The Controller - October 2019

THE CONTROLLER

October 2019

Journal of Air Traffic Control

FOCUS ON Women ALSO IN THIS ISSUE: z Focus on Costa Rica and Tunisia z News from 58th Annual IFATCA Annual Conference z News about Equality, Diversity and Ethics Task Force

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Contents

THE CONTROLLER

OCTOber 2019 Volume 58 Issue 2 – ISSN 0010-8073

Cover photo: This issue of The Controller includes a special section about women who work in air traffic control around the world. There are 18 articles about women in Africa & the Middle East, the Americas, Asia Pacific, and Europe. The photos used on the cover feature many of the women ATCOs from these articles.

EXECUTIVE BOARD OF IFATCA Duncan Auld President and Chief Executive Officer

Helena Sjöström Deputy President

Mark Taylor Executive Vice-President Finance

Peter Van Rooyen Executive Vice-President Professional

Ignacio Baca Executive Vice-President Technical

Jean-François Lepage ICAO ANC Representative

Fateh Bekhti Executive Vice-President Africa and Middle East John Carr Executive Vice-President Americas Anthony Ang Executive Vice-President Asia and Pacific Tom Laursen Executive Vice-President Europe

In this issue

Forward..............................You Are Professionals. You Are the Future......................................................... 4

The Controller Highlights EDETF and Women Controllers................................ 5 News from 58th Annual Conference................................................................................................................ 6

Photos from the Conference................................................................................. 6

EDETF Members: Who Is Representing Your Region?.................................... 10

Counting Down to 100 Years of ATC.................................................................. 14 Special Section // Women & Equality: Introduction..................................................................................... 16

Africa & Middle East Region............................................................................... 16 Americas............................................................................................................... 25

Asia Pacific...........................................................................................................30 Europe.................................................................................................................. .33 Africa & Middle East.........Focus on Tunisia..................................................................................................40

"Interview: Mostpha Bessamra........................................................................... 42

"Interview: Ahmed Fersi...................................................................................... 42

"What Is Safety?": Think Safety Workshop........................................................ 43 Americas........................... ATC in Costa Rica................................................................................................. 44

VFR Flying in Costa Rica..................................................................................... 46 Europe............................... ATM World 2019 in Madrid, Spain...................................................................... 48

Interview of Nicolas Warinsko, SESAR Deployment General Manager..........50

AERO Friedrichshafen 2019................................................................................ 51

IFALPA Annual Conference 2019 Berlin. Germany........................................... 52

IFALPA Female Pilots Work Group..................................................................... 53

FLYOPERATIVT Forum 2019 in Oslo, Norway................................................... 54 Charlie's Column............................................................................................................................................... 55

PUBLISHER IFATCA, International Federation of Air Traffic Controllers‘ Associations 360, St Jacques · Suite 2002 Montreal, Quebec · H2Y 1P5 · CANADA Phone: +1514 866 7040 Fax: +1514 866 7612 Email: office@ifatca.org

EXECUTIVE EDITOR Thom Metzger email: editor@ifatca.org MANAGING EDITOR Doug Church

REGULAR CONTRIBUTORS Philippe Domogala and Philip Marien COPY EDITORS Rosemary Kyalo & Helena Sjöström

ART DIRECTOR Laura Roose SOCIAL MEDIA Meagan Roper

DISCLAIMER: The views expressed in this magazine are those of the International Federation of Air Traffic Controllers’ Associations (IFATCA) only when so indicated. Other views will be those of individual members or contributors concerned and will not necessarily be those of IFATCA, except where indicated. Whilst every effort is made to ensure that the information contained in this publication is correct, IFATCA makes no warranty, express or implied, as to the nature or accuracy of the information. Further distribution of this publication is permitted and even encouraged, as long as it is not altered in any way or manner. No part or extracts of this publication may be reproduced, stored or used in any form or by any means, without the specific prior permission of the IFATCA Executive Board or Editor, except where indicated (e.g. a creative commons licence).

The editorial team endeavours to include all owner information, or at least source information for the images used in this issue. If you believe that an image was used without permission, please contact the editor via http://www.the-controller.net

THE CONTROLLER

VISIT THE IFATCA WEB SITES: www.ifatca.org and www.the-controller.net 3

z FORWARD

YOU ARE PROFESSIONALS. YOU ARE THE FUTURE. z by Duncan auld, IFATCA President & CEO I write this forward from Montreal while sitting in the IFATCA Office. Out the window, I can see the headquarters of ICAO, where this week the 40th General Assembly will commence. Here every three years, the international aviation community gathers to determine its direction. As part of this discussion, the future of the air traffic control profession also is shaped. The Federation is part of that dialog on your behalf.

The 40th Assembly promises to include important discussions regarding many interesting topics. These include the technological developments that are leading to significant change in the industry, from the ground to the sky and from low level drones to the high-level spacecraft.

Let us not only focus on the technology though. We – air traffic controllers – and other aviation professionals are the real future of aviation. We have been the foundation of aviation for the last 100 years, and we will remain the core of aviation into the future. There have been persistent attempts to replace or significantly augment controllers with technological innovations, however these have consistently failed to deliver as promised. There is a dire need for more aviation professionals to support the ever-growing traffic demand. The industry should refocus on recruiting qualified controller candidates and taking care of the men and women who keep the global airspace safe and efficient.

There is a need to ensure the profession remains attractive to those people with the required skill set. Air traffic control is

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no normal job, and it requires specialist candidates. Working conditions, particularly fatigue management, are important to support a healthy workplace and maintain an effective workforce. The recruitment and retention of underrepresented groups should also be prioritised. There is a significant gender imbalance among controllers in much of the world. This means there is untapped potential that we need desperately.

In order to maintain our current safety levels with predicted traffic increases, we must improve the reporting culture.

Recent events in Switzerland – and in other nations – highlight that the principles of “Just Culture” – or “Safety Culture” z Photo: Duncan Auld , IFATCA President & CEO – are constantly under threat.

We must work to defend and improve the Safety Culture that they provide clear guidance to the in our profession, while encouraging executive vice president for their region. corresponding changes to legislation to From this, we can better align global support the learning that is essential for activities to ensure the needs of the wider continuous improvement. The Federation membership are served. will continue to make this as a top priority.

IFATCA’s regional meetings will be held over the coming months. It is important that Member Associations take advantage of these events. Each region should identify critical areas of focus for the Federation’s activities. We need to coordinate our resources on key areas that will provide benefit to the Member Associations. Therefore, it is important that delegations are represented, and

From the General Assembly of ICAO to the IFATCA regional meetings, the Federation is committed to shaping the future of aviation, and the future of air traffic control. You are professionals You are the future. y duncan.auld@ifatca.org

THE CONTROLLER

z FORWARD

NEWS ABOUT IFATCA'S EQUALITY AND DIVERSITY TASK FORCE z by THOM METZGER, EXECUTIVE EDITOR OF THE CONTROLLER MAGAZINE The worldwide body of air traffic controllers consists of professionals of different gender, race, religion, nationality, sexual orientation, and age. In the workplace as well as in organizations such as IFATCA, equality means to ascertain people are given equal opportunities, equal pay and are appreciated and accepted for their differences.

Research shows that organizations and corporations worldwide benefit from plurality and diversity within their own systems, but also when interacting with other institutions. Involving individuals and evolving with time is crucial to success.

As ATC globally is suffering from a shortage of controllers, it seems obvious that recruitment would benefit from being directed towards female applicants as well as male applicants.

The ratio between women and men in ATC varies greatly between the different IFATCA regions and the different Member Associations. In November and December 2018, a survey of all Member Associations was conducted. In some countries there are very few female air traffic controllers, while in others, women make up around 30 to 40% of the controller work force. In most countries the ratio is definitely uneven, with in general many more male than female controllers. In the aviation industry as a whole, the imbalance in supervisory and management positions is even greater.

Sample inquiries suggest that this is also the case in ATC

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IFATCA recognizes the need for a specific body to address these issues.

IFATCA´s newest Task Force was established by the Executive Board at the Costa Rica conference in May 2019.

The Equality, Diversity and Ethics Task Force consists of 10 persons; one chair, one secretary plus two members from each IFATCA region. The current chair is Sverre Ivar Elsbak from Norway. The Secretary is Maria Serrano Mulet from Spain.

The EDETF chair will report to IFATCA’s Deputy President, Helena Sjöström.

The current members from the IFATCA regions are: AMERICAS REGION Trish Gilbert, USA Ronald Vega, Costa Rica AFRICA & MIDDLE EAST REGION: Rosemary Kyalo, Kenya Tony Kepler, Uganda ASIA PACIFIC REGION Yen Chun Cheryl Chen, Taiwan (ROCATCA) Greg Okeroa, New Zealand EUROPE REGION Giusy Sciacca, Italy Katie Mason, UK The activities of the EDETF include reviewing IFATCA’s Code of Conduct, presenting a working paper for Conference 2020 with an Equality Plan for IFATCA, and further researching the ratio between male and female ATCOs, diversity among ATCOs, and in management within the ATM industry.

In this issue of The Controller magazine, we will highlight the members of the EDETF. This issue of the magazine also has a remarkable 24-page special section – called "Women & Equality" – highlighting female controllers from 19 nations from every IFATCA region. This section is a big effort that was coordinated by Maria Serrano Mulet.

These articles include biographical and autobiographical articles, interviews, and other news pieces that together present an unprecedented snapshot of what is like to be a female air traffic controller today and how the ATC work environment has changed in recent decades to become more welcoming to an increasing number of women. These articles tell how far we have come and how far we still have to go. A number of these tell the personal stories of the first female controllers to work aviation traffic in a number of countries. Many of these articles about women also were written by women. I hope you enjoy reading these articles as much as I did.

This issue of the magazine also has an overview from the 58th IFATCA Annual Meeting in Costa Rica, including meeting minutes, lots of photos, and other information about our time in Costa Rica. y

editor@ifatca.org

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z news from 58th annual conference Delegates got updates about the IFATCA prosecutor expert course, the English Language Proficiency Workshop, the Think Safety Workshop (TS), Competence Base Training and Assessment Workshop (CBTA), and Critical Incident Stress Management Workshop (CISM).

z by THOM METZGER, EXECUTIVE EDITOR OF THE CONTROLLER MAGAZINE IFATCA welcomed nearly 300 representatives from its member associations to its 58th annual conference. The conference was hosted by IFATCA's Costa Rican Member Association in the Playa Conchal Reserve.

Our Costa Rican hosts planned the meeting so that attendees would get to experience the natural beauty and culture of their country.

The conference started with an opening ceremony that featured welcome addresses and different awards. Before the start of the committee sessions, the executive board introduced a new code of conduct.

On Day two, committee sessions started. In Committee A, Directors rejected a proposed merger of the constitutional and the financial committee. Daniel Nartey of Ghana was elected chair of the Financial Committee.

Committee B adopted a policy regarding compatibility in clearances. They decided that IFATCA will support new technology

development to increase the aviation frequencies' spectrum efficiency. They adopted a policy regarding ATCO involvement during modification of airport infrastructure.

In Committee C, a proposition to modify the IHB was introduced and accepted. The Professional and Legal Committee (PLC) presented and accepted papers on Human factor considerations on new working method, flight information service, review of the IFATCA policy regarding ATCO recruiting and selection, and performance-based endorsement. David Perks from Australia was elected as Chairman of the PLC. Day three of the 2019 Annual IFATCA Conference kicked off with an IFATCA/ITF workshop. The afternoon saw a combined meeting of committees B and C to discuss issues that overlap the technical and professional aspects of our profession.

A joint paper on Airport Infrastructure Development was presented and accepted.

z Photo: Ronald Vega, president of the Costa Rican Association welcomed conference attendees to IFATCA's 58th annual conference.

In addition to confirming that Singapore will be the venue for the 2020 annual conference, the body voted to hold the 2021 and 2022 annual conferences in Montego Bay, Jamaica, and the United Kingdom.

The final day of the 2019 IFATCA Annual Conference began with an ICAO workshop.

The conference closed with the final plenary, where the decisions made in the committees were formally ratified. Belarus, the Central African Republic, Libya, and the United Arab Emirates became new member associations, and Thales and Indra joined as corporate members. Raimund Weidemann (GER) and Bjarni Stefansson (ISL) received the IFATCA Award of Merit. Outgoing officials Patrik Peters (former PCX & CEO, EGATS), Mike O'Neill (EVP Asia/Pacific, HKG) and Alfred Vlasek (Chairman PLC, AUT) also were honored with the Executive Board Award.

The organising committee of the 58th Annual Conference then formally handed over planning to the Singapore delegation and organising committee of the 2020 conference. The 2019 conference was formally declared closed. y editor@ifatca.org

z Photo: Ronald Vega, president of the Costa Rican Association, and Guillermo Hoppe, director general of the Costa Rica CAA, gave opening speeches to the IFATCA plenary body.

z Photo: The plenary body convened to open the meeting.

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THE CONTROLLER

z news from 58th annual conference Photos by Philippe Domogala (IFATCA), Thom Metzger (NATCA/IFATCA), and Betsa Soto (Air Traffic Controller at Juan SantamarĂ­a International Airport in Costa Rica)

z Photo: The opening ceremony included an emotional moment of silence for Anthonius Gunawan Agung – the Indonesian controller who sacrificed his life during the 2018 earthquake in Palu.

z Photo: Representatives from Member Associations from Macau and Hong Kong at opening ceremony.

z Photo: Representatives from Member Associations from Austria, Germany, and Turkey at the opening ceremony.

z Photo: Attendees visited the Frequentis exhibit in the conference exhibit hall.

THE CONTROLLER

z Photo: During the opening ceremony of the 2019 Annual Conference, the bi-annual IFATCA Technology Award was awarded to Vibe Solution for their rostering and briefing tool.

z Photo: Representatives from Member Associations from Ghana at opening ceremony.

z Photo: Representatives from Member Associations from United States and the Netherlands.

z Photo: Attendees visited the United ATS exhibit in the conference exhibit hall.

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z news from 58th annual conference

z Photo: On day two of the IFATCA 2019 Annual Conference in Costa Rica, the committee sessions started. In committee A, they addressed administrative issues for the Federation.

z Photo: Four new Member Associations were accepted: Belarus, Central African Republic, Libya and the United Arab Emirates.

z Photo: Committees C (Professional) heard reports from the Executive Board Members and considered policy papers.

z Photo: Committees B (Technical) heard reports from the Executive Board Members and considered policy papers.

z Photo: On day three of the conference, there was a joint IFATCA and ITF workshop on IFATCA and the Tactical Response Team.

z Photo: Committee members listen to presentations.

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THE CONTROLLER

z news from 58th annual conference Photos by Philippe Domogala (IFATCA), Thom Metzger (NATCA/IFATCA), and Betsa Soto (Air Traffic Controller at Juan SantamarĂ­a International Airport in Costa Rica)

z Photo: The organising committee arranged an authentic Costa Rican rodeo for attendees at the Hacienda El Viejo Wetlands that included bull riding and dance.

z Photo: The organising committee arranged an authentic Costa Rican rodeo for attendees at the Hacienda El Viejo Wetlands that included bull riding and dance.

z Photo: The final day of the 2019 IFATCA Annual Conference began with a much appreciated ICAO workshop.

z Photo: The body voted to hold the 2021 annual conferences in Montego Bay, Jamaica. Here are the members of the Jamaica MA.

z Photo: At the conclusion of the event, the leadership of IFATCA gave a standing ovation to thank the Costa Rican organising committee for their efforts in planning the wonderful 58th Annual IFATCA Conference.

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z news from 58th annual conference

EQUALITY, DIVERSITY & ETHICS TASK FORCE MEMBERS: WHO IS REPRESENTING YOUR REGION? z by THOM METZGER, NATCA & EDITOR OF THE CONTROLLER MAGAZINE

IFATCA´s newest Task Force was established by the Executive Board at the annual conference in Costa Rica in May 2019. The Equality, Diversity, and Ethics Task Force consists of 10 persons; one chair, one secretary plus two members from each IFATCA region. The current chair, secretary, and members are: considered to be one of the most gender equal countries in the world, can prove to be useful for the task force. I’m very excited to be a part of IFATCA’s way forward within equality, diversity and ethics. I can’t wait to get started on the job. y

honor to be part of such a fantastic team and I will do my best to be up to the task. y

CHAIR // Sverre Ivar Elsbak:

I work as an approach controller in Oslo, Norway. For 9 years, I’ve been married to my wife Henriette. We have two wonderful boys who are 8 and 4 years old. We live in a small town in the suburbs of Oslo.

I got my ATC education at NAV Canada in 1998-1999, and checked out as an area controller in 2000. Currently I’ve been on the board of NATCA (Norwegian Air Traffic Controllers’ Association) for 15 years, and I recently was re-elected for two more years. The “soft side” of ATC has always fascinated me, and I have a lot of experience from working environment committees and dealing with human resources questions through my work in NATCA. I’m proud to say that I was the man behind NATCA’s Pride logo this June, where we as a union showed our strong support to the LGBTQ+ (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Questioning or Queer) community, and their fight for equal human rights. In addition, I recently got re-elected for two more years as an employee representative on the board of directors at Avinor (The Norwegian Air Navigation Service Provider), on which I’ve already been a representative for four years.

Hopefully my experience from both union and corporate work in Norway, which is

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Africa and Middle East // Tonny Kepler Ssenkubuge: Secretary // Maria Serrano Mulet:

I currently work at Barcelona ACC, in Spain.

