Plane view

Even before you board a plane at the airport and disembark at your destination, there’s a band of dedicated professionals which makes the flying machines move around safely — on the ground as well as in air. The safety of hundreds of lives, costly cargo and fleet is the responsibility of air traffic control officers (ATCOs) at any given time.

With a growing civil aviation sector, India needs more than the current 1,650 controllers to service new and expanding airports.

“They propose to recruit 200 ATCOs per year,” informs DK Behera, general secretary, Air Traffic Controllers’ Guild (India) and joint GM (ATC), Airports Authority of India (headquarters), Delhi, referring to AAI, which trains and recruits ATCOs in the country. Recently, AAI held an exam to fill up 328 openings.

The ATCOs keep an eye on the aircraft from ATC towers and once it’s out of (human) sight, through radar. An ATC complement comprises five units to help an aircraft fly. These are

1. Clearance delivery unit (CDU): The aircraft calls this unit to provide all details, such as which route it is going to take, fuel requirement, number of passengers on board and so on. CDU will coordinate with area control unit, which conveys the go-head for clearance or alternative option for the aircraft, depending on the availability of the flight level (altitude).

2. Surface movement control (SMC): This unit issues start-up or push-back clearance for ground movement of aircraft. It is responsible for the plane’s movement and surveillance up to the ‘holding point’, the well-lit, well-marked portion close to the runway.

3. Aerodrome or tower controller: He gives the green signal for departure and landing of flights.

4. Approach control (or radar control): It guides the aircraft up to 60 miles from the airport, after which it hands it over to area control.

5. Area control unit: Area control has to give allocated altitude to the aircraft and take it to the designated route and finally hand it over to the neighbouring area control centre (in another city). It has to ensure standard separation between the aircraft.

During peak hours at midnight at Delhi’s international airport, the busiest in India, a controller might handle 200-300 planes overflying the Capital’s airspace.

Says Piyush Srivastava, assistant manager (ATC), Indira Gandhi International Airport, Delhi, “At night, the bulk of the aircraft are overflying Indian airspace (on their journey between two different countries) because of the restriction on night in other parts of the world and due to their faith in the services Indian ATC provides.”

This faith reposed in these professionals keeps “everybody on their toes,” says Srivastava.

Adds Behera, “Even after landing, unless the aircraft has slowed down, there’s apprehension in the minds of the ATCO in charge — anything can happen even after landing.”

High-pressure situations are common among the controllers, who need to wear headphones, concentrate hard on what the pilot is communicating, and focus on the computer and radar screen.

If the shift system has its flip side in terms of the toll on health and social life, it also has a silver lining. After work hours, the duty pattern (see box) is such that you can pursue personal interests. An MSc in physics, Srivastava has a doctorate in electronic science from the University of Delhi. “When I got selected in 2003, I had completed my two-year residency requirement for the PhD. I completed my PhD after recruitment,” says Srivastava, 30, now studying for a work-related qualification, or rating in their parlance. Shifts allow most of his colleagues to study further, such as, for an MBA or MTech degree, he adds.

Author: Rahat Bano

Date: 6th Jan., 2010

---

For further details about related courses and colleges please click below:

Related courses and colleges