Safety hosts Mid-Air Collision Avoidance Conference Published Jan. 24, 2010 By Airman 1st Class Katrina Menchaca 374th AW/PA YOKOTA AB, Japan -- -- The 374th Airlift Wing Safety Office, teaming with the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association-Japan (AOPA-J) hosted more than 140 Japanese civil, government, and military pilots and controllers at the Kanto Plain Mid-Air Collision Avoidance (MACA) Conference, held at the Taiyo Community Center, Jan. 10, to increase awareness and promote safety in the skies over Yokota Air Base, Tokyo, and the surrounding communities. The MACA conference, the first of its kind to be held here, brought together a variety of operators who share the Kanto Plain airspace and the 374th Airlift Wing air traffic controllers to discuss airspace boundaries, routes and daily operations. "Because we frequently operate in the same airspace, we wanted to incorporate the Japanese aviators into our MACA program in a meaningful way. By opening up the program and giving fliers and controllers from the various communities and organizations an opportunity to interact and ask questions, we were able to come to a shared understanding about each others' operations and ultimately reduce the risk of mid-air collisions. This makes the skies above the Kanto Plain safer for everyone," said Lt. Col. Rapp, 374th AW chief of safety. The conference had two goals. The first was to increase the safety of all aircraft and personnel sharing Yokota's airspace. The second was to improve the relationship between the US and Japanese aviation communities by increasing communication. "Due to the language barrier, communication between our US controllers and Japanese pilots can sometimes be challenging, for both parties," said Lt. Col. Rapp. "This communication barrier continues on the ground, and we have very few if any opportunities to get controllers and the various operators together to discuss issues. Communication greatly enhances to flight safety.The Mid-Air Collision Avoidance Conference opened up a line of communication to our Japanese neighbors that hasn't been opened before, and we learned as much about Japanese civilian operations and issues as they hopefully learned about ours." The day was broken up into two three-hour sessions, separated by a luncheon. The participants attended briefings given by members of the Yokota Flight Training Center, the 36th Airlift Squadron, the 459th Airlift Squadron and the 374th Operation Support Squadron during the first session. Later, they toured aircraft static displays, the control tower, and Radar Approach Control, from which all Yokota airspace is controlled. By talking to the radar control personnel, participants were able to see and ask questions about what and how many operations the controllers handle, and get specific answers about how best to communicate and operate in some of the busier portions of the airspace. "Anyone who likes to fly, is interested in safety, or who is just curious as to what we do here at Yokota might be interested in our MACA conference. We plan to have another one in the near future and encourage anyone interested in attending to contact us," said Capt. Wesley Sides, 374th AW chief of flight safety. If you have any questions about the MACA conference, contact the safety office at 225-7974