I live in Barcelona with my husband. I used to work as telecom engineer in both France and Spain, but I happened to discover the aviation world almost by chance. I joined the ATCO crew in ENAIRE at the end of 2007, where I have served as an en route controller, instructor, and supervisor. I currently am moving to Barcelona APP. I have been active in IFATCA since 2011. I was Secretary of Committee C for some years.

Just 2 years after my hiring, I witnessed the conflict of Spanish ATCOs (2010). I simply could not keep watching without doing anything, so I started collaborating with USCA. That led me to the IFATCA world. Since then, I was neither able nor willing to quit it.

I am really proud that IFATCA cares about Equality, Diversity and Ethic matters, and I sincerely hope this task force will mean added value for all MAs. It is sincerely a great

I am a senior air traffic controller at Entebbe international Airport in Uganda: I am married and have one son.

I hold a bachelor’s degree in mathematics and physics with training in education. I had my ATC training at the Civil Aviation Training Centre in Dar-es-salaam, Tanzania, and at the East African School of Aviation in Nairobi, Kenya. I have three Ratings (aerodrome, approach procedural, area/airways control). I worked as a high school teacher for five years before I joined Air Traffic Control in July 2010.

I have served as an Executive Board member of the Uganda Air Traffic Controllers’ Association since 2013 and am currently the president/CEO of the association.

I started participating in IFATCA activities in 2015. In 2018, I became a corresponding member of the IFATCA Professional and Legal Committee (PLC). I now am as an elected member of the Constitutional and Administration Committee (CAC) and a member of the Equality, Diversity and Ethics Task Force. y

THE CONTROLLER

z news from 58th annual conference

Africa and Middle East // Rosemary Kyalo:

I am currently working at Nairobi, Kenya, Area Control Centre as an Area Radar Controller, supervisor, and also as an ATS Instructor at the East African School Of Aviation. I live in Nairobi, Kenya. I am married and a mother of three.

I hold an MBA (Operations Management), a bachelor’s degree in aviation management, a diploma in leadership, as well as other qualifications. I have trained in ATC at the prestigious East African School of Aviation in Nairobi, Kenya. I have four ratings, including aerodrome, approach procedural, area airways, and area radar control. I have been awarded by my CAA as being the employee of the year in the Air Traffic Services Division in 2007.

I served as an Executive Board member of Kenya Air Traffic Controllers’ Association for four years ending 2015. Since 2015 I have been a member of IFATCA Professional and Legal Committee (PLC) first as a corresponding member and now as an elected member for the 4th year running in 2019.

I have been passionately involved in ATC professional matters within the IFATCA Africa and Middle East Region where I have made presentations on Personal/ Professional Branding in several countries within this region. My involvement is based on my belief that there is a strong connection in safety and personal/professional branding with an emphasis on the importance of having the right attitude for the ATC job.

I have also been a member of IFATCA AFM Regional Support Group, IFATCA Liaison officer to ICAO ESAF Office, and now IFATCA’s Equality, Diversity and Ethics Task Force. y

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Asia & pacific // Greg Okeroa: Asia & pacific // Yen Chun I currently work Auckland Terminal, on an approach radar sector for Auckland Internation- Cheryl Chen: al Airport in New Zealand. I also am a current instructor and instructor check as well as the current roster administrator on Auckland Terminal approach radar. I have been married for 25 years and have two boys who are 15 and 12 years old.

I have just celebrated my 30 year anniversary of work as a controller and have worked aerodrome control, procedural approach control, area radar control and approach radar control..

In NZ, NZALPA is the combined union for ATC and pilots with over 2500 members. I was on the NZALPA Board of Management from 2010 until 2018 and have been on the ATC Council since 2009, holding the role of Administration Head since 2014. I am the current ATC Council Rep for Work Force Planning working with Airways NZ regarding staffing and I have been an NZALPA negotiator since 2012 involved in the last 3 Collective employment agreement settlements with Airways NZ. My first IFATCA conference was in 2011, and I have attended most IFATCA conferences or regional conferences since 2014.

I agreed to be on this task force, because as a NZ Maori, I have grown up with race being an issue, starting at the education level and continuing through to employment. I am aware that we are still up against some cultures and religions; however, the more pressure that can be put on by having more countries acknowledging the issues and doing something about it, may lead to others following.

I would like to see any position being filled with the best person for the role regardless of race, gender or religion. A woman should not have to be better than a man for the same position, but shouldn’t be given it as part of a quota system. The first step is giving everyone the same opportunity when applying for positions. While NZ is well on the way, we still have areas that need addressing. y

I am a tower controller, holding aerodrome endorsements for both of the major airports in Taipei, RCTP and RCSS. In terms of my career in the field of air traffic control, I am quite a newbie, but an enthusiastic one. I began my ATC training in 2015 and received my ATC license in March 2016.

Before I started my career as an ATC, I spent more than ten years in academia, specializing in social science. I am a Gates Cambridge Scholar alumna and hold two master’s degrees, one in social psychology from Utrecht University, the Netherlands, and one in sociology from University of Cambridge, the UK. My academic training in sociology has nurtured me with the ideology of gender equality, multiculturalism, and ethnic diversity.

In 2018, I was elected as the vice president of the air traffic controllers’ association in Taiwan (ROCATCA). At the same time, I took up the role as the international affairs liaison officer for my association. Apart from attending all the global and regional IFATCA meetings and expanding the visibility of ROCATCA to the IFATCA community, I am also responsible for the PR of my association. Internally, when time permits, I also participate in various meetings, inlcuding those for the Runway Safety Team, to make sure the voice of air traffic controllers is heard and to help improve the work environment of my colleagues.

I strongly believe that building up an environment that is friendly and welcome to any gender/sex and ethnic/racial groups will be beneficial to every single person involved. I am therefore very excited about the work this Task Force will undertake for our IFATCA family and hope the knowledge accumulated from my previous experience will be a valuable contribution to the group. y

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z news from 58th annual conference

EDETF MEMBERS: WHO IS REPRESENTING YOUR REGION? (cont.)

americas // Trish Gilbert:

I have served as the National Air Traffic Controllers Association's seventh executive vice president since I was first elected in September 2009. Prior to election as NATCA EVP, I worked for 21 years as an air traffic controller at Houston Center. I served in many activist roles within the union, including Facility Representative, Southwest Region Chair of NATCA’s National Legislative Committee, and Chair of the National Legislative Committee. I also chaired NATCA’s National Organizing Committee and served as NATCA Charitable Foundation's vice president and president.

mer labor chair and still am a current member of the FAA Labor Management Forum.

the aviation English training program from 2004 until 2007.

In May 2018, at its annual Women in Aviation Scholarship luncheon, the American Association of Airport Executives (AAAE) honored me by announcing the creation of a new permanently endowed scholarship in my name.

In 2008 the prototype program was deployed in the Central American Region. I was the manager of the program. The results were overwhelming, and the implementation was faster than we expected. In 2015, IFATCA decided to implement a similar training for specific countries that lacked this kind of training; we started in the Americas region: Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, and the Dominican Republic.

I reside in Washington, D.C., and Austin, Texas, with my husband, John, who is a retired air traffic controller. We are the proud parents of a daughter, Jenna, son, John Colby, and sonin-law, Parker Hotchkiss, and grandparents to grandson Oliver.

I am pleased that IFATCA is addressing issues of diversity and equality with this task force.

While the ATC work environment is more welcoming to women and other underrepresented communities than it was when I became a controller, there are still hidden biases (in both men and women). While not prevalent, such bias needs to be addressed, so we can grow the ATC workforce by recruiting the most talented applicants. y

Working as a team with NATCA President Paul Rinaldi, I have helped lead and oversee NATCA’s comprehensive efforts to build successful working relationships with the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT), the aviation industry, the AFL-CIO, and members of Congress that have resulted in excellent progress on aviation safety.

I have served on many boards and committees, including the Drone Advisory Committee (DAC), the FAA/NATCA Collaborative Steering Committee, the Association for Unmanned Vehicle Systems International's (AUVSI) and Airports Council International-North America's (ACI-NA) Blue Ribbon Task Force on Unmanned Aircraft System Mitigation at Airports, the Aero Club of Washington Board of Governors, and the International Transport Workers’ Federation (ITF) Air Traffic Services Committee. I served for two years on IFATCA’s Constitution and Administration Committee (CAC) and one year on IFATCA's Finance Committee (FIC). I sit on the AFL-CIO Political Committee, Legislative/Policy Committee, and the Committee on Women Workers. I also am the for-

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In 2018, we also delivered training in: Mozambique, Côte d'Ivoire, Uganda, and Argelia.

I have been the President of the Union since 2014. My term will end up by this coming November. We had organized IFATCA's Americas Region meeting in 2017 and the annual IFATCA conference this last May. y

europe // katie mason: americas // ronald vega:

I have been a tower controller for almost 28 years, I have approach and tower rating. Most of my career I’ve worked at the Juan Santamaria Airport in San Jose, Costa Rica. I have been performing different tasks within the Air Traffic Services for the Civil Aviation Authority.

I started in 1992 as a local controller, after five years became a tower supervisor, also OJT trainer and ATC trainer and aviation English manager for Central America.

In 2004, I started a joint Aviation English Program with the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration and the Oklahoma State University, in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, U.S.A. I completed

I am from the United Kingdom. I have been in the Royal Air Force (RAF) for 16 years. I started as a flight operations assistant at the tender age of 16, prior to conducting my controller training. I have been a controller for nine years and have both visual and radar competencies.

Throughout the years I have been involved with training, standards and flight safety, currently I am the Deputy Unit Training Officer at RAF Wittering. In addition to my primary role I also conduct human factors facilitator training to all personnel employed at RAF Wittering and I am qualified in occurrence investigations. I currently hold the Executive Board (EB) role of Executive Secretary for the Guild of Air Traffic Control Officers (GATCO). I previously held the role of Vice President Communications. I have been on the EB of GATCO for eight years and thoroughly enjoy all it has to offer.

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z news from 5bth annual conference My IFATCA work has included two years on PLC where I composed and presented working papers for IFATCA’s 55th and 56th conferences. I was also Chair of the Communications Steering Committee (CSC) and have been a conference code of conduct official .

In my spare time I enjoy spending time with my family, reading and going to the gym. I am extremely grateful to have the opportunity to further our profession and represent the military contingent. I am really looking forward to working with the Equality and Diversity Task Force and seeing, how together, we can keep bettering IFATCA for the future. y

europe // Giusy Sciacca:

I am an Italian air traffic controller. I have worked in Milano, Italy Linate Tower for 13 years. Last April, I moved to Rome to take care of aviation projects where air traffic controller experience and knowledge is required.

I have a master’s degree in foreign languages and literature. I never stopped my professional education with courses on responsible innovation, as a prosecutor and legal expert, and CISM peer. As ATCO, I trained in Forlì where the ENAV Academy is located. During my career as a controller, I became an OJTI and safety investigator.

I served ANACNA – the Italian Association of Air Traffic Controllers and ATS personnel – first as a member of the executive board and more recently as secretary general.

With IFATCA, I was a member of TSG (ICB Technical Subgroup), advisor for EGHD (Expert Group on Human Dimension), and as active member of the Europe Region and Coordinator of the Remote Towers Task Force .

I have given presentations on technology and human-machine related topics at many conferences and workshops.

I am proud of being actively involved in the Equality, Diversity and Ethics Task Force as the values underlaying the projects have always been my drivers in life. I firmly believe in equal rights and respect all diversity and cultural inclusion. y

THE CONTROLLER

13

z news from 58th annual conference

COUNTING DOWN TO 100 YEARS OF ATC

z Philip Marien, IFATCA Communications Coordinator IFATCA plans to celebrate 100 years of air traffic control in 2022. A number of activities across the world will highlight this significant milestone. As decided during the 2019 IFATCA Annual Conference in Costa Rica, the 2022 celebration will coincide with the Annual Conference, which will be held in the United Kingdom – one of the cradles of Air Traffic Control as we know it.

WHY 2022?

Prior to the first World War, aviation was a daredevil sport with little to no practical application. A handful of aviation pioneers, mostly in self-built aircraft, toured the world demonstrating powered flight to massive crowds. Any field that was large and flat enough for take-off and landing suited them fine. During the course of the first World War, barely a decade after the Wright brothers first flight, hundreds of pilots were trained for recognisance, primitive bombing raids and air-to-air combat. When the war ended, these pilots started organising themselves into what would become the first airlines – transporting goods and people at unseen speeds across increasingly large distances.

As aviation boomed, so did the need for regulation at the airport and in the skies.

Using visual references to navigate quickly

14

showed its limitations and given the international nature of aviation, standardisation and cross-border agreements became a necessity.

The first internationally agreed rules, drafted in 1919 by the Commission Internationale de Navigation Aérienne (CINA) were ratified by 10 countries in 1922. The first mid-air collision between two commercial airliners over Normandy (France) in April 1922 further encouraged the UK, France, Belgium and The Netherlands to implement guidelines for keeping aircraft separated, thus forming the basis for air traffic control as a service to avoid collisions.

While air travel remained rather exclusive for the rich and famous, especially the routes across the English Channel quickly became popular as flying could save a considerable amount of time compared to a ferry crossing. One such route was the one

between Le Bourget (France) and Croydon (UK). Both airports recruited controllers and constructed dedicated sheds that were the precursors of an ATC tower. France started to recruit and train controllers around that time (1921-22), and the first ATC licence on record was issued in the United Kingdom in February 1922 to Jimmy Jeffs, who worked at the Croydon tower (although it was little more than a shed at the time).

These ‘towers’ also began exchanging information with each other, while keeping track of each aircraft’s progress – using little strips of paper!

After extensive research, we proposed 1922 as the year in which air traffic control began in earnest.

The plan?

IFATCA has established a Task Force, chaired by Philippe Domogala, to coordi-

THE CONTROLLER

z news from 58th annual conference 1922-2022

AIR TRAFFIC CONTROL

IFATCA nate the activities leading up to the 100 year celebrations. IFATCA’s Member Associations are invited to research the beginnings of aviation and air traffic control in their respective countries and development over the years. Their input will be compiled in a book, a series of articles and possibly an exhibition that will be offered to various aviation museums around the world - at least one in each of IFATCA’s four regions (Africa/Middle-East, Americas, Asia/Pacific and Europe).

Our plan is to use the June 2021 Le Bourget Paris Air Show and the planned re-opening of the control tower in the Musée de l’Air et de l’Espace to formally announce and launch the celebrations.

The main celebration will take place during the 2022 Annual Conference in the United Kingdom in the form of a one-day symposium followed by a formal dinner with invited dignitaries and stakeholders from the aviation industry (ICAO, CAAs, ANSPs Airlines, manufacturers, etc.)

z Photos: Early ATC in Australia (facing page), Croydon (above), and Newark (below)

The 100 years celebration will mark the achievements of all of us, controllers, assistants, support staff, engineers, scientists, all of those in manufacturing industries that have created the tools we use, as well as organisations and service providers. It is a shared history, as much an achievement of all of us and one in which we hope you will join IFATCA in celebrating. Finally, our celebrations will not only be about the past: they will also showcase what we are doing in the present and what we will be doing in the future. y philip.marien@ifatca.org

THE CONTROLLER

15

z special section // women & Equality

WOMEN & EQUALITY IN AIR TRAFFIC CONTROL

z by Helena Sjöström, IFATCA Deputy President

INTROduction // Africa & middle east: ALGERIA

The air traffic control community consists of an extremely diverse mix of people, in which women should be proportionally represented. But women remain significantly under-represented in the air traffic control profession, like aviation in general. While an increasing number of women have been working as controllers over the past decades, there is still a significant imbalance.

Our profession is generally open to female applicants. While a controller requires specific skills, none of these skills correlate directly to gender. But in most countries, female air traffic controllers remain a minority. Greater effort is needed to make it more accessible and attractive to women, and to encourage them to apply.

This is a problem for different reasons. Most importantly there is a growing worldwide shortage of air traffic controllers. Forecasts from the International Civil Aviation Organisation, a United Nations specialized agency, predict a shortfall of over 40,000 controllers over the next 20 years.

EQUALITY IN ALGERIA

We must address this gender imbalance. We must invest in making the profession more attractive to women.

We need to tap into this currently underrepresented demographic, so we stop missing out on up to 50 % of the recruitment base.

One reason that we believe many women don’t become air traffic controllers, is the lack of female role models. With this issue of The Controller magazine, we are presenting a special section featuring 19 articles about prominent female air traffic controllers in countries all over the world.

These women are role models for the air traffic control profession in their countries and globally. I hope you enjoy reading these articles . y helena.sjostrom@ifatca.org

z Photo: Helena Sjöström, IFATCA Deputy President

z Photo: Algerian ATCO Soumia Senouci Hafid: I mostly used social strategies. I tried to build friendships with the majority of my colleagues or at least with those who were accepting of a woman working side by side with them. To be fair, I had many ATCO supervisors who were supportive of me and were always there for me.

z by Soumia Senouci

The following is an interview of Karima Hafid, the very first female ATCO in Algeria. Hafid retired in 2007 after 23 years of service. She gladly shared her experiences with us about being the first and only female ATCO in Algeria when she first started her job in 1984.

In the interview, they discuss gender equality and diversity and what equality and diversity mean to them.

Senouci: What do you think is the most challenging aspect of working with men?

