Interesting people, unusual flight plans…

Istvan Bozsa – forever controller

What were you dreaming of becoming when you were a kid?

Meeting-2009We lived near the airport and I was dreaming of becoming a pilot from very early on. I remember how we took the bike to ride all the way to the perimeter fence and watch the planes for hours on end. I must admit that we also stopped to watch the trains at the railway crossing but the planes were the main attraction.
Traditionally there is an air-show on 20 August in Budapest and watching it I felt this incredible pull and attraction… I wanted to be part of it all; I wanted to be a pilot.
I think my son has inherited this weakness… he has his PPL already (and an Aeronautic MEng).

How did you then actually become part of the ATC family?

Ice cream… it was the ice cream! At the time one of the best pastry shops in downtown Budapest had a satellite unit at the airport. The mother shop’s name was Honey Bear and the one at the airport was simply the Bear… They had the best parfait this side of the Solar system and we went there regularly to load up on that thing, teeth be damned.

The downtown Honey Bear
The downtown Honey Bear

Sitting at the small tables on the observation deck, munching my parfait I was watching people as they moved around in the tower, as they crossed the bridge connecting the tower with the main building and I thoroughly envied them. What a wonderful place to work… aircraft and super parfait all in one place!
Those small tables...to-day
Those small tables...to-day

After secondary school my mom wanted me to study further but I had different ideas. I started looking for work and a friend of mine who was already working at the airport got me in too. We both worked as marshallers on the apron. By the way, he made it big later, becoming the CEO of Malev, the Hungarian airline.
Being a marshaller in those days was a lot of fun. There were no stands with airbridges and so each aircraft was escorted to its parking position by us in a “Follow Me” car and then waved into position with wand-signals. In spite of the strict rules, that apron was freedom itself!
We could board aircraft and chat with the crews, meet real cowboys escorting the cattle flights (stretched DC-8s operated by a Texas company) whom we could hardly understand, we could make friends and more with stewardesses… it was the good life for sure.
Airport Honey Bear (a Maci) to the left at the top of the stairs
Airport Honey Bear (a Maci) to the left at the top of the stairs. Best ice-cream in town!

When it was suggested that I sign up for the ATC course, I refused… I did not want to give up my freedom… But a year later I did anyway and completed the course with pretty good results.
The mysterious tower and the old apron
The mysterious tower and the old apron

What were the most significant sideways jumps in your professional life?

Budapest APP 1979
Budapest APP 1979

A few of us young chaps wanted to be part of the development work but somehow our efforts were never rewarded… Then we saw an opening to do more via the Hungarian Air Traffic Controllers’ Association and IFATCA’s sports initiatives. That was finally successful.
But the biggest change came about as a result of something most controllers are really afraid of. I was involved in an airmiss… A Mig-29 passed in front of an Interflug Tu-134 while a trainee controller under my supervision was handling the traffic… In the end, we were completely cleared of any blame; the whole thing was the fault of the military coordinator who had failed to pass the required information to us… But for me, the matter did not stop there.
At the time I felt like being on the top in all respects and when our roster was changed from a 4 shift rotation to a 5 shift rotation, I was practically convinced that I would be given command of the new 5th shift. I was allocated to the 5th shift all right but not as its supervisor but as a simple controller.
The guy who was the boss at the time said that while I was not strictly responsible for the airmiss I could have done more to prevent it… and that he
The old DGCA building in Budapest
The old DGCA building in Budapest

will not support my ambition to be shift supervisor. He probably meant well and in the end, he had done me a great favor… but I did not experience it like that at the time.
Anyway, I was always interested in the administrative part of our business and when the opportunity arose to move to the DGCA, I took it and I became the Superintendent of Air Traffic Services.
The next step was coming to EUROCONTROL. I do not think these steps were really sideways moves, they were more logical steps building on each other.
One thing I have learnt early was that without your name well known in the professional community, it is very tough to move in any direction. The time at the DGCA was a good opportunity to build contacts, to become a familiar face…

Was there a person who had a profound influence on your professional career?

If I had to name one, it would be Peter M. who was my mentor and boss when I was at the DGCA. I remember him saying: you are not a controller now; you do not have to make split second decisions. Think everything through, weigh things and then decide. I have had occasion to think back at these wise words many times in later years and it was the best advice I ever got.

Was there a “Darth Vader” in your life that you needed to conquer?

The only one I can think of was that boss who blocked me from becoming supervisor. But actually I should thank him also… He made me move to the DGCA and it was a positive move in the long run.
Actually, in my position at the DGCA I became his superior in the hierarchical structure at least.

If you had a second chance, would you try to avoid aviation as a career?

I am not sure… I did fall in love with air traffic control even though I wanted to be a pilot at first… I am sure I would end up somewhere in aviation and very likely in ATC.

Would you recommend aviation as a career to young people to-day?

Yes, absolutely. My son is in aviation and my daughter has also worked for a time in an aviation related field. Aviation is a way of life… and a good one.
They should also keep trying if they do not succeed the first time around. When I originally applied to EUROCONTROL, I had an applicationeurocontrol running also at ICAO for a post in Montreal. A week after I signed the contract with EUROCONTROL, I was offered an ICAO post in Paris…
On another occasion, a bit earlier, I had an application with ICAO this time for a post in Bangkok. A friend from the Paris office called one day and congratulated me on joining the ICAO family. He explained that they had been contacted by Bangkok for getting references on me and that they had given only positive information so I was sure to get the post. We almost started packing… only to learn that I did not get the job.
So you try and try and never give up if this is what you want to do.

What personal traits should they develop first and foremost?

They must be perfect like me… but seriously, they must have absolute commitment and they must approach the profession with respect. Look, if I say controllers are this or that, I may afford to do that because I am a controller… we always remain controllers, no matter where we go. But you must earn this, being allowed to criticize…

What was the most remarkable aviation related situation you have been in?

Shortly after I joined the DGCA, an air show was being organized at the Taszar airport and they organized an AN-2 to take my family and myself down there… We landed just before the show was to start and the plane taxied to the grandstand, they placed the little steps in front of the door and there we were like true VIPs walking to the grandstand… Real red carpet treatment. The kids loved it…

Arriving for the red-carpet treatment
Arriving for the red-carpet treatment

In conclusion?

Skydstrup-Denmar in 2009
Skydstrup-Denmar in 2009

I have had the good fortune of being part of some of the most important developments in Hungarian ATM… Improving civil/military coordination, restructuring the airspace… Although flexible use of airspace as a concept was not yet widespread, we created a free routing environment with help from companies like Integra and Zoltan G. I think of myself also as one of the fathers of CEATS. The idea came from others but we worked long and hard to make it reality. It is a pity that in the end it was a stillborn baby.
I think that I was a very good controller… Before you raise an eyebrow… ALL controllers must feel like this. We must set extremely high standards for ourselves and then maintain those standards… To be frank, I am not really sure that I could maintain the standards I had set for myself if I stayed with the microphone.
A few weeks ago I met an old colleague who was one of my trainee controllers. Do you know what he said? He said that he still remembered how I used to urge him to do ATC like a real service… to always look for ways to offer users more… and how to-day this is the centre of all the development projects.
It was good to hear that we were on the right track back then and that I was able to pass this kind of attitude to the new generation.

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