Fort Worth Center (ZFW) air traffic controller Randy Wilkins has worked enough general aviation traffic in his 13 years there to know that while he and his colleagues aim to provide the best support they can and the most information possible to pilots who encounter difficulty, ultimately, it’s up to the pilot to finish off a safe landing. But Wilkins is passionate about training and developing his base of knowledge in as many different ways as he can to be prepared for challenging...

When Ray Hanson sat down with fellow Potomac TRACON (PCT) controller Mark Dzindzio to assist Piper PA-28 pilot Karl Muller, who was having difficulty navigating in IFR conditions above the Shenandoah Valley in western Virginia, Hanson applied the full breadth of knowledge he has acquired from 13 years as a controller and nearly a quarter of a century as a pilot himself. It wasn’t until a couple of days after helping Muller out of the jam that Hanson realized the incident was eerily similar...

In Part 3 of their four-part conversation, NATCA member and experienced pilot Jamie Sanders (Denver/Centennial ATCT, APA) and Major Katie Cook, a third-generation military aviator and the first female Navy Blue Angels pilot, focused on pilot-controller communications. “I would say that ATC and talking on the radios is way harder than flying an actual airplane,” Cook said. “I know that sounds weird, but being able to manipulate the airplane and put it where you want to, that’s all on you and...

NATCA charter member Brad Burtner retired from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) on Jan. 3, 2008 after three decades of working traffic at four different facilities. Like many other retirees, Burtner headed to Florida, but he didn’t hang up his headset or put away his Union membership card. Instead, two days later, Burtner started a new chapter as a Federal Contract Tower (FCT) controller at Pompano Beach ATCT (PMP). Four years later, he worked to organize the controllers to choose...

At Kansas City Center (ZKC), air traffic controllers on position have a list available to them of fellow controllers at work who are also pilots. If needed, those controllers can be brought to the area to assist a pilot in distress, including things like reviewing emergency checklists. The pilot of a Piper PA-28, flying in instrument flight rules in February 2020, needed help and the controller on the other end of the microphone happened to be the perfect person for the situation: ZKC NATCA...

In honor of Women's History Month, NATCA is presenting the second of a four-part conversation between two incredibly inspiring women in the world of aviation. NATCA’s own Jamie Sanders, an air traffic controller at Denver/Centennial ATCT (APA), who is also an experienced pilot, interviewed Major Katie Cook, a third-generation military aviator and the first female pilot in the storied history of the great Blue Angels team of the Navy. In this episode, Cook talks extensively about her military...

In 1929, the Aeronautical Chamber of Commerce dubbed Wichita, Kan., the “Air Capital of the World.” Nearly a century later, with a world-leading total of aircraft manufactured, it could be argued that Wichita’s busy-and-getting-busier airspace above six airports and McConnell Air Force Base makes it a strong candidate to keep that title. That presents clear situational awareness responsibilities and unique challenges for the air traffic controllers at Wichita ATCT (ICT). ICT sits on the...

The National Air Traffic Controllers Association (NATCA) is very honored to introduce the start of a four-part conversation between two incredibly inspiring women in the world of aviation. NATCA’s own Jamie Sanders, an air traffic controller at Denver Centennial Tower (APA), who is also an experienced pilot, recently sat down for a virtual interview of Major Katie Cook, the first female pilot in the storied history of the great Blue Angels team of the United States Navy. Major Cook is a...

As Seattle Center (ZSE) member Josh Fuller’s shift was ending on the Saturday afternoon before Thanksgiving in 2019, a supervisor from Area C walked through Area B urgently looking for anyone with pilot experience. A VFR-rated Cessna 182 Skylane pilot in far northern Idaho, Tim Bendickson, had departed Boundary County Airport (65S) on what was supposed to be a 40-minute flight to the southwest back to his home airport in Priest River, Idaho (1S6). Instead, he immediately encountered fog and...

In our last episode (Episode 27) of The NATCA Podcast, we brought you the story of Fort Worth Center (ZFW) air traffic controllers and NATCA members Brian Cox, Larry Bell, and Colin McKinnon. The trio worked together as a team to help pilot and flight instructor Anise Shapiro and her student, Jouni Uusitalo when the engine failed on his Piper PA-46 Malibu halfway into a 75-minute flight over West Texas. For their efforts, the controllers are being honored this year with the NATCA Archie...

Halfway into a nearly 75-minute flight last spring to Graham Municipal Airport (RPH), 80 miles northwest of Fort Worth, Texas, pilot and flight instructor Anise Shapiro, in a Piper PA-46 Malibu, lost the engine for the first time in her 23 years of flying. At 14,500 feet and needing quick options, she declared an emergency to Fort Worth Center (ZFW) NATCA member Brian Cox. Onboard with Shapiro were her student pilot, Jouni Uusitalo, and six dogs they were transporting. With the vast West...