Hafid: The most challenging aspect is that some of them will keep you working under pressure. During my very first years, they were all curious about how a woman can safely manage traffic. That was something that would definitely apply more pressure.

Senouci: What strategies have you used to respond to the challenge of being the only woman at work?

Senouci: Have you ever had to handle a situation when one colleague was not accepting of diversity in your workplace?

How did you do that?

Hafid: Yes, I have had that experience. He was an ATCO approach supervisor who was not accepting of diversity. He thought that air taffic management is a job that a woman could never manage. He always tried his best to mess things up or make me fail in my performance.

THE CONTROLLER 16

z special section // women & Equality

Fortunately, I never worked with him in the same team due to some complications that happened during my qualification test. But his lack of support still was a problem. Back then we used to work 6 months at the control tower, then swap teams. Whenever I was working, he monitored the frequency that I was working on and looked for any mistake to cause me problems.

Senouci: Did you ever have to alter your work methods because of his lack of support?

Hafid: When it came to work, I never altered any of my methods. I always respected regulations. For me, that was not up for discussion. But still, I got along well with the majority of my team members.

Senouci: Have you experienced any other gender inequality during your career? If yes, tell us what happened and how did you manage the situation?

Hafid: I certainly have. There was an ATCO supervisor who never accepted the idea of me working side by side with men. The day of my approach qualification, he did everything he could so that I didn't pass my exam. I took the test, and I did just as good – or maybe even a bit better – as my male colleagues. But even though all the other assessors were satisfied with my work, that wasn’t good enough for him. He just simply refused to sign my certificate. They argued with him and finally decided to retest me a week later.

One week later, I took a new test. That time, my work was close to perfect, but he still refused to sign my certificate.

Only after all assessors stood up for me and told him that I was going to have my certificate with or without his approval, did he sign it. I remember crying that day harder than ever, and I said to one of the assessors, “I just gave birth to a lovely little girl, but the pain that he caused me today is much more than what labour caused me." It is one

of my saddest and worst memories from my work. Thankfully, some of my warmest memories were at work with the majority of my colleagues.

Senouci: Why is gender equality important?

Hafid: I don’t think we can talk about 100% perfect gender equality. When it comes to the intellectual aspect, women are equal and sometimes better than men, but we have to admit that men generally are physically stronger than most women. It is not up to us to decide if it is nature. If a woman finds herself in a dangerous situation, she may feel the need for a man at her side.

We complete each other. y

THE CONTROLLER 17

Africa & middle east: ALGERIA

z Photo: Karima Hafid, the first female ATCO in Algeria

z special section // women & Equality

I LOVE MY JOB & AM A PROUD AIR TRAFFIC CONTROLLER

z by Diane rosine Monique gorou, ATC from BurkinA Faso I am only 28 years old, and I am the first female air traffic controller from Burkina Faso. My joining the ATC profession came late to Burkino Faso, while other countries have had women controlling traffic for years.

Africa & middle east: burkinA faso

My ATC adventure started with an entrance exam at EAMAC (l'Ecole Africaine de la Météorologie et de l'Aviation Civile, the African school of Meteorology and Aviation), which is one of the schools of ASECNA, the Agency for Aerial Navigation Safety in Africa and Madagascar.

In November 2013, I was at the end of an internship for networks engineering when my father informed me about the test. He was among the first ATCs in Ouagadougou. By October the following year, I was admitted to that aviation school for a training. I left Ouagadougou for an English immersion program in South Africa from January to March 2014 with five of my colleagues (all male). In mid-March, I went to Niamey, Niger, where the school EAMAC is located for a 14-month training program.

In August 2015, after the training, I went back to Ouagadougou and started working. For the first seven months, I had on-site training for the local center.

In March 2016, I got my qualifications for the position ATC TWR/APP, which meant that I was able to work without any supervision.

Today, I am very happy doing my job, because pilots need us. As soon as they get on their planes, they are like the blind and rely on us to take care of their safety from the ground to their destination.

That makes this job very noble.

When it is done well, the pride we feel cannot be described.

When asked if I ever am stressed, I answer yes. This is one of the most stressful jobs, because we are responsible for the lives of many people.

Is it a job for a woman? I also answer yes. There are lots of female pilots, so why shouldn’t there be women controllers?

There is no work a woman cannot do. With motivation and courage, woman can do whatever is asked, sometimes even better than a man, because she always needs to secure her place and prove she can do anything.

z Photo: Burkina Faso ATC Diane Rosine Monique Gorou

Women help create a better work environment. I am sure that pilots prefer female voices, because our voices are more reassuring and serene.

Scheduling may be a challenge for female controllers who also have to take care of a house and family. As such, night shifts could be a disadvantage for some women.

While the discrimination we all know about may continue to exist for the foreseeable future, my collaboration with my colleagues goes very well. I get good treatment from them, and we all work in a pleasant environment. I always encourage girls who ask for information to go for it, because this job is not only for men. I and other female controllers are the proof of that. y

z Photo: Thomas Sankara International Airport in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso

18

THE CONTROLLER

z special section // women & Equality

WE HAVE TO PRAY AND THANK GOD EVERY DAY FOR THIS JOB z by NELLY CALIXTE NIKANGOT, ATC FROM CAMEROON Belise Naa is the longest-serving female air traffic controller (ATC) on duty in Cameroon. With nine years of experience, she is a model air traffic controller, in a country that has more than 80 air traffic controllers. Most of them are male.

Belise holds a bachelor’s degree in mathematics and passed the competitive entrance exams to become an air traffic controller. “It was tough,” she says. “Four candidates were chosen from 500 applicants.” She later went to EAMAC, the African School for meteorology and civil aviation in Niamey, Niger, where she completed a three-year training course.

In August 2010, Belise signed a contract with ASECNA to be an ATC and was posted in Douala. “I was the only woman when I started this Job. The three women, who had previously been hired to be controllers, had quit.

I have to say, when I started, it was a tedious experience. Her superior used to say, “An ATC is like a soldier, so there is no room for complaints.” To succeed

Even so, today, there still are frustrating situations.

Belise is a mother of six including two foster children. She argues that it takes a lot of discipline and organization to meet the competing demands of her home and her job especially with her husband’s frequent travels. “My husband is a marine engineer and not always around to help with the kids when I’m at work, so I get help from other family members z Photo: Cameroon ATC Belise Naa and moral support from my male colleagues.” Her Belise believes being an air traffic best asset is her motherliness that controller is quite challenging and helps engender a conducive work it takes so much humility to rise to environment. such a challenge. “We learn every day, even from younger ones. We have to She’s very active in the ASECNA appreciate what’s good and correct, Cameroon Women Association and what is wrong. We have to pray and seeing more women in aviation – thank God every day for this job that especially in ATC – is one of her daily helps ensure the safety of millions of motivations and priorities. passengers every day.” y

z Photo: Douala International Airport in Cameroon

THE CONTROLLER 19

Africa & middle east: CAMEROON

Ever since she was a little girl, Belise has been tremendously passionate about aviation. She wanted to be an airline pilot, but when the opportunity to become an ATC knocked at her door, she grabbed it to find her way into the coveted world of aviation.

in a world dominated by men, she had to be bold and hardworking.

“I had to put much more effort than the others.

Over time, I obtained my aerodrome approach and en-route ratings.”

z special section // women & Equality

I AM PASSIONATE ABOUT AVIATION

Africa & middle east: CHAD // Côte d'Ivoire

z by Armiyaou Khadidja, ATC from chad I graduated from the African School of Meteorology and Civil Aviation and currently am working as an air traffic controller at Ndjamena airport in Chad.

Currently, I’m the only woman air traffic controller working at the tower.

traffic controller work for women but also giving them information on aviation in general. I also created Girls Aviation – an online platform to promote air traffic work with young women.

I'm passionate about aviation. That is why I choose to be an air traffic controller.

My hobbies include cooking, traveling, and meeting new people. Apart from my work as air traffic controller, I also am an entrepreneur. I founded and am managing a venture named N’Djamena Fast-foods to promote Chadian Gastronomy.

N’Djamena Fast-foods is the first online restaurant with free delivery service in Chad. y

I think it is definitely not normal for a country – where women are more than 50% of the population – to have only one woman air traffic controller. That's why I started thinking about how to encourage young women to be interested in this profession. For a long time, I have been mentoring girls in high school about air

z Photo: Chad ATC Armiyaou Khadidja

WOMEN BRING MORE TO AVIATION

z by Yvette Aman Akochi, ATC from Côte d'Ivoire Twenty years ago, it was rare to find women working in aviation in Côte d'Ivoire. One of the first women who follow her dream at that time was Aby Mi Femandf epouse Djia. She started work as an Air Traffic Controller in 1996.

Aby is Ivorian, married, a mother, the En Route Chief and responsible for three units in Abidjan. She has a license for the tower, for the approach, and also en route.

She is an inspiration for the other women in Abidjan's Center.

After 23 years in this environment, improvement and learning are still in Aby’s language. She really enjoys learning all things about ATM. She shares her love of aviation; works for progress and helps everyone to get involved. Her influence is everywhere, and the impact is visible.

In 1996, when she started to work, she found only one other woman (who is retired) among all air traffic controllers and decided that they must have more women. She has a dream to increase the percentage of women in ATC from 8% of to 40% in Abidjan.

In her opinion being a woman is not a disadvantage in ATM, because women naturally have lot of abilities men don't have. In her experience, women pay more attention, are more cautious, etc.

So female controllers can bring more to the ATM table.

She also works to motivate and support her male colleagues. She tries to have the best of all ATC around her by giving advice. y

She encourages all women to join the ATC profession. The environment might not be encouraging sometimes, but women can change everything by working and working. Aby says, “Look for excellence, learn from mistakes, and be humble.”

In 2015, she created the AMAZON Group which is a group for women ATC in Abidjan Center. While there currently are only four women in the group in Abidjan Center, her idea for female controllers to unite has spread. Other ATC women working for ASECNA have similarly formed local groups, and the AMAZON Union of Women ATC is now in 17 countries.

z Photo: Côte d'Ivoire ATC Aby Mi Femandf epouse Djia.

20

z special section // women & Equality

FOLLOW YOUR DREAMS! NOTHING STANDS IN YOUR WAY! z by RONNY ALON, ATC FROM ISRAEL My name is Ronny Alon. I am an air traffic controller in the ACC division of Tel Aviv Israel. I am 43 years old and married with four children.

Step by step, I went through in the process until I was informed that I had been accepted into the course. I was overwhelmed by great joy, but also by great fear. I had to leave my profession as a teacher. I had to leave the school where I was teaching. I had to devote myself entirely to a course that took place for a significant portion of the time in Canada, which was a challenge because I had two daughters aged three and a year.

With the help of my family I decided to accept this challenge and fulfill my true dream! Despite all the difficulties along the way, I was one of the 12 graduates who successfully completed the course out of 16 people.

Upon completion of the course, we were assigned to the various flight control units in Israel. I was assigned to work in the Tel Aviv Supervision Unit. This facility is a radar control unit, which – due to its geographical and political structure – handles the critical mass of international flights entering and leaving

Until I came to the unit about a decade ago, only men worked there. When I arrived, I was the first woman controller, paving the way for the next women. The journey on the way to accreditation in the workstations was not easy. It involved working in a masculine, tough environment, with 25-hour shifts outside the home, not including a 90-minute commute each direction.

It involved working around the clock and dealing with the loads and complexities of movement in our airspace.

EUROPE: ISRAEL

In the Israeli Army, I served as a flight controller at one of the air force bases.

After completing my military service, I went to study for a bachelor's and master's degree in English teaching. I worked as a teacher for 8 years until one day, when I saw a notice about the opening of a civil air traffic controllers course. I have always had a great love for the aviation profession, so I decided to apply to take the course.

the State of Israel. It also handles a growing number of outdoor movements over the country, all under very difficult territorial restrictions and operational activity, which also limits our freedom of action.

z Photo: Israeli ATC Ronny Alon

Today, there are seven female controllers in the unit. Four of them are fully qualified, and three are on the job training.

In addition to my ATC position, I serve as deputy head of the shift, guiding young controllers who have joined the unit. I have managed the "Identification unit" for four years. This unit approves or denies the arriving of aircraft into and through TEL AVIV FIR. With all the difficulties that accompany this job, I am a happy and satisfied mother

who enjoys going to her workplace and radiates it to those around me! However, combining shift work with home life as a mother to four children requires lots of coordination. With the publication of the work schedule, I have to plan the family's schedule with my husband for the coming month. WhatsApp video is a wonderful tool that helps me in communicating with my family, so my young children can see me, and I can help my teenage daughters with their class tasks or heart-to-heart conversations.

My message to my children, follow your dreams! Do everything to fulfill them!

Nothing stands in your way! y

THE CONTROLLER 21

z special section // women & Equality

NIGERIA’S MOST SENIOR FEMALE AIR TRAFFIC CONTROLLER

z by AHMAD ABBA, NIGERIAn ATC

Hauwa Danboyi Musa is the most senior female Air Traffic controller in Nigeria. She graduated from the University of Maiduguri in Borno state in 1995, and she joined the service as an air traffic controller in November 1998 when she completed her diploma in ATC from the Nigerian College of Aviation Technology (NCAT) in Zaria.

Africa & middle east: nigeria

Hauwa became a professional air traffic controller in February 2000, after passing the aerodrome and terminal approach (non-radar) control exam, which enabled her to obtain an ATC license. In July 2000, she was trained on management of safety, health, fire prevention and environmental protection; in April 2004, on integrated

disaster and emergency management; and in August 2004 a TCAS course. In 2008, she was trained on area airways procedural at NCAT. In May 2010, she was trained on terminal and area radar control at the PAN AM International Flight Academy in Miami, Florida. In October 2011, she completed a search and rescue mission coordinator course at the United ATS training school in Cairo, Egypt. In April 2012 she received training on OpenSUSE Linux fundamentals. In December 2015, she was trained on aircraft accident investigation and administrative and management principles. In December 2016, she studied processes and practices.

During her career, Hauwa has worked at different ATC units. From 19992001, she started her ATC career at Murtala Muhammed International Airport in Ikeja, Lagos. She worked in Jos Airport, first from 2001-2009 as an operational controller and from 2012-2015 as an air traffic operations manager. From 2015-2016, she worked at Abuja International Airport. First from 2009-2012 and then from 2016 to today, she worked at in Mallam Aminu Kano International Airport again. She currently is a deputy general manager working as a supervisor at the Area Radar Control Centre. She is married with two children. y

z Photo: Nigerian ATC Hauwa Danboyi Musa

22

THE CONTROLLER

A NEW TEAM. A NEW COMPANY. A NEW LIFE. DISCOVER DFS. DISCOVER GERMANY.

Are you a qualified ATCO? We are seeking qualified air traffic controllers from all over the world for upper and lower airspace.

Requirements: • ATCO licence, preferably in line with EU Regulation 2015/340 • ICAO level 4 proficiency in English • ICAO level 4 proficiency in German (lower airspace) • Valid medical certificate

Apply now: career.dfs.de

All genders are welcome

z special section // women & Equality

AIR TRAFFIC CONTROL IN TUNISIA

z by Molka Bouabid, TUNISIAN ATCO The representation of women in the Tunisian workforce has increased in recent decades. Work is no longer considered exclusively male in our country. Women in Tunisia fought for our rights for decades and demanded equality. We have the right to be free in a country of freedom, the right to be educated, the right to be part of the national elections, the right to work as any efficient member of the society. Today, male superiority is no longer a woman’s big issue in Tunisia, because we have the same rights and duties.

Africa & middle east: tunisia // uganda

Women now represent about 30 percent of all air traffic controllers in Tunisia.

While that is an accomplishment, it means that the air traffic control industry remains a male dominated industry. Yet, Tunisian female ATCOs are challenging inequality daily with their work and life commitments. It is a very challenging job.

These female controllers demonstrate unlimited potential in managing air traffic, sometimes even better than men.

Women are now an essential part of aviation in Tunisia, because gender does not limit our ability to perform the work and succeed in the profession. The only requirements to succeed are being able to think on your feet in stressful situations, the ability to make sound decisions, ability to take criticism, think systematically, and the ability to have fun while you’re working.

It’s not a physically demanding job, but sometimes you go home and are mentally exhausted.

Being an air traffic controller is a nonstandard job. Many people stereotype the field without realizing how challenging and how much fun it could be at the same time. We work together with our customers and stakeholders—the airlines, airports, and airspace users—to manage the safe and orderly flow of aircraft into, out of and between airports throughout Tunisia and with overseas regions adjoining Tunisia airspace. Most facilities are open 24 hours a day. We work rotating shifts, weekends and holidays which can be challenging for women with families,

but we are committed to our profession and we believe in teamwork. There are numerous women in the system today, holding a wide range of positions. We are a core part of aviation.

Female ATCOs in Tunisia are responsible for the safe, orderly, and expeditious movement of air traffic through the nation’s airspace. Trainees spend their first several months of employment in an intensive training program at the academic aviation school of Borj El Amri and continue their training once they are placed at a facility. Developmental controllers receive a wide range of training in controlling and separating live air traffic within designated airspace at and around an air traffic control tower, radar approach control facility, or an air route traffic control center.

