Malaysia has been criticized for its handling of the search, particularly its communications to the media and families of the passengers. The three-week hunt for Flight 370 has turned up no sign of the Boeing 777, which vanished March 8 with 239 people on board bound for Beijing from Kuala Lumpur. Earlier, Angus Houston, who heads the joint agency coordinating the multinational search effort, said the modified Boeing 737 will monitor the increasingly crowded skies over the remote search zone. Probably my chickens so I’d have company, entertainment and fresh eggs.PERTH, Australia (AP) - Australia deployed Tuesday an airborne traffic controller over the Indian Ocean to prevent a mid-air collision among the many aircraft searching for the Malaysia Airlines jetliner that went missing over three weeks ago.Īn air force E-7A Wedgetail equipped with advanced radar "is on its first operational" task in the search area in the middle of the Indian Ocean, the Australian Maritime Safety Authority said in a tweet. I enjoy being outdoors and I walk my dog or ride my horse.Ĭanada for stunning scenery and big trucks, and South Africa for breathtaking landscapes and the amazing spirit of the people. Building Lego is one of our favourite things and it’s so therapeutic. Play with my children and get hugs from them. We have a robust peer support programme that ensures Nats’ staff wellbeing is paramount.Įither: ‘What do you actually do?’ or: ‘Are you one of the people that stands in front of planes waving table tennis bats?’. However, we train hard to cope and strive to help pilots give the best service possible in challenging circumstances. I enjoy instructing trainees and watching them explore their potential to become air traffic controllers.ĭealing with unusual circumstances or bad weather, which is testing and tiring. The light-hearted conversations we enjoy on our breaks helps to balance the serious side.
I work with amazing people and we support each others, especially on challenging days. I love the camaraderie and teamwork elements. The satisfaction of ensuring all your aircraft get where they need to be and the buzz from doing a busy session. Although the training was hard, I was fascinated with learning the job and training my brain to think in a new way. The job appealed so I applied and got through selection. My dad saw a Nats newspaper advertisement, recruiting for controllers. I wanted a job in aviation, and studied aerospace engineering at university. Later I worked at a pensions company, administering pension plans. I worked at an equine event yard, looking after horses. When I have the planner controller duties, I support the tactical team by coordinating safe levels into and out of the sectors dealing with phone calls liaising with other air traffic units and military controllers monitoring the sector workload and listening to radio transmissions to ensure they are correct. I also provide information to pilots and offer direct routings where possible. When I have tactical controller duties I am responsible for ensuring all aircraft flying through my sector arrive safely, land where they should, at the level required and as expeditiously as possible, all while monitoring future traffic levels and ensuring correct read-backs of clearances. I also brief on the winds and any bad weather forecast, and check the traffic prediction for the sector so I know how busy we will be. Read new notices about important changes or information related to controllers generally or the sectors I’m valid on. The first thing I do when I get to work is… Lorraine Taylor, air traffic controller for UK air navigation services provider Nats, based at the Swanwick control centre in Hampshire, talks to Samantha Mayling about chickens, playing with Lego and bad weather.īy getting my children ready for school and making breakfast.