How things work: an Air Traffic Controller

Air Traffic Controller anonymously told about the features of the Moscow airports, Proximity Warning System and how to throw planes.





Statement

I grew up in Ulyanovsk. First wanted to become a pilot - to go to the school of civil aviation. But it so happened that I went without examination to the dispatch department. And then summer, hot river - did not want to re-take the entrance exams, so I stayed controller and do not regret it. Pilot - a profession is interesting, but the romance of takeoff and landing is quick and cons lot: sophisticated jet lag, the need to always be on top, irradiation, being away from family. After high school, arrived in Moscow, now working in the Mission Control Center.

For a long time to work in the Moscow air traffic controller did not take new people for two reasons. Firstly, Russia appeared in recent legislative vacuum - Soviet norms canceled and new ones are not accepted. The documents are now no rules determining the number of how many controllers should work shift, to provide the current number of sectors (sector - is part of the airspace, which has vertical and horizontal boundaries). Therefore, only depended on the employer, to take or not to take new employees. Second, the intensity of flights to 90 years fell. Young began to take only in the last couple of years, before five jobs was one of a replacement manager, because it was very hard.



We now have a vacuum age - many managers under 50 and for a number of people about 20 years old, and middle-aged people is almost there. There are cases when a manager starts to push adult authority is wrong, and the young hesitate to contradict him.

The same, incidentally, was the pilots: at the beginning of zero, they could not even finish high school is normal: there was no kerosene to fly. And now there is a speech about attracting foreign pilots.

Plus now opened desyatitimesyachnye training courses for air traffic controllers. Of course, you can make a manager and janitor, but people higher education disciplines, develops a sense of responsibility. The appearance of the courses suggests that people are lacking.

On the Tasks Manager

Task Manager - serve schedule and claimed it fly, while ensuring safe execution of flights. Think about what each mark on the screen in front of you - it's a plane, which is 200-300 people - here soydёsh crazy. But at the same time I want to, working to do everything quickly and efficiently as possible. It is possible to make the plane to land on the shortest possible way - and I do. After all, if 200 people save for ten minutes, all will be well.

My task is to optimize the performance of the pilot - to make it easier, safer, easier. Some pilots, however, perceive it this way: "Che is the second I landed on?" Or "I overtake it now" or "it bothers me, you want me to slow down." But this happens rarely.

Business Day

We come to work an hour before the briefing. This time we are given medical examinations - it measures the pulse and blood pressure. There are testers on alcohol, but I do not remember that they were used. This was warned once again on New Year's holidays or May, but in order to use it, people should behave inappropriately. I do not remember such cases.

At the briefing, we provide information about the weather, the work of the airfield and, God forbid, status of flights (carrying VIPs). Then there is a welcome shift. So far, negotiations are recorded on tape, and record when taking over the duty is done by hand in the magazine. We are struggling with this, because what this last century?

Work for about two hours, then - a break to rest, it happens that a 50-minute nap. Work schedule is as follows: first day - a change in the day, the second day -change in the morning the next day - night. Then one day - otsypnoy, then two days off. Years go by, and if earlier after a night shift went to the other, somewhere to relax, walk, now it is hard, you should sleep.



Sounds like a conversation with the driver manager? For example, "Descend, train 100, Savelova, 25 alpha." This means that the plane comes to Sheremetyevo from the point with the name "Savelova" that it should be reduced to 100-tier, and the "alpha" - the name of the shortest of the approach lane. Echelon - this division in height, in feet. The 50th echelon - 5000 feet. Corridor - is that the plane flies through the city. In this corridor there is the entry point and exit point there, among them - ten kilometers.

Breeding aircraft - is the work manager in Moscow, we do it every minute. Manager decides on safe separation between departing aircraft and flies.

District Moscow air hub, which we serve - is the radius of a thousand kilometers around Moscow. When the plane takes off from Moscow, for example, in Nizhny Novgorod, its takeoff provide controllers at the airport. Then the plane is transmitted to the Mission Control Center, and there the plane Manager leads the circle, then the approach controller, then the district center - it reduces to Nizhny Novgorod, and the point at a certain height gives his manager in Nizhny, for seven or eight minutes before landing. Or departing aircraft from Nizhny Novgorod and after crossing 50th height get in touch with the Moscow dispatcher.

Working conditions

We now have programs to attract young professionals, for example, give money for a down payment on the purchase of an apartment. If a person from another region, give 50% to eat habitation. There is a one-time assistance - the first few years are paid a certain amount, in addition to salary. When we arrived at the beginning of zero, we have not even dreamed of such.