As female ATCO’s, we are proud of our achievements, which are recognized by our state and authorities that believe in our capacities. y

FEMALE ATCO IN UGANDA

z by TONNY KEPLER SSENKUBUGE, UGANDAn ATC Prossie Zalwango is a long serving female ATCO in Uganda. She has been in air traffic control since 1998. She has four ATC ratings and is currently an air traffic management supervisor at Entebbe International Airport in Uganda. She also is in charge of the Search and Rescue Department. She is an ATC instructor and has qualifications in aeronautical search and rescue, safety management systems, ATC supervision, among others. She is very

passionate about air traffic control and air space management, as well as helping others grow in the profession.

Prossie served the Uganda Air Traffic Controllers’ Association (UGATCA) for a long time in various capacities until 2014 and made significant contribution to the shaping of the association. Away from work, she loves nature, sightseeing, photography, and adventure in general. y

z Photo: Ugandan ATC Prossie Zalwango

24

THE CONTROLLER

zspecial section // women & Equality

THE ACTIONS YOU TAKE MAKE THE DIFFERENCE z by Kitty Dammers, ATC FROM aruba Adriana Ponson began her career in ATC in 1977 when she was selected as one of the candidates to follow the ATC training course in Curaçao. She graduated successfully and began her on the job training in the tower at Queen Beatrix International Airport in Aruba in 1978. At that point there were only 2 other women working in the tower. She completed her OJT successfully in 1979 as a tower and approach (combined) controller.

Back then, Aruba had a law that restricted married woman from working as government employees, but it was never applied in practice, because it would cause many women in key positions to be unable to work. Much to their surprise, Adriana and another female colleague were informed at the end of 1982, that starting the new year, they would be let go, as they were both married. They both went on for two months without a paycheck, until the decision was reversed in March. It turned out that the person who took the decision had done it for personal benefit. The tower already was understaffed, so having two qualified controllers at home was simply not possible. However, when they were allowed to come back to work it was on a contractual basis. Adriana worked on a contractual basis for 10 years, until she was granted full benefits again as a full-time government employee. This unfortunately, meant that she then had a 10-year gap in her pension savings, which she then had to personally compensate for, in order to make up for the years she lost. Their two-month unemployment gap also meant that all

z Photo: The tower at Queen Beatrix International Airport in Aruba their scheduled promotions got moved back two months.

Despite these challenges, Adriana never had problems with equality on the work floor. Her experience might have resulted from the fact that the few women who worked ATC in Aruba over the years always had been outspoken. She worked as a tower and approach controller in Aruba for over 35 years without any major incidents.

She was an OJTI for some years, but managerial and supervisory positions were not things that she aspired to.

Adriana helped found and then was an active board member for over 19 years of Aruba’s ATC association. When ACTAA was founded in March 1989, she was the only female member of the first board. Over the years, she held almost every position on the board and was our treasurer for many years consecutively. From the very beginning until the point that she decided to “pass the reins to younger members,” she was considered the backbone of the association. From hosting and organizing gatherings, to writing and distributing “ACTAA News” to their members, she helped with all.

During her time in the board, Adriana helped ACTAA organize a total of 3 successful regional meetings in Aruba and represented our members at many International conferences throughout the years.

When ATC in Aruba got privatized in 2016, she chose to take an early retirement plan after having dedicated 37 years to aviation in Aruba (and ACTAA). She will be formally retiring this year after 42 years of service. Over the years, she always kept an eye out to ensure things went according to rules/ procedures and was never afraid to call out her superiors when this was not the case. She was known for always being a go-to person for insight and advice due to her years of experience and knowledge.

The legacy she left behind as a controller is admirable…Accomplishing everything she did in her career despite the additional hurdles she faced as a woman makes her successes even more notable. The biggest lesson would be that it’s not always the position you’re in, but the actions you take that make the difference. y

THE CONTROLLER 25

americas: aruba

During that period, the tower was experiencing such a bad staffing shortage that controllers had to go for more than one and a half years without getting any vacation days. In order to help each other, controllers would sacrifice their only day off to help colleagues get a couple of days off consecutively.

z special section // women & Equality z Photo: Tower at Santiago de Chile Airport

Photo: © Danflcreativo | Dreamstime.com

americas: chile

A LOT HAS CHANGED IN CHILE

z by ERKIA QUIERO BARRALES, ATCO from chile In 1951 Margot Dualde was the first woman ATCO in Chile. It was 16 years later, in 1967, before Marridge Stek became the second female ATCO in the country. It was 1971, before the first basic ATC course with women took place.

Being an Air Traffic Controller (ATCO) is one of the most demanding and stressful jobs in the world. At the same time, it also is one of the most rewarding and thrilling jobs. Male and female ATCOs face challenges in equal measure, and gender is not a prerequisite. As a result, today, 141 out of 468 (30,1%) ATCs in Chile are women. Female ATCOs are now working all accross the country in area and approach control, control towers, directing the department of aviation incident investigation, and as consultants in the Chilean department of aviation safety or other departments of administrative issues.

Although a lot has changed in Chile at a local level in terms of gender equality and diversity, there is still a lot to do.

Women and men should not depend on any other person’s consideration to get better positions. Everybody deserves to be considered only according to their capacities.

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There are female ATCOs working as full and part-time teachers in our training school. Additionally, during the last years, the amount of women applying to become ATCO’s has increased every year as much as the number of women graduating with honours, which speaks about the great abilities with Chilean female ATCOs are facee the challenges of ATM work.

However, despite the changes in terms of the number of ATC women working in the institution and the excellency of their work, female ATCs in Chile are constantly proving their capacities, abilities and suitability of their work “despite being women,” and trying to find their place in a masculine working culture that has not reflected on the importance of gender equality and diversity within the workplace.

Our senior female ATC, who is 57 years old, works as an ATC supervisor in the Area Control Centre in Santiago (ACCS), which is the most challenging area at a local level, where only the best people are able to work for periods longer than two or more years. A second senior female ATC, who is 53 years old, is now in charge of the International aeronautical relationships department after an outstanding career including many years in ACCS.

Myself, I am 45 years old. I have been working for 24 years as an ATCO. I consider myself fortunate, since I have had opportunities to demonstrate competency in air traffic control, as well as in management positions. I have succeeded with the help of men with vision and understanding about gender equality and women’s extraordinary capacity to cope with demanding jobs.

My experience includes 14 years in control tower and non-radar approach control and seven years in ACCS. I also worked as the first regular female ATCO instructor and the person in charge of planning, evaluation and control for ATC in “Escuela Técnica Aeronáutica.” After that, I was the first and only woman in charge of national ATC on job training. Finally, after being the first woman ATS chief in Calama, I was selected to be the ATS Chief vacancy in Balmaceda.

However, female ATCOs, who are also mothers, have to deal with an additional load in relation to juggling shifts and motherhood. Although many positive changes have taken place in the Chilean society in terms of gender equality, women are in charge of a great percentage of the household chores and parenting, which adds extra load to the already heavy workload for any ATCO. y

THE CONTROLLER

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THOUGHTS ABOUT GENDER FROM 13 U.S. ATC PROFESSIONALS z by BRANDI TEEL, NATCA STAFF MEMBER

In March 2019, to honor International Women’s Day, Brandi Teel – a public affairs staff member at the National Air Traffic Controllers Association (NATCA) – interviewed 13 female aviation safety professionals throughout the U.S. who are NATCA members. Brandi asked them a variety of questions, ranging from challenges they face as women in the workplace, how they think things have changed for women in aviation in the last decade, and what can be done to make aviation professions more interesting to young women:

Brandi Teel (Question 1): What do you think is the most significant barrier to female leadership?

Dawn Forde – Region X, EE1 FacRep: Changing society’s views on gender roles.

We have come a long way but positions traditionally held by men become labeled “challenging” if they are now held by a woman. When women achieve change through effort and hard work, we become empowered, and that helps to remove some of the barriers that hold us back.

One of the biggest barriers that holds women back is the lack of opportunities.

Trish Gilbert – NATCA Executive Vice President: There are still hidden biases (in both men and women) that men can do things better than women. While not prevalent, it still exists unfortunately, especially in male-dominated industries.

Jamie Green – New England Region, Providence ATCT (PVD): Today’s laws and culture support working women unlike any other period in American history. I would say the most significant barrier would be one’s self. In my honest opinion, anything is possible!

AMERICAS: UNITED STATES z Photo: Pictured from top to bottom, left to right: Kristin Simms (OAK), Candice Gertonson (HCF), Dawn McFalls (MRI), Executive Vice President Trish Gilbert, Stephanie Winder (ZLC), Kristen Laubach (PHL), Jamie Green (PVD), and Kristen Lewandowski (P80).

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THOUGHTS ABOUT GENDER FROM 13 U.S. ATC PROFESSIONALS ( cont .)

Jerah Kavoosi – Great Lakes Region, Flying Cloud ATCT (FCM) FacRep: I think that the barrier is us and our own inhibitions.

Alyssa Kurenyshev – Great Lakes Region, Chicago-DuPage (DPA) FacRep: I think the most significant barrier is the men to women ratio. Men outnumber women, and often those men are already in leadership positions.

americas: united states

Kristen Lewandowski – Northwest Mountain Region, Portland TRACON (P80) FacRep: Fear. As women we’re often afraid to step on toes and command respect. Acknowledging that fear allows you to move past it and find your place.

Dawn McFalls – Alaskan Region, Merrill Field ATCT (MRI), National Legislative Committee Alaskan Region Rep: The most significant barrier to female leadership is women being afraid to step forward into the leadership roles. We are just as capable of leading, but we are taught from young ages to minimize our accomplishments, not be too boastful, not be too pushy. We need to be bold and fearless. We need to be willing to face the fear of failure. The only way to succeed is to take a risk.

Lisa Schaefer – Western Pacific Region, Camarillo ATCT (CMA) FacRep Gaining respect. I was told a long time ago by my male radar instructor that I would have to work traffic twice as good as the guys if I wanted them to respect me like an equal. I think that perspective plays into any leadership role in aviation because it is a male-dominated industry.

Allison Schwaegel – Central Region, St. Louis ATCT (STL) FacRep: As a woman it is easy to be dismissed and sometimes you have to be a little more forceful to have your voice heard. Then if you are too forceful with your opinion you will be perceived as over-emotional and that is counter productive too.

There is an invisible line that you sometimes have to walk to be an effective communicator.

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Kristin Simms – Western Pacific Region (NWP), Oakland ATCT (OAK) FacRep, NWP Reloaded Rep: I think women, especially those in a maledominant environment, have a tendency to second guess themselves. While I do not believe this to be a reflection of where we would like to be as a society, this mindset unfortunately still exists.

Also, our Union will inherently have fewer women present solely due to the fact that we have far less women air traffic controllers in general.

Brandi Teel (Question 2): What was the organizational culture like 10 years ago for women and working mothers? Do you feel the Agency and aviation industry make continual efforts towards improving the culture for women?

Trish Gilbert: Ten years ago, the ATC workforce was better staffed so time off was easier to get. Everything else is slightly better now. There is space now for nursing mothers in facilities, albeit all are not ideal. The federal government, as the largest employer in the United States, should make instituting paid parental leave a priority; until then, support for women in the workforce seems hollow.

Jamie Green: The aviation industry was dominated with a male workforce 10 years ago. Our culture is changing, and I believe woman have really stepped up. I feel like we have progressed as a society and now jobs are filled by the most qualified candidate without any bias.

Lisa Schaefer: In the past, women needed to be able to adapt to male behavior. I remember very clearly when I was pregnant with my first son that I worked up until my due date. I essentially gave birth on my “weekend.”

When I called the facility to tell them that I wouldn't be returning for a while, they panicked and couldn't believe that I wouldn't be back for eight weeks – as if I hadn't been walking around work pregnant for nine months! I was the first woman at my facility to go out on maternity leave and they had no

idea how to handle it. I feel there have been some improvements made, like establishing nursing areas, but overall there is still room to grow.

Kristin Simms: I believe that we have taken great steps forward, but we still have a lot of room for improvement.

For example, we do not have a paid maternity leave program. Compared to other countries, our government trails far behind in regards to expectations that mothers with newborns return to work with limited time off after giving birth. We may have the allowance in our contract to take a fair amount of time off, but the unwillingness of our government to appropriately pay mothers during that time does not allow all mothers to exercise their contractual right.

Stephanie Winder: Things are definitely better for working mothers now than 10 years ago. There are nursing rooms at facilities that need them.

On-site childcare facilities are finally getting renovations and attention that they haven’t received since initial construction. Federal subsidy programs are available to assist with the costs associated with affordable quality child care. Flexible spending accounts (FSA) are now easily available for dependent care through payroll deduction.

Brandi Teel (Question 3): What can be done to make aviation safety professions more interesting to younger women?

Jamie Green: In an effort to appeal to the next generation of aviators, getting out and educating the community should be our main focus. So few women are aware of the amazing aviation careers available.

Jerah Kavoosi: We must spread the word that aviation safety professions are available and encourage participation. If young girls and women are exposed to the possibilities in the aviation industry, their passion and excitement will be sparked. It takes all of us to encourage the next generation of controllers and aviation enthusiasts.

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Alyssa Kurenyshev: I think continued outreach at local high schools would be great. I’ve done a couple of events of Lewis University and it’s surprising to know how many young females don’t know what we do. The second you run the simulators and start talking, their eyes light up.

Kristen Laubach: Getting girls involved at a young age is a great way to get them more interested in aviation. Two years ago, I started working with Big Brothers Big Sisters Independence Region in Philadelphia.

We organized controllers, airlines, corporate flight departments, and fire and rescue squads to come together and host an aviation event.

Its a chance for “bigs and littles” to get behind the scenes and see what is involved in making an airport run.

This year will be our third year hosting the event.

Dawn McFalls: We should participate in Career Days at schools because early outreach is a must. Getting young girls interested in our field is really easy to do. I had the privilege to work in the tower simulator at our local Girls in Aviation Day last year, and I honestly believe that was their favorite part of the day. I continue to describe our job as “poetry in motion,” and it’s truly beautiful to behold.

Lisa Schaefer: Exposure and encouragement are important in promoting the profession. Essentially you are either interested in it or your not.

Allison Schwaegel: Outreach! We need women out there educating the public about aviation. This not only teaches our young girls that people like them belong in this world, it also teaches our young boys that girls belong in the same type of professions that they do.

Stephanie Winder: Women in Aviation, Professional Women Controllers (PWC), and NATCA do a great job educating and getting information out about STEM programs and opportunities in local communities.

I think these organizations and the events they participate in help raise awareness about the opportunities available in aviation.y

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AMERICAS: UNITED STATES

z Photo: Pictured from top to bottom, left to right: Candice Gertonson (HCF), Dawn McFalls (MRI), Alyssa Kurenyshev (DPA), Kristen Lewandowski (P80), Jerah Kavoosi (FCM), Executive Vice President Trish Gilbert, Allison Schwaegel (STL), Jamie Green (PVD), Kristen Laubach (PHL), Trisha Pesiri-Dybvik (SBA), Lisa Schaefer (CMA), Dawn Forde (EE1), Kristin Simms (OAK), and Stephanie Winder (ZLC).

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AUSTRALIA'S FIRST FEMALE AIR TRAFFIC CONTROLLER

z by phil ware, australia air traffic control Australia’s first female air traffic controller, Olga Tarling, passed away on Aug.15, 2012, at the age of 84.

Many people remember Olga in her various ATC roles, but she was also an accomplished commercial pilot at a time when females in any branch of aviation were a rarity. She had been a co-pilot for Southern Airlines based out of Essendon. Her career changed paths when Southern folded in 1959, and Olga took up a position in ATC.

Asia PACIFIC: Australia

Olga was a great aviator and proponent of our profession, quietly and effectively working to ensure that new initiates into our black art stood the best chance of success. She was an extremely professional air traffic controller, who understood the training of new controllers was a critical task. She had been "SATC" and was the "mother" of many young ATC trainees. She arranged their airline & RAAF attachments, assignments, and generally looked after trainees’ attachments, and she was respected by each one, as she took their welfare to heart.

Olga’s time in training is mainly remembered by Australia’s few air traffic controllers who are over 50 years old.

When I first met Olga, I was 20 years of age, an air force aircrew trainee, who knew nothing. We were doing a guided tour of the facilities at Essendon, and she worked in the tower there. She was almost 30, could fly anything from a Tiger Moth to a four-engine plane, and was a qualified air traffic controller as well. Her qualifications and experience blew me away. To us trainees visiting the tower that day, Olga was "superwoman."

I was 42 when I finally started pilot training at the Redcliffe Aerodrome and was the Training Annex Supervisor at that time. Olga was sent to work for me.

While I was getting my head around all the things one has to do to be a pilot,

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Olga answered all questions and gave me good insight into flying. It was good to have her knowledge and experience.

Olga will be fondly remembered by many people as a great achiever who always had always a cheery disposition.

One former colleague said, "Old age ain’t for Sissies.” Yet even in her suffering, Olga maintained a sense of dignity. As I sit writing these few thoughts, I am sad about her passing, but feeling privileged to have known her and to have been counted as one of her friends.

Olga retired to live back at Maleny in her mid-50's. On occasions in recent years, Bev and I visited her at the retirement home where she was residing. We got to visit Olga a couple of weeks before she passed. It was sad to see how she had physically deteriorated at the end. In her mid-30s, she had survived a debilitating brain tumour, while maintaining her skills as an airline pilot and arrivals controller in the old AACC and serving as President of the Women's Pilots' association. This time was different. She was an icon, and then, she was gone.

z Photo: First female air traffic controller in Australia Olga Tarling in 1958 and later in her life

Olga was awarded the Nancy Bird Walton Trophy for outstanding achievement in aviation in 1971 and remained active in women’s aviation, presiding over the Australian Women Pilots’ Association in 1981.

