Topic 8 eurocontrol – european organizatiom for the safety of air navigation

The European Organization for the Safety of Air Navigation (EUROCONTROL) is an international organization, founded in 1960, whose primary objective is the development of seamless, pan-European Air Traffic Management (ATM) system. This civil organization currently has 38 member states (2009), its headquarters are in Brussels. Ukraine became the member of the organization in 2004.

The goal for EUROCONTROL is to develop, coordinate and plan the implementation of pan- European Air Traffic Management strategies and their associated action plans in an effort involving national authorities, air navigation service providers, civil and military airspace users, airports, industry, professional organizations, and relevant European institutions. Its core activities involve all gate-to-gate air navigation service operations: strategic and tactical flow management, controller training, regional control airspace, safety-proofed technologies and procedures, all collection of air navigation charges.

EUROCONTROL is governed by an international convention. The current version, which is in the process of ratification (2009), is known as the 'Revised Convention'. The Organization is divided into three bodies: two governing bodies, the EUROCONTROL Commission and the Provisional Council, and one executive body, the Agency. The governance structure comprises also specialised entities which report to or advise these three bodies.

The organization's strategic objectives are classified in the specific areas: safety, capacity, efficiency, security, environment.

Perhaps the most important challenge facing the organization in the years to come will be the part it plays in the implementation of the single European sky initiative.

Topic 9 the early days of aviation

From earliest of times it appears that the man dreamed of flying like the birds, and there are many stories of his attempts. One of the oldest stories from mythology tells of Icarus flying so high that the Sun melted the wax that held together his feathered wings, causing him to fall to his death.

Later, applying the technology of his day, Leonardo da Vinci (1452 – 1519) suggested that man might add to his muscle power by using levers and pulleys to obtain flight.

None of these attempts was successful.

Man's first successful flying vehicle was a lighter-than-air craft, the hot-air balloon. At last the man was off the ground. However, it soon became evident that the balloon was at the mercy of the winds.

In 1837 the great English pioneer of flight, Sir George Cayley, designed an efficient airship. It contained steam-driven propellers for steering and propulsion.

Sir George Cayley soon became aware that the kite was the key to heavier-than-air flying. He mounted a kite-wing on a 1.5-meter long stick 'fuselage' at a 6-degree angle of incidence. He then attached a special tail unit to the rear that could control the direction of flight, thus producing the first successful model aeroplane. The beginning of the fixed-wing aeroplane began when Cayley flew his first model successfully.

Orville and Wilbur Wright devised the wing-warping control system. The Wrights' system was less advanced than the present-day aileron, but it enabled them to make the first sustained, powered, and controlled aeroplane flights in December 1903. Their four flights that month, totalling 97 seconds of airtime, made their 'Flyer' the most famous aeroplane in history.

The first four-engine aeroplane to fly was the highly successful Russian Knight biplane (or Le-Grand) designed, built, and flown by Igor Sikorsky in 1913.

The Boeing 247, built in 1933, was the first of the modern, all-metal, single-wing airliners. It could carry ten passengers and could cross the United States in less than twenty hours. The aeroplane had de-icing equipment, control surface trim tabs, an automatic pilot, and a retractable undercarriage.