We have the right to fly once a year free of charge anywhere in the world. Previously, you could borrow more children, now pay only 50%.

Capacity and responsibility

In Russia there is no standard bandwidth - not determined the number of aircraft per hour, which can cater Manager. Here turner per hour can make 100 nuts, it is the norm. If you did 110 nuts of them may be defective, did 70 - flawed. We have no such rules, and scheduling in Moscow did not seem to take into account that directs aircraft man, and man has its limits.

In June there was a case when the sector went through the 74 aircraft per hour. It was the top sector, there dispatcher sent planes to land, and those who are left, lifted. And reduced to three different airport. Although there is an order from 1986, it spelled the norm - 32 aircraft per hour. In general, we have documents written in a way that can not work on them. If we start to work on them, you will not be able to service schedule.

In the autumn of 2013 at Vnukovo history when the manager has prevented a collision of two planes hit the media. Airline "Transaero" offended then, and I know those guys who is leaked to the media, because we always get that guilty Manager. There have been attempts to blame him, that it was he started a flight "Transaero" in Moscow that he did not have to intervene. When Tu-204 crashed in Vnukovo, manager saw the start of the aircraft, he began to shout: "Brake!" The prosecutor's office then he said: Why do you interfere in piloting the ship, you had no right. But even then the dispatcher award was given for what prevented the collision.

And when a person is relaxed - a chat with a colleague, hee-hee-ha-ha, but then again - and dangerous proximity

We have a system Proximity Warning (FPIC): if there is a violation of the safe separation between aircraft, their marks on the screen, the dispatcher change and becomes a cross. Manager visually once the two vessels vytseplyaet and sees that something is wrong. When triggered, the system begins an investigation into the manager why he brought the situation to such. These investigations by a special inspection. Sometimes, though, and a false positive.

In general, this system should help the dispatcher, but I heard on records after the operation of the system controller starts to talk quickly and give conflicting commands. He begins the release of adrenaline in the blood - "everything I got," and he begins to unconsciously reduce aircraft. We have a limit - the speed of speech not exceeding 100 words per minute, but when activated system, there are so chatters!

On the structure of airside

The current structure of the Moscow air zone for almost 30 years, there is a continuous crossing, which limits the bandwidth - the task of breeding and Compliance intervals security has to solve permanently. It is necessary to make a new conflict-free structure, now working on it.

Previously, it was: it was Moscow, she had four airports. As was the single "Aeroflot", observed geographical principle: Bykov - flights to the southeast, Sheremetyevo - to the north and west of the capital, Vnukovo - to the west and south, Domodedovo - east and south. Come, private capital, and now the company wants to fly when it suits them and where it suits them. And today, the plane "UTair" flying from the north - it flies past Sheremetyeva and flies at Vnukovo, at the same time from Vnukovo flies them overboard, too bypassing Sheremetyevo. And from Sheremetyevo, on the contrary, is flying any aircraft to the south, past the Vnukovo. It turns layer cake, planes are flying towards each other, cross each other's path.

The current structure is outdated, it is possible to fly, if two or three of the aircraft, and now in the civil aviation flights is becoming more involved in international companies. We are suffocating rush hour, people work sometimes on the verge of its features. It is necessary to stretch the flight schedule, and we have some peaks recession. And when the recession, people relaxed - a chat with a colleague, hee-hee-ha-ha, but then again - and dangerous proximity.

To learn how to throw planes

The pilot during the flight moves along a certain route - he sees it in his cabin in the Flight Management System, that is, in Mission Control. On this route there is a point with certain geographic coordinates through which the aircraft should pass. For example, a flight flies to Vladivostok, it has a route, but he can not immediately take a course to Vladivostok. Points needed to dissolve incoming and outgoing aircraft. In the aerodrome take off and landing aircraft calling interfere with each other, because there is no conflict-free I / O system. Dispatchers have to breed them.

Or, for example, took off from Vnukovo flight to the north, and from Sheremetyevo - to the south, and at the same moment arrives flight at Vnukovo and Sheremetyevo arrives. And it turns out that just four aircraft are at one point. With this structure, the likelihood of human error increases. And can make a mistake and the dispatcher and the pilot. I had so that I gave the pilot to take command of the 70th tier, because it flies towards another vessel at the 80th echelon. The pilot confirmed the 70th echelon climbs - and went even higher, right on the other side. Although I told him about the fact that there is a counter-flies! What happened, why did he do so - not entered the data speak to the co-pilot, thinking about? I see it, I start to get involved - shout it, rotate it. But well, when I have three aircraft at the same time, and when two dozen - I can not see. Or be able to see only when work FPIC. The system is activated for 45 seconds before the collision and, in principle, this is enough time to react and crews dispersed. But when the system is triggered, it means that the manager did not intervene in time, did not do their job, not warned.