Olga’s lifetime of dedication to our industry was recognised with an OAM in 1990. To have achieved such things at a time when women were not generally even recognised as capable of such things was remarkable. She played an important part in opening up such roles.

On behalf of Australian ATCs “Thank you Olga ... for your life, your care, your help and friendship to so many of us, all these years. From all those in ATC who knew you, we remember you.” y

THE CONTROLLER

z special section // women & Equality

FEMALE ATCO s IN THE ASIA PACIFIC REGION z by Yen Chun Cheryl Chen

Purpose: According to ICAO Assembly Resolutions adopted in 2016, promoting gender equality has been one of the main topics in the field of air traffic control.

Encouraging more women to take up employment as an air traffic controller is one of the key steps in reaching the goal of gender equality.

Findings: Asia Pacific is a region with rich and diverse cultures. From the countries or jurisdictions listed in Table 1, we can see that some often categorized as western oriented countries, such as Australia and New Zealand, as well as those along the Pacific Rim dominated by ethnic Chinese and highly influenced

by Confucianism, such as Taiwan, Macau, Hong Kong, and Singapore.

Muslim countries compose another group of countries in Asia, such as Indonesia, Iran, and Malaysia. Nepal is located in an area where Hinduism is the dominant religion. The Philippines and other oceanic countries spreading around the Pacific Ocean are unique in that their societies are more matriarchal.

z Photo: Air traffic controller Yen Chun Cheryl Chen from CAA in ROCATCA Therefore, a higher proportion of female ATCs in these countries may be expected. At the time of finishing this article, not all MAs responded to my request for information. The discussion therefore does not reflect the overall picture of the Asia Pacific Region.

From a cultural perspective, on the one hand, countries with western heritage, such as Australia and New Zealand, do show a higher ratio of female labor participation (0.85 for both). Countries with Islamic or Hinduism religious influence, on the other hand, show a lower rate in women’s participation in the labor market. Taiwan, Macau, Hong Kong, and Singapore, where ethnic Chinese are the dominant groups, are traditionally patriarchal, but their modern societies witness an increasing number of women joining the labor market due to the trend of dual-salary family lifestyle thanks to the economic developments.

The job of an air traffic controller is often branded as a highly stressful job, with the requirement to work night shifts, and better suited to more assertive individuals. It, therefore, gives the impression that it is a more maleoriented job. This probably explains why

the ratio of female air traffic controller is often lower than the ratio of female labor participation in general in most of the countries discussed herein.

Interestingly, the ratios of female ATC in Australia and New Zealand are excessively low, in contrast with the high female labor participation rates in both countries. Although both countries offer relatively rewarding salaries to ATCs, and women are given generous supports when it comes to parental leave and other benefits, these factors do not seem to attract more women to apply for the job. Both MAs suggest that school education or social stereotype which brand ATC as a male’s job might be a contributing factor.

In Iran, the low ratio of female ATCs can be attributed to the cultural standpoint in the country that "ATC is not a healthy job for woman, and the associated stress and pressure cannot be tolerated by women in the long run. Young girls are recommended in high schools not to take the job because of its high level of stress." The shift work nature of ATC is also said to be the reason why women from Hong Kong step back from choosing ATC as their career.

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Asia PACIFIC: REGIONAL OVERVIEW

Method: To get a statistical snapshot of female air traffic controllers in the Asia Pacific Region, I asked the MAs in the region to provide with information on the proportion of female air traffic controllers in their countries, their associations, and in their associations’ executive boards.

Some gave me the number of female ATCs and the total number of ATCs in their countries and associations. Others gave me the number in proportion or in ratio. For the purpose of comparison, I converted all the numbers into ratios, for the number of women presented in the unit to one man (i.e., women-tomen).” I also listed the ratio of female labor participation nationally in these MA countries with the data taken from the World Bank to provide a perspective on how female labor participation in ATC fares against the overall labor market.

These data are listed in Table 1. Since the proportion of female ATCs in each country and that of the association are essentially identical, I only keep one in Table 1.

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FEMALE ATCO s IN THE ASIA PACIFIC REGION ( cont .)

In Nepal, ATC is a government job. As the law states that the proportion of female must be no less than 33% in the new recruitment of any government position, the ratio of female ATCs in the country keeps up to that requirement.

Asia PACIFIC: regional overview

In Indonesia and Malaysia, because ATC job provides "good working environment, flexible time (shift), relatively balanced workload and fair salary(Indonesia)" and "(ATC) is a pensionable job (Malaysia)," the ratios of female ATC in these two countries, despite being a bit lower than the average female labor participation rate, are at a reasonable level.

In Singapore, the reason why female ATC ratio is slightly lower than the ratio of 3national average might lie in the ATC entrance exam. The statistics show that males perform slightly better at the entrance exam.

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Remarkably, Macau and Taiwan are the two MAs that show a one to one male to female ratio in ATCs. In Macau, female ATCs comment that "salary (above average in Macau) is the main reason to join ATC." Similarly, as ATC in Taiwan is a civil servant job, it provides more stable income and comparatively better welfare and pension.

The last row in Table 1 shows the ratio of females in the MAs’ executive boards. Not surprisingly, apart from Macau and Taiwan, all the other MAs’ executive boards have a male-dominant composition, which echoes the fact that males are still predominant in the managerial positions.

Conclusion: Encouraging more women to choose ATC as a career path is one of the key issues being focused on by ICAO and IFATCA. However, there is no

single answer for all of the countries on how to reach the goal. The proportion of female air traffic controller varies from one country to the other. The variation, which is part of the bigger picture of female labor force participation, reflects the differences in economic growth, social norms, education, and access to childcare and other supportive services.

Each country should identify its own obstacles that prevent women from taking up ATC for their careers. The shift work nature of ATC provides pros and cons to women when it comes to work-life/family balance. Yet, it affects men, too. Providing better support to employees and their families is an element which can be carried out by the ANSPs and be promoted by the MAs. But to change people’s ideology of ATC as a female-friendly job, more work has to be done in every society. y

THE CONTROLLER

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ATC EQUALITY z by Aleksandra MureL, Estonian ATCO

After successfully completing the ATC course, Galina began to work at Tallinn Airport as an aerodrome controller. The job tasks were very different than nowadays. They had to check the flight information filed by a flight captain, it was ATC’s personal responsibility that for example the weather at destination and alternate airport was sufficient and that the fuel amount taken was enough. A couple years later, she took part in surveillance training in Riga Aviation College. Work with radar was complicated because the clouds and aircraft were the same co-

lour. Difference was in their speed.

Now ACC in Tallinn uses very good technology and the ATC work evolved to a new level.

Every shift is different, and she still enjoys working as an air traffic controller. This year she has 45 years of service in general aviation which is remarkable achievement.

z Photo: Britt Saue and Sigrid Uik from Tallinn APP:TWR, Photo Credit Külli Kittus.

She also enjoys many different activities like riding a bicycle, playing table tennis, badminton, billiard and more. She is very communicative and has a good contact even with young controllers. Galina has two children who are also successful.

Her youngest daughter works as a captain with the Baltlics leading airline, and her older son works in the IT sector in Germany.

In 1978 when she started, she found the work environment friendly. She says it still is. Galina is still working as an ACC controller and also as a supervisor. The ratings she holds are area control surveillance ACC, approach control surveillance APP, and aerodrome control TWR.

She said she does not see any real difference between male and female ATCO’s.

Europe: Estonia

Galina Fadeitševa was born in Tallinn, Estonia. She was very ambitious and achieved very good results in school.

After graduating, she considered different specialities like studying in a music academy or studying journalism. Instead, she decided to try an aviation career. She briefly considered becoming a flight attendant. Instead, she began working as a typewriter at Tallinn Airport. Then approximately after one year started working as the Tallinn Airport director’s secretary.

An ATC, flight attendant, and secretary worked in the same building, and Galina got a proposal to start studying in Moscow in the training centre near Bykovo Airport as an ATC. It was very challenging, because it very uncommon for women to work in ATC these days in USSR. At that time, it was thought that women in ATC were very uncommon. There were only two female students on that ATC course in Moscow (one of them was Galina) and they are still very good friends despite living in different countries and far away from each other.

When asks how she balances work and family, she said that shift work is always challenging, especially if you have small children. But if you are in a right place and do the work you love and have supporting and loving family, it doesn’t matter.

Work was always very important to her, and she dedicated herself fully to it.

Her advice for new ATC or to female joining ATC: Personal qualities need to comply with work specialities. If you have quick reaction, courage to make decisions, are active and purposeful then you can do it. Being female or male doesn’t matter. y

z Photo: Lennart Meri Tallinn Airport

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z special section // women & Equality

FIRST IRISH FEMALE ATCO

z by Liz Bourke, Air Traffic Controller, dublin, ireland Áine O'Gorman joined the Irish Aviation Authority (IAA) in 1982 as an ATCA (air traffic control assistant). She was in a class of three, herself and two men (one of which, Dominic, was lucky enough to later become her husband). After four years as a sim pilot, Áine qualified as Ireland’s first female air traffic controller. Áine has held every Dublin rating. She has been involved in numerous projects including free releases and has been on many interview panels. She is responsible for training more people than she cares to remember as an OJTI. As training manager, Áine was instrumental in compiling the Dublin UTP. All this experience lead Áine to become our first female station manager in 2004.

europe: Ireland

There have been many changes to Dublin Air Traffic Control in Áine’s time. She has seen the traffic levels rise and fall and rise again. There have been many changes and advances in technology. Áine has worked in not only 3 different centers but, with the construction of the new Dublin ATC tower, she will also have worked in 3 different towers.

Balancing family life with work life isn’t always easy. According to her daughter Laura, Áine is very organised and always on the go. “She never stops,” Laura says, laughing. “After a back operation when she couldn’t move, she did a stock market course online. She is always doing something.” Áine agrees that she never sits down. In her spare time, Áine enjoys pilates, shopping, and most recently found herself, unexpectedly, at a glow stick dancing class.

With her husband also doing shift work, the family often had au pairs to help with the children. Although sometimes difficult to manage and requiring military organisation, Aine says the time off that comes with shift work is great, particularly for people with young families. She says,

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z Photo: First Irish female ATCO Áine O'Gorman pictured at the air traffic control tower at Dublin Airport. Photograph: Irish Times “There is a misconception that shift work takes away from family life, I believe (with planning) that the opposite is true.”

Although there are a lot more women in air traffic control now, Áine would love to see more. “Women make great controllers,” she says. “Most women are highly organized, level-headed, have calm dispositions, and are great multi taskers.

These are all really important traits in a controller.” She believes that ATC is a good career for women, and that women are good for ATC. “Women generally lead to a more balanced work environment, which in turn leads to a better service being provided.”

Dublin ATCOs have always worked in a team-based environment. This is an arrangement that Áine believes benefits everyone. “When you work on a team with people for a period of time, they become like a family. You spend so much time together. You spend nights together, early mornings. You really do see people at their worst and their best. You get to know each other through and through.

You make friends for life.” Áine loves her job. “Whats not to love?” she asks. “The pay is good. The conditions are good. It is interesting, exciting, and rewarding. After 35 years, there’s still no other job I’d rather do.” y

THE CONTROLLER

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GRATEFUL TO OLDER FEMALE COLLEAGUES z by Natasha Mijat Krstevska, TWR/APP controller in Skopje ATC, Macedonia No one really knows why men have tried to keep aviation so selfishly to themselves. Maybe it is because the Wright were brothers and not sisters.

Or perhaps the heavens above are a shortcut to God, which men want to keep exclusively to themselves. But from the very beginning – even from the time of Amelia Earhart – women have been forced to prove themselves worthy to join men as equal guardians of the heavens. Our journey has been hindered throughout history. However, slowly but surely, we are now co-writing the modern aviation journal.

In 1976, the Republic of Macedonia was still part of the Yugoslavian Federation.

In that year, a woman from Skopje, named Nadica Lazarevska (later married Gavrilova), wanted to become an air traffic controller. She went to Belgrade to enroll at the Yugoslavian Aviation Academy, but she was told that only men could attend the training for ATCOs. Women could solely become assistant air traffic controllers, a position similar to today's flight information officers. She accepted her " limited female destiny" and became the first female flight information officer (FIO) at Skopje Airport in 1977.

Only few years later, the aviation landscape for women in Yugoslavia improved dramatically, when in 1979, the first female student from the Republic of Macedonia named Ljljana Stojanovska was allowed to complete the ATCO training in Belgrade. Two years later, Liljana became the first female air traffic controller in Macedonia when she was issued a license to work at the airport in Ohrid.

Nadica Lazarevska and Ljljana Stojanovska opened the road for many female controllers to follow: Lidija Stefanovska, Ceca Bunjevac,

I started my career in aviation in 2001. The climate in our company at that time was nothing like 30 years earlier. On my on-job training for my TWR license, I even got a chance to work with Nadica as my instructor. But this interview and chatting on this topic had made me realise all the progress we z Photo: Macedonia ATCOs Nadica Gavrilova and have achieved in the field Natasha Mijat Krstevska of aviation. We have achieved what women previously had Nadica: “After finishing my training in been prevented from achieving. I am very Belgrade, I arrived in Skopje to learn grateful to my older female colleagues that really only male colleagues worked for winning these battles and correcting as controllers. There was one female the "male worshipping" system. colleague in the MET office before me, and I arrived in the Flight Information The following is my interview with Nadica.

Office. They wanted us all to be prepped, Doing an interview with her was like riding pretty in the uniforms, and smiling since a time machine. Honestly, I never realized we were meeting the pilots for pre-flight how much I previously took for granted briefings.” the role of women in aviation.

Natasha: “Were you disappointed not to be allowed the chance to attend the controller training?”

Nadica: “As a young girl, I dreamed of becoming a pilot. In Belgrade, the reality struck me and put me back on the ground. I wasn't really shocked, because no woman at that time had become a controller or a pilot. But I was hoping that was, because no woman in Yugoslavia had previously tried for the training.

Afterwards, I knew that wasn't the case.

Women in the 1970s were not given the chance to try out for training, just for being women.”

Natasha: “You worked in the FIO for a decade, waiting patiently for your chnace for an ATCO training”.

Nadica: “I became a mother of two children during my career in FIO. Maybe I would have had even more kids, but my long-waited chance for ATCO training arrived in 1990, so I couldn't miss it.

In 1991, a got my first license for TWR and later for APP and ACC. There were certain sacrifices that women had to make if she wanted to become an ATCO.”y

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Europe: MACEDONIA

Our oldest active female licensed controller in the Skopje Ops room is 63 years old, and her name is Nadica Gavrilova. Her aviation journey started in the 1970s.

Marina Shutarev, Katica Trenevska, Zorica Krndija, Frosina Doneski, etc. Some of them are no longer active licensed ATCOs, but they nevertheless were the female pioneers in Macedonian in the 1980s, an era when one of the last male-only bastions fell.

z special section // women & Equality

NORWAY'S FIRST FEMALE AIR TRAFFIC CONTROLLER

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by Sverre Ivar Elsbak, chair of IFATCA's

Equality, Diversity and Ethics Task Force

Europe: Norway // Spain

Tove Høyer – Norway’s first female air traffic controller – qualified as an ATC at Flesland control tower on December 7, 1964. Tove was born on May 3, 1931. After World War II, she became a telegraphist and worked in the Norwegian merchant fleet until November 3, 1960, when she started her career in ATC as an air traffic controller assistant. She worked for a while in Bergen, before moving home to Oslo, where she got a job as an ATC at the Notam office at Fornebu. She finished her ATCO career in Gardermoen tower, where she worked from the early 1980s until her death in 1991.

Tove was Norway’s only female controller for 17 years, before the second Norwegian female ATC was hired. Aina

Øen Blindheim checked out at Gardemoen control tower in the spring of 1981.

We have come a long way since 1964. Today, the Norwegian Air Traffic Controller’s Association (NATCA) has 590 active members, of whom 122 are female. The groundwork to get more women into the profession first started in the early 1980s. Women almost make up a quarter of Norway’s ATC workforce. And the number of female applicants to the air traffic controller profession is higher than ever. y

z Photo: Norway’s first female air traffic controller Tove Høyer

AUTOBIOGRAPHY FROM ATC PIONEER z by TERESA NOGUERA, SECOND FEMALE AIR TRAFFIC CONTROLLER LICENSED IN SPAIN My name is Teresa Noguera, and I was born in a small village in the province of Tarragona in Spain in 1945. I grew up in Palma de Mallorca, in the province of Baleares. I studied law and obtained a degree in Labour Law at the University of Barcelona in 1974. More or less by chance, I entered into the world of aviation and obtained my air traffic controller’s license in Madrid in 1975. I started to work at the Barcelona Air Traffic Control Centre as the second female air traffic controller in Spain. I subsequently requested to be transferred to the ACC in Mallorca for family reasons. I retired in 2010 as a Senior Supervisor and have since been working part time as an instructor at the Spanish ATC School SENASA in Madrid.

It always has been important to me to be able to exercise my juridical and

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ATC privileges with the highest possible degree of political, professional, and personal freedom. I have worked hard in order to obtain and maintain the economic and social independence that is a prerequisite for reaching these goals.

During my career, in spite of the unstable and turbulent political and operational environment, the female air traffic controller has earned her place in what initially was a totally male dominated one.

I would like to think that I have contributed to that.

