This chronology of significant events in air traffic control focuses on the growth the National Air Traffic Controllers Association. It is not a complete overview of ATC history in the United States, which traces its heritage to the late 1920s.
Sources: FAA Historical Chronology, 1926-1996; The Air Controllers' Controversy: Lessons from the PATCO Strike by Arthur B. Shostak and David Skocik (Human Sciences Press, 1986); Silent Skies by Willis J. Nordlund (Praeger, 1998); NATCA archives.
May 1984 - Former PATCO activist John Thornton meets Howie Barte, controllers from Quonset TRACON, and airport control towers in New England to discuss organizing.
October 1984 - At an organizing meeting for AATCC (American Air Traffic Controllers Council), New England controllers elect Howie Barte as their regional representative. During the next 18 months, other regional representatives are elected to a provisional board for AATCC and a subsequently renamed National Air Traffic Controllers Association. The board remains in place until NATCA holds its first national election in 1988: Alaskan - Joe Dunigan, later replaced by Will Faville Jr; Central - Jim Poole, later replaced by Dan Brand; Eastern - Joe O'Brien, later replaced by Steve Bell; Great Lakes - Fred Gilbert; New England - Howie Barte; Northwest Mountain - Gary Molen; Southern - Dan Keeny, later replaced by Lee Riley; Southwest - Ed Mullin; Western-Pacific - Jim McCann, later replaced by Karl Grundmann.
October 22 - AFGE files a petition for a representational election for AATCC New England union. November 27-30 - The FLRA holds hearings on AATCC's petition. The FLRA rules in AATCC's favor, but the FAA appeals and wins based on the grounds that it is regional rather than national and includes data systems specialists.
1985:
March 3 - NATCA's logo is born. The control tower and radar sweep bearing the letters AATCC was originally used for New England's organizing efforts.
Late Spring 1985 - Citing financial constraints, AFGE lays off its staff assigned to organize AATCC.
July 26 - The FAA awards a contract to IBM to replace computers at the en route centers. The upgrade is part of the agency's Advanced Automation Program, part of which includes the Advanced Automation System and controller "sector suites."
August 2 - The Delta Air Lines L-1011 crash shows that the Low-Level Wind Shear Alert System at DFW did not record the plane's turbulence. Raytheon develops a Terminal Doppler Weather Radar System to provide improved alert capability, and the FAA buys 47 units to install at key airports.
September 1985 - The Air Line Pilots Association discusses taking over the effort from AFGE, but the pilot union's Executive Board declines to formalize plans.
November 13 - ABC News "Nightline" boasts that there are 1,000 more flights a day now than in 1981. New York Republican Rep. Guy Molinari announces he intends to deliver a letter to President Reagan signed by more than 70 members of the House requesting reinstatement for fired controllers.
December 2 - MEBA President Gene DeFries announces the union will fund the effort to organize air traffic controllers.
December 16 - The controllers' group and MEBA propose to name the union NATCA, which Washington Center controllers used during their organizing effort in 1983-84.
1986
March 3 - An organization representing working controllers testifies in Congress before the House Subcommittee on Aviation. The hearing concerns airspace congestion, jurisdiction and procedures in northern New Jersey.
March 26 - MEBA Western States Coordinator Kelly Candaele organizes and chairs the meeting in San Francisco, which is attended by more than 30 controllers.
April 14 - The FAA reports growing numbers of midair collisions, attributing the higher rate to improved reporting methods.
June 12 - NATCA representatives testify before the House Post Office and Civil Service Subcommittee on Human Resources regarding the unacceptable ratio of air traffic to journeymen controllers and the H.R. 4003 bill, which would have authorized rehiring at least 1,000 PATCO controllers who were fired.
June 26 - Article XX Arbitration Hearing was held focusing on whether AFGE or MEBA should organize NATCA. MEBA, which had organized PATCO controllers, prevails.
August 31 - Aeromexico DC-9 and a Piper PA-28 collision exhibits limitations in the air traffic control system and the need for TCAS. Seventeen months later, the FAA begins testing the computerized system onboard two airliners.
