About the Profession of Air Traffic Control in Germany After World War II
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A new profession is born ! AIR TRAFFIC CONTROL A look back into the first years The 1949 “Bremen Boys” Rhein-Main Airbase Frankfurt/Main, South Side 1948/49 Aerodrome Control Towers during the Berlin Airlift US - Air Force A Report by Frank W Fischer 23 May 2012 F.W.Fischer, ANSA 23.5.2012 1 A Report on the Evolvement of the Profession of the AIR TRAFFIC CONTROLLER in Germany after WW II - the first steps as of 1949 - compiled by Frank W Fischer Air Traffic Controller of the former German Federal Administration for Air Navigation Services (Bundesanstalt für Flugsicherung) 1957 to 1981 Hauptstrasse 21, CH 4571 Lüterkofen / SO, Switzerland E-Mail: [email protected] 23 May 2012 © Copyright Selbstverlag International Advisory Group – Air Navigation Services (ANSA) Hauptstrasse 21, CH 4571 Lüterkofen / SO, Switzerland Internet web-site www.atc-ansa.org/ E-Mail [email protected] F.W.Fischer, ANSA 23.5.2012 2 I. THE POLITICAL SITUATION We are writing the year 1949. The Second World War is over and Germany is divided into four occupation zones, a russian in the east, a british in the north, an american in the center & southeast, as well as a french in the west & south; see ICAO EUM III chart in document 7266 of 1952. The Berlin Airlift is still in full swing and additional alternate airports are required besides Hamburg, Frankfurt, Fassberg and Wiesbaden. On May 10, 1949 the “Occupation Statute” of the three High Commissioners of Great Britain, France and the USA comes into force. During the same year a Civil Aviation Administration of the western occupation forces was established, called “Allied Civil Aviation Board – CAB” with its american branch (CAD) under jurisdiction of the US State Department and HICOG. The overall jurisdiction over the air navigation services, civil air traffic and the aerodromes was now vested in the CAB, administered by the representatives of the american, british and french occupation forces. Chief of the american department of the CAB was Mr. Thomas Johnson, his deputy Mr. L. C. Moore, the one of the british department was another Mr. Johnson and the french representative was Mr. M. Guillaume. The Soviets maintained loose contact to the CAB through their military liaison unit at Frankfurt / Niederrad. Messrs. Tom Johnson and L. C. Moore, Munich 1968 Then, on May 24, 1949 the Federal Republic of (West) Germany comes into being. Regular civil air traffic by airlines only took place as of January 1950 and the CAB under control of the High Commissioners initiated the establishment of a common german administration for all matters regarding air navigation. Following the CAB’s initiative the newly formed ministry for transport established a preliminary unit for the creation of the “Federal Administration for Air Navigation Services” in December 1951, located first with the CAB at Wiesbaden and then in the IG Farben building complex downtown Frankfurt/Main. F.W.Fischer, ANSA 23.5.2012 3 As chief of this unit Dr. O. Heer, who had already served with the administration of the “Reichs-Flugsicherung” before the war, was appointed by the MoT, assisted by Messrs. Möbius, Geisser and Garczyk. This unit moved together with the CAB to the IG Farben building on February 1, 1952 and then opened separate offices in annex-A behind the same building on August 6, 1952. After three years of preparations the law on BFS (Bundesanstalt für Flugsicherung) finally took effect on March 23, 1953. Preliminary Unit BFS at Annex A IG Farben Building February 1952 The other staff members of the preliminary unit became Dr. h.c. Karwarth, thereafter working for the forerunner of Lufthansa, the “Luft-AG”, and Mr. P. Berger, who as of 1951 had worked directly for the CAB and now joined ICAO’s european office in Paris until his retirement. On February 6, 1952 Mrs. Süsserott of Estonia was hired as secretary. The requirements for her job were good command of the german, english and russian languages, shorthand and typing. Mr. Möbius in later years also worked for Lufthansa. The others worked for BFS until their retirement. With BFS now in existence and beginning to operate Dr. Ing. Heer was assigned as its first director and later on became its president. In this function he and Mr. Möbius already participated in the 1952 ICAO EUM III conference in Paris as observers and advisors to the three CAB representatives, despite the fact that Germany was not a member state of the International Civil Aviation Organization as yet. But in 1953 West Germany also was not sovereign yet and therefore had only part – jurisdiction over its airspace under “subject to exceptions” rules of the occupation forces. This situation only changed with the Paris agreements and Germany’s accession to NATO (founded on April 4, 1949) in 1955 when