Controlling Yokota's skies

  • Published
  • By Senior Airman Veronica Pierce
  • 374th Airlift Wing Public Affairs
Every year thousands of aircraft take off and land on Yokota's airfield, it is 374th Operational Support Squadron Air Traffic controllers that ensure these aircraft safely complete their mission.

Primary duties of controllers is to regulate en route and terminal air traffic. They initiate and issue ATC clearances, instructions and advisories to ensure safe and undisrupted flow of air traffic. Yokota controllers manage to do this with out conflict.

"This career field is challenging, yet satisfying," said Tech. Sgt. Judy Plummer, 374 OSS Air Traffic Control tower watch supervisor. "Every base we go to we must start from scratch and learn base-specific regulations."

Before Airmen can become controllers they must attend a 72-day ATC operator course at Keesler Air Force Base, Miss., where they will learn ATC principles and procedures. These include: flight characteristics of aircraft, the use of aeronautical charts, maps, communications systems and navigational aids, according to Air Force regulations.

The training and experience gained from being an Air Force controller can become useful in the civilian sector as well.

"I saw the Air Force as a source to gain the knowledge and experience needed to become a controller outside the military," said Airman 1st Class John Ward, 374 OSS ATC radar apprentice. "I have always had an interest in this career and the Air Force gave me the opportunity to achieve the training I needed."

There are different areas of the ATC career field which include tower controllers and radar controllers.

Tower controllers manage aircraft by what they can physically see through the control tower windows. They are responsible for the separation and efficient movement on all taxiways, runways and in the air. Here tower airspace is from the surface to 3,000 feet at a five nautical mile radius.

Radar controllers separate aircraft by using radar equipment. They see a code block that includes the aircraft call signs, a beacon code that identifies the aircraft type, altitude and indication airspeed. Here the Radar Approach Control Facility controls an area from 3,000 feet to 23,000 feet within a 60 nautical mile radius.

"We are the primary airlift hub in the Pacific Air Force," said Chief Master Sgt. Donald Bumpers, 374 OSS radar approach chief controller. "We also play a vital role in the Carrier Air Wing Five flying mission by supporting their aerial training sorties."

The controllers here have recently started working with the Japanese Air Self Defense Force, which is an additional challenge that they have overcome.

"I've been assigned to seven ATC facilities and the controllers here are some of the finest I've worked with," said Chief Bumpers. "They are willing take on the enormous responsibility of keeping the skies over the Kanto Plains safe and they do it with confidence, pride and precision."

The 374 OSS controllers have proven to be outstanding; they recently received a 92 percent compliant rating in an Air Force-level Air Traffic System Evaluation Program Inspection.

"I'm very proud of our air traffic controllers as well as all our Airmen for their unwavering support and dedication to accomplish the wing and Air Force mission," said Chief Bumpers.