IFATCA Executive Board Newsletter

2023 February

The Federation in the Coming Year

As the Federation eases our way into 2023, we are getting prepared for a year of action and activity. You may have noticed a surge of social media produced by the new media team, please keep up the interaction online and support their efforts. Any feedback is appreciated.

Our Standing Committees are finalising their working programs, with TOC/PLC just having their recent meeting in Ireland, in preparation for the conference in Jamaica. The EB will meet in a few weeks in Taiwan where we will review the plans and strategy for the coming year and prioritise our activities.

In the background we are looking at renewed agreement with SESAR and refreshing our partnerships with our industry partners around the world. A big initiative this year will be the output from the IFATCA 2030 Task Force as we take this opportunity, of the post COVID momentum, to deliver more to our member associations over the coming year and build the Federation for the future.

Duncan Auld

President and COO

Finally – IFATCA Conference!

After four years of planning and working together with incredibly dedicated people on conference planning, yet unfortunately not able to hold an Annual Conference due to Covid, we are now finally gearing up for Jamaica 2023!

The Jamaica Organizing Committee, chaired by Mr Sean Blair, are working tirelessly to make this a great Conference with all the work and fun we need to have after not seeing each other since May 2019.

Conference is where the IFATCA family comes together! It is the time we can harvest the fruit of all the work going on during the year. It is when we meet as colleagues and friends and where we load up on new energy.

There would be no Federation without our fantastic standing committees. The professional and legal committee (PLC) and the technical and operations committee (TOC) have been busy researching both professional and technical matters and will propose new IFATCA policy that will be essential for the future of ATC. The finance and investment (FIC) and constitution and administration (CAC) committees lay the groundwork for the Federation. Without them, none of the important work IFATCA does could be done.

We look forward to welcoming directors and delegates from all our 133 Member Associations across the world. Hopefully everyone will be able to join us in Montego Bay! IFATCA has nine different financial assistance funds. If your MA has financial difficulties and is unable to travel to Jamaica, contact the office or your regional EVP now, so we can see if we can help you.

Important 1: Make sure you register at www.ifatca2023.org. Early bird registration ends February 28. After that the registration fee increases.

Important 2: Book your hotel at www.ifatca2023.org. The Organizing Committee offers 2 different hotels. The Hilton Rose Hall Resort and Toby´s Resort. Even if your MA hasn’t decided on who will be in your delegation, make the reservation in the name of your MA and country to secure your rooms. You can change/add the names later. On March 20 the Organizing Committee will give blocked rooms back to the Hilton Rose Hall Resort, which means after that prices will be the normal rack rate which is over 500 USD/night. Before March 20 you can get the special IFATCA price which is just over 300 USD. Book your rooms now!

If you have questions, reach out:

Organizing Committee– ifatca62oc@gmail.com

Conference Coordinator – jez.pigden@ifatca.org

Office– office@ifatca.org

I am very much looking forward to this Conference and I hope to see you all there!

Helena, Deputy President

CONFERENCE

ATTENDANCE FUND

Member Associations (MA) desiring support from the fund to attend shall make their request through an application to the Executive Board (EB). This fund is established to allow the EB to assist MAs with financial problems to allow ONE Director to attend the Annual Conference.

We are past the deadline for submission however consideration will still be given to those that submit their applications to their regional EVP (EVP/AFM, EVP/AMA, EVP/ASP, EVP/EUR).

The EB will decide on recipients, subject to the availability of funds. The maximum number of MAs assisted will be five (5) per Conference. The EB will give priority to MAs that have not received assistance in previous years.

CONFERENCE

Letter of Proxy

We look forward to seeing all IFATCA member associations at the annual conference in Jamaica. However, we understand that some may not be able to attend. Please remain part for the Federation’s democratic process and give your proxy to another association.

Please complete the form and send back to the office.

F INANCIAL CIRCUMSTANCES FUND

This fund is established to assist MAs, including those suspended for failure to pay their subscriptions or other debt, in meeting their financial obligations to the Federation. It assists MAs when financial circumstances apply, either wholly or in part, to allow affiliation or alleviate the suspension or expulsion of the MA.

MAs desiring support from the fund to establish or maintain membership in IFATCA shall make their case in written form through the Executive Board (Office or respective EVP/AFM, EVP/AMA, EVP/ASP, EVP/EUR) to the Directors at Conference.

