GATCO Controller–Pilot Symposium
On the 24 October, GATCO held its first Controller–Pilot Symposium. This was held at The Holiday Inn at Heathrow and was attended by more than 60 delegates, including the ATCOs’ Branch. The day ran from 1000-1600 and was split into three sessions, each with two guest speakers.
Session one highlighted the possible options for future developments within the ATM industry. Luis Barbero discussed ‘Radical Changes for a More Efficient ATM System’, and was followed by Andy Shand of NATS, presenting the ‘2025 Vision for Airspace, Tools, and Procedures’.
The second session began with Joe Sultana, the Eurocontrol Director Network Manager. He gave a very informative talk on the European Network and advances in how the network deals with weather events. The main focus of his presentation was ‘How to Weatherproof the Network’. Next up was Andrew Hamilton, who is the CAA UAS Sector Lead. His content was mainly around the Future of UAS, and the regulatory aspects of that sector.
After a ‘talking lunch’ we started the final session of the day. Rob Hunter, the BALPA Head of Flight Safety gave a very interesting presentation that was entitled ‘Who’s to Blame: A Critique of the ICAO Classification of Accident Investigation Findings’. The last presentation of the day was from Sarah Booth, who works as a Research Manager at Clockwork Research. This was a chance to hear a very non-biased perspective of how important fatigue management is in our industry. Her presentation was entitled ‘Practical Implementation of FRMS’, and was definitely one of the highlights of the day.
GATCOs’ first Controller-Pilot Symposium was a success and gave us all a good forum in which to discuss the various threads that affect the ATM industry, and also the challenges facing the flying community.
If any of the topics referenced above are of any special interest, please drop me a mail and I will be happy to forward the slide packs used for any of the presentations. Any further information can be requested from [email protected].