Up to and into the 1960s, the Spanish ATC environment must be classified as primitive by European standards.

In the 1970s, the increasing popularity of Spanish holiday resorts resulted in a significant increase in air traffic, an increase which the Spanish civil aviation

was ill equipped to cope with. At the time, the management of ATS was the responsibility of the military authorities.

At that time, conservative attitudes were prevalent in all branches, and female ATCOs were forced to endure discrimination in many forms, for instance there were no toilets for girls.

With ATC, the standard of surveillance and communication equipment as well as ATCO training and infrastructure generally, revealed unsafe operational situations.

With the death of the dictator Francisco Franco in 1975, a new generation of politicians were ready to start working on improving the ATC environment within the framework of a democratic state.

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z special section // women & Equality

AUTOBIOGRAPHY FROM ATC PIONEER FROM SPAIN (CONT.) In 1976, I had a leading role in helping to organise a group in the Barcelona ACC. This initiative by ATCOs, led to recognition of administrative, operational and technical problems that were proven to cause crossing of the red line of safety. It makes me proud to have played a leading role within the group of female and male controllers in the forefront of this struggle, being instrumental in making the ATC environment better over the next decades.

Such initiatives were not without their inherent personal risk for the people involved. The military authorities could at any time convene court martials. The first and second decades of the 21st century saw increasing confrontation between the ATCO unions and the government agencies responsible for civil aviation administration.

After negotiating terms and conditions, the ATCO union (USCA) succeeded in obtaining what at the time probably was the best contract for controllers in Europe. However, the hard line pursued by the union was finally challenged by the civil aviation authorities in 2010.

They imposed political measures (decrees of law), resulting in reduced pay, longer working hours, stricter rules on setting up duty rosters, and so on.

During this period, two categories of female controllers emerged. One group strove to become like the male controllers they had to associate with daily. A second group chose to remain what they basically were: women exercising their profession independently based on confidence in themselves and their ability to perform satisfactorily.

In my opinion, female ATCOs of the second category are the more successful ones, professionally as well as socially. They understand how to create and maintain respect for themselves as professionals as well as individuals.

The situation was very badly handled and still is not resolved. There are many issues pending, leaving the controllers under significant pressure and strongly affecting their professional and private lives.

So female controllers – welcome to the world of ATC! Keep in mind that you will still mostly be in a male environment, but ready to educate some of these MCPs that you will definitely run across.

Good luck! y

z Photo: Teresa Noguera, was the second female air traffic controller licensed in Spain

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Europe: spain

For those of us who initiated and followed through the struggle for political (non-military) independence and better working conditions, this was a serious setback and a discouraging pointer to an uncertain future.

z special section // women & Equality

SWEDISH FEMALE LEADERSHIP

zby Helena Sjöström, IFATCA Deputy President "There aren´t many female executives.

The airline industry has even fewer."

This was the title of a news item from the business and financial news agency Bloomberg in June 2018. The coverage of the 2018 IATA Annual General Meeting, reported by Bloomberg´s Angus Whitman, boasted one woman out of 28 airline executives, who together represented 82% of the world’s airlines.

Europe: sweden

“It’s not just an IATA problem,” Whitman said. “It’s an industry problem. Women are seriously underrepresented in the aviation industry as a whole and at an executive level even more so. Bloomberg reported an underrepresentation in the airlines´ boardrooms. Only 3% of airline chief executive officers are women, compared to 12% in other industries.

The female airline chief financial officers make up 8%, compared to 19% in other industries.

The same can most certainly be said for the air traffic management industry.

Although women make up between 10 to 40% of the controller work force in most countries, the top management is usually male dominated. This is something the new IFATCA Equality, Diversity and Ethics Task Force, chaired by Sverre Ivar Elsbak, Norway, is going to look further into.

The Swedish state-owned Air Navigation Service Provider, LFV, is one of few exceptions. Out of LFV´s group management of nine members, presently six are women. I had the chance to talk to Ann Persson Grivas, Director General; Barbro Bolander, Director of Human Resources and Elisabeth Lindgren, Director of Communications, to find out more.

Ann Persson Grivas: “I have been a manager for nearly 40 years now. I started in the construction industry, often as the only woman on the site.

The appeal for me has always been to

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work with people during times of change and development.

Sports were certainly a good breeding ground for leadership qualities, both as a player and as a coach in team sports.

Through the years I have been given responsibility and I have delivered on set goals. After the construction industry, I worked 16 years for SAS, in sales and marketing and as manager of SAS Charter. After that, I was headhunted into the telecom business and then spent several years in the leadership of the Swedish Social Insurance Agency. I have found that in management, it is important to make sure that the team shares the same view and has the same goals.

One specific character trait I think I have always had is courage and faith in my own ability.”

Elisabeth really liked her new job and also learned a lot from it. When the branch was closed, the management had recognized Elisabeth’s talent and let her move on to other positions.

After that first management position, Elisabeth has continued her education in strategic business, marketing, and communication.

Barbro Bolander: “I always wanted to have an influence. I want to be where the action is, and I haven’t been very worried about taking up too much space or making my voice heard. I guess I’m not very sensitive to derogative comments, which may have been spoken about me as possible means of master suppression techniques. I just don´t hear them, which can come in handy sometime, she smiles.”

Barbro Bolander: “Yes. As a woman and a manager, I think I have a mission to promote younger women and help them in their careers.”

Elisabeth Lindgren: “It’s the same for me. I have always been curious, and I want to deliver results with my team.

I started out in banking, and a (male) colleague wasn’t really happy with his job position, and I thought that his job would suit me better. I went to our boss and explained my views on this and suggested that this colleague and I swap jobs. The local branch where my colleague was the manager was going to be closed down anyway, so there was no real risk to the bank.”

Ann Persson Grivas: “Some of the most frequent questions I get are about female leadership. To me, this doesn't exist. There is good leadership, and there is not so good leadership. I think my different bosses over the years have seen my competency and not connected it to gender. Another thing is to know your fortes and maybe balance yourself a bit, she continues. It´s important to not be running too fast, ahead of the team.”

Elisabeth Lindgren: “The appeal for me, she says, is to work with things that affect a lot of people and the need for change. When you start working for a new company, it’s important to get a feel for the company culture and to get to know the strategic challenges.”

Helena Sjöström: “Is it important to you to help and encourage other women to aspire to management positions?”

Elisabeth Lindgren: “I agree. I often reflect on jobs on the market, also outside LFV. If I see a job that I think would be good for one of my coworkers, I have to let them know about it, even if it means they might leave LFV.”

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z special section // women & Equality

Helena Sjöström: “Out of the new basic training ATCO course that recently took place at the Swedish Entry Point North Academy, five out of twenty-four are women. Are we happy with this?”

Barbro Bolander: “We have a job to do there. The EUROCONTOL FEAST test, which we are using, seems to favor male applicants. (According to EUROCONTROL, 50% of the male applicants pass the FEAST test, while only 30% of the female applicants pass.) We need to look at what is behind this, Barbro continues, and we are doing it together with Entry Point North. Are we testing the right things?

We know that certain spatial abilities, which men have, are being favored by the test. Are these abilities essential?

Can we do this in other ways?”

Helena Sjöström: “I believe France tried directed advertisements in magazines such as Marie Claire and

through this got a significantly higher number of female applicants.”

Barbro Bolander: “We already have about as many female applicants as male applicants. That’s not the problem. It’s the test. We also have to look at the abilities we are searching for. There are women with these abilities. We just have to find them.”

Elisabeth Lindgren: “The budget we had for recruiting new ATCOs this time didn’t allow advertising in any magazines at all. We used social media. We got as many applicants as we had set out to get, and we got as many approved candidates as we wished. Then the ratio women to men wasn’t what we wanted, and this is something we have to continuously work on. It seems that in general, more men than women are willing to prioritize their careers, even though we in Sweden have come a long way in terms of gender equality. Why is this? How do we raise our children?

europe: sweden

z Photo: Management team members from Swedish state-owned Air Navigation Service Provider, LFV, include

(left to right) Director of Human Resources Barbro Bolander, Director General Ann Persson Grivas, and

Director of Communications Elisabeth Lindgren.

Do we treat girls and boys differently?

As leaders, parents and role models, we have to show that the key is to create conditions for everyone to develop in their professional life, regardless of gender.”

Barbro Bolander: “We have to start even earlier in the recruitment for management positions. Are we sure that we aren’t using the same matrix over and over again? We must ascertain that we look for the qualities we actually need and are not only using a standard template.

The fact that women make up 54% of the group management of Sweden´s largest ANSP, is an even higher ratio of than that of the Swedish controller work force as a whole. In the survey recently conducted by the IFATCA Equality, Diversity and Ethics Task Force, Sweden reported 39% female controllers. The supervisors in the two ATCCs in Stockholm and Malmö are around 50% women and 50% men. y

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focus on cameroon z Africa & middle east // Focus on Tunisia

FOCUS ON TUNISIA z

by Wiem Sfar TWR ATCo , Monastir Habib Bourguiba international Airport in Tunisia & Aymen Hajji , APP ATCo , Ennfidha Hammamet international Airport in Tunisia

Tunisia was selected last year in Abuja to host the upcoming 30th IFATCA Africa and Middle East regional meeting November 13-15. The Tunisian Air Traffic Controller Association (TATCA) is devoting all its efforts, activities, and resources to prepare for a successful 2019 IFATCA AFM regional meeting. Tunisia has experience hosting meetings. They have previously held AFM regional meetings previously in 2013, 1993, 1988, and 1985, as well as hosting IFATCA’s annual conference in 1996. The 2019 event will focus on “Training as key enabler of Air Traffic Controllers professionalism.” We look forward for your participation at the IFATCA 2019 AFM Regional Meeting. We strongly believe that we have many common issues on which we can work together, learn from each other and develop solutions for the benefit of our members and the industry. Together, we will make the difference in ATM world in order to improve aviation safety, security, and efficiency. Join us for our meeting and experience it yourself.

Introduction

Tunisia is a relatively small North African country that shares boundaries with Algeria to the west, Libya to the southeast, and the Mediterranean Sea to the north and east. This strategic location played an important role in shaping the country’s history, considering the many civilizations that flourished in Tunisia throughout ages.

Given its rich history and diverse culture, Tunisia one of the most popular touristic destinations in the Maghreb region. It offers visitors beautiful landscapes including the Mediterranean Sea coasts, mountains, and the Sahara Desert. Its mild climate, fine hotels and beach resorts, and

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historical sites make it a perfect venue for holiday travellers, particularly Europeans.

History

Aviation in Tunisia dates back to 1910, when the first flight took place there successfully. Afterwards, huge growth in civil aviation occurred. The dream of connecting two continents was finally fulfilled in 1913 when French aviator Roland Garros completed the first non-stop flight across the Mediterranean Sea, departing from the South of France to North Tunisia.

The first airport in Tunisia was opened in 1940 at El-Aouina in the capital Tunis.

Back then, Tunisia was still a French colony. However, while Tunisia gained its independence in 1956, the French maintained control over the Tunisian airspace.

A significant incident – that was a turning point in the history of aviation in Tunisia and would finally lead to Tunisians to push to control their airspace – took place at El-Aouina Airport. The French tower controllers sabotaged an official visit to Tunisia by deliberately making the host plane hold in the air for about an hour, while the presidential secretary of state waited for the plane to land. This act highlighted the gravity of the issue and motivated President Bourghiba to move to gain control.

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on cameroon z Africa & middlez eastfocus // Focus on Tunisia Unfortunately, it would be some time before Tunisia would gain control of their airspace.

One year on Republic Day – the anniversary of the day in 1957 when the Republic of Tunisia was proclaimed, the French air traffic controllers, weather agents, and some technicians, who worked at El-Aouina Airport, left their jobs without any prior notice with the intent to shut down the air and throw the country into total chaos. This could have been a disaster, but a fortunate coincidence saved the situation. One day before this incident, Tunisia welcomed a small group of Tunisian engineers and air controllers, who had been abroad. The new arrivals soon took charge and succeeded in maintaining the continuity and stability of the affected sectors. It wasn’t an easy mission, but they took it bravely. They devoted themselves to the welfare of their country.

Tunisian Civil Aviation and Airports Authority (OACA) The Office of Tunisian Airports (OPAT) was founded in 1970. OPAT later became the Tunisian Civil Aviation and Airport Authority (OACA). OACA is in charge of the different sectors of the aviation industry in Tunisia, including the operation, maintenance, expansion, and infrastructure enhancement of airports and provision of documentation required for all aeronautical personnel. Its responsibilities also include the international relationships with Arab, African and global authorities. Since March 2018, OACA has been a member in the AEMFP initiative, which also covers air navigation service providers from Algeria, France, Morocco, Portugal and Spain, with the goal of optimizing, harmonizing, and integrating their air navigation systems while maintaining the highest levels of quality and safety.

FIR and Airports

There are nine international airports in Tunisia plus a small airport (Borj El Amri DTTI) intended for training flights. Almost all of them are under the aegis of the Tunisian Civil Aviation and Airports Authority (OACA).

The Tunisian FIR is divided vertically into lower and upper sections. It is totally radar covered. In Tunisia, there are two types of airspace: controlled and uncontrolled. The Tunisian controlled airspace comprises four airspaces. The first is Tunis CTA North East, where there is the highest volume of the traffic and that includes the three major airports of the country, namely Tunis-Carthage International Airport (DTTA), Enfidha-Hammamet International Airport (DTNH), and Monastir-Habib Bourguiba International Airport (DTMB). The second is Tunis CTA North West that covers Tabarka-Ain Draham International Airport

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(DTKA). The third is Tunis CTA South East covering Djerba-Zarzis International Airport (DTTJ) and Sfax-Thyna International Airport (DTTX).

The fourth is Tunis CTA South West that covers Tozeur-Nefta International Airport (DTTZ), Gafsa-Ksar International Airport (DTTF), and Gabès-Matmata International Airport (DTTG).

Air Traffic Control

z Photos: (above/opposite page) Tower at Tunis-Carthage InterThere are approximately national Airport (DTTA), (above/this page) The first airport in Tunisia was El-Aouina Airport (below) Tunis-Carthage International Airport 300 Tunisian air traffic controllers, working in 10 control towers and one area control centre (ACC). Twenty percent of the controllers working in Tunisia are female. The ACC is located in proximity to Tunis-Carthage airport (DTTA) and employs about 50 controllers.

They manage around 350 movements per day. During the peak season in summer, the daily traffic exceeds 450 movements. The centre operates the Spanish Indra radar and is well equipped with modern func- second phase includes the 6-month simutions. Moreover, the improvement and mod- lation-based training. By the end of schoolernization of the centre are continuous as a ing, students should obtain one basic qualnew AMHS has been lately implemented ification or more. After graduating from the and other systems are going to be installed. training center, the trainees are assigned to an air traffic control facility as trainee controllers, until they complete all requirements Training In order to become a Tunisian air traffic for becoming a certified and appropriately controller, candidates are required to obtain qualified air traffic controller. a degree from a training centre approved by the Minister of Transport, which is currently the Aviation School of Borj El Amri. The pre-selection consists of medical examination, including vision, hearing, psychological, drug, cardiovascular function, and neurological screenings; psychotechnical test to assess communication, concentration, decision-making, maths and organizational skills, etc.; and a physical fitness test. Typically, candidates are required to hold a scientific baccalaureate degree with distinction or an equivalent foreign diploma. The training process comprises two phases. The first phase lasts about 30 months and includes in-depth theoretical classes (aviation regulations and laws, meteorology, communications, navigation, math, human factors, altimetry, etc.). The

The Association

TATCA was founded in 1970. The association represents the Tunisian controllers both nationally and internationally. TATCA promotes the safety and efficiency of the system and the well-being of its members.

It works to consolidate their position for further professional development in all areas of the Tunisian air traffic control.

The association also has participated in the project of the new ministerial order of ATC licence in order to improve the controller’s status and career. TATCA has been a member association of IFATCA since 1977. TATCA facilitates the attendance of its members in courses and workshops in collaboration with IFATCA, ACAC, and ICAO. y 41

z Africa & middle east // Focus on Tunisia

INTERVIEWS Mostpha Bessamra is a 49-year-old shift supervisor at the tower at Tunis-Carthage Airport. He has been a controller for 25 years.

The Controller: What do you like about your job?

Bessamra: Personally, I chose it based on my mother's advice. She had a relative working in Tunisair Company. Objectively, I love this job. It is noble to provide an essential service for pilots, who need our help manging difficult circumstances such as traffic congestion, bad weather, and especially in case of emergencies. Personally, I admire the 360 degree panorama when I work at the control tower, the lightened schedule, the dynamism of the units with high density of traffic, the teamwork atmosphere, and the autonomy of the manager.

The Controller: Is there any difference between air traffic control in the early 90s and today?

Bessamra: The difference between the two periods is mainly related to the digitization of equipment, the fragmentation of tasks, and a gradual change in staff behaviour.

In the 90's there were only 25 controllers at Tunis Carthage airport and the only equipment at the tower was an analogue anemometer. We worked with an almost military rigor under the authority of a shift supervisor, the head of the control tower, the airport manager, and the CEO. Now we are more than 60 controllers, and we still are asking for more. The desk no longer can hold the screens and equipment. The organization chart keeps on spreading, and the mood is cooler especially because the age difference between the leaders and the other members is minimal.

The Controller: If you had to change something in the job of air traffic controller, what would it be?

