1/27/2024 0 Comments Army atc tower![]() ![]() "It's been challenging, almost like starting over," Murray said. ![]() For him, the experience feels like a clean slate. The standards of the Air Force, Murray said, are different in that the two Soldiers have to relearn the air traffic control mindset. Paul Murray and Christopher Smades, Fox Company 1-52, Aviation Battalion air traffic control specialists, have trained with Icemen controllers since August in preparation for an upcoming deployment where they will guide and direct mostly fixed-wing aircraft. Two Fort Wainwright Soldiers, however, are getting the best of both worlds. The difference is that most of their experience applies to rotary-wing aircraft rather than the usual fixed-wing aircraft flown by the Air Force. The transition should be rather smooth because the equipment is much the same as what they were using before, Adma said.EIELSON AIR FORCE BASE, Alaska - Air traffic controllers are nothing new to the Army. "If they bring in someone to perform ground control, then they will ensure that they are properly trained," Adma said. The new way of operating may require an additional body in the tower to perform ground operation responsibilities. Prior to the earthquake, the Haitians ran the airport as a nonradar facility, where aircraft were controlled one at a time by one controller. "It's good to work with different people from different countries because you learn the differences in controlling traffic." "It's a good experience for me to work in this kind of situation because I experience much more traffic than before," said Nadia Adma, a Haitian air traffic controller. ![]() The Haitian controllers are very good, but it will take some time for them to get accustomed to dealing with a much higher volume of air traffic than they were used to, Sowder said. So far, it has been a smooth transition and the integration of the two styles of air traffic control has gone rather seamlessly. "The biggest benefit is to be able to familiarize the Haitians in the tower that they will be using until their new tower is built," Sowder said. forces is the beginning of a process to eventually have ATC operations completely turned over to the Haitians and airport authorities. ![]() Before the arrival of the FAA tower, combat controllers were landing aircraft from a dirt berm on the airfield with equipment stacked on a table. The Federal Aviation Administration officials set up a mobile air traffic control tower on the airfield to provide the operators with a safer and more comfortable platform to work from. With the local tower in disrepair, there was a need to get a more permanent structure at the airport for the controllers to work in. This is the second transition Air Force air traffic controllers have made since taking over ATC responsibilities from combat controllers from the Air Force Special Operations Command. Tim Sowder, an air traffic controller assigned to the 260th Air Traffic Control Squadron of the New Hampshire Air National Guard. "Our goal is to make (the Haitian controllers) comfortable and actually have them take over the control tower," said Chief Master Sgt. 1, Haitian controllers worked with American military controllers to ensure the safety of the airfield and the planes in the sky. PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti - Air Force air traffic controllers worked side-by-side with Haitian air traffic controllers to provide some sense of normalcy two weeks after the earthquake devastated vast portions of Port-au-Prince. ![]()
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