Earl Ward, founded the U.S. air traffic system and dedicated his professional career to its improvement. After graduating from the University of Wisconsin, Gilbert pursued a career in commercial aviation, including working at Northwest Airlines and American Airlines. During this time, he helped develop and operate collision avoidance procedures for aircraft operating under instrument conditions until the service was taken over by the FAA. Gilbert was the first director of the United States ATC systems (Chief, Airway Traffic Control section, 1936-40; Chief, ATC Division, 194046) and represented the U.S. at international conferences on aviation. He helped in the formation of the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) in 1944. He later became special assistant to the Administrator of Civil Aeronautics (1946-51). In 1951, he became an aviation expert for ICAO and started Glen Gilbert and Associates, an aviation consulting firm in 1957. Gilbert co-authored 28 patent claims for airborne and ground equipment to improve ATC safety and efficiency and wrote a number of books and articles on the subject. A collection, including a seven volume set representing a partial documentation of Gilbert’s contribution to ATC development and two books he authored, are available for viewing at the National Air and Space Museum in Washington, D.C. Source: National Air and Space Museum, Archives Division
ATCA Bulletin | August 2013
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Transforming the air traffic management (ATM) system is essential for improving safety, efficiency and the environment around the globe. Boeing is fully committed and uniquely qualified to help make ATM transformation a reality. It’s the right time and Boeing is the right partner.
Thank You to Our Newest Corporate Member!
W
ith over 30 years experience in meteorological systems integration, Coastal Aviation Weather Systems operates on every continent and in every environment, including the South Pole and Sahara Desert. Coastal’s expertise is in making weather-monitoring systems that work anywhere and all the time and are also intuitive to set-up and use, and require minimal maintenance. Coastal’s AWOS measure and report weather data at permanent, mobile, and portable airfields. Completely scalable and built to minimize risks—Coastal’s AWOS have the flexibility to handle any current or conceivable weather sensor. Data reporting is available in METAR, SPECI, SYNOP, and local formats. Coastal AWOS can have up to 10 sensor groups (full/partial) on one or multiple runways. Data is collected and processed by a server, then displayed anywhere via Web/LAN, and sent as a voice output for broadcast to pilots. Through Coastal’s web-based
PHOTO COURTESY OF COASTAL ENVIRONMENTAL SYSTEMS
Aviation INTERCEPT® software, users can view the most current observation, review logged data, edit reports, set local weather alerts, monitor performance, and monitor maintenance remotely. Coastal works closely with customers and is highly skilled at overcoming local infrastructure challenges. Coastal provides installation, technical support and training. Systems are FAA and NWS approved; FMH-1/ICAO compliant. Who depends on Coastal Aviation Weather Stations? The US Air Force,
NAV CANADA, Indonesia (civil and military), Poland, Hong Kong, Nigeria, NASA, and the FAA are just a few of Coastal’s aviation customers. For more information, please contact: Kathy Jones, Director of Market Development Coastal Environmental Systems, Inc. 800-488-8291 / 206-6826048 www.CoastalEnvironmental.com If you would like your company profiled in The ATCA Bulletin, please contact Tim Wagner at Tim.Wagner@atca.org or +1-703-299-2430 x 314.
Media Release from DW International
Air Mauritius selects the GRPS Web UI for RAIM Predictions
DW
International (DWI) is pleased to announce that Air Mauritius, the flag carrier of Mauritius, has selected the GNSS RAIM/RNP Prediction Service Web-based User Interface (GRPS Web UI). Air Mauritius will be using the GRPS Web UI to support its PBN operations, including Basic-RNP 1 as now required for Hong Kong International Airport. The web service provides a userfriendly interface allowing flight planners and dispatchers to perform preflight RAIM checks, store tail configurations, aerodromes, waypoints and entire routes to reduce workload and potential
human error. Due to ease of use, a short classroom training course was all that was required for dispatchers to learn how to manage and operate the GRPS Web UI. Air Mauritius will continue to receive support from the DWI dedicated support helpdesk. “We’re seeing more and more operators like Air Mauritius integrate the GRPS Web UI into their operations in a matter of days so they can meet the requirements of Basic-RNP 1 at Hong Kong International Airport and other destinations,” said Kieran Conlon, Head of Operations and Support at DWI. ATCA Bulletin | August 2013
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The ATCA Bulletin (ISSN 0402-1977) is published monthly by the Air Traffic Control Association. Periodical postage paid at Alexandria, VA. $5.00 of annual dues are allocated for the publication of the ATCA Bulletin. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to ATCA BULLETIN, 1101 King Street, Suite 300, Alexandria, VA 22314. Staff Marion Brophy, Director, Communications Ken Carlisle, Director, Meetings and Expositions Jonathan Fath, New Media Manager Jessica McGarry, Communications Coordinator Christine Oster, Chief Financial Officer Paul Planzer, Manager, ATC Programs Claire Rusk, Vice President of Operations Rugger Smith, International Accounts Sandra Strickland, Events and Exhibits Coordinator Tim Wagner, Membership Manager
1101 King Street Suite 300 Alexandria, VA  22314
Officers and Board of Directors Chairman, James H. Washington Chairman-Elect, Neil Planzer President & CEO, Peter F. Dumont Treasurer, Director at Large, Rachel Jackson Secretary, East Area Director, Jeff Griffith Pacific Area, Asia, Australia Director, Bob Gardiner South Central Area Director, William Cotton Northeast Area Director, Mike Headley Southeast Area Director, Robert Coulson North Central Area Director, Jim Crook Western Area Director, Mike Lewis Canada, Caribbean, Central and South America, Mexico Area Director, Sid Koslow Europe, Africa, Middle East Area Director, Steve James Director at Large, Charlie Keegan Director at Large, Allison Patrick Director at Large, Sandra Samuel