September 23-24 - Seventy-two delegates attend the NATCA Founding Convention meeting. NATCA has collected more than 4,200 signatures calling for an election on union formation.
January 5 - NATCA files an election petition with the FLRA to be the sole bargaining agent for all operational GS-2152 air traffic controllers.
January 30 - NATCA testifies before the Senate Subcommittee on Aviation to restore immunity for controllers who report operational errors and to release money in the Airport and Airway Trust Fund to hire more controllers and upgrade equipment and software.
February 2 - About 35 controllers from seven states meet to discuss organizing and union certification election strategy.
March 24 - The FLRA schedules an election for May 6 through June 10 to decide whether NATCA will represent the nation's controllers.
May 17 - The FAA begins using the Aircraft Situation Display at its Central Flow Control Facility in Washington, D.C. The equipment provides a real-time visual display of all aircraft flying IFR in the nation.
May 29 - The FAA commissions the first Host Computer System at Seattle Center.
June 11 - Controllers vote for NATCA to be their sole bargaining agent. Charter members begin signing Personnel Management Form 1187, which authorizes the FAA to deduct union dues.
June 19 - The FLRA officially certifies NATCA as a union.
July 8 - Jim Burnett tells the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Transportation that the FAA should implement an improved controller feedback program due to rising operational errors.
July 22 - The Aviation Safety Commission holds its first day of hearings. NATCA National Coordinator John Thornton presents a six-point plan for improving the ATC system study.
September 7 - NATCA marches in New York City Labor Day parade.
September 10 - The Senate Aviation Subcommittee begins the first of at least four hearings on an ill-fated bill that would remove the FAA from the Transportation Department and turn the FAA into a government-owned corporation.
October 9 - NATCA and the FAA sign an agreement regarding random drug testing that provides for a grievance and arbitration procedure for controllers who are forced to undergo testing.
November 18 - NATCA schedules its first national election for nominations for president, vice president, and representatives from nine regions that mirror the FAA's structure.
December 9 - Union representatives from all 53 Southwest Region facilities and FAA representatives from Air Traffic, Labor Management Relations, and Human Resources meet to share experiences and initiate a regional "self-training mode."
1988:
January 26-28 - Nearly 300 delegates attend the second NATCA Biennial Convention. Major issues such as member dues, benefits, voting and reporting procedures were discussed.
April - May 1988 - A joint NATCA-FAA labor-management training course called "Partners in Problem Solving" begins.
June 22 - National Coordinator John Thornton testifies before the House Aviation Subcommittee in favor of an independent FAA.
June 23 - The FAA commissions the twentieth Host Computer System at Salt Lake Center.
July 18: Results from NATCA's first national election: President - Steve Bell; Executive Vice President - Ray Spickler; Alaskan Regional Representative - Will Faville Jr; Central - Dan Brand; Eastern - Barry Krasner; Great Lakes - Joe Bellino; New England - Jim Breen; Northwest Mountain - Gary Molen; Southern - Lee Riley; Southwest - Ed Mullin; Western-Pacific - Richard Bamberger. Krasner, Riley, and Spickler were declared winners after runoff elections.
August 15 - This marks NATCA's first contract and a 10-member contract negotiation team.
September 12-14 - The new NATCA Executive Board meets for the first time since the election in its offices on the eighth floor of MEBA headquarters at 444 N. Capitol St., Washington, D.C.
September 29 - NATCA proposes a labor agreement contains about 80 articles to the FAA.
1989:
January 13 - NATCA and the FAA reach tentative agreement on their first contract. The three-year pact includes 77 articles.
February 2 - NATCA membership exceeds 50 percent of all controllers. Alaskan and New England regions have the largest percentage of members.
April 18 - NATCA ratifies its first contract with the FAA by a vote of 3,920 to 748, more than a 5-to-1 ratio.
May 1 - NATCA and FAA sign the union's first collective bargaining agreement, which takes effect immediately.
