NATCA Communicating For Safety Conference Opens Today
Annual event brings controllers, aviation safety professionals, industry stakeholders, pilots, FAA leadership together to discuss safety
LAS VEGAS – The National Air Traffic Controllers Association (NATCA) today opens its annual Communicating For Safety (CFS) conference at Bally’s Las Vegas with a packed, three-day agenda. CFS is the aviation industry’s leading conference, bringing aviation safety experts from around the world together to discuss the most relevant aviation safety topics. The conference attracts nearly 1,500 air traffic controllers, leaders from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and other government agencies, industry leaders, airport executives, international labor representatives, commercial and general aviation pilots, and aviation association representatives.
The CFS program will be streamed live at natca.org/cfs starting at noon PDT (3 p.m. EDT) today (Monday, Oct. 22).
About CFS, NATCA President Paul Rinaldi stated, “NATCA is honored to organize CFS every year. CFS is an annual forum that facilitates year-long work collaborating on the most important thing we do – keeping the flying public safe while ensuring the efficient transportation of millions of passengers annually, fueling the largest economy in the world. Without the commitment to collaboration, dialogue, and progress that is a hallmark of CFS, we could not continue to operate the safest, most efficient air traffic control system in the world.”
This year’s agenda includes a host of experts, speakers, and panelists offering perspectives from across the aviation industry. Keynote speakers include Rinaldi, Acting FAA Administrator Dan Elwell, retired SR-71 pilot Brian Shul, and aviator and engineer Paul Dye. Our exciting slate will provide insight on integrating new technology and upcoming challenges throughout the National Airspace System (NAS). Leaders from multiple aerospace companies, the FAA, and NATCA working at the forefront of the newest procedures, programs, and technologies will discuss the most significant changes coming to the NAS and how all jobs of NATCA-represented aviation safety professionals are affected.
CFS will close on Wednesday, Oct. 24 with the 14th annual Archie League Medal of Safety Awards, honoring the best of the air traffic control profession. An individual or group from each of NATCA’s nine geographical regions will be honored for stepping up when it was needed most and providing exceptional ATC services. These individuals set the standard for the crucial, life-saving work of an air traffic controller. In addition, this year’s event will include the presentation of the annual NATCA Region X Commitment to Safety Award. This year’s award honors a pair of FAA Airports Division employees represented by NATCA, Irene Porter and Ernest Gubry.
The Archie League Medal of Safety Awards program will be streamed live at natca.org/cfs beginning at 8 p.m. PDT (11 p.m. EDT) on Wednesday, Oct. 24.
Below are this year’s Archie League Medal of Safety Award winners, with links to details about their flight assists:
Alaskan Region
Scott T. Eastepp (Anchorage Center, ZAN)
Central Region
Josh Giles (Kansas City Center, ZKC)
Eastern Region
Jeffrey Haberland and Tim Krainak (Clarksburg Air Traffic Control Tower [ATCT], CKB)
Great Lakes Region
Daniel Rak (Indianapolis Center, ZID)
New England Region
Jesse Belleau (Boston Terminal Radar Approach Control [TRACON], A90)
Northwest Mountain Region
Christopher Bancroft and Jacques Mailloux (Broomfield Jefferson County ATCT, BJC)
Jeffrey Rawson (Salt Lake City ATCT, SLC)
Southern Region
Southwest Region
Phil Enis, Thomas Herd, and Hugh Hunton (Fort Worth Center, ZFW)
Western Pacific Region
Benjamin Kingston (San Francisco ATCT, SFO)
Scott Allen (Tucson ATCT, TUS)
MORE INFORMATION: Doug Church, Deputy Director of Public Affairs; 301-346-8245, [email protected].
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The National Air Traffic Controllers Association (NATCA) is a labor union and aviation safety organization in the United States that represents nearly 20,000 highly skilled air traffic controllers, engineers, and other aviation safety-related professionals. NATCA was certified in 1987 by the Federal Labor Relations Authority to be the exclusive bargaining representative for air traffic controllers employed by the Federal Aviation Administration. Today, NATCA is one of the strongest labor unions in the federal sector and represents a range of aviation safety professionals in 15 FAA bargaining units, 4 Department of Defense air traffic facilities, and 102 federal contract towers. These air traffic controllers and other aviation safety professionals make vital contributions to the U.S. economy and make modern life possible by coordinating the safe, orderly, and expeditious movement of nearly one billion aviation passengers and millions of tons of freight within the National Airspace System each year. NATCA is headquartered in Washington, D.C., and is affiliated with the AFL-CIO.
