Resource Management Training for Air Traffic Controllers

Abstract

The concerns about controller effectiveness in today’s highly automated environment suggest that new training approaches may be warranted. Just as airline pilots have had to develop new skills for dealing with cockpit automation, so now must controllers also expand their repertoire to include the skills which comprise effective resource management. Resource management training refers generally to technical training in the efficient use of system resources in the performance of a job. While air traffic controllers are not as explicitly teamoriented as flight crews, there are job parallels which suggest that performance could be improved through resource management training for skills such as leadership, planning, communication, assertiveness, situational awareness, and decision making that are often a part of flight crew resource management training. Today’s high-density and complex operations require efficient coordination among air traffic facilities and effective use of system automation. Satisfactory system performance of our newly automated air traffic systems will depend on controllers’ resource management skills.