Photo By Cpl. Michelle Piehl | Lance Cpl. Daniel A. Durso, an air traffic control specialist with Headquarters &...... read more read more
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MARINE CORPS AIR STATION MIRAMAR, Calif. - Towering high above base is an octagon-shaped pillar filled with the hum of technology and the buzz of busy workers. Each member of air traffic control has a job to do: to guide, to grant access, to remove aircraft from the runway or to watch the radar from the ground.
The tower controls F/A-18s, MV-22B’s, CH-53E’s, C-130s and any other aircraft entering or departing the airspace above Marine Corps Air Station Miramar, Calif.
ATC is very complicated, and requires the ability to solve challenges quickly and efficiently, explained Lance Cpl. Daniel A. Durso, an air traffic control specialist with Headquarters and Headquarters Squadron aboard MCAS Miramar and a Lansdale, Pa., native.
“As you start going up the different levels of ATC, they get progressively more difficult, until the point where you get to local,” said Durso. “[Local is] the most complicated position that we have. [It’s] very difficult and stressful.”
Coordinating with local air traffic can be one of the most demanding positions in ATC. The controller is required to be in contact with several pilots within the four mile diameter above MCAS Miramar at one time.
Flight data, ground control and tower cab coordinators work together to ensure the airfield is safe and secure at all times.
“I think it’s fun, you get to talk to multiple aircraft in different situations,” said Durso. “You actually have to be very creative with what you do every day. Every day is a new situation.”
One of the most challenging and unique aspects to ATC is the training environment, explained Staff Sgt. Justin P. Travis, a radar chief with Marine Air Control Squadron 1 Detachment B aboard MCAS Miramar and an Atlanta native.
Since each member of ATC is cross-trained to be proficient on each specific job, a lance corporal may train ranks of sergeant or higher. Each Marine is required to become completely proficient in each specific area before moving to a different position, continued Travis.
ATC works together like cogs in a machine, each Marine serving a specific and vital purpose. In order to successfully land an aircraft, at least six people are in the tower and at least four people are down in the radar control room.
Each member of the crew will switch positions within the control tower approximately every two hours, thus making the cross-training essential to mission accomplishment.
Staff Sgt. Matthew C. Head, an air traffic control tower chief and a Sacramento, Calif., native, explained that the training is vital to understanding how to separate, control and expedite the flow of air traffic. He compared air traffic to a freeway system; the difference being the two-dimensionality of freeway traffic and the three-dimensionality of air traffic.
“[There are] a lot more points where you can’t see aircraft coming in; some are allowed to fly at faster speeds, some can fly at higher altitudes,” Head said. “They are going to be required to descend, climb, turn left, turn right and do whatever they need to do to get to their destination. Without the air traffic controllers, it would essentially be chaos.”
Each controller is required to continuously train through simulators, class work and on-the-job training. Simulators initially help a student to develop good terminology and phrasing in order to communicate effectively with pilots. To become completely qualified in every ATC area, controllers will complete approximately two to three years of training. Since each station is different, the training must be repeated at each duty station transfer, he continued.
Members of ATC typically transfer from a station to a detachment and vice versa, explained Head.
The station personnel are required to run the airfield aboard air stations, whereas detachment personnel belong to deployable units. Each station has unique aspects to its environment that make customized and continual training of the utmost importance.
“This job requires a great deal of studying, time and effort,” said Head. “The [more] effort you put in, the better controller you’re going to be.”
The tower chief cracked a smile as he spoke of the common misconceptions people have about ATC.
“Most people think we are the ones waving the lit-up wands, [or] that we are on the carrier decks quite a bit,” said Head. “I know when I was recruited, I was told I would be out on the carrier deck, similar to the guys in [the movie] 'Top Gun.' I got here and realized it is a lot different. If you thrive on trying to be the best and you have an ‘A’ type personality, this is an awesome job. There will be times when it gets really busy and time flies by, but for an ‘A’ type personality, it may seem just like a blast. It’s a very fun job.”
Marines and sailors fly safely under the radar with MCAS Miramar ATC. Guiding aircraft from high above in the control tower and down below in the radar room, the ATC crew is on the job, working to ensure the most efficient and safe execution of all flights.
| Date Taken: | 04.20.2012 |
| Date Posted: | 04.20.2012 17:29 |
| Story ID: | 87102 |
| Location: | MARINE CORPS AIR STATION MIRAMAR, CALIFORNIA, US |
| Web Views: | 583 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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