June 18 - The FAA launches a five-year Pay Demonstration Project providing a bonus of up to 20 percent of base pay to about 2,100 controllers, flight standards, and airways facilities workers at 11 hard-to-staff facilities in the Chicago, Los Angeles, New York and Oakland areas.
July 12 - NATCA wins arbitration case ruling that NATCA facility representatives may leave the facility on official time to perform representational duties.
July 19 - A United Airlines DC-10 suffers total hydraulic failure after one of its engine fans breaks apart and damages the aircraft's control system. This crash landing accident leads to a formal NATCA/FAA program known as Critical Incident Stress Debriefing.
September 28 - NATCA creates a Political Action Committee, which collects $21,163 in contributions during its first election cycle.
October 17 - A 7.1-magnitude earthquake strikes the San Francisco Bay Area. Windows break in the tower cabs at San Francisco and San Jose airports, but controllers remain on position to direct flights.
1990:
January 25 - An Avianca 707 runs out of fuel while waiting to land at Kennedy International Airport and crashes in Long Island. The NTSB cites the flight crew's failure to manage the plane's fuel load as well as noting inadequate traffic flow management and a lack of standardized terminology for fuel emergencies.
April 16-20 - Nearly 500 delegates attend the third NATCA biennial convention and approve a resolution asking President Bush to allow fired controllers to apply for new positions in the FAA. Bush refuses.
May 10 - Hampton University receives an FAA contract to develop a training program for air traffic controllers. The Air Traffic Control Training Center in Eden Prairie, Minn., also receives federal money as part of the Collegiate Training Initiative.
July 10 - The Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals upholds the FAA's random drug testing program for the aviation industry.
August 3 - In a "Walk for Safety," more than 120 controllers at Washington Center stage a picket line in front of the facility to protest continued low staffing.
September 1 - Transportation Department policy bans smoking at FAA facilities, designated smoking areas are permitted.
October 19 - NATCA membership grows to 10,600, or more than 70 percent of the work force. Initiation fee is equal to one year of dues at the member's pay scale.
January 13 - An eight percent pay raise called an "interim geographic adjustment" is given to 5,933 FAA employees at facilities in the Los Angeles, New York and San Francisco areas.
February 1 - Following a USAir 737 landing crash, the FAA amends procedures to prohibit controllers from authorizing planes to hold at runway/taxiway intersections at night or when the intersection is not visible from the tower. The FAA assigns more controllers to LAX and adjusts runway lights to prevent glare from obstructing the view from the tower cab.
April 4 - The FAA finishes transferring more than 600,000 square miles of oceanic airspace from Miami and Boston Centers to New York Center.
May 1 - Safety inspectors organize as a bargaining unit within the Professional Airways Systems Specialists. PASS is certified as the representative for the 1,913 previously non-unionized FAA workers.
May 20 - NATCA and the FAA reach agreement on alternative work schedules, which enable controllers to complete an 80-hour work period in less than ten days.
July 31 - Results from NATCA's second national election: President - Former Eastern Regional Representative Barry Krasner; Executive Vice President - Former Great Lakes Regional Representative Joe Bellino Alaskan Regional Representative - Sam Rich; Central - Michael Putzier; Eastern - Tim Haines; Great Lakes - Jim Poole; New England - Incumbent Jim Breen; Northwest Mountain - Incumbent Gary Molen; Southern - Incumbent Randy Schwitz (appointed in May 1990); Southwest - Incumbent Ed Mullin; Western-Pacific - Karl Grundmann. Grundmann and Haines were declared winners after runoff elections. Incumbent Dan Brandt waived a runoff election against Putzier.
July 25 - The FAA announces that 230,621 drug tests were performed during 1990. Of these, 966, or 0.4 percent, were positive.
October 23 - Construction begins on the Southern California TRACON in San Diego, the third consolidated TRACON, which will consolidate five approach control facilities.
