Flight Controller Honored For Grace Under Pressure
John Charlton, an air traffic controller for Lake Charles Regional Airport in Louisiana, will receive the Archie League Medal of Safety Award for the National Air Traffic Controller Association's southwest region.
Charlton coached a student pilot to a safe landing after the student failed in earlier attempts to land the aircraft.
"I was very glad I could help the young lady out," Charlton tells NPR's Melissa Block. "There's a lot of controllers our there these days that have a pilot's license and I think they would have done the exact same thing I did.
"So I don't really think it's spectacular. It's probably the norm for most controllers who have any flight experience, to be honest with you."
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