


Your pilot reviews the weather along the intended route, maps the route and files the plan. While you prepare for your flight by checking your bags and walking to the gate, your pilot inspects your plane and files a flight plan with the tower - all IFR pilots must file a flight plan at least 30 minutes prior to pushing back from the gate. Landing - The aircraft lands on the designated runway, taxis to the destination gate and parks at the terminal.Approach - The pilot aligns the aircraft with the designated landing runway.Descent - The pilot descends and maneuvers the aircraft to the destination airport.En route - The aircraft travels through one or more center airspaces and nears the destination airport.Departure - The plane lifts off the ground and climbs to a cruising altitude.Takeoff - The pilot powers up the aircraft and speeds down the runway.Preflight -This portion of the flight starts on the ground and includes flight checks, push-back from the gate and taxi to the runway.Up next, we'll check in with a commercial airline flight before it takes off. They must file flight plans and are serviced by the mainstream air traffic control system Pilots of large commercial flights use instruments to fly ( instrument flight rules, or IFR), so they can fly in all sorts of weather. These pilots are not required by the FAA to file flight plans and, except for FSS and local towers, are not serviced by the mainstream air traffic control system. Some pilots of small aircraft fly by vision only ( visual flight rules, or VFR). As the plane leaves that airspace division and enters another, the air traffic controller passes it off to the controllers responsible for the new airspace division.

The controllers monitor this plane and give instructions to the pilot. As an aircraft travels through a given airspace division, it is monitored by the one or more air traffic controllers responsible for that division. The movement of aircraft through the various airspace divisions is much like players moving through a "zone" defense that a basketball or football team might use.

It assists pilots in emergencies and coordinates search-and-rescue operations for missing or overdue aircraft. Flight service station (FSS) - The FSS provides information (weather, route, terrain, flight plan) for private pilots flying into and out of small airports and rural areas.Towers handle all takeoff, landing, and ground traffic. Air traffic control tower (ATCT) - An ATCT is located at every airport that has regularly scheduled flights.Terminal radar approach control - TRACON handles departing and approaching aircraft within its space.Each ARTCC manages traffic within all sectors of its center except for TRACON airspace and local-airport airspace. Air route traffic control centers (ARTCC) - There is one ARTCC for each center.It also manages air traffic control within centers where there are problems (bad weather, traffic overloads, inoperative runways). Air Traffic Control System Command Center (ATCSCC) - The ATCSCC oversees all air traffic control.The air traffic control system divisions are: The air traffic control system, which is run by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), has been designed around these airspace divisions. Within each TRACON airspace are a number of airports, each of which has its own airspace with a 5-mile (8-km) radius. Also within each zone are portions of airspace, about 50 miles (80.5 km) in diameter, called TRACON ( Terminal Radar Approach CONtrol) airspaces. The United States airspace is divided into 21 zones ( centers), and each zone is divided into sectors. We'll follow a flight from departure to arrival, looking at the various controllers involved, what each one does, the equipment they use and how they are trained. In this article, we will examine air traffic control in the United States. However, the air traffic control system is much more complex than that. When you think about air traffic control, the image of men and women in the tower of an airport probably comes to mind.
