Today the International Federation of Air Traffic Controllers Association (IFATCA) celebrates the International Day of the Air Traffic Controller and 50 years of its existence.

On this occasion, we would like to pay tribute to the work done by air traffic controllers all over Europe.

Every day, more than 30,000 aircraft take to the skies in Europe, delivering millions of passengers to their destinations.

The explosion in air travel has transformed our lives, bringing unrivalled benefits to society and the business world.

On any given day, thousands of flights are guided safely through the skies. Whether they are carrying passengers or cargo, flight crews are responsible for their load, and when they fly they rely entirely on the professionalism of air traffic controllers, the systems they use and all the people behind the scenes who make this journey so unique.

The challenge is to ensure that the expected expansion in traffic can be handled safely and efficiently whilst keeping costs down and ensuring carbon-neutral air traffic growth. Air traffic controllers play a central role in achieving these challenges and moving forward towards the Single European Sky.

On busy summer days, at the EUROCONTROL Maastricht Upper Area Control Centre (MUAC), some 280 men and women from several different nationalities guide safely over 5,000 flights through some of the densest and most complex airspaces in the world.

Eurocontrol press release