Join Us at the 62nd IFATCA

Conference in Jamaica

The Jamaica Air Traffic Controllers’ Association (JATCA) will be hosting the 62nd Annual International Federation of Air Traffic Controllers’ Association Conference in Montego Bay, Jamaica from 8-13 May 2023. The conference will be held at the Hilton Rose Resort and Spa. Conference Working Papers (WP) due 08 April 2023 to office@ifatca.org

1. Make your conference registration! Early bird rate ends Feb 28.

2. Book your rooms! Even if you are not sure who will come from your MA, you can reserve rooms in the name of your MA and country. Add the attendees name later. The last day of IFATCA special rate is March 20th. After that, the rate goes up to over 500 USD/double occupancy.

Don’t miss out! Visit www.ifatca2023.org/

Interested in Hosting IFATCA World Conference in 2025?

Member Associations interested in hosting Conference 2025 should submit a Working Paper (WP) proposing your MA’s interest to the 2023 conference. The WP submission deadline is (30 days before conference) 08 April 2023.

The WP will be discussed and the selection process of the conference venue 2025 will take place, as normal, at Conference in Committee A and confirmed during the final Plenary at the conference in Jamaica, 08-12 May 2023.

The Selection of the conference venue 2024 will be done electronically in early 2023.

Any questions on the process please contact our Conference Coordinator, Jez Pigden at

jez.pigden@ifatca.org

Conference Organisation Requirements

IFATCA Executive Board – Deputy President, EVPT, EVP/AFM and EVP/ASP Nominations 2023

ELIGIBILITY and ELECTION

The Officers of the Federation shall be current or retired professional members of a Member Association. The Executive Vice-President Africa and Middle East, the Executive Vice- President Asia and Pacific shall be a member of a Member Association from the respective Region. (Arusha 08.A.18)

Candidates for an elective office may be nominated only by Member Associations. A candidate’s nomination need not necessarily be from their Member Association but in any event must have received the approval of their Member Association. (Toronto 17.A.5)

The officers will be elected, for a two-year term, by a majority vote of the Directors at the Annual Conference in Jamaica 202. Newly elected Officers will take office at the conclusion of the Conference in Jamaica.

NOMINATION FORM

IFATCA Deputy President

The Deputy President shall be responsible for:

the supervision of work programmes of all administrative committees of the Federation, including also the administrative management, the supervision of the secretariat, filing system, the maintenance and publication of all necessary records, manuals, bulletins, newsletters and Journal of the Federation;
closely monitoring all other activities of the Federation;
the preparation of public relations material and media relations as directed by the President and Chief Executive Officer.

Executive Vice President Technical

The Executive Vice-President in charge of technical matters and shall be responsible for the supervision of work programmes of all technical committees of the Federation.

Executive Vice-President Africa and Middle East

The Executive Vice-President Africa and Middle East shall be responsible for:

liaison with Member Associations within the Africa and Middle East Region;
ex-officio member of any committee of the Federation which may be assigned to the Africa and Middle East Region;
fostering contacts with non-member associations in the Africa and Middle East Region, and encouraging the affiliation of such associations;
overseeing the activities of their region. (Toronto 17.A.5)

Executive Vice-President Asia and Pacific

The Executive Vice-President Asia and Pacific shall be responsible for:

liaison with Member Associations within the Asia and Pacific Region;
ex-officio member of any committee of the Federation which may be assigned to the Asia and Pacific Region;
fostering contacts with non-member associations in the Asia and Pacific Region, and encouraging the affiliation of such associations;
overseeing the activities of their region. (Toronto 17.A.5)

Standing Committee Chair – Finance and Professional/Legal Nominations 2023

Standing Committee Video

ELIGIBILITY AND ELECTION

The Chair of each Standing Committee shall be elected at Conference. The nomination and election procedures for the Officers of the Federation shall apply for the position of Standing Committee Chair with any necessary modifications, and the election of each Chair shall be conducted in the relevant Conference Committee (FIC – Committee A and PLC – Committee C) and ratified by Conference with the acceptance of that Committee’s report to the closing Plenary.

Election to the Chair shall be for a period of two years ending at the relevant Conference. The election of the Chair shall occur before the election of the Member Associations to the associated Standing Committee. (Marrakech 00.A.31, Toronto 17.A.5)

NOMINATION FORM

FIC Term of Reference

PLC Terms of Reference

Standing Committee Chair Responsibilities

IFATCA’s Technical and Operations Committee (TOC) chaired by Jaymi Steinberg (NATCA USA), and Professional and Legal Committee (PLC) chaired by David Perks (Civil Air Australia) met in Shannon, Ireland February 7-9, 2023. This meeting reviewed the work both committees have accomplished over the past year, and ultimately generates final amendments to the information and policy papers for IFATCA to be presented at the annual conference in May in Jamaica.

