ABSTRACT
The United Kingdom contains some of the most densely trafficked airspace in the world. In 2006, an average of over 5,400 commercial flights a day shared the skies with hundreds of military jets, private aircraft, helicopters, airships, hot-air balloons and gliders. They were protected from collision by the skill and vigilance of their pilots and air traffic controllers, the careful arrangement of airways and control zones, and increasingly sophisticated collision avoidance software, yet the only time many of us get to hear about this complex, largely invisible, interlocking aerial geography of command and control is when things go wrong and flights are delayed, diverted or cancelled owing to adverse weather conditions, computer failure or industrial action. Most of the time, the safe, efficient and punctual production of airspace forms a vital part of a largely taken-for-granted airworld.
