Charleston TRACON Facility Guide

Charleston TRACON
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Welcome Letter
Charleston Tower Today
Charleston Tower Leadership Team
Our Expectations of New Employee’s
Policies
Local Area Information
Restauraunts of Note
Charleston Tower Directory
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Welcome Letter
Dear New Employee,
Welcome to Charleston Tower and Approach Control. Here you will have an
opportunity to work with an outstanding team of professionals dedicated to the
training process and the safe movement of airplanes. You have been fortunate to be
placed in a facility that provides tower and radar services, enabling you to learn and
become proficient in both Air Traffic Control options.
In addition to working at a great facility, Charleston offers the cultural benefits of a
historic city while surrounded by beaches and wonderful weather. You couldn’t ask
for a better combination.
We look forward to working with you, and we would all like to welcome you again to
our team.
Sincerely,
Stephanie Faison
Charleston Tower/TRACON Manager
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Charleston TRACON Today
The Charleston TRACON serves both the civilian and military air operations that call
it home. It is home to the Charleston International Airport, as well as the 437th Airlift
Wing.
Charleston International offers 124 daily flights to up to 17 destinations. Charleston
International Passengers can enjoy all the travel advantages combined with a unique
and refreshing level personal services and attention. Due to the modern facilities,
state-of-the-art operations and proximity to Charleston, the Charleston International
Airport is quickly becoming a hub for the southeastern United States and a gateway to
the world.
Charleston Air Force Base is home to the 437th Airlift Wing (437 AW), the "host"
wing for the installation, operating the C-17 Globemaster III strategic airlift aircraft.
The wing has four operational groups consisting of 21 squadrons and one wing staff
directorate. It is augmented by a parallel, collocated Air Force Reserve Command
(AFRC) "associate" wing, the 315th Airlift Wing (315 AW), which shares the same
C-17 aircraft with the 437 AW.
Charleston's mission is to fly C-17s and provide airlift of troops and passengers,
military equipment, cargo, and aeromedical equipment and supplies world-wide in
support of tasking by Air Mobility Command and unified combatant commanders.
Charleston Air Force Base originated when the city of Charleston purchased land in
1931 to build Charleston Municipal Airport. On 11 December 1941, the Army Air
Corps took control of the field and anti-submarine missions were being flown out of
Charleston Army Air Field by August 1942. Returned to civilian control after World
War II, the United States Air Force began joint use of the facility on 11 July 1952 and
the military part of the airfield was renamed Charleston Air Force Base on 1 June
1953.
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With United States' entry into World War II on December 8, 1941, Army Air Forces
(AAF) units deployed to Charleston airport within several days to establish coastal
defense operations. The need to use the airport indefinitely resulted in the city signing
a lease with the War Department on March 23, 1942, whereby the AAF gained full
control of the facility.
Initially a training site for B-17 Flying Fortress and B-24 Liberator crews and ground
personnel, and later C-54 Skymaster crews; on acquisition of nearby land, base area
grew from 1,011 to 2,084 acres 1942-1943; a runway extension, new runways,
aircraft parking and dispersal areas completed mid-1943.
In 1946, the airfield changed to solely civilian use. In 1952, the city of Charleston and
the Air Force agreed to joint-use of the runways. The Tactical Air Command reestablished military operation at the base in 1952 and on 1 Mar 1956 control of the
base was transferred to the Military Air Transport Service (MATS). In 1966, MATS
became the Military Airlift Command (MAC)
The base has operated various strategic airlift aircraft since the 1950s, to include the
C-124 Globemaster, C-5 Galaxy and the C-141 Starlifter.
In 1992, following the disestablishment of MAC as part of an Air Force-wide
reorganization, the 437th Military Airlift Wing (437 MAW) and 315th Military Airlift
Wing (315 MAW) were placed under the newly-established Air Mobility Command
(AMC) and redesignated as the 437th Airlift Wing (437 AW) and 315th Airlift Wing
(315 AW), respectively.
Today, the 437 AW and 315 AW (Associate) operate the C-17 Globemaster III. The
base has also maintained an alert site for fighter-interceptor aircraft (primarily Air
National Guard aircraft) of the Aerospace Defense Command (ADC), Tactical Air
Command (TAC) and Air Combat Command (ACC), conducting the continental air
defense mission. The last unit to occupy the alert site was a detachment F-16 aircraft
from the 158th Fighter Wing of the Vermont Air National Guard. Detachment
operations officially ended at the end of FY99, with the facility placed in caretaker
status. However, since 11 Sep 2001, the facility has seen intermittent operations by
various USAF fighter aircraft of the Active and Reserve Components.