November 1991 - NATCA President Barry Krasner and William Pollard, FAA associate administrator for air traffic, formally agree to implement Quality Through Partnership, a collaborative labor-management program.
1992:
February 5 - This marks NATCA's second contract proposal to the FAA.
May 27-29 - Delegates at the fourth NATCA biennial convention vote to change Article IX, Section 7, of the union's constitution to allow a majority attending conventions to approve dues increases rather than a majority of the membership; they then approve raising dues to 1.5 percent.
August 24 - Hurricane Andrew forces Miami International, Fort Lauderdale Executive, West Palm Beach, Tamiami, and Key West airports to temporarily close.
October 1992 - NATCA's recently formed Reclassification Committee analyzes the classification system for air traffic facilities. The project ultimately replaces the Level I-V ranking system with an ATC 1-14 scale that also includes complexity factors, paving the way for unprecedented pay raises when the union's contract with the FAA takes effect in September 1998.
November 1992 - Craig Lasker from Boston Center takes over as New England Region vice president on the NATCA Executive Board.
1993:
April 5- NATCA relocates from Suite 845 at MEBA headquarters, 444 N. Capitol St., to its own leased offices in Suite 701 at 1150 17th St. NW, both in Washington, D.C.
April 28 - NATCA briefs the membership on its tentative, four-year contract with the FAA after two years of negotiations. The new pact contains 88 articles. Article 83 gives NATCA locals the right to determine their own seniority policy, which is subsequently changed to a national policy.
August 1 - The new agreement takes effect after 92 percent of voting members approve it.
August 12 - President Clinton announces that controllers fired for participating in the walkout 12 years ago may reapply for employment with the FAA.
September 29 - The FAA agrees to pay $19.5 million in back premium pay to controllers who took annual and sick leave on Sundays. Congress passes a law outlawing the extra pay.
October 1993 - The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office issues a full federal registration for the NATCA logo, with its distinctive control tower and radar sweep.
October 2 - Northwest Mountain Region Vice President Gary Molen retires from the FAA. James Ferguson replaces Molen on the NATCA board.
December 31 - All airliners with more than 30 passenger seats flying in U.S. airspace must now be equipped with TCAS.
January 17 - A 6.6-magnitude earthquake in Southern California closes Los Angeles International Airport. Windows in the Van Nuys tower cab break, but the airport continues to operate until a temporary tower is activated.
February 2 - The FAA announces that 25 more Level I VFR control towers will be contracted out, private firms now running 55 facilities.
April 15 - The Air Traffic Control System Command Center begins operations at a new facility in Herndon, Va. Size and technological constraints prompted the move from FAA headquarters in Washington, D.C.
April 19-21 - More than 400 delegates attend the fifth NATCA biennial convention where a proposal to establish a national seniority system is defeated.
May 3 - The Clinton administration plans to create an Air Traffic Services corporation to operate, maintain and modernize the air traffic control system. However, the proposal is never implemented.
June 3 - The FAA cancels most of the Advanced Automation System project due to lengthy delays and high cost overruns. The Display System Replacement project continues to move forward at the nation's 21 en route centers.
June 15 - The FAA commissions twin control towers at Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport, making DFW the only airport in the world to have three working towers.
August 1- Results from NATCA's third national election: President - Incumbent Barry Krasner; Executive Vice President - Mike McNally; Alaskan Region Vice President - Jerry Whittaker; Central - Incumbent Michael Putzier; Eastern - Joe Fruscella; Great Lakes - Incumbent Jim Poole; New England - Incumbent Craig Lasker (appointed in 1992); Northwest Mountain - Incumbent Jim Ferguson (appt. in 1993); Southern - Incumbent Randy Schwitz; Southwest - Rich Phillips; Western-Pacific - Owen Bridgeman.
October 1994 - The FAA develops a structured system for implementing Critical Incident Stress Debriefing, which was provided for under Article 74 of the NATCA/FAA contract. NATCA representatives become liaisons and tech representatives to FAA units. RTCA Inc. begins to study a concept known as Free Flight. With new technology and procedures pilots will be able to fly at higher altitudes and more directly to their destination. Controllers would provide clearances only to ensure safety and prevent congestion.