Bessamra: We must change the attitude.

We try to improve our job focusing on practice, In more developed countries, in addition to practice, they teach the scientific side of the job through continuing education and training, so controllers can better

consider the factors that directly or indirectly affect the specialty. I am referring to the ICAO SHELL model to better target the necessary change.

The Controller: What would be your best advice for young air traffic controllers who just started their career?

Bessamra: On the personal level, the most important advice for young people is to add another academic specialty to your training as a controller, such as computer science, exploitation, safety, or some other. In general terms, the job requires efficiency, because only the result counts.

The Controller: What are the professional and social gains that can be brought to the air traffic controllers?

Bessamra: For this, it requires a young leadership trained in communication, administration, and legislation that is able to lead the body to a better future. y

Ahmed Fersi is a 30-year-old safety local manager with 8 years of experience. He previously worked as a tower and ACC controller.

The Controller: What is the difference between working in a tower and ACC? Fersi: At first glance, working in a control tower (TWR) or area control centre (ACC) seems to be similar, because the Air Traffic Controllers (ATCO’s) provide the same services. But since I had the opportunity to work in both units, I have recognized, in more details, the differences in the methods used in these facilities. The tower controllers have to deal with small airspaces called the control zones and be aware of all movements on the apron, taxiways, runways, aerodrome circuit, and the vicinity of the airport. They should – based-on good concentration skills – keep continuous visual contact with all contributors, using an overview of 360 degrees around the tower.

The controllers in an ACC provide services in all the flight information region (or UIR), which can be divided to control-sectors

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or combined ones. So because it's a wide area they don't have any visual contact with aircraft as they have to focus on the radar scope and which requires a lot of attention to detect and solve conflicts between aircraft.

The Controller: Why did you choose to be a local safety manager?

Fersi: After working in both tower and ACC and being qualified in aerodrome, approach, and ACC; I found myself ready to go further and deeper into the air navigation system.

I aimed to focus on the small details that can affect this system and make the necessary to implement the safest state and procedures of the workplace. I was lucky because I started my career when our national air navigation service provider (OACA) was still in the earlier phase of building the safety management system (SMS) culture.

So I have been involved since the beginning

of the implementation of SMS. In addition, I strengthened my knowledge by participating in several courses covering different parts of air navigation services such as QMS, AIS, CNS, ATFCM, investigation, SSP, etc. Now, my being a safety manager is a sheer privilege for me that keeps feeding my ambitions to conquer the old system and try to push it to be as safe as possible.

When my objective is achieved, I will constantly aim for a better, healthier, and safer future in the air navigation domain.

The Controller: What do you forsee for the Tunisian ATC in the near future?

Fersi: Tunisia has been always in the forefront of civil aviation development, especially in the African continent. It is clear that this field is steadily moving in the right direction.

I perceive that air traffic control is going to bloom in the near future. y

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z Africa & middle east // Focus on Tunisia

z Photo: Participants from IFATCA Africa & Middle East Region Think Safety Workshop

"WHAT IS SAFETY?" THINK SAFETY WORKSHOP CHALLENGED COMMON PERCEPTIONS

z

by Jasser Chahine Letaief, ATC Team Supervisor, Djerba–Zarzis International Airport, in TUNISIA A Think Safety Workshop recently was hosted in the Africa & Middle East Region.

Following the opening ceremony, Alfred Vlasek, one of the workshop instructors, chose to start with the question, “What is Safety?” That seems like a simple and straightforward question at first. However, as workshop attendees discussed it, it turned out that this was not a simple question after all. It could not be answered completely by the ideas that were floated around initially.

Vlasek and the other two workshop instructors, Jaco Vd Westhuizen and Mehdi Debbari, grabbed the attention of

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all the attendees.

They asked the group thoughtprovoking questions, compounded the discussion with peculiar examples, and played devil’s advocate intermittently, as they interacted with each of the participants who took part in the discussion.

For three mind-bending days, workshop participants touched on the meaning, role and efficiency of safety and Annex 19, facts, Swiss Cheese Hole Model, system immutability, investigations and Annexe 13, practical drift, the traditional

view, the different (systemic) view, nationally/regionally implemented safety systems, and more.

In the end, the workshop was a marvelous piece-by-piece deconstruction of preconceived notions, unchallenged truths, and the scapegoat culture that has emerged in the aviation industry. To avoid the triumvirate of common pitfalls: "Captain Hindsight, Father Absolution, and Lord Complacency," this workshop achieved its goals, as the seed of change took root. y

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z Americas // focus ON costa Rica

ATC IN COSTA RICA

zController working in tower at the Tobías Bolaños International Airport with the mountains in background.

z by Philippe Domogala, SENIOR CORRESPONDENT, IFATCA The Tobías Bolaños International Airport – often called the Pavas Airport – is located in the Pavas District in downtown San José, Costa Rica (ICAO: MRPV). The airport is named for the Costa Rican pilot Tobias Bolaños Palma (1892-1953), who Costa Ricans credit for laying the foundation for aviation in their country.

Tobías Bolaños annually serves in excess of approximately 105,000 passengers.

Pavas is one of four international airports in Costa Rica. It is not only the thirteenth busiest airport in Central America, but also the third most popular and busy airport in Costa Rica. Nearly all of Costa Rica’s domestic flights are operated from there, as are the nearly 50 general aviation aircraft registered in the country. There are also seven flight schools based in the airport, using various types of equipment from Cessna 150s to a corporate Gulfstream.

The building that houses the control tower is modern. It has an elevator that goes to the top floor. Its equipment is modern. They have a display showing a deport of the radar picture from the main airport approach radar, that helps identifying traffic calling in.

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On the day I visited, Giancarlo and Diego were on duty. There are nine controllers based here, staffing the tower seven days a week. Operations are from sunrise to sunset, or roughly 06:00 to 18:00. Only VFR operations are permitted. When weather gets bad, the flights operate IFR to the El Coco Airport, the main international airport of San José, which has an ILS. They control between 120 and 200 movements per day, depending on weather. The rainy season (from May to November) brings some diversions or cancellations.

The weather can also change very rapidly due to the altitude and proximity of the mountains. The airport is at an altitude of 3,300 feet. There are 7,000 to 9,000 feet mountains just five nautical miles from the runway. Stratus clouds come down very fast, and in less than 10 minutes, you can go down in thick fog.

The airspace they operate is very small, and the main El Coco airport nearby is causing problems, especially when airliners are making a visual approach for Runway 25 there, it interferes directly with the circuit pattern in Pavas, and the controllers then have to delay arrivals and departures until the jet makes has cleared the circuit area.

Another very specific problem to the airport is the fact that opposite the tower, just across the fence protecting the runway, there is a large psychiatric hospital. Nothing wrong with that you say, except that apparently one or twice a month a patient jumps the fence and wanders on the runway. We spot them immediately, as they have a typical blue jumpsuit, but catching them is sometimes a bit difficult. y philippe.domogala@ifatca.org

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z Americas // focus on costa Rica z Photos: (left and right) Control tower at the Tobías Bolaños International Airport in San José, Costa Rica All photos: Philippe Domogala

All photos: Philippe Domogala

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z Americas // focus on costa Rica

FLYING VFR IN COSTA RICA z by Philippe Domogala, SENIOR CORRESPONDENT, IFATCA There are three ways to fly VFR in Costa Rica.

The first way is commercial flights, as nearly all domestic flights in the country are operated VFR. The second way is the pure general aviation, which is widely developed as the volcanoes around and mountainous landscape make ground travel lengthy and sometimes difficult. The third way is pure leisure and is done using gyrocopters.

I used the commercial flight operations first, flying one of the major domestic Costa Rican airlines Aerobell in a brand-new Cessna Gran Caravan. It is the perfect aircraft to fly around Costa Rica, departing early in the morning and late afternoon to most airports around the country. I flew from San José to Tamarindo on the Pacific Coast, near the hotel where the 58th IFATCA Conference was held. We first flew to Liberia Airport to pick up additional passengers. I sat in between the captain and his first officer, monitoring the ops.

The aircraft is equipped with three Garmin 1000 displays, and it looks simple to operate, showing terrain and weather info. (They have a weather radar pod under the right wing.)

The plane has an interesting feature: a big handle that looks like a parking brake right in 46

z Photos: (above) overflying San José (below/center) with captain of the Aerobell Cessna Gran Caravan

the middle of the control panel. This is to close the engine air intakes in case of volcanic ash.

In Costa Rica, there generally is at least one volcano in eruption somewhere, and one has to be careful not to get into the ash. The detection method is simple: if you start smelling something, close the intakes. When the smell is gone, you can open the intakes again! Of course, they use charts and forecast as well, but the “nose” sensor is still the most accurate.

Landing at the Tamarindo strip is interesting as it is uncontrolled/unmanned. The strip is in the middle of farm fields, and it is not uncommon to have a cow on it or a couple of local kids on their scooters using the track. Generally, they hear the noise and clear the strip before landing. Otherwise a (very) low pass above them definitively does the job.

I tested the second VFR method by renting a good old Piper Archer-180 from the San Jose Pavas Airport, the smaller domestic airport outside the capital. There are numerous flying schools there. It was easy to find one that would take me up with an instructor. The aircraft is old, but well maintained and works fine (a bit like me!). The colour is unusual. It is painted bright blue. My instructor for the day,

z Photo: (bottom) VFR on Gran Caravan

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z Americas // fOCus on costa rica Juan Carlos, tells me they got it like this from previous owner, and the local TWR controllers do not like its colour, because it is difficult for them to see it in the traffic pattern. The same apparently is true for birds as this aircraft suffers almost double the number of bird strikes as other planes at the airport. Hopefully, we will not hit one today.

It is VFR today, but marginally so. The airport elevation is 3,300 feet, the circuit pattern is 4,700 feet, and the cloud base is 5,000 feet max, plus there are 7,000+ foot mountains right besides the airport and more surrounding us in the valley, all with their tops in thick clouds. Basically, we are stuck in the valley right under the cloud base, but there is enough to see. We just have to keep clear of Coco Airport (San Jose’s international airport), but that is easy as ATC is following us on radar. Takeoff is a bit lengthy, and the approach speed has to be a bit higher due to the density altitude and temperature (30 degrees Celsius). Otherwise, there are no particular problems. The city is beautiful, especially at 1,000 feet above it, and we fly over some interesting landmarks.

All photos: Philippe Domogala

z Photos: (top left) Piper Archer and pilots, (top right) overflying San Jose, (bottom left) the autogyro, and (bottom right) low flight above the Pacific Coast

A bonus is that in Costa Rica, there is no military. The country banned the military 70 years ago. As a result, there is no air force and no airspace restrictions. The whole airspace is yours to play with in the country, outside of CTRs of course.

so it not a new concept, just a strange one. It looks like a helicopter, except that rotor blades are free and only turn with speed. They then act just a glider wing.

The third way of Flying VFR there is renting a gyrocopter. This atypical flying machine is becoming popular in the country thanks to a retired German airline pilot – ex ATR42 from Eurowings, called Guido – who bought one and later a few more. He is an instructor teaching people how to fly them. He sells them. And he arranges tours around the area in them, including to neighbouring countries like Panama. They are currently located in three bases: Samara, Aranjuez, and Tamarindo.

Climbing in one is like going on a motorcycle with jacket and helmet and sitting in the open air. It takes a bit of time (200 to 300 meters) before the rotor blade generate enough lift, and then it feels like being under a parachute.

But you can control it quite nicely under it, just like a light aeroplane. You can make 60 degree turns, fly extremely slowly, and even stop. If the engines quits, you will just descend at 800 feet per minute and can choose your landing spot.

The landing will not be smooth, but you will not get hurt.

Ron – from the Costa Rican Controllers Association – contacted him and arranged a onehour discovery flight around the area. I had never flown a gyro before, and it was a very curious experience. The first gyro flew in 1923,

For traction, the gyrocopter is equipped with a standard Rotax 100 or 130 horsepower engine, with a standard three blade propeller. It is reliable and easy to maintain. In addition to the engine, the aircraft’s “wing” is just a pylon and

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two free blades. The rest is an assembly of aluminium and plastic covers.

It was a very interesting experience. Flying it is fun. You can go pretty low, climb almost vertically for a short while, etc. It is a real pleasure. The landing is a bit different as you have to come quite high above the runway, then cut the power sufficiently, so you don’t have too much speed during descent and bring the thing to roll between 50 to 100 meters.

Guido tells me the two things to watch for on a gyro are cross winds (Once the rotor starts to tilt, it becomes very difficult to control.) and negative g-forces. (The blades cannot take negative g-forces.) If you come to Costa Rica , check their web site http://www.cr.auto-gyro.com/gyrotours-costarica.php, and ask for Guido. y

philippe.domogala@ifatca.org

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z europe z Photo: World ATM Congress (WAC) in Madrid, Spain

ATM WORLD 2019 z by Philippe Domogala, SENIOR CORRESPONDENT, IFATCA This year, 9,500 participants from 136 countries attended the seventh annual World ATM Congress (WAC) in Madrid, Spain. The WAC is the world’s largest international air traffic management (ATM) exhibition and conference. It is organized by the Civil Air Navigation Services Organisation (CANSO) partnership and the Air Traffic Control Association (ATCA). The event brings together representatives of air navigation service providers (ANSPs) and leading product developers, along with aviation experts and other stakeholders, for three days of conference sessions, product demonstrations and launches, contract closures and educational and networking opportunities.

The sessions and seminars for the 2019 WAC were full. As in 2018, the main discussion points were unmanned aircraft system (UAS), unmanned aircraft system traffic management (UTM), and remote operations. Eurocontrol SESAR and the European Commission (EC) had a large joint exhibit called “Europe for Aviation.”

It was the centre of discussions, the ideal networking place, as everyone of influ48

ence in European ATM was there.

The European Commission presented the Excellence Award to the pilots, controllers and engineers represented by ECA, IFATCA and IFATSEA in 2019. This award is given by every two years to honor the support for the Single Sky initiative and the SESAR projects. The trophy was presented by Henrik Hololei, the Director General of Mobility and Transport of the European Commission in a nice ceremony. Marc Baumgartner accepted the award on the behalf of IFATCA. IFATCA made copies of the award for each member association during IFATCA’s Annual Conference.

There were very interesting panel discussions during the WAC conference, themed attracting and retaining young women in ATM. The panel included three successful women in their own fields: Kendra Kincade from Nav Canada, Teri Bristol from

the U.S. FAA, and Anne Kathrine Jensen from EPN Sweden.

Kendra ran away from home when she was 13, lived on the streets for a while, before ending in a foster care system. She had four kids before she decided to become an air traffic controller. “The job saved my life,” she said. “But she almost did not make it, as the success rate in those days was only seven percent. Fortunately, she found a mentor that believed in her and helped her pass the tests and the qualifications. Kendra later founded a non-profit association called “Elevate Aviation” aimed at promoting aviation career support for women.” You have to give back at one point.”

Similar to Kendra, Teri got married early and had two children before she decided to go to the University of Maryland to pursue her degree. She often took her three and five-year old children with her to classes, because she could not afford

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z europe

childcare. After graduation she got a job at the U.S. Department of Transportation.

She worked in “acquisitions,” but was always interested in the technical side of the industry. But technical things were for men in those days. However, when she proved she could do a better job than her managers, who were all men, she was promoted. Today, she serves as the Chief operating officer of FAA. “With persistence and the ability to get along with people, a woman can get anywhere.”

Anne Kathrin first was an air traffic controller. After having three sons, she decided to pursue an MBA with the help of her employer. But her studies were challenging as one of her sons had severe medical issues and was fighting for his life for nearly three years. Nevertheless, she completed

her MBA and successfully made a career.

Today, she is the CEO of Entry point North, the multi-national training organisation.

Two additional women then joined the panel: Milena Bowman of Eurocontrol and Emma Parry from NATS (the National Air Traffic Services) the main ANSP in the United Kingdom. They described difficulties that young people, not only women, are having in joining and working in ATM. Younger people were raised to use smart phones and tablets before going to nursery school. They use social media and expect answer to questions and feed back in a nanosecond. They use short words and emojis to communicate. They do not want to read procedures in a book or a manual. They also are prepared to have dual careers and to move beyond their present

jobs. They do not have expectations that they will have a job for life. They are more interested in working from home – possibly part-time – using IP connectivity.

It will be a big challenge for us in ATM to recruit and retain young women and men into the air traffic controller profession.

We must not forget that we are competing with other industries, who are also looking for the same profile as we do, and which often are offering far better working conditions and career prospects.

The WAC is well worth attending. Aviation and air traffic controller leaders and decisions makers are there and approachable.

Try to make it one day. You will not be disappointed. The next WAC will be again in Madrid, 10-12 March, 2020. y

z Photos: (above/left) Panel about attracting and retaining women and Millennials in ATM that included (right to left) Kendra Kincade from Nav Canada, Teri Bristol from the U.S. FAA, and Anne Kathrine Jensen from EPN Sweden (above/right) Award ceremony All photos: Philippe Domogala

z Photos: (above/left) (left to right) Award was presented by Henrik Hololei, the Director General of Mobility and Transport of the European Commission (above/right) award recipients: Marc Baumgartner for IFATCA (left) , Costas Christoforou for IFATSEA (middle), and Loic Michel for ECA-Pilots (right)

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z EUROPE

INTERVIEW Nicolas Warinsko, General Manager to lead the SESAR Deployment, SESAR (Single European Sky ATM Research Joint Undertaking)

z by Philippe Domogala, SENIOR CORRESPONDENT, IFATCA

of 28 have committed to implement. We will allow tolerance for ANSPs not ready in time, but not beyond 2020.