A wide variety of topics are being studied in each committee, as well as several topics worked on by both committees. This year’s research includes RPAS, True vs Magnetic North, Remote Towers, Artificial Intelligence (and the potential legal implications thereof), ATC Staff shortages and challenges, military to civilian license conversion, multi ratings and multi sectors, adjacent OJTI, ATC software implementation and IFATCA ANSP key performance indicators.

IFALPA, with whom IFATCA extensively collaborates was ably represented by Felix Gottwald

and our own IFALPA Liaison Officer Kimmo Koivula (Finnish ATCA).

TOC welcomed 2 new members: Betsy Beaumont (NATCA USA) and Iulia Iordan (RATCA Romania).

We had the pleasure of additional contributions from the local Irish Air Traffic Controllers Association (IATCA) and IAA management.

There was also an RPAS presentation from EALU AER SESAR project based in Shannon organised by IFATCA Remotely Piloted Aircraft Task Force Chair Specialist Eugenio Diotalevi (ANACNA ITALY).

Visits to the Shannon en-route Ops room with its dynamic sectorisation structure was an excellent addition to the meeting.

The TOC and PLC would like to extend a huge thank you to IATCA, and particularly Nicola NiRiada (who had a great hand in helping plan such a successful meeting), for their generosity in hosting and contributions which facilitated a successful meeting.

IFATCA Speak English Program

NEW Participant Booking Form

A controller’s language and communication skills are critical. As English is the international language requirement for aviation professionals, it is therefore a priority to strengthen the general communication and English language skills of all Controllers.

The IFATCA Speak English program (SEP) seeks to:

help enhance the English-speaking capabilities of ATCOs around the region.
create a welcome and friendly English-speaking environment without any judgement or pressure.
establish an environment where air traffic controllers can practice plain English language and build up self-confidence in both usual & unusual situations that necessitate a departure from standard R/T phraseology.

The Program (SEP) is not only to help the participants improve speaking English, but to help them be able to think in English, thus improving their overall English abilities.

IFATCA Speak English Program – NEW Participant Booking Form

Instructions: (Form to be typed and sent as PDF/DOC. Any other format will be REJECTED; please use UTC time when filling out the form)

You can book one slot per period, a total of 3 slots in the month. Please provide your chosen slots from the available options on the shared calendar in Slot 1 below.
To assist the Secretariat, please provide an alternate time and date (also from the shared calendar) for each period in Slot 2.
If the matching is successful, you will receive a confirmation email from the SEP secretariat by the 8th of the month. If the matching is unsuccessful, you will NOT receive an email from the Secretariat.
If for any reason you need to cancel the confirmed session, please inform sep@ifatca.org no later than 24 hours before the session. In the event of a last minute cancellation, please inform the session facilitator directly.

DOWNLOAD THE NEW FORM

What is the Speak English Program Video

Recent Activity in the Regions

Americas (AMA)

Americas 2023 Regional Meeting to be held in Nassau, Bahamas

The Bahamas Air Traffic Controllers’ Union (BATCU) is proud to host the next regional meeting in Nassau.

Save the Date, October 25-27, 2023 to attend! More details to follow.

Asociación Técnicos y Empleados de Seguridad y a la Aeronavegación de Argentina (ATEPSA)

In Argentina, a new IFATCA team (from ATEPSA) started to work for ATEPSA, the air navigation services union. A group of air traffic controllers from different ACCs and Control Towers met in a ZOOM meeting last February the 3rd. They talked about the IFATCA mission, executive board, committees, wikifatca and the Speak English Program (SEP). The meeting was organized by Paula Velardez who is the International secretary for the union. America’s EVP Patricia Gilbert and RVP South America Mario Librán joined to introduce themselves and to provide them very useful information.

Great work ATEPSA!!!❤️❤️

IFATCA CBTA workshop hosted by TTATCA

The Trinidad and Tobago Air Traffic Controllers’ Association (TTATCA) is pleased to announce and welcome members from other regional member associations, on a first-come first-serve basis, to join in the IFATCA Competency Based Training and Assessment workshop they are hosting.

The IFATCA Competency Based Training and Assessment workshop will examine the ICAO competency framework, how to adapt observable behaviours to specific conditions and standards to define performance criteria (competency standards). It will look at the five workflows used to achieve it (and of course the ADDIE model). Participants will then look at the results: the adapted competency model, the training and assessment plans, the evidence guide, and other supporting documents and paperwork required with the method. During the workshop there will be practical exercises. For review, see the Student guide, workshop syllabus on page 6.

