Does radar help air traffic controllers do their jobs easier?

Radar stands for Radio Detection and Ranging. The Radar system transmits radio waves which then bounce off an object (in our case an airplane) and the reflected radio waves are then picked up by the antenna and displayed on an Air Traffic Controller (ATC) screen. It's called “Skin Painting. read more

So, it’s not just Radar that helps ATC do their job, but the added capability that Transponders add to the equation. In the not to distant future, most aircraft will be using a new technology called ADS-B that essentially lets all aircraft “see” other aircraft just like Radar does for ATC now. read more

A Radar Air Traffic Controller is this one who renders Air Traffic Control services using a tool called PSR (Primary Survellance Radar) or SSR (Secondary Survellance Radar). Even though nowadays they would be rather called Survellance Air Traffic Controllers. read more

Air traffic controllers direct aircraft safely through their assigned flight paths, involving a specific sector of airspace. Each sector is controlled by at least one air traffic controller, often through the use of radar, which gives a greater volume of traffic to the sector. read more