Controlling the skies - What really goes on up there!
Event Date: Tuesday 13th October 2026 | Time: 7pm – 8pm
Learn in a hour
About this event
Experience the sky from a whole new perspective through the lens of air traffic control.
This striking landscape image captures a dramatic sunset over a sprawling city, where golden light fades into dusk and aircraft glide across a sky alive with movement. But this isn’t just a beautiful skyline, it is the view as seen through an air traffic control radar system. Digital tracking arcs sweep across the horizon, locking onto aircraft as they descend toward a major international airport, each tagged with live style flight data, speed, and altitude.
Below, the city pulses with energy. Towering buildings rise from the urban grid, highways glow with streams of light, and neighbourhoods stretch endlessly into the distance. Above, multiple aircraft cross paths in carefully coordinated airspace, a powerful reminder of the invisible choreography happening every second in our skies.
This image captures the precision, complexity, and quiet intensity of modern aviation control. It offers a rare glimpse behind the radar screen, where focus, technology, and split-second decision making keep thousands of passengers moving safely around the world.
Boundless members stay tuned for the chance to win a special prize on the night!
Join us online to explore the fascinating world of air traffic control and discover the unseen network that keeps global travel flowing smoothly, day and night.
Please head over to Crowdcast to register for this event:
Meet the speaker - Ian Revell
Ian started training as an Air Traffic Controller in 1983 with the Civil Aviation Authority at the College of Air Traffic Control in Bournemouth. Posted to Aberdeen Airport, Ian qualified as a Tower, and Approach Radar Controller and spent 14 years controlling traffic at the Scottish airport and over the North Sea Oilfields.
Ian moved to Manchester Airport in 1997, becoming an Examiner and Watch Manager as well as being involved in major airport projects including the opening of the new runway, Electronic Flight Progress Strips and the planning and introduction into service of the new Control Tower Building, before retiring in 2000.
Ian has also been heavily involved with controlling at airshows across the country including leading the volunteer Air Traffic Control team at the Royal International Air Tattoo for over 25 years, where he now continues in the role of Aerodrome Manager.
A Fellow of the Royal Aeronautical Society, Ian holds a Private Pilots licence and is passionate about all things aviation including being Trustee and Vice Chairman of the Flying Scholarships for Disabled People Charity.