Evening star., 1936-08-20
A|RWAYS TRAFFIC
CONTROL SYSTEM
BEING ASSEMBLED
Local Station Is Due to Be
in Operation in Two
Weeks.
LARGE TABLE CHART
TO SHOW AIR ROUTES
Every Ship Leaving or Approach.
ing Field Will Be Checked Care.
fully by Apparatus.

Equipment is being assembled at
Washington Airport for the new Bu-
reau of Air Commerce airways traffic
control system, but it will be at least
two weeks before the local station is
in operation, it was announced today
at the office of Earl F. Ward, supervisor
of the control system, at the Com
merce Department.
The equipment 10 be installed at the
airport includes q large table map
showing the air routes converging on
Washington Airport, along which
markers will be moved to trace the
movements Of every airplane leaving or
approaching Washington: a series of
wall chart boards, on which will ap-
pear detailed information as to the
various flights; and communications
lines between the control station and
the airport control tower and the radio
stations of each of the four airlines
operating out of Washington.
After the system Is installed and in
operation it will be possible at
glance to determine the position of
any scheduled airliner In the vicinity
OF Washington at any time, and this
information will be used by the con-
troll crew to regulate the time of ar
rivals and departures at the airport,
especially in bad weather, to prevent
the possibility of collision. The i'm
portance of the service is indicated by
the fact there now are 70 scheduled
airline operations at Washington Air
port each "a hours and that the num-
Der is growing steadily.
Will Warn Pilots.
The airways control officers also
will constantly check the position of
planes along the airways and will
warn pilots when they see the air
liners are too close together and have
to be separated by changes in altitude
or by other means.
The control system also will take
over supervision of the movements of
private and non-Scheduled CONNER
cial aircraft which are authorized to
operate along the Federal airways in
bad weather, under terms Of the new
instrument navigation ratings lust
made effective by the Commerce De-
partment.
1t will be the job OF the airways
control crew to see that the airliners,
which now are handling an everage
OF approximately $500 passengers a
month at Washington Airport, are al
ClPar
be done by radio contact with the
pilots. instructing them to change
altitude. course or speed so as to
avoid danger of collision along the
airways and especially to prevent con-
gestion and its resulting hazards at
the airport.
Progress Of the airplanes is followed
through reports of departure, position
en- route and arrival, supplied by air.
line dispatchers in the case of sched-
uled airline ships and by Commerce
Department radio and teletype cir
cults in the case of miscellaneous
commercial operators, private owners,
Army. Navy. Marine Corps and Coast
Guard airplanes.
Must Make Position Report.
Airline pilots are required to submit
by radio each Is minutes position
report" which gives location, altitude
and other information concerning the
fight. Markers on the master map
are moved to show the position and
direction of flight each Is minutes,
and other more detailed information
as to altitude, speed and time of pass
age over check points is entered on
the wall charts.
From this information, it Is able to
check within q mile or two at any
time the position Of any one of the
scores Of airliners which ply the air.
ways out of Washington each day.
Through these position reports. it is
possible to compute arrival times and
to determine whether there is nkeli-
hood Of airliners arriving at the air.
port at the same time. In this case.
one of the pilots will be notified to
come on in, and the other or others
warned to throttle back and lose
enough time to permit the field to
be cleared.
In case of bad weather, every pilot
intending to operate by instrument
along Federal airway will be re-
quired to submit flight plan" to the
traffic control office before taking of
This plan will show proposed time of
departure. proposed cruising altitude.
type OF airplane and equipment and
estimated flying time, with stops and
destination.
The Federal airways control crew at
Washington Airport will be COMPOSED
Of four men, operating "a hours a day,
with perhaps as many as three men on
duty In times Of heaviest operations
or bad weather.
The airways crew and the new WASH
ington Airport control tower will work
IN close cooperation. The airport
tower also is manned by four men and
Is in charge of the actual handling of
aircraft movements on and in the i'm
mediate vicinity of the airport. Radio
and Eight guns" are used to direct
pilots IN landing, taking of or taxing