The Controller: Besides data link, what is the next major project to come?

nicolas warinsko: Our next challenge will be

ADS-B implementation, not as a replacement of radar services, but to complement it.

With ADS-B we will be able to get far greater predictability and gain valuable time to avoid ad hoc capacity restrictions which are causing us so many delays. ADS also will directly improve safety and capacity in non-radar coverage areas, especially oceanic airspace.

The Controller: Adding capacity in ATM today

is still done by adding new sectors. This increases the need of controllers in areas where we are already desperately short of staff. We need something new. Why are your proposed solutions to improve capacity taking so long to materialise?

All photos: Philippe Domogala

During 2019 World ATM Congress, I had the opportunity to interview Nicolas Warinsko who is the General Manager of the SESAR Deployment Alliance, who is tasked with synchronizing and coordinating the deployment of ATM modernisation projects in Europe as part of the Single European Sky (SES) initiative, the equivalent of Next gen in the USA. The Controller: What is the situation regarding SESAR in 2019 ?

nicolas warinsko: The SESAR Deployment manager (SDM) is currently managing 350 projects of which roughly 100 are completed, 200 are ongoing, and the rest is still in planning.

There are near Three billion Euros coming from the private sector and 1.3 billion coming from E.U. public money.

The Controller: Yes, but from the controllers’ point of view we see little progress, lots of studies and projects but no implementations.

Implementation always takes time, but it is coming, slower than we expected. I agree. But coming. For instance, our biggest project at the moment is establishing a working data link service (DLS), we have delivered the implementation plan

nicolas warinsko:

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and the data link performance has drastically improved over the last year. We are expecting that the number of flights equipped (not aircraft, but flights) in Europe will grow from 60% in 2018 to 90% in 2020.

The Controller: But will all the airlines equip ? especially the low cost airlines which are representing more than half of the flights today ?

nicolaswarinsko: Yes. Data link will be mandatory in Europe by February 2020. This is E.U. law.

And Airlines that previously were reluctant are joining the implementation process. As you know the management of SESAR Deployment is performed through an alliance of 13 ANSPs, 25 airports, and five airlines (Lufthansa, British Airways, Air France, easyJet, and Ryanair).

Those five airlines alone represent 75% of the flights in Europe. It is the ground element, which is causing us issues, only 16 states out

nicolas warinsko: In the past, we recognise that

there were too many demos to focus on.

But more should be done to build on demos to move faster into deployment. A one-time demo in a simulator to validate an idea is easy to do. But to implement it, you need to change procedures, which means extra training. We know that requires lots of time, plus certifying the tools, then securing the implementation budget. Since it is partially financed by public money, the whole process needs to be accounted for and audited. This is not an easy task, but we are passionate about it. People are impatient. They have urgent expectations from us, but it is more than we were initially asked to deliver. The SESAR deployment manager is 70 persons, most on part time, so equivalent of around 45 persons full-time. Our staff are almost all operational people, not people sitting in offices in Brussels somehow disconnected from operational reality. We have ANSPs, airlines, airports technical experts, but also pilots from members’ airlines, and controllers from members’ ANSPs. For instance, Ryanair and Lufthansa are sending us pilots and ENAV and ENAIRE controllers. We are confident we will make a difference with our projects. You should see them coming soon. In fact, 100+ of them are already there, delivering actual contribution to network performance. y

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z EUROPE

AERO FRIEDRICHSHAFEN 2019 z by Philippe Domogala, SENIOR CORRESPONDENT, IFATCA Every year, an international general aviation exhibition is held in Friedrichshafen, on the shores of lake Constance, in Southern Germany. This year, 757 exhibitors from 40 countries covered the halls of the conference centre just opposite the International airport. I flew there with my aircraft to have a look at what the future holds. During the conference, I learned some interesting things about topics that will have a huge influence on air traffic control in the future: air taxis and drones.

There currently is a lively debate within the aircraft industry on the topic of air taxis. At the moment, taking a quick, inexpensive, and environmentally friendly hop from place to place in an air taxi is still just a dream. But according to Dr. Andreas Thellmann from the Urban Air Mobility unit at Airbus, interest in such vehicles is tremendous and development is starting to take off.

Airbus introduced their Vahana aircraft, which already has made a couple of test flights this year proving the technology. Whether the aircraft will be pre-programmed or flown from a remote ground station is not yet clear, but at the show, the cockpit was revealed and includes a single display screen, showing the passengers the route. There are no flight controls or even an emergency stop button.

They plan to build thousands of them.

to test the use of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) for various tasks. For imaging purposes, UAVs have quickly attained a very high degree of acceptance and appreciation by the police. The use of UAVs is slowing increasing.

Someday, they are going to fly everywhere, but how this traffic will be coordinated with ATC still needs to be resolved.

Electric general aviation aircraft using fast rotating rotors like the drones like the AutoFlightX V600 are also starting to be rolled out.

These will be manned and just follow our normal usual procedures and instructions. The unmanned ones will be the problem.

Finally, since this issue is a special on gender equality, I must mention that even the most modern aircraft manufacturers are still stuck in the last century when it comes to marketing, as they still are using beautiful women to sell their products. There were lots of them working in the exhibits at the show. When chosing an aircraft, I'm interested in the performance data, reliability, safety aspects and of course in how much it costs. I don't think these old-school 'marketing techniques' are still effective. y

philippe.domogala@ifatca.org

All photos: Philippe Domogala

Staying on the unmanned drone subject, the Local police was present and tried to convince us that Drones will replace most helicopters for police. Lieutenant Colonel Martin Landgraf, the acting head of the helicopter unit of the Baden-Württemberg state police, said, “The use of drones by the police in his unit is increasing.” His agency started a state-wide project in 2016 z Photos: (top left) The AutoFlight V600 (top right) The Airbus Vahana (bottom left) Airbus Vahana cockpit (bottom right)Lieutenant Colonel Martin Landgraf, the acting head of the helicopter unit of the Baden-Württemberg state police

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z Europe

All photos: Philippe Domogala

IFALPA ANNUAL CONFERENCE 2019 BERLIN, GERMANY z by Philippe Domogala, SENIOR CORRESPONDENT, IFATCA Each year, IFALPA holds a general assembly in the form of a four-day conference where nearly 500 participants, representing their member associations, meet with other professionals in the airline pilot community to discuss current developments and recommend policies to promote the highest level of flight safety. The 2019 conference theme was “Building Bridges,” and that theme fits Berlin as a city perfectly.

Of course, the main discussion of the conference was the 737 Max issues, and what IFALPA members described as “atypical working contracts” pushed by some low-cost operators (e.g. Ryanair and Norwegian).

But the highlight of the conference was the creation of a female pilot group. It was established to promote the pilot profession to women, in a very similar way to

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what we now are doing within IFATCA. Currently, only five percent of the total pilots worldwide are women. I was shocked to learn that in the whole world only 450 women are airline captains.

IFALPA has a new president. He is Jack Netskar, a B737 captain with SAS from Norway.

The IFALPA deputy president Amornvaj Mansumitchai – a A380-800 captain for Thai Airways – presented a very interesting view on the future of the pilot profession.

He said that in 1935 in Europe there were three million horses (mainly used for transportation, heavy work, agriculture, and even manufacturing). Blacksmithing was one of the top professions back then.

In 1954, only two decades later, engines took over, and blacksmiths disappeared almost completely and were replaced by mechanics. The question is how many blacksmiths became mechanics? Today, there are fewer than 100,000 horses in Europe mostly for leisure or a hobby. There is a possibility that with drones and IT technology that will enable autonomous aircraft that pilots similarly could become obsolete. Mansumitchai said that pilots have to be careful not to become the next blacksmiths.

Capt. Mansumitchai’s analogy is one that air traffic controllers also should take to heart. Artificial intelligence is around the corner that likely will change our profession too. Controllers similarly have to be mindful that we also don’t become the 1930’s blacksmiths. We have to take part in policy discussions that will control our future. This is why organisations like IFALPA and IFATCA are important. Our two groups will have a joint conference together in Singapore next year during the last week of March. y philippe.domogala@ifatca.org

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z Europe

IFALPA FEMALE PILOTS WORK GROUP

zIFALPA website

At its recent meeting, IFALPA created a Female Pilots' Work Group (FPWG). This group will be led by Capt. Nina Moers (VC), Capt. Tanja Harter (HUPER Chairperson), and Capt. Tara Traynor Cook (ISA+21 International Society of Women Airline Pilots Representative to IFALPA).

The work group leaders gave a presentation that addressed why the FPWG is necessary within IFALPA. Their presentation described how they will help IFATCA target female professionals to help the industry overcome global pilot shortages, identify barriers for women in aviation, make aviation more attractive to women by promoting fair and respectful workplaces, and promote greater work/ life balance. The IFALPA FPWG will help change the industry from the inside by gaining visibility and leading the way in providing global support to women in aviation.

When asked what some of the barriers are for women entering the piloting profession today, IFALPA Senior Technical Officer and Regional Officer had this to say, "The piloting profession is not attractive to [young women], that’s half the problem. Young women today don’t seem

to realize that the actual aircraft does not know if you’re a female or a male when you’re flying it. However, it always appears to be a man’s job in a man’s world, and this group is going to change that view, completely.” y

Capt. Moers encouraged participation in the FPWG, "We need input from all the other Member Associations to send their members, so we can have an even better exchange, enjoy more input, and share experiences.”

Capt. Traynor Cook was pleased with the turnout and commented, "We are very gratified that the board has supported this group and this movement to include more women and activism in the unions themselves and recruit more female pilots to our companies to increase those numbers.”

z Photos: (top left, previous page) IFALPA 2019 meeting (top left, this page) IFALPA Female Pilots' Work Group members (bottom right) IFALPA FPWG leaders: Capt. Nina Moers, Capt. Tanja Harter, and Capt. Tara Traynor Cook

Addressing the pilot shortage, Capt. Harter said, "This industry lacks pilots. In the near and not so far future, I think to attract more pilots into the business, we can’t rule out almost half of the population. I think we need to start early, setting the idea in the minds of young women.

We need qualified pilots and I don’t see why females can’t be qualified. We’ve proven it. If we have 50% in the cockpit, if it’s a normal sight for every passenger to see a female pilot, I think the whole industry can benefit from that."

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z Europe

FLYOPERATIVT FORUM 2019 OSLO, NORWAY z by Philippe Domogala, SENIOR CORRESPONDENT, IFATCA The 2019 Flight Operational Forum (Flyoperativt Forum) in Oslo, Norway, attracted 140 aviation professionals from Scandinavia for a three-day conference where speakers presented important presentations on current issues. The 2019 presentations were all around the theme “attitude matters.“ Many of the presentations covered human factors issues.

CSM Aviation CEO Espen Høiby spoke about the need to make flying great again and put people before Technology. First Capt. Høiby said, “We have to revive the dream of flight and attract the best people to join Aviation professions once again.”

Høiby added, “The odds are against us, as we start with loosing half the population.

Half of young people are women, and women currently only make 7% of the pilots for instance. This is problematic, because a recent survey shows that women scored better or equal with men in all the fields required to be a good pilot. Women score extremely high in emotional intelligence (EQ), which is regarded today as one of the key factors to be a good leader. It is also proven that the most effective decisions are those assisted by emotion, and women score better there to. We must make efforts to attract more women in aviation.

There was an extremely interesting presentation by Nicklas Dahlström, a leading authority and speaker on human factors and the human factors manager at Emirates Airline. Dahlström described the need for competence-based training: “We need to train people to excel in their jobs, to be experts, instead of just teaching them to follow procedures. There is a tendency today to create procedures for every possibility,” he said. This is counterproductive as nearly all recent accidents show that when automation fails, we need experts to recover. Yet we tend to train for procedures. As much automation as there is, we also tend to forget that any system is a delicate balance between reliability and resilience. It is still humans that keep systems together, and who are expected to make the system work.”

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The issues raised with training pilots to fly the Boeing 737 Max is a good example. Conversion training consisted of a one-hour exercise on an iPad. IFALPA considers self-training to be merely information, not training. Still, it is the preferred option in many cases, for example for controllers when introducing a new feature in our ops rooms. There are multiple dangers waiting for us when doing “self-training.”

All photos: Philippe Domogala

z Photos: Flyoperativt Forum room (above) Nicklas Dahlström, a leading authority and speaker on Human Factors and the Human Factors Manager at Emirates Airline (below).

Another extremely interesting presentation was that of Nathalie de Ziegler, the former incident investigator of the French BEA. She reviewed one severe incident that occurred on a British Airways A320, which took off from LHR with the engines cowlings doors not latched, resulting in severe damages to both engines, a massive fuel leak and engine fire on one engine. This failure by very highly trained professionals employed by the distinguished, safety-minded, established airline, demonstrates how communications during the emergency were far from ideal. An investigation showed that the first officer, who was flying this plane, had never flown the A320 in manual thrust before outside of the simulator. Fatigue of ground maintenance staff (for not closing the engine doors) was one of the contributing factors, as was bad coordination/communications barriers between cabin crew, who could see everything through the cabin windows, and the cockpit crew. Before this incident everyone in the airline thought they were doing very well and that their training was the best.

Finally, there was a warning rather than a presentation on GPS jamming and spoof-

ing which is slowly becoming a major issue. Norway has a long border in the North with Russia, and the Russian military often jams and spoofs GPS signals, In addition, some truck drivers are buying small cheap jammers on the Internet to block signals around them to avoid showing their employers where they are, as many fleets are GPS monitored . This is becoming a serious issue as many systems are relying on GPS, including EGPWS (mandatory) RNAV/RNP approaches in airports where ground navigation aids have been decommissioned, ADS-B replacing radar surveillance, etc.

Airlines are raising the issue, but it nobody seems ready to own the problem or do something about it, because both the GPS constellation and the Russian jamming are both military.

It was a very interesting and well-run safety forum as always, thanks to a dedicated group of volunteer pilots from SAS that have been running these conferences for 30 years. y

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z charlie

CHARLIE'S COLUMN z by CHARLIE@THE-CONTROLLER.NET Mixed Feelings

In April, an Air Zimbabwe flight flew through a flock of birds and lost an engine on its way from Bulawayo to the capital Harare. One of the passengers on board was Vangelis Haritatos, the country’s Deputy Minister for Land, Agriculture, Water, Climate, and Rural Resettlement. He was so impressed with the performance of the captain that he promised to give him a farm for safely bringing the aircraft to land in Harare. The reaction of the captain wasn’t immediately available, though we bet he was sorry it wasn’t the Minister of Finance, Gold Bullion, and Diamonds; and at the same time grateful that it wasn’t the Minister for Sanitation, Garbage Collection, and Sewage Treatment.

Overheard on the frequency #2

During bad weather at Heathrow, the standard holdings pattern was quickly filling up and the expected approach time was getting longer and longer. An Irish airline entered the pattern with more than 30 minutes estimated holding. The Captain, believing he was on the public address, transmitted live the ATC frequency: "We'll be landing in 20 minutes, thank you for flying with us, blah blah blah.” When the controller told him that it wasn’t nice to lie to his passengers, he said, "Ah yes, we'll tell them the truth a bit later!"

Aerodynamics 101

In Moscow, in March 2019, after passing the boarding desk at Moscow’s Domodedovo airport, one of the passengers stripped off his clothes and ran stark naked onto the jet bridge. He shouted that clothing impairs the aerodynamic flow and that one can fly with more agility when undressed. The poor man was duly arrested and sent to a medical facility for a check-up. Here at Charlie, we can only hope that the story is not picked up by some low-cost airlines.

After all, the aerodynamics benefit maybe limited, but if you’re paying luggage (which is mostly clothes), it would only be fair to start paying for the clothes you wear as well – or fly naked of course.

(We won’t be illustrating this piece for obvious reasons.)

BBQ

Since the worldwide flying-ban for the 737-MAX, Boeing hasn’t stopped building them. As a result, they have over 100 brand-new 737-MAXs stored at various locations in Seattle, even on the employees parking lots. Rather than just building more of them, perhaps they can start diversifying and use some of the parts to build…

Barbecues! It’s been done before by a team of Delta Airlines technicians, who used scrap parts of a Pratt & Whitney Boeing 757 engine to build an impressive grill and cooking station. And it seems that Delta Airlines staff like their BBQ: the ground handling staff here seems to have had it with concourse-food and has taken matters into their own hands, probably to the chagrin of many passengers!

My Kingdom for a Horse

On a recent flight from Chicago to Omaha in the United States, passengers were a little shocked to see that one of their fellow travelers was allowed to bring a miniature horse as a support animal. Flirty – as the animal appears to be called – handled the experience really well, according to its owners. Despite this, they remarked that next time, they’ll be travelling by car because it’s just easier…They added, "It’s just too difficult to make sure Flirty doesn’t inconvenience other passengers.” Why the other passengers were surprised is not clear.

After all, we’ve seen emotional support turkeys, pigs, kangaroos, rabbits, and (an attempt) peacock… For us here at Charlie, it is still baffling that we can’t bring a piece of hand luggage that is 2 cm too wide, but a horse is perfectly fine.

Overheard on the frequency #1 Pilot doing engine tests on the taxi way: Pilot: "Ah… N1234, my propeller just came off."

Tower: "N1234, Roger, hold position."

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