Division of Labor in Air Traffic Control Operations
From the Perspective of Organizational Accident Research
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.51094/jxiv.1416Keywords:
air traffic control, tight coupling, complexity, Normal Accident Theory, High Reliability TheoryAbstract
In January 2024, an aircraft collision occurred on the runway at Haneda Airport (Tokyo International Airport). In the immediate aftermath of the incident, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism (MLIT) issued directives to air traffic controllers, pilots, and airline operators, and implemented measures such as augmenting the monitoring system. The air traffic control operations examined in this study will see the establishment of a new “Takeoff and Landing Coordination Officer” role in fiscal 2025. However, this proposal has encountered some opposition. This paper will therefore analyze air traffic control operations from the perspective of organizational accident research, namely Normal Accident Theory and High Reliability Theory, to consider how air traffic control operations should be divided. The paper contends that establishing the new role of “Takeoff and Landing Coordination Officer” is not a sufficient countermeasure. Instead, the addition of a “Monitoring Support Officer” (Towerman, 2025) would be a more effective solution.
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Submitted: 2025-07-31 09:33:30 UTC
Published: 2025-08-04 09:28:53 UTC
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Yuko Sugiura
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