Visit of Air Traffic Controller Steve Cox

If, like me, you get a little nervous when flying and wonder whether ‘those in control’ at the airport know what they are doing!!
Well, on Tuesday evening Steve Cox a newly retired Air Traffic Controller put all our minds at rest and talked us all through what actually happens when we leave the safety of the runway.
There were three main points Steve made:-
1.What does Air Traffic Control actually do
2.Why does it do it
3. How does it do it
Firstly, ATC separates planes by radar and visual sight, coordinates flight planning, information and issues such as search and rescue.
Secondly, it monitors all planes within a 40-mile radius or more and makes sure they are in the right place and at the right altitude. This could be a different plane every minute of every hour on a busy shift.
Thirdly, ATC centres monitor speed, height, direction etc and in essence fly the planes in or out!
Steve went on to tell us that on occasion things do go wrong, like when planes develop faults, are hijacked, runway hazards such as birds, animals, people etc, special needs for VIP including Royalty arrivals/departures, diplomatic incidents, war zones, talk downs, inclement weather conditions etc.
During the slideshow we saw examples from Newcastle Airport where Steve had worked as well as Dubai and to conclude he explained what it was like when you were on a busy shift!!……you just have to keep going - you can’t stop!!…. it’s like gardening…..it goes on forever!!!
Gary thanked Steve for coming and Liz presented him with a cheque for his favourite charity - My Aware.