ATCA Bulletin #4 2015

Air Traffic Control Association

No. 4, 2015

www.atca.org

ATCA’s Technical Symposium A Conversation About Remote Operations with Keith McCrea, VSATS Executive Director

In This Issue: »» Member Spotlight: Federal Leadership Institute »» CGH Technologies, Inc. Launches CGH International »» Aviation History Corner »» ATCA Website Update »» And More

President’s Message

No. 4, 2015 Published for

By Peter F. Dumont, President & CEO, Air Traffic Control Association

Join Us for the ATCA Technical Symposium

W

ith the arrival of spring, it’s hard to believe that we are just a few weeks away from the ATCA Technical Symposium in Atlantic City, NJ (ACY).

Our annual event kicks off this year with Tech Center Tuesday on May 12.

This is our third year of partnership with the FAA’s William J. Hughes Technical Center for this popular technical exchange.

The FAA generously opens up the Tech Center for tours and technical exhibits in the lobby, which has become tremendously successful and beneficial for the attendees.

Recently, I have been asked whether ATCA is hosting a golf outing while we are in ACY, as we’ve done in the past.

This year, ATCA has decided to focus our efforts on ACY itself, ensuring that the event is bigger and better than ever. ATCA will host its annual golf tournament this fall; a date will be provided in the coming months. As usual, 100 percent of the proceeds will benefit the ATCA Scholarship Fund.

The scholarship fund must be replenished every year for us to continue to contribute to the education of our future leaders and this year our goal is to raise $100,000. You do not need to wait for a specific ATCA Scholarship event to con-

tribute. You can make individual or corporate tax-free donations anytime throughout the year. To do this just give us a call or visit our website. We will also have fundraising activities at all of our events so please consider donating.

In addition, you may have seen in Headline News that we are in the process of improving our website. The goal is to provide you, the member, and the general public a more content-rich, user-friendly website. The site was recently transferred to a new operating platform; you may experience some limited functionality during this transition. At this first stage the site will look the same with just a few additional functions. Most of the changes in the first two stages will enable us to update the site with information that is valuable and beneficial to you.

Over the next few months you will see cosmetic improvements and additional functionality as well as interconnectivity to the membership database. Implementation of new databases and management software is a complicated and time-intensive process. We expect to have the process complete in July. If during this process you have any feedback, please contact us. I appreciate your patience in this transition.

I hope to see you in Atlantic City.

1101 King Street, Suite 300 Alexandria, VA 22314 Phone: 703-299-2430 Fax: 703-299-2437 info@atca.org www.atca.org President & CEO: Peter F. Dumont

Director, Communications: Marion Brophy Writer/Editor: Kristen Knott

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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© 2015 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.

Upcoming Events May 12-14, 2015

ATCA Technical Symposium Resorts Hotel and Casino Atlantic City, New Jersey atca.org/TechSymposium

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ATCA Bulletin | No. 4, 2015

Nov. 1-4, 2015

ATCA Annual and CMAC National Harbor, Maryland atca.org/60annual

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

Technical Symposium Delves Into Remote Operations with Panel Session

By Kristen Knott, ATCA Writer and Editor

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ATCA Bulletin | No. 4, 2015

A Conversation with

Keith McCrea,

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TCA’s Technical Symposium (ACY) provides that rare opportunity to escape the daily grind and see your hard work put into action. The event is three full days at the heart of the technology driving the air traffic industry.

Attendees can participate in panel sessions with key industry and government leaders covering the latest in air traffic ideas, research, products, and services. One such topic is remote operations – the event will feature a panel dedicated to the topic featuring speakers from the FAA, NATCA, Saab, and the Virginia SATSLAB, Inc

(VSATS). ATCA sat down with Keith McCrea, executive director of VSATS, to talk about the project that’s at the forefront of his mind.

VSATS has partnered with Saab and the town of Leesburg, VA (with heavy involvement with the FAA) to test the feasibility of tower services being provided remotely. The Leesburg Executive Airport ( JYO) is set to become the first of its kind in the United States.

“Leesburg is a perfect candidate. It’s a reliever airport to Dulles and inside unique airspace,” said McCrea. “We have

66 licensed public-use airports in Virginia; all but nine don’t have any scheduled air service. One objective for the project is to understand the potential for this type technology to provide greater access for some of the other 57 airports. The aim then is for greater economic development potential for these airports.”

