C.R. Smith Museum and ZFW ARTCC Raincheck Program - 10 Sep 2016

The Majors Flying Club enjoyed a well attended and well organized Field Trip on Saturday, September 10, 2016. The club President, Mr. Dennis Mathis, organized and orchestrated and very enjoyable trip centered around a tour of the ZFW Air Route Traffic Control Center. In all we had twenty-three (23) people (members, member spousal units, member offspring) attend the event.

The morning started with a tour of the American Airlines C.R. Smith museum around 9 a.m. The group viewed the Pursuit of Flight introductory video in a theater (which of course has airplane seats) which was followed by an overview tour of the building and a beautifully restored American Flagship DC-3 that is on permanent display. Following the guided tour, the group wandered around the museum until around 11:30 a.m. reading the chronological history of AA, playing with stuff in the FlightLab, and reading the details of Flight 1549: Miracle on the Hudson. A short walk across the street got us to the American Airlines cafeteria for lunch. The place is set up for large crowds so we were able to grab a long table and all sit together. Pretty standard cafeteria food for a reasonable price.

After lunch we moved our cars to the ARTCC parking lot just a block or two down from the cafeteria and museum. Getting through the guard gate was almost like checking in for a flight but with a lot less hassle: keys and phones in a basket and a walk through a scanner where a Visitor Pass was issued. We were met by one of the two controllers who would be giving us the tour and headed to a conference room for introductions and a short presentation. The presentation had some interesting details regarding how the airspace is broken up both vertically and laterally. It really explained why there are so many hand offs when talking with ATC. The presentation was followed by a tour of the facility. We were broken up into two groups and everybody got to spend time with the Traffic Management Unit (TMU), the Weather Unit, and a Controller. The TMU function was not entirely clear but it was obvious they played a big role in how the controllers handle traffic at any moment as a function of weather, volume, and other disturbances in the system. The function of the Weather Unit is obvious. The real treat was to be able to sit with a controller and listen in while they worked. Talk about being tuned into radio calls and multitasking! Button were being mashed, aircraft were moving across the display, directions were being given, calls were being answered, and answering our questions all at the same time. Pretty impressive. It was a fairly light traffic day but there was still quite a bit talking being done by the controller. It gave a pretty good perspective that you are not the only plane the controller is talking to and what their job is really like. It would be something to sit in there during a "push" period. After the tour, we went back to the conference room for a question and answer period and a final video presentation. These controllers were very strongly in favor and encourage requesting Traffic Advisories for VFR flights. The video showed how much disruption one aircraft that is not in the system can cause for other traffic that are in the system. In this case, the one airplane not in the system required course deviations for the two airplanes in the system and required a significant amount controller time. The two controllers gave a very professional and informative presentation. It provided a good look at what goes on behind the scenes in the ATC system. We finished around 3:30 p.m, turned in our Visitor Badges, and headed home.

Thanks to Mr. Mathis for organizing the trip and to Theo Hughes for providing the pictures at the C.R. Smith museum (photography was not allowed inside ARTCC).

American Airline C.R. Smith Museum
http://crsmithmuseum.org/

Check out the ZFW D10 Boundary Map: