ABSTRACT
Air Traffic Management is a complex, dynamic and highly automated system that provides a variety of air navigation services. In many cases, controllers have to process a large amount of data from a complicated communication system and strive to balance many tradeoffs that stem from diverse requirements of the broad community of ATM users (e.g. commercial airlines, general aviation, military, unmanned aerial vehicles, etc.). Controllers manage many challenging situations that require a sequence of critical decisions regarding the safety of passengers and flight crews. During their professional career, controllers are expected to handle successfully a wide range of events from ‘separation minima infringements’ to ‘complex emergencies’, or even cases of total CNS system failure. In the terrorist attack of 9/11, for instance, the ATM system in the US airspace was ordered to an abrupt halt while thousands of flights were in the air, hence requiring controllers to manage numerous flight emergencies and other abnormal situations.