This August, the Leesburg Airport will begin a 90-day passive trial.

“We will operate the project in various conditions,” said McCrea. “Much like with any research project, we’ll alter, tweak, learn, and adjust with the goal of providing

ATCA Bulletin | No. 4, 2015

Images courtesy of Saab

VSATS Executive Director

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Images courtesy of ATCA

an additional platform for controllers to do their job.”

Next spring, VSATS plans to begin the next phase of the project by going active and adding a mobile ATC tower staffed with certified controllers.

“We’re going to have a deployed mobile tower that is used throughout the second phase of the project as a safety mechanism,” said McCrea. “It will run concurrently with the remote tower to compare remotely-accessed optical information vs. on-site optical information.”

“It helps to answer the question if we can adequately transfer that field of vision,” 6

ATCA Bulletin | No. 4, 2015

added McCrea. “Can a controller do their job having this information provided via cameras? Wonderful advancements in high definition cameras have made this all possible.” Of course, says McCrea, the team has had controllers involved with the concept and participating in the project.

McCrea added that it is unlikely we’ll find remote towers at high traffic airports in the future.

“What I see with this technology is the ability to move the benefit of active control to lower activity airports that would never be on any ATC service candidate list,” said McCrea. “The technol-

ogy may allow us to bring active control at some point to airports that warrant it without any traditional on-site brick and mortar.”

“Time will tell if [the project] bears fruit. An end goal would be to eventually deploy this type of technology throughout the National Airspace System,” added McCrea.

The Remote Operations panel session will take place at 1:15 p.m. on Wednesday, May 13. For more information about remote operations or the upcoming Technical Symposium, contact the ATCA office at +1 703-299-2430.

Media Release From CGH International

CGH Technologies, Inc. Launches CGH International

Battling the increasingly complex problem of aeronautical data

I

magine the helicopter that crashed into a construction crane atop a new luxury residential building in the thick London fog, killing the pilot and another person and sparking a line of flames as it plunged to the ground. Thirteen others were injured in the crash that took place near a busy intersection at the height of the morning rush hour in Vauxhall, south of the River Thames in central London. Incidents like these happen many times a year when pilots have inaccurate and/or incomplete terrain and obstacle information.

In 2008, CGH’s COO, Glyn Owen attended an Electronic Terrain and Obstacle Data (eTOD) conference in Brussels where these types of outdated, undocumented, or unreliable obstacle issues were discussed. His experience turned into a passion and his passion turned into a solution. Thus, CGH International was born with a mission to solve this problem by creating an agile software delivery service to allow the global aviation industry

to finally create and house reliable aeronautical data. Building on CGH’s decade of experience in working with the FAA, CGH’s founder and president, Cindy Troutman created CGH International and built a team around Glyn to bring his vision to reality.

Now, six years later, CGH International has been officially launched with its flagship service, ASSET©, created in collaboration with the Irish Aviation Authority (IAA). The service meets global Aeronautical Data and Aeronautical Information Quality (ADQ), Quality Management System (QMS), and International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) standards for data accuracy and integrity, while holding down development, maintenance, and training costs. Unique in its approach, CGH International has also reduced longterm licensing fees, reduced or replaced expensive third-party data tools, and incorporated State and international regulatory

requirements in a streamlined process into its powerful secure cloud-based service.

CGH International delivered to IAA a single service that would provide compliant “trusted data” which could be accessed from any location, at any time without significantly adding to operational or personnel costs.

“I believe we are at a critical tipping point in the aviation industry,” states Cindy Troutman, “where inaccurate and unreliable data will no longer be tolerated to impact the safety of businesses and the flying public I am proud of the leaps we have taken to ensure global aviation information reliability and can’t wait for additional services to be launched.”

About CGH International

To learn more about CGH International, a woman-owned small business headquartered in Washington, D.C., visit CGH Technologies International, LLC at http://www.cghtechintl.com/.

ATCA Bulletin | No. 4, 2015

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Aviation History Corner On April 21, 1995…

The FAA issued a rule establishing minimum combined experience levels for two airline pilots flying together and upgrading operational experience requirements.

The agency had proposed the rule in March 1993 in response to accidents and incidents in which a contributing factor was the pairing of inexperienced pilots.