November 28 - U.S. District Court Judge Ann Aldrich dismisses NATCA's lawsuit to prevent the contracting out of 111 Level I VFR towers. The judge cites case law supporting government contracts to private employers and rules that the union lacks standing under Section 702 of the United States Code to press its claim against the FAA and Transportation Department. NATCA appeals the decision.
1995:
January 10 - Ballots are counted in the election to organize traffic management coordinators, who vote 279 to 169 against joining the union's bargaining unit. In May 2000, flow controllers vote in favor of NATCA representation.
February 28 - Denver International Airport opens during a snowstorm and controllers clear three aircraft to make the world's first triple simultaneous landing.
July 21 - The FAA and the Australian airline Qantas finish the first test of a satellite-based communication, navigation, and surveillance system. The Future Air Navigation System is designed to improve communications between controllers and pilots flying over the ocean.
November 15 - The appropriations bill funding the Transportation Department for fiscal 1996 becomes law, intending to make the FAA's procurement process faster and more cost effective, and enable the agency to negotiate pay with NATCA. The bill exempts FAA employees from various rights under Title 5 and strips the union of its powers as a labor group.
1996:
March 29 - President Clinton signs a continuing resolution bill providing aid to Bosnia, Midwest flood relief, and restoration of Chapter 71 rights for air traffic controllers.
July 30 - National Aviation Research Institute, a non-profit offshoot of the controllers union created to ensure that human factors are considered in air traffic control research and development projects, holds kick-off ceremonies.
September 9-11- At the sixth NATCA biennial convention a coalition of small facilities wins its bid to institute a national seniority policy. Delegates vote to allow NATCA to consider affiliation with another union and to expand representation to other employee groups.
September 16 - The FAA contracts with Raytheon Company to develop and build the Standard Terminal Automation Replacement System for up to 172 approach control facilities and 199 Defense Department installations.
December 5 - The FAA installs the first Display System Replacement at Seattle Center.
1997:
February 21 - The National Labor Relations Board certifies NATCA as the exclusive bargaining representative for its first contract tower.
Feb.27 - Union President Barry Krasner meets with MEBA President Alex Shandrowsky, notifying him of NATCA's intent to terminate affiliation.
May 28 - The union files a lawsuit against MEBA, seeking the right to disaffiliate. In June, the two parties agree to an out-of-court settlement granting NATCA the right to formally sever relations.
June 17 - The union files a certification petition with the FLRA to hold a national election on whether NATCA can represent FAA engineers and architects as the first new bargaining unit since 1987.
June 27 - NATCA Radar Tower Coalition formed.
August 13 - Members vote in favor of breaking away from MEBA, effective date is May 30, 1997.
August 15 - NATCA informational picketing on asbestos problems occurs outside Boston Center.
September 16 - Results from NATCA's fourth national election: President - Former Executive Vice President Mike McNally; Executive Vice President - Former Southern Region Vice President Randy Schwitz; Alaskan Region Vice President - Ricky Thompson; Central - Bill Otto; Eastern - Incumbent Joe Fruscella; Great Lakes - Incumbent Jim Poole; New England - Mike Blake; Northwest Mountain - Incumbent Jim Ferguson; Southern - Rodney Turner; Southwest - Mark Pallone; Western-Pacific - Gus Guerra. McNally, Poole, and Schwitz were declared winners after runoff elections.
September 18 - NATCA requests direct affiliation with the labor organization AFL-CIO.
November 10 -The FLRA certifies NATCA as the exclusive bargaining representative for 1,150 FAA engineers and architects.
February 19 - President Mike McNally, Executive Vice President Randy Schwitz and former General Counsel William Osborne Jr. appear before the AFL-CIO Executive Council to request direct affiliation.