The workshop will be held in Piarco, Trinidad on 28 and 29 March 2023 from 8am to 4pm (lunch provided on-site) at the Civil Aviation Training Centre in Piarco which is located on the same compound as the Piarco Tower and ACC. There are approximately 15 slots open for member associations to join the TTATCA participants. If interested, member associations or individual attendees must cover the cost for attendance:

• airfare to and from POS,

• surface transportation and parking at departure country

• lodging (approximate cost $120-$150 per night which includes breakfast),

• dinner,

• any other expenses incurred

Transportation will be provided by TTATCA from/to the airport and to/from the workshop for participants staying at the designated hotel by the training centre.

Attendees should bring their enthusiasm, a laptop or IPAD (if you have one but it is not mandatory), USB stick as all documents and presentations will be shared.

Please fill out this form for attendance. Again, first-come first-served and space is limited. Deadline for form submission is 28 February 2023.

We look forward to seeing you there!

IFATCA Regional Team & TTATCA Executive

Soliciting for Positions in the America’s Region for the

Regional Communications committee (RCC) & EDI-Task Force

We currently have positions open for MAs to consider for their members that may be suitable for and passionate about the work. Available are several positions for the regional communications committee and one position for the Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion Task Force (EDI-TF).

Regional Communications Committee (RCC):

Some of the most important work IFATCA can do to strengthen the Federation is increasing and improving communications. IFATCA recently formed a World Communications committee (WCC). The Americas region would now like to create a Regional Communications committee (RCC). IFATCA AMA is now canvassing interest among our Member Associations to nominate for a position on the RCC.

Desired qualifications and skills:

Interested persons should be highly motivated, have strong diplomatic interpersonal skills, an ability to work with cultural and ethnic diversity, demonstrate solid in team dynamics, have a good command of spoken/written English and understand the objectives of IFATCA. Candidates should have experience in the development/writing of articles, designing and editing videos, photos/graphics, website maintenance, and a strong knowledge of social media platforms (Facebook/Instagram, Twitter, and TikTok).

Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Task Force:

The worldwide body of air traffic controllers consists of professionals of different gender, ethnicity, religion, nationality, sexual orientation and age. In the workplace as well as in organizations such as IFATCA, equality means to ascertain people are given equal opportunities, equal pay and are appreciated and accepted for their differences.

Organizations and corporations worldwide benefit from plurality and diversity within their own systems, but also when interacting with other institutions. Involving individuals and evolving with time is crucial to success.

Desired qualifications and skills:

Interested persons should be highly motivated, have strong diplomatic interpersonal skills, have a good command of spoken/written English and understand the objectives of IFATCA. They should understand and be passionate about cultural, social, gender and ethnic equity, inclusion and diversity.

Member Associations with suitable candidates are invited to forward applications to trish.gilbert@ifatca.org no later than 1 April 2023. These applications should include the candidates’ details, experience, and a statement of support from the Member Association.

Should you have any questions, please do not hesitate to reach out for further information.

Asia Pacific (ASP)

Critical Incident Stress Management Symposium in India

On the 11th January, the India ATC Guild held a symposium in Critical Incident Stress Management (CISM). More than 80 air traffic controllers participated in person and approximately 16 participated online in the interactive session and contributed to the process design.

Subject experts interacted extensively with ATCOs to understand the effect of stress on cognitive abilities pre-crisis and post crisis. External faculty from IIT Mumbai provided valuable insights of the subject and provided clarification on various questions concerning stress management which is a component of CISM.

Aviation psychologists, stress education experts and psychiatrists from aviation medicine encouraged ATCOS

to provide feedback, concerns, suggestions and advise to design an efficient and effective process.

The event set a good example for a CISM workshop for the MAs in this region.

Europe (EUR)

EUROCONTROL Network Manager User Forum 2023

On 2-3 February 2023, Frederic Deleau, EVP EUR participated in the EUROCONTROL Network Managers User Forum. The Forum was opened by EUROCONTROL’s Director General, Raul Medina. The Forum, “Managing the new normal”, discussions focused on how to effectively manage the aviation network in a way that contributes to Europe’s sustainable economic development – while providing value to the flying public at a time of unprecedented complexity and volatility.

The event covered:

A look back at the 2022 network situation, and the outlook for 2023
Strategic planning – Implementing the Network Strategy Plan
iNM – NM’s digital journey
European ATM infrastructure
NEW: An “open floor” session fully dedicated to Q&As, giving participants the chance to ask questions relating to any of the topics addressed

To view the Forum videos or presentations click here.