– FAA Historical Chronology

Midwest Air Traffic Control Service, Inc., is a leading provider of aviation support services to US civilian and military federal government agencies, as well as international customers.

Founded in 1978, Midwest ATC supports a diverse customer base, including the US Federal Aviation Administration, the FAA International Office, the US Department of Defense, the North Atlantic Treaty organization, and the Canadian Department of Defense. With our solid reputation and team of highly qualified aviation experts, Midwest ATC is dedicated to providing clients with an outstanding level of service and commitment to safety at a reasonable price.

Midwest takes seriously our role in ensuring the safety of the traveling public and in supporting the efforts of both the US government and global partners overseas. Using Midwest ATC's flexible and professional approach will enable you to achieve the success you seek.

Midwest Air Traffic Control Service, Inc. 7285 W 132nd Street, Suite 340, Overland Park, KS 66213

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ATCA Bulletin | No. 4, 2015

Phone: + 1 913 782 7082 Web: www.atctower.com

TRAFFIC JAM AHEAD. PLAN ACCORDINGLY.

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.

ATCA Welcomes New Member

Federal Leadership Institute

Goygel-Sokol Dmitry; Brothers Good/Shutterstock

T

he Federal Leadership Institute™ (FLI) provides innovative training solutions for highly technical people making rapid, stressful, and life-saving decisions. FLI’s proprietary methodology for cognitive instruction enhancement puts them at the vanguard of cognitive training and development. Our mission is to cognitively enhance an individual’s ability to effectively perform protocol under extreme conditions.

FLI is emerging as a leader in the field of aviation psychology. For over 15 years, the FLI has supported the FAA in multiple initiatives to enhance their rapidly changing policies, procedures, and training needs. FLI provides curriculum development, training, business process reengineering, and organizational development solutions to FAA offices including ATO, AFS, SASO, OCR, and HR. FLI has delivered AMS and leadership training to FAA personnel across the country.

FLI clients, including DOD and DHS, have benefited from FLI’s operative training programs in high stress work environments.

Leaders in the field of aviation believe FLI’s cognitive enhancement training could be beneficial to air traffic controllers. In addition, FLI’s mission supports the promotion of aviation safety.

To find out more about our training and consulting services, please visit our website at www.Federal-Leadership.org or contact our CEO, Dr. Laura Granato at Dr.Laura@federal-leadership.org.

An Update on ATCA’s Website Relaunch

By Tim Wagner, ATCA Membership Manager

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ATCA Bulletin | No. 4, 2015

ronstik/Shutterstock

A

new website is coming to ATCA this summer! We have taken measured, and sometimes painful steps to transition our old website and association management system (AMS) to a new platform with a new provider – all with the goal of improving the member experience. The staff feels that www.atca.org looks cleaner, navigates more swiftly, and should be more useful for our membership. Now that the interim project is up and running, our efforts have become focused on the new site.

In addition to the attributes we tried to achieve in the interim site, our vision for the new website will include mobile use, an enhanced look, and more direct functionality. We have looked at award-winning websites and their functionality and are using the best of these as models for the new ATCA site. If you have any suggestions please send them to info@atca.org using the subject line “New ATCA website” and we will be sure to consider them.

COMING JUNE 2015 › New

look and complete enhancement › One-click navigation and mobility › Wide screen access on your phone and tablet › Improved functionality for our members

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 Ashley Haskins, Office Manager Kristen Knott, Writer and Editor 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 Ashley Swearingen, Press and Marketing Manager Tim Wagner, Membership Manager

1101 King Street Suite 300 Alexandria, VA  22314

Officers and Board of Directors Chairman, Neil Planzer Chairman-Elect, Charles Keegan President & CEO, Peter F. Dumont Treasurer, Rachel Jackson East Area Director, Susan Chodakewitz Pacific Area, Asia, Australia Director, Peter Fiegehen South Central Area Director, William Cotton Northeast Area Director, Mike Ball Southeast Area Director, Jack McAuley North Central Area Director, Bill Ellis West Area Director and Secretary, Chip Meserole Canada, Caribbean, Central and South America, Mexico Area Director, Rudy Kellar Europe, Africa, Middle East Area Director, Jonathan Astill Director at Large, Rick Day Director at Large, Vinny Capezzuto Director at Large, Michael Headley