Late on a mid-summer evening, over the ocean and in the fog, pilot Lihan Bao was flying a short final ILS approach to Runway 24 at Martha’s Vineyard (MVY), her second time flying into that airport. The tower had just closed for the night. Shortly after her VOR receiver began to swing left to right, Bao saw a group of bright lights which distracted her. She turned left a bit to try to go back to the approach course but it didn’t work, and a few seconds later she and her passenger heard a...

Duffy Fainer holds three skydiving world records and has encountered eight parachute malfunctions and one emergency ocean landing in 46 years of jumps. His first in-flight emergency in 15 years of flying airplanes, late in the afternoon of Wednesday, April 22, 2020, gave him a different kind of feeling. But he credits the calm, professional, expert handling provided by San Diego ATCT (SAN) NATCA members Michelle “Shelly” Bruner and Jamie Macomber with helping him to a safe, albeit...

During any normal shift in Area 2 of Indianapolis Center (ZID) on a mid-March Saturday afternoon, assisting the pilot of a Cessna 172 Skyhawk who encountered icing conditions would have required the same knowledge, calm professionalism, detailed checklist of tasks, and supreme focus that experienced ZID NATCA members Brittany Jones and Bob Obma bring to work. But this particular Saturday afternoon shift, on March 21, 2020, was the first in which three areas at ZID were closed after positive...

The weather conditions in Alaska are often poor, but they’re highly changeable. This can lead to situations where a pilot can encounter difficulty, especially if they’re not able to fly in instrument meteorological conditions (IMC). Alaskan Region air traffic controllers are keenly aware of this each time they plug in for a shift. “I’ve seen situations where a pilot gets IMC for 30 seconds, they call up needing help, and they’re out of it in 15 to 20 seconds,” said Anchorage TRACON (A11)...

It was like most any other ordinary summer afternoon in Pensacola, with a lot of weather, when Marcus Troyer plugged in for his shift at Pensacola TRACON (P31) shortly after 12:30 p.m. EDT. In the skies to the west, U.S. Coast Guard Lt. Commander Brian Hedges was the pilot and aircraft commander on an ordinary training mission in a newly-converted MH65E helicopter. But a short time later, Troyer and Hedges were joined in a search and rescue effort that was anything but ordinary and showcased...

Ep21: NATCA Runway Safety/RWSL Representative Bridget Singratanakul (Gee) by NATCA National Office

NATCA Charitable Foundation (NCF) President Corrie Conrad (Portland, Ore., ATCT, PDX) reflects on the 25th anniversary of NCF. She talks about the great work being done by member volunteers, the efforts put toward meeting the challenge of growing NCF, and the great personal rewards of donating time, money, and energy to the Foundation. "It's a labor of love," she says. "I knew this would make my heart whole."

Ep19 NATCA Fresno Tower FacRep Jerry O'Gorman Talks About His Heart Surgery by NATCA National Office

Our NATCA Family has lost 16 members in the last two years to suicide. The latest was Crystal Joy Kendzierski, the FacRep at Tulsa Riverside ATCT (RVS), which has hit our membership, and particularly the Southwest Region, very hard. Suicide is the 10th leading cause of death in the United States for all ages. Every day, approximately 123 Americans die by suicide. This is the type of tragedy that the NATCA family has unfortunately experienced before, but we are determined to raise awareness...

Listen to this week's news, notes, and highlights as reported in the newest issue of The NATCA Insider e-newsletter.

NATCA Director of Safety and Technology Jim Ullmann, who participated in the selection of Archie League Medal of Safety Award winners for the fourth straight year, talks about the 2019 honorees and their great air traffic control work that ensured safety above all. Jim also discusses meeting with his fellow selection panelists and how this awards program - and CFS - have grown over the years.

NATCA Director of Government Affairs Jose Ceballos talks with Deputy Director of Public Affairs Doug Church in an episode of The NATCA Podcast devoted to the federal budget and FAA funding issues. Ceballos discusses this week's House vote to pass a Transportation, Housing and Urban Development (THUD) FY2020 appropriations bill, gives a status update on the increasing Congressional support for both H.R. 1108 and S. 762, and analyzes the looming threats posed by the end of fiscal year...

A rundown of NATCA's latest news and notes, as covered by the June 21, 2019 issue of The NATCA Insider e-newsletter for members.

Phil Hughes looks back on his 35-year career, the evolution and growth of NATCA during that time, and the remarkable success of the collaboration initiative between NATCA and the FAA, now nearly a decade old.