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Charleston Organizational Chart
Stephanie Faison
Air Traffic Manager
Jose Ruiz
Front Line Manager
John Gilliard
Support Specialist
Chris Rickenbaker
Front Line Manager
Janet Cole
Admin
Chris Mason
Front Line Manager
Training Department
Rick Prince
Front Line Manager
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Charleston TRACON Leadership Team and Staff
Stephanie Faison is the Air Traffic Manager of Charleston Approach Control. There
are four Front Line Managers, Jose Ruiz, Chris Rickenbaker, Chris Mason, and
Richard Prince, one of them will be assigned to head your training team. The
President of the Charleston National Air Traffic Controllers Association is Richard
O’Hara. Below are their bios that outline career paths of these distinguished
individuals.
Stephanie, Air Traffic Manager, Charleston Approach
Stephanie Faison joined the FAA in 1986 as an Air Traffic Assistant at New York
Center in Ronkonkoma, New York. Her employment track record includes Supervisor
positions at John F. Kennedy and Teterboro Towers, Staff Specialist for Quality
Assurance and Training, Transition Team Manager for the legacy Eastern Region Air
Space and Procedures Branch, and terminal staff for the NY/NJ/PHL Airspace
Redesign.
Jose Ruiz, Front Line Manager, Charleston Approach
Jose joined the FAA in 1988 as an Air Traffic Controller. Jose served as a Quality
Assurance and Training specialist before becoming a Front Line Manager at
Charleston Approach. He also served as an Air Traffic Controller in the United
States Air force and is currently a member of the Air Force Reserve.
Chris Rickenbaker, Charleston Approach
Chris joined the FAA in 1988 after serving in the South Carolina Air National Guard
as an Air Traffic Controller. His career includes serving as a Traffic Management
Coordinator at Charlotte Tower, Supervisor at Charleston and Huntsville Towers and
Air Traffic Controller at Memphis Tower. Chris is also a recreational pilot.
Chris Mason, Charleston Approach
Chris served as an Air Traffic Controller in the United States Air Force and Federal
Contract Tower in Florida before joining the FAA in 2002. He was an Air Traffic
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Controller at Chicago En Route Center and is currently a Front Line Manager at
Charleston.
Richard Prince, Charleston Approach
Rick served in the United States Marine Corp as an Air Traffic Controller before
being assigned to Charleston in 1991. He served as the Charleston National Air
Traffic Controllers President and is currently a Front Line Manager.
Richard O’Hara, Charleston Approach
Rick served as an Air Traffic Controller in the United States Air force before joining
the FAA in 1998. He was a controller at Birmingham Tower and is currently a
controller and serves as President for the local National Air Traffic Controllers
Association.
John Gilliard, Support Specialist, Charleston Approach
John Gilliard joined the FAA in 1984. He started his career at the Los Angeles
ARTCC. He then transitioned to the Terminal option, working multiple tower across
the nation, ranging from California, to Mississippi. John is currently the Charleston
Support Specialist.
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Our Expectations of All Employees
Charleston TRACON leadership team expects all employees to:
Come to work, be on time
Be prepared – mentally and physically
Understand leave policy and manage your leave appropriately
Be cooperative and professional
Treat people with respect and dignity
Take initiative
Be accountable
Lead by example – be a good role model
Do not tolerate or engage in any form of harassment or discrimination
Actively participate in training
Know your airspace and systems, know your equipment
Use prescribed phraseology/correct facility and equipment names
Follow rules and procedures
Be open to feedback – provide honest information
Be an effective team member
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Policies
Reporting for Duty
All employees are expected to show up on time for each shift, ready to train and able
to work effectively.
Hours of Duty
Charleston TRACON is a 24 hour facility.
Parking
Access cards are needed to gain access to the Parking lot, and other areas of the
facility. These cards can be obtained from Janet Cole.
Security
Access cards control access to the facility itself, with PIN numbers used to move
throughout the facility. These PINs are changed periodically to ensure security.
FAA ID Cards
FAA ID cards can also be obtained from Janet Cole, and will be worn and displayed
clearly from a lanyard at all times when in the facility.
Guests and Visitor
Guests and visitors are allowed, but must be prior-coordinated with a supervisor to
ensure compliance. All guests must be signed in at the front and issued a visitors
badge. All visitors must be accompanied by their escorts at all times when in facility.
All guests must return their visitor badge and sign out upon completion of the visit.
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Local Area Information
Charleston Profile
Charleston, SC is a historic city, whose history dates back to 1670. Charleston is
known as The Holy City due to the prominence of churches on the low-rise cityscape,
particularly the numerous steeples which dot the city's skyline, and for the fact that it
was one of the few cities in the original thirteen colonies to provide religious
tolerance to the French Huguenot Church. In fact, it is still the only city in the U.S.
with such a church. Charleston was also one of the first colonial cities to allow Jews
to practice their faith without restriction. Kahal Kadosh Beth Elohim, founded in
1749, is the fourth oldest Jewish congregation in the continental United States. Brith
Shalom Beth Israel is the oldest Orthodox shul in the South, founded by Ashkenazic
(German and central European) Jews in the mid 19th century.
