Instrument flight rules (IFR) is one of two sets of regulations governing all aspects of civil aviation aircraft operations; the other is visual flight rules (VFR).
Air traffic control (ATC) is a service provided by ground-based air traffic controllers who direct aircraft on the ground and through controlled airspace, and can provide advisory services to aircraft in non-controlled airspace. The primary purpose of ATC worldwide is to prevent collisions, organize and expedite the flow of air traffic, and provide information and other support for pilots. In some countries, ATC plays a security or defensive role, or is operated by the military.
Air traffic control specialists, abbreviated ATCS, are personnel responsible for the safe, orderly, and expeditious flow of air traffic in the global air traffic control system. Usually stationed in air traffic control centers and control towers on the ground, they monitor the position, speed, and altitude of aircraft in their assigned airspace visually and by radar, and give directions to the pilots by radio. The position of air traffic controller is one that requires highly specialized knowledge, skills, and abilities. Controllers apply separation rules to keep aircraft at a safe distance from each other in their area of responsibility and move all aircraft safely and efficiently through their assigned sector of airspace, as well as on the ground. Because controllers have an incredibly large responsibility while on duty and make countless real-time decisions on a daily basis, the ATC profession is consistently regarded around the world as one of the most mentally challenging careers, and can be notoriously stressful depending on many variables. Many controllers, however, would cite high salaries, and a very large, unique, and privileged degree of autonomy as major advantages of their jobs.
Airspace is the portion of the atmosphere controlled by a country above its territory, including its territorial waters or, more generally, any specific three-dimensional portion of the atmosphere. It is not the same as aerospace, which is the general term for Earth's atmosphere and the outer space in its vicinity.
The world's navigable airspace is divided into three-dimensional segments, each of which is assigned to a specific class. Most nations adhere to the classification specified by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) and described below, though they might use only some of the classes defined below, and significantly alter the exact rules and requirements. Similarly, individual nations may also designate special use airspace (SUA) with further rules for reasons of national security or safety.
A flight service station (FSS) is an air traffic facility that provides information and services to aircraft pilots before, during, and after flights, but unlike air traffic control (ATC), is not responsible for giving instructions or clearances or providing separation. They do, however, relay clearances from ATC for departure or approaches. The people who communicate with pilots from an FSS are referred to as flight service specialists.
In air traffic control, an area control center (ACC), also known as a center or en-route center, is a facility responsible for controlling aircraft flying in a particular volume of airspace at high altitudes between airport approaches and departures. In the US, such a center is referred to as an air route traffic control center (ARTCC).
Air traffic flow management (ATFM) is the regulation of air traffic in order to avoid exceeding airport or air traffic control capacity in handling traffic, and to ensure that available capacity is used efficiently.
A non-towered airport is an airport without a control tower, or air traffic control (ATC) unit. The vast majority of the world's airports are non-towered. In the United States there are close to 20,000 non-towered airports compared to approximately 500 airports with control towers. Airports with a control tower without 24/7 ATC service follow non-towered airport procedures when the tower is closed but the airport remains open, for example at night.
The Enhanced Traffic Management System (ETMS) is a product for the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) developed to monitor and react to air traffic congestion in both real time and in the future. The system is capable of issuing ground delay programs (GDPs) and ground stop programs (GSs). Ground delay programs are instituted on a particular airport or group of airports to alleviate volume or if there is severe weather.
Boston Air Route Traffic Control Center is one of 22 Air Route Traffic Control Centers in the United States, located in Nashua, New Hampshire.
The Boston Consolidated TRACON (A90) is located in Merrimack, New Hampshire. A90 opened in 2004 after 8 years of development. The A90 function transferred to the new Boston Consolidated TRACON on February 22, 2004. The MHT function transferred over on March 7, 2004. Manchester TRACON used to be located at Manchester Airport below the old ATCT. Boston TRACON used to be located at the Logan International Airport Control Tower before being consolidated. The new facility is 63,000 square feet (5,900 m2). A Terminal Radar Approach Control, or TRACON, is responsible for descending airplanes from the ARTCC and lining them up for landing at their destination airport, as well as climbing departures before handing off to the ARTCC.
The Next Generation Air Transportation System (NextGen) is an ongoing modernization project of the United States National Airspace System (NAS). The US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) began work on NextGen improvements in 2007 and plans to have all major components in place by 2025.
ATC Zero is an official term used by the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) that means the FAA is unable to safely provide the published ATC services within the airspace managed by a specific facility. The term is always used in conjunction with a facility reference. FAA ATC facilities include Air Route Traffic Control Centers (ARTCC); Terminal Radar Control facility (TRACON), Air Traffic Control Tower (ATCT), Flight Service Stations (FSS), or the Air Traffic Control System Command Center (ATCSCC). The term is defined in FAA Order JO 1900.47, Air Traffic Control Operational Contingency Plans. It is one of three designations used by the FAA to describe degraded operations and invoke operational contingency plans.
The National Airspace System (NAS) is the airspace, navigation facilities and airports of the United States along with their associated information, services, rules, regulations, policies, procedures, personnel and equipment. It includes components shared jointly with the military. It is one of the most complex aviation systems in the world, and services air travel in the United States and over large portions of the world's oceans.
Chicago Air Route Traffic Control Center (ZAU) is one of 22 Air Route Traffic Control Centers (ARTCCs) operated by the United States Federal Aviation Administration. It is located at 619 W. New Indian Trail Rd., Aurora, Illinois.
The Air Traffic Organization (ATO) is America's air navigation service provider, as the operations arm of the Federal Aviation Administration. Its customers are commercial and private aviation and the military, and it employs more than 35,000 controllers, technicians, engineers and support workers.
Automatic dependent surveillance–broadcast (ADS–B) is a surveillance technology in which an aircraft determines its position via satellite navigation and periodically broadcasts it, enabling it to be tracked. The information can be received by air traffic control ground stations as a replacement for secondary surveillance radar, as no interrogation signal is needed from the ground. It can also be received by other aircraft to provide situational awareness and allow self-separation. ADS–B is "automatic" in that it requires no pilot or external input. It is "dependent" in that it depends on data from the aircraft's navigation system.
Anchorage Air Route Traffic Control Center (PAZA/ZAN) is located just outside the main gate of Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson at 700 North Boniface Parkway in Anchorage, Alaska, United States. The Anchorage ARTCC is one of 22 Air Route Traffic Control Centers in the United States.
"Atlanta Air Route Traffic Control Center (ZTL) is one of 22 Air Route Traffic Control Centers operated by the United States Federal Aviation Administration. It is located at 299 Woolsey Rd, Hampton, Georgia, United States.
