The control tower at Zurich airport handles around 735 take-offs and landings per day, or a total of around 270,000 aircraft movements a year. Pictured is an Airbus A380 jet from Singapore Airlines.
Reuters
At peak periods, Skyguide handles up to 3,500 flights a day.
Reuters
Air traffic control tower at Basel-Mulhouse airport in 1991. Now known as EuroAirport, and covering the German city of Freiburg as well, it is situated on French territory. It is Switzerland's third largest airport after Zurich and Geneva.
Keystone
Skyguide employs around 1,400 people. More than a third are in air traffic control.
Keystone
In 2012, the average delay of flights managed by Skyguide was half a minute.
Keystone
Skyguide is located in 14 sites around Switzerland, including at Bern-Belp airport.
RDB
Air traffic controller at Geneva airport, 1947.
RDB
Lugano airport, in Italian-speaking Ticino, records around 10,000 take-offs and landings per year. The proximity of the mountains requires particular care on approach.
Ex-press
Basel-Mulhouse airport in 1990. Now serving the German city of Freiburg as well, in 20 years the number of scheduled and charter flights at the airport has risen by 20 per cent.
Keystone
The La Dole Skyguide air traffic control radar station at an altitude of 1,677 metres, is used to monitor and control air traffic in western Switzerland.
Keystone
Skyguide is in charge of air safety in Switzerland and in the border regions of Germany, France, Italy and Austria. Air traffic controllers have to watch over one of the most complex and extensively used airspaces in Europe.
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Air traffic controllers now have the benefit of high-performance radars. But, just as they did 30years ago, they still put their trust in their most important instruments – their eyes. (Pictures: Reuters, Keystone, RDB and Ex-press)
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