The population was estimated to be 118,492 in 2007, making it the second most
populous city in South Carolina closely behind the state capital Columbia. Current
trends put Charleston as the fastest growing central city in South Carolina.
The city of Charleston is located just south of the mid-point of South Carolina's
coastline, at the junction of the Ashley and Cooper Rivers. Charleston's name is
derived from Charles Towne, named after King Charles II of England. Charleston is a
major tourist destination, with a considerable number of luxury hotels, hotel chains,
inns, and bed and breakfasts and a large number of award-winning restaurants and
quality shopping. The city is well-known for its streets lined with grand live oaks
draped with Spanish moss, and the ubiquity of the Cabbage Palmetto, which is the
state tree of South Carolina. Along the waterfront in an area known as Rainbow Row
are many beautiful and historic pastel-colored homes. The city is also an important
port, boasting the second largest container seaport on the East Coast and the fourth
largest container seaport in North America. It is also the second most productive port
in the world behind Hong Kong. Charleston is becoming a prime location for
information technology jobs and corporations, most notably Blackbaud, Modulant,
CSS, Benefitfocus, and Google. The aerospace industry is beginning to establish itself
with the joint venture plant of Vought and Alenia Aeronautica, where two of the five
sections of the Boeing 787 fuselage are fabricated and assembled.
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Restaurants of Note
Middleton Place Restaurant
Enjoy Lowcountry cuisine while overlooking America’s oldest landscaped Gardens.
Middleton Place guests enjoy a Prix Fixe lunch menu. Dinner guests pay no
admission after 5:30 and can stroll through Gardens prior to an elegant, candlelit
evening. Seasonal menus feature fresh produce from the plantation’s garden.
Hank's Seafood Restaurant
Su-Th 5:00-10:30pm; F-Sa 5:00-11:30pm. By design and cuisine, Hank’s resembles a
decades-old neighborhood fixture reminiscent of a classic 1940s Charleston fish
house. Relaxed atmosphere is backdrop to Chef Frank McMahon’s local seafood
classics and innovative seasonal specials. Bar and communal table attracts a sociable
crowd of locals, nightly.
Robert's of Charleston Restaurant
Fine Dining and Entertainment since 1976. Luxurious 5 courses; Tender of Beef,
Seafood and Duckling are the mainstays. “Palates are entertained as much as ear
drums during the five course wine-paired meal.” - Charleston City Paper, “Music
Creates Memorable Dining.”
Dixie Supply Cafe & Bakery
Specializing in Lowcountry cuisine. Breakfast sandwiches, biscuits, wraps and
pastries, for your morning power meeting and homemade tomato pie, the classic
Dixie Burger or custom boxed lunches for your midday sessions. Daily fresh baked
goods…make your event incomparable; “Eat dessert first, life is uncertain!”
Noisy Oyster
Noisy Oyster has two locations for your dining pleasure. Downtown location is at
Market Street and East Bay with windows open for the harbor breezes. Rivers
Avenue location is right in the shopping hub of North Charleston. Extraordinary
seafood and great service.
High Cotton, Maverick Bar & Grill
Dinner nightly, lunch Saturday, jazz brunch Sunday, and entertainment nightly. This
is high spirited, livin’ large, and pure Charleston. Mahogany woodwork, old brick
walls, heart pine floors and slowly rotating rattan fans evoke warmth and Southern
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hospitality. The food is straightforward, hearty and robust; steaks, game and fresh
seafood. Space for group dining.
Sporting Events
Charleston RiverDogs Baseball
The Charleston RiverDogs are a Single A Minor League Baseball Club affiliate for
the New York Yankees. Providing fun, affordable entertainment in a gorgeous
downtown ballpark April – August. Ticket prices range from $5-10 per ticket. There’s
no such thing as too much fun!
Wild Dunes Resort Golf
Featuring two world-renowned Fazio courses with dramatic finishing holes on the
Atlantic Ocean. The Links Course is ranked among the world’s best and The Harbor
Course will test your skills with water coming into play on nearly every hole. Located
minutes from downtown Charleston.
Kiawah Island Cougar Point Course
A Gary Player design, this par-72 course is a superb layout for players of all levels.
Early holes play directly along broad expanses of tidal marsh, offering panoramic
views of the Kiawah River and acres of needle rush and spartina grass.
There are numerous more golf courses to be enjoyed throughout the Charleston area.
For a complete listing of courses, and many other enjoyable Charleston activities,
please visit www.charlestoncvb.com.
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Photos of the Airport
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Charleston TRACON Directory
Front Desk
(843) 414-2800
ATM
(843) 414-2802
Training
(843) 414-2806
Support Specialist
(843) 414-2805
Radar Room
(843) 414-2808
Tower Cab
(843) 414-2809
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