All my colleagues in 2010 was such a case: two aircraft converged on one point, and at the same height. And one aircraft was an AN-26, he did not have the equipment TCAS (collision warning system aircraft in the air). Once the pilots were able to cope and all ended well. Managers saw the plane, but then something from one of them pereklinilo, he decided that they had parted, and gave the command to climb. Then the manager said: "There was this, he began to gain" - and even after listened to recordings of talks, he could not believe that he gave the command.

We like - found guilty, kicked, and the problem is left - then we have had so many near misses at this point! Such conflict structure. If the manager is constantly mistaken in one place, then it's probably a question for the structure? And such points have been added in the Moscow Aviation Hub lot.

About the new Mission Control Center

Our Centre for automated air traffic control more than 30 years, it is worth the Swedish set of equipment, which is called "Terkas." The new Mission Control Center are trying to run the year already. Who built the building - a rest room is smaller than the old, and the people there have to work harder. Made rooms for small traffic service - if you want to expand the number of sectors, no longer can. Began to put the equipment St. Petersburg company - workplace ergonomics, even on older hardware is better. Software leaves much to be desired. In our country everything is done for show.

The new center should be a system of automatic dependent surveillance. This is when flying in the sky plane manager sees no thanks to the radar, but because the ship sends signals to the satellite. In this system, the dispatcher sees that the crew sets at his altimeter: that he, for example, by chance instead of 70-th set 90th echelon. Same with speed: 200 knots gave him, and he holds 250 - and it immediately comes to the dispatcher. That is, it controls again, did the crew. There will also be a system where the controller sends no voice command "gain altitude", and presses a button and the pilot in the box on the dashboard appears "dial 150" as an SMS.

About training and hijacking

Trainers at the Moscow Center, alas, does not work - in the sense that we did not work to hone skills in specific cases. While stazhirueshsya, you taught this once became manager - all of this became part of the "for show". Trainings are held after work, I go to the trainer, I have in-the-eyes from such after two days, I just controlled flight, I ask them: "What do you want to teach me? Let me teach you something better. " - "Well, sit down sit here then," - they say.

the pilot can say the code word by which it is clear that his board seized

How to behave during a dispatcher hijack? We have a paper, all the secrets I can not tell, but the instruction is simple enough - a report to senior management. Well, you need to find out from the pilot, he can talk or not. For example, the pilot can say the code word by which it is clear that his board seized.

About the difference between Moscow airports

Most problematic airfield - Vnukovo airport terminal was built there, but the airfield itself in terms of service traffic is not very. Bad taxi routes, always some government restrictions. The forbidden zone - Moscow, Barvikha. If you can not observe the safety distance between the aircraft, there can not even start the aircraft, it has to be output to the second round and again try to cram on the strip. When I fly, I try to buy flights to Domodedovo and Sheremetyevo. Let me there longer downtime at customs at Vnukovo but you can after a quick half hour Customs sit and wait for departure.

In Europe fly anymore. But there is any increase in the number of flights are preparing: structure, documents, personnel, equipment. A Vnukovo - a vivid example of the reverse approach: built near large bright terminals, but rested in the sky. You can build two more, but the sky has been limited to 40 departures per hour, and remains.

About error statistics

Planes flying at an interval of ten kilometers, because it is safe, according to our standards: if the first things to happen, the second manager to turn around.

There are statistics on how many errors controllers in Moscow accounts for the number of flights they serve. Say, okay, if 10 thousand flights was one violation of the interval. In 2012, there were four or five of near misses (when the distance between the planes half permissible), besides the usual incidents.

We last year was such a case. Moscow Mission Control Center on its website wrote that the plan will be only two misses. The wording is, of course, incorrect. So immediately raspiarili that the plans from the Centre - two dangerous convergence, and if not, what needs to be done. They, of course, then it is removed from the site.

About Safety Standards "we" and "they»

When the Germans arrive at Vnukovo, they say, you're number 30 on the landing, wait an hour. "How so, I bought this time, we go on a schedule to the minute, why should we wait?" It is useless to explain that the plan we have is not working - all the time and bought it all arrived.

Tags

See also

New and interesting