March 1998 - The U.S. District Court vacates its decision from 1994 allowing the FAA to contract out Level I towers. NATCA seeks a court order requiring the agency to dismantle its contract program. The motion is denied, but NATCA must determine whether ATC services are "inherently governmental" or a "commercial activity," in which case they can be contracted out.
March 20 - The AFL-CIO Executive Council unanimously votes to accept NATCA as a direct affiliate to the union.
August 28 - The union and the FAA sign an unprecedented five-year, $1.6 billion collective bargaining agreement. The new pact includes a 10-tier pay reclassification system that had been under development since 1992.
September 5-8 - At the seventh NATCA biennial convention delegates revise the national seniority system at. Delegates also allow the engineers and architects a seat on the National Executive Board, and authorize the board to spend money in the union's building fund to buy an office.
October 30 - NATCA testifies before the Transportation Subcommittee of the House Appropriations Committee stating that controllers were not consulted on the STARS modernization program and that the equipment is not suited to the way TRACON controllers do their job.
December 15 - Updated DSR becomes operational at Seattle Center.
1999:
February 23 - The FAA notifies NATCA that it has determined VFR control tower operations are a commercial activity that can be provided by private firms. The union files a second lawsuit and the two parties agree that no more towers will be contracted out until the courts resolve the matter.
March 23 - The FLRA certifies NATCA as the exclusive bargaining representative for FAA workers who issue Notices to Airmen.
April 29 - The FAA and the union agree to a revised policy concerning familiarization trips. The replacement Article 23 provides for: six FAM trips per year, including one international (down from eight domestic and one international); all FAMs on duty time; no more than two trips to the same airport (the previous limit was eight); FAMs used toward annual proficiency training requirements. The new agreement takes effect May 31, 1999.
July 21 - The union signs a purchase agreement with the American Society of Microbiology to buy its office building at 1325 Massachusetts Ave. NW in Washington, D.C., for $8.1 million. In the fall, as a prelude to closing the real estate transaction, the union forms a nonprofit corporation called NATCA Membership Investments Inc. Under its charter, NMI will own the building. Mike McNally, Randy Schwitz, and Walter Boeing are appointed to NMI's three-member board; Susan Tsui Grundmann serves as secretary. At its 2000 convention, NATCA delegates pass a bylaw stipulating that all net proceeds from NMI be earmarked for a membership trust fund.
September 20 - NATCA special election: Jim D'Agati becomes Engineers and Architects vice president.
December 1999 - The Early Display Configuration of STARS is installed in El Paso, Texas, for testing and evaluation. In January 2000, EDC is installed in Syracuse, New York.
2000:
February 7 - The FLRA certifies NATCA as the exclusive bargaining representative for 280 workers in the Accounting and Budget divisions at FAA headquarters.
February 28 - The union moves into its newly purchased office building at 1325 Massachusetts Ave. NW in Washington, D.C. Previously, AFGE owned the structure.
April 26 - The FLRA certifies NATCA as the exclusive bargaining representative for 274 FAA employees in the Logistics, Finance, and Computer Support divisions.
April 27-29 - More than 800 delegates attend the eighth NATCA biennial convention. Moves to revisit the seniority plan and dues structure are voted down.
May 22 - The FLRA certifies NATCA as the exclusive bargaining representative for the FAA's AOS-200/260 engineers in Oklahoma City.
May 25 - The FLRA certifies NATCA as the exclusive bargaining representative for the FAA's 600 traffic management coordinators.
June 1 - The FLRA certifies NATCA as the exclusive bargaining representative for the FAA's 180 AT facility engineers (AOS 300/400).
June 26 - The U.S. District Court rules for the second time that the FAA has not made a valid decision on whether air traffic control is an "inherently governmental" function. NATCA asks it to discontinue the contract tower program.
July 12 - FAA Administrator Jane Garvey, numerous other agency and union dignitaries, and rank-and-file members attend a bash to dedicate the new headquarters as the Krasner Building.
July 14 - The FLRA certifies NATCA as the exclusive bargaining representative for the FAA's Aviation Systems Standards specialists and seventy-five AOS-510 engineers in Oklahoma City.
