ART OF THE AIRPORT TOWER/NATIONAL AIR AND SPACE MUSEUM
There is a new exhibition at the Smithsonian ' s National Air and Space Museum
in Washington, D.C.: Art of the Airport Tower. This exhibition takes you on a
photographic journey to airports in the United States and around the globe. Smithsonian
photographer Carolyn Russo explores the varied forms and functions of air traffic control
towers throughout aviation history and interprets them as monumental abstractions,
symbols of cultural expression, and testimonies of technological change. These 50
images bring a heightened awareness to the simple beauty of the airport tower and a
call fo r their preservation in the airport landscape.
As the e xclusive bargaining representative of air traffic controllers and other
aviation safety professionals in the United States, NATCA is excited to be part of an
exhibition that showcases some of the facil ities in which these highly skilled men and
women keep the skies of the world safe. Along with the professionals represented
by IFATCA - International Federation of Air Traffic Controllers ' Associations , and by
the International Transport Workers ' Federation (ITF) Air Traffic Services Section , air
traffic controllers in airport towers and radar facilities throughout the world guide
approximately 100,000 commercial flights and tens of thousands of other types of
aircraft each day, ensuring the safe transport of millions of passengers. Photographer
Carolyn Russo captured the dynamic working environment within the towers featured in
the exhibition as controllers inside worked as a team to keep planes moving through the
sky.
Read more about Russo ' s exhibitio n
Purchase a copy of the companion book
Recent media reviews of the book :
New York Times
The Weather Channel
AFN RUNOFF ELECTION CAMPAIGN: The Federal Labor Relations Authority on Nov.
20 sent out runoff election ballots to each of the more than 1,200 eligib le voters in the
new AFN (FAA Office of Finance and Management) bargaining unit who received ballots
in the initial election last summer. They have until Jan. 13, 2016, to return the ballots and
that next day, Jan. 14, 2016, NATCA will know if it has won t he right to add them to its
list of represented aviation safety professionals. The Communications Department is
part of a team at the National Office that is joining with national and Region X leadership,
and the National Organizing Committee in undertakin g a campaign to reach out to these
AFN employees and ask them to VOTE NATCA.
The runoff against the American Federation of State, County and Municipal
Employees is needed because NATCA, while earning more votes in the initial election
by a wide margin, fel l just short of the 50 percent plus one total needed to win outright.
NATCA last week continued its direct outreach to AFN employees to let them
know about the dates of the election and begin to answer their questions. The Union will
once again make a stro ng case for why it believes a vote for NATCA is a vote that will
improve their careers and their professions.
NATCA SOCIAL MEDIA : We're within sniffing distance of 11,000 followers on the
NATCA Facebook page ! If you're not already part of the NATCA Family on Facebook
(facebook.com/NATCAFamily ) we invite you to "like" the page . It's one of the best ways
to stay in touch with news and information and also have some fun while enjoying the
comments of your fellow brothers and sisters.