the now Federal Republic regained sovereignty. The new German Air Force came into existence in 1956. For these reasons the law on BFS foresaw that all flights which were not handled by aerodrome and approach control units of the occupation forces and those operating under control of air defense units come under the F.W.Fischer, ANSA 23.5.2012 4 jurisdiction of the BFS, be they civil or military. This regulation remained unchanged also beyond 1956 and was again reconfirmed by the MoD and MoT in 1959. Likewise, also the prelimiary council for the reinstitution of german airline operations had been established by the MoT in 1951. As a consequence the “Luft-AG” was founded on January 6, 1953, which later on was given the name “Lufthansa” in succession of the pre-war Lufthansa again. Heated discussions took place thereafter with the MoT of East Germany, because also they had reinstituted “Lufthansa” as a german airline, mainly operating Ilyushin- 14 airliners in the beginning, whereas West Germany used the Douglas DC-3 and Convair 240 Metropolitan aircraft. East Germany finally agreed to rename their “Lufthansa” into “Interflug”. Dr. Karwarth became one of Lufthansa’s first directors. Airline operations of Lufthansa were resumed on April 1, 1955, whereas before only Air France of France, British European Airways of Great Britain and American Overseas Airlines (AOA), which became PANAM, of the USA, and Aeroflot of Russia had conducted regular scheduled flights into and over Germany as of 1950. Meanwhile, and before the Berlin Airlift the first air route traffic control centre (ARTCC / ACC) had been put into operation in 1947 in West Germany on the top floor of the IG Farben building downtown Frankfurt by the US Air Force under jurisdiction of HICOG. Superintendent and chief controller of this ATC centre were USAF Cpt. Chabeaux and Cpt. Mills of the 1968th Airways Air Communication Service (AACS) of USAF until the relocation of this centre to Rhein Main airport (north side) on April 21, 1953. Frankfurt/Main IG Farben Building with AACS ARTCC and CPS/5 Radar 1949 – 1953 The US branch of the allied CAB in Wiesbaden had already employed a few german civilian air traffic controllers, who worked in joint teams at Frankfurt ARTCC with their AACS colleagues; but more about this, at that time, unusual development later. F.W.Fischer, ANSA 23.5.2012 5 Apart from ongoing war activities the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) had been founded in 1944 in Chicago on the initiative of the USA. This new international organization, then still called Provisional – ICAO, began to operate worldwide in 1947; in Europe with a regional office in Paris for ICAO’s Europe Region. It set-up common standards, recommended practices and procedures for uniform application of rules of the air, the provision of air traffic (control) services, aeronautical telecommunications, aircraft operations, search & rescue, aeronautical information service, personnel licensing, etc. In 1952 headquarters USAF in Washington ordered all their overseas units to also apply these ICAO standards in their operation. The US branch of the CAB had already trained its new german controllers in accordance with these ICAO rules since 1949. BFS also did so as of 1953, despite the fact that the FRG became a member of ICAO only in 1956, once it had regained sovereignty. Germany’s accession to ICAO had been a precondition of HICOG for the establishment of BFS, which proved to be a wise decision. The first ARTCC in West Germany, solely operated by german controllers was Munich, formerly run by the 1972nd AACS squadron, having started operation on January 15, 1953 with Frankfurt following in April 1953. But both, for a few more months remained under jurisdiction of the CAB. New Frankfurt ACC/ARTCC 1953+ at Rhein-Main Airport With the coming into force of the law on BFS in March 1953 the ARTCC moved from downtown Frankfurt to the airport; see Stars&Stripes report April 22, 1953. On June 1, 1953 all german ATC staff was now officially taken over by BFS. Another month later the jurisdiction over all air navigation matters also changed from the CAB to BFS (July 1, 1953), however ATC licences were still issued by the US CAB branches until 1956, when the FRG joined ICAO. F.W.Fischer, ANSA 23.5.2012 6 1949 HICOG – CAB ATC Licence 1949 1949 HICOG – CAB ATC Licence 1949 showing the ATC Ratings As of July 1953 only german controllers then provided air traffic control service at the civil air navigation services units in the country, except for Frankfurt approach control (RAPCON) and aerdrome control tower (TWR), which were located at Rhein Main AB until 1957, and which remained under 1945th AACS command until December 1959, employing joint AACS / BFS teams. II. PERSONNEL Before 1947 the occupation forces operated the airports and the air navigation service units without german personnel.