Our burdened skies

The function of air-traffic controllers is briefly described, and the problems arising from old and/or faulty equipment is highlighted. The equipment at the New York City Facility, the largest automated radar tracking system in the world, is described. The sequence of events during the computerized control of an arriving aircraft is described, and the effects of computer failure or loss of data are examined. The radar equipment that obtains the data is described, as is the radio equipment linking the pilot and control tower. Attempts to reduce the congestion in the air space around the terminal and the status of collision avoidance systems are discussed.