CHAPTER 1 One Hundred Years and Counting Sam pressed his nose against the plane window He saw white fluffy clouds against a bright blue sky Sam was on vacation with his family They were flying across the United States from New York to California It’s like we have the sky all to ourselves Sam exclaimed to his dad sitting next to him Not exactly son his dad said with a laugh There are around 7,000 other airplanes flying over the United States right this moment No way Sam said So why isn’t there a big traffic jam in the sky How do all these flying planes know where the other ones are That’s the job of air traffic control specialists his dad said They keep planes from crashing into each other Let me explain 4 21st century skills library
Airplanes are a popular and efficient way to travel Photo Caption An air traffic control specialist’s job is to organize airplanes so that they move safely at all times both in the air and on the ground Controllers provide instructions and information to pilots The pilot in command of an airplane is responsible for making the decisions about the plane’s operation Pilots use the information and instructions provided by air traffic controllers to take off fly and land safely Every year more than three billion passengers are carried safely through the skies Sam’s flight is one of more than 100,000 flights made each day by commercial airliners C O O L V O C AT I O N A L C A R E E R S 5
