Whats the Best Technology?

[WhatUMean]

With a load of new tools now at the controllers disposal, and more coming, for various reasons, what do you think the best ones have been, and the ones that seem to have caused more trouble than they worth or seem to not really benefit the controller but more the company?

[Tower Ranger]

Paper strips, coloured strip holders and toggle switches for banboxing. Sometimes the best things are the simplest things.

[Lon More]

Paper strips, coloured strip holders and toggle switches for banboxing

No wonder "Luddite" is an English word



btw; it's "bandboxing"

[chevvron]

Different coloured pens for different sectors.
Seriously though, having printed FPS instead of trying to read my own writing.

[saywhat]

The Eurocat system is amazing.Huge number of controller functions and ways to access information.Electronic strips definitely best thing so far

[Gonzo]

Labels on the ASMGCS *





* When accurate, when stand changes appear concurrently with EFPS, when the labels don't revert to a raw squawk 15 minutes after landing, when the labels don't wander aimlessly over the screen, when all the outbound labels work and when the inbound labels have the stand.

[controllerzhu]

I believe the Best Technology is a well trained controller that sees traffic and does not rely on a computer almost exclusively to point it out to them. Most of our new trainees spend too much time looking at the URET (basically a electronic strip/conflict probe tool), then seeing the conflict by using the radar. I try to embrace every new tool given to us, but you can certainly see the ones that had little or no Air Traffic Controller input.

CZHU

[Minesapint]

Mode S EHS, coupled with CPDLC and electronic strips.

[Quintilian]

I visited Malmö ATCC (Sweden) a few weeks ago, and joined a few pairs of controllers while they worked... They got a new system a few years back, and praised it like nothing else.... I think what they fancied most was "prediction lines" going along their A/C's ATS-routes (from FP)... Then if lines from two different a/c crossed further on, and the system expected that one of them had to climb/descent through the others level, then the intersection would be yellow, and one would get a "potentially conflict alert" (maybe 10-15 minutes ahead)... If one of the a/c by accident got a actual clearance to climb/descent through the others level, then the alarm would go off.... Completely stripless environment, and they semt very, very happy about it...

[Tower Ranger]

hey lon more, thanks for pointing out the horrendous error in my spelling. apparently "muppet" is also an English word but i`m sure you`d know that better than me.
TR

[FinDir]

Secondary Surveillance Radar and code-callsign conversion. Definitely the best development, as well as the aforementioned paper strips and coloured strip holders!

EFPS and all the other gizmo's are just a complex convenience in my opinion

[Lon More]

`Tower ranger a sense of humour is also a valuable asset.

[Minesapint]

Thales Eurocat and what sounds like MTCD, its agood system.

[niknak]

Look Lon - all Tower Ranger wanted to do was ban boxing

The best technology?

The Alstom lighting panel, press one button and it automatically sets the airfield lights to match the prevailing weather as per CAP168.

[Gonzo]

The best technology?

The Alstom lighting panel

It's certainly not when it's on 42in plasmas and you have switchable taxiway lighting....

How many have we gone through? Anyone? Didn't we put the manufacturer out of business because we kept sending them back to be replaced!

[millerman]

The best technology I use?

A mouse and a system where all the information you need is on the screen, so you don't need to keep looking away from the screen and at strips!!!

The best technology I try not to use?

STCA ( short term conflict alert ) It has saved every controller alot of paperwork at some time or another

[Airways B]

ILS, ..with it's nice soft grass critical areas!