August 23 - The FLRA certifies NATCA as the exclusive bargaining representative for the FAA's occupational health specialists, occupational health nurses, and medical program assistants.
August 31 - The FLRA certifies NATCA as the exclusive bargaining representative for 300 FAA workers in the Airports Division and airport district offices.
September 1 - With the election of Ruth Marlin and Carol Branaman, women serve on the National Executive Board for the first time: President - John Carr; Executive Vice President - Ruth Marlin; Alaskan Region Vice President - Incumbent Ricky Thompson; Central - John Tune; Eastern - Incumbent Joe Fruscella; Great Lakes - Pat Forrey; New England - Incumbent Mike Blake; Northwest Mountain - Carol Branaman; Southern - Incumbent Rodney Turner; Southwest - Incumbent Mark Pallone; Western-Pacific - Kevin McGrath; Engineers & Architects - Jim D'Agati. Marlin, McGrath, and Pallone were declared winners after runoff elections.
September 8 - The FLRA certifies NATCA as the exclusive bargaining representative for FAA workers in the Airworthiness Programs Branch.
September 12 - The FLRA certifies NATCA as the exclusive bargaining representative for 495 FAA workers in the Aircraft Certification Service.
October 11- The FLRA certifies NATCA as the exclusive bargaining representative for FAA employees in the Logistics, Finance, and Computer Support divisions in the Alaskan Region.
October 26 - The FLRA certifies NATCA as the exclusive bargaining representative for Hawaii air traffic specialists and the Hawaii Air Guard, the fourteenth and last new bargaining unit organized by the union during the calendar year. NATCA now represents 15,000 controllers, of whom 80 percent are union members, and nearly 4,000 other FAA employees.
December 7 - President Clinton signs an executive order mandating the FAA to reorganize its air traffic control operations into a performance-based Air Traffic Organization. Clinton names five members to a board of directors that will serve as an oversight committee and directs that a chief operating officer be hired.
2001:
January 4 - The FLRA certifies NATCA as the exclusive bargaining representative for FAA Regional and Center counsel.
January 30 - The union signs two collective bargaining agreements with the FAA representing engineers/architects and traffic management coordinators.
February 28 - A 6.1-magnitude earthquake in the Seattle area severely damages the control tower at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport. The airport reopens in an hour to departure traffic. A three-person temporary tower is erected to handle operations.
April 7 - Atlanta TRACON begins operations in a new consolidated facility in Peachtree City, Ga. Macon and Columbus TRACONs are scheduled to move into the building within a year.
May 24 - The FAA selects Lockheed Martin Corp. to upgrade the agency's Anchorage, New York, and Oakland oceanic control centers. Lockheed's system will eliminate the need for controllers to use paper strips and track oceanic flights with grease pencils on Plexiglas charts.
June 6 - The FAA and The Boeing Company's air traffic management unit each unveil long-range plans for improving the ATC system.
September 11 - Hijacked planes collide with the World Trade Center and the Pentagon prompting the first shutdown of the National Airspace System.
2002:
January 7 - FLRA certified NATCA as exclusive bargaining representative of the staff specialists.
September 5-7 - Ninth NATCA biennial convention scheduled at the Cleveland Convention Center with the Sheraton City Centre serving as the host hotel.
2003:
July 31 - Results from NATCA's sixth national election: President - Incumbent John Carr; Executive Vice President - Incumbent Ruth Marlin; Alaskan Region Vice President - Incumbent Ricky Thompson; Central - Incumbent John Tune; Eastern - Phil Barbarello; Great Lakes - Incumbent Pat Forrey; New England - Incumbent Mike Blake; Northwest Mountain - Incumbent Carol Branaman; Southern - Andy Cantwell; Southwest - Darrell Meachum; Western-Pacific - Bob Marks.
2004:
Sep. 10-13 - Tenth NATCA biennial convention to be held at the Regal Riverfront Hotel in St. Louis.
