Main content

Air traffic controllers

Datshiane Navanayagam talks to flight controllers from the UAE and Sweden about guiding aeroplane take-offs and landings and dealing with the extreme stress of the job.

Datshiane Navanayagam talks to controllers from the UAE and Sweden about guiding aeroplane take-offs and landings and dealing with the extreme stress of the job.

Helena Sjöström Falk is the first woman president of the International Federation of Air Traffic Controllers' Associations. She's from Sweden and recently retired from Stockholm Air Traffic Control Center. During her career she had many high pressure air traffic control positions, including aerodrome, approach, and area control.

Jouhayna AlMheiri is a senior air traffic controller, examiner and instructor in the United Arab Emirates, handling the flights of millions of passengers each year. She was the youngest and the second Emirati woman to qualify at UAE Area Control Centre. She's also a public speaker and podcast host.

Produced by Jane Thurlow

(Image: (L) Helena Sjöström Falk courtesy Helena Sjöström Falk. (R) Jouhayna AlMheiri credit Mustafa Singer.)

Available now

27 minutes

Last on

Mon 24 Mar 2025 23:32GMT

Broadcasts

  • Mon 24 Mar 2025 04:32GMT
  • Mon 24 Mar 2025 13:32GMT
  • Mon 24 Mar 2025 18:32GMT
  • Mon 24 Mar 2025 23:32GMT

The best of The Conversation

Enlightening, inspiring, revealing: Some of our favourite Conversations so far

100 Women

Global experience on image, work, relationships, equality, migration and working lives

Podcast