Against the Wind - National Air Traffic Controllers Association

A Logo is Born
Like many of NATCA’s founders, the
union’s logo traced its heritage to
AATCC. In the fall of 1984, Howie Barte
took a break from
drumming up support
on the phone
one day to sketch
out a logo for New England’s
monthly newslet- ters.
The circular
artwork paid hom- age
to centers and
TRACONs with its
dotted and crosshatched
lines and
other markings representing
a radarscope, and was anchored
by a control tower near the bottom.
Influenced by his interest in “Star Trek,”
he selected a computer-style typeface for
the initials AATCC in the center.
After the logo’s debut in the October
edition of the New England AATCC
Update, Barte collaborated with Kim
Kochis, another controller on his crew at
Quonset TRACON. *
Kochis, who loved to draw and
paint, relied on graphic design skills she
developed in high school. By the time
Barte and Kochis were finished, concentric
circles with a radar sweep
had replaced the radar
map. A tower cab rested
atop the “T” in a series of
simple block letters spelling
AATCC.
Barte presented
the finished product for
formal adoption at an
AATCC regional representatives
meeting in
March 1985. But a few
controllers argued that
it didn’t adequately represent en route
centers.
Unwilling to change the design,
Barte used it throughout the year in
New England. When MEBA entered the
picture, he gave a copy to Thornton, who
turned it over to the union’s graphic artist.
The resulting logo, with red letters
and blue lines, made Barte swell with
pride when he saw it at NATCA’s first
national meeting.
Chapter 3: A Long and Winding Road
The logo was subsequently trademarked
in 1993, and in 2000 then-President
Michael McNally presented Barte
with a plaque recognizing
him for his efforts
in creating the
union’s longstanding
symbol.
Noting that
many companies
change their visual
identity as they
mature, Kochis says,
“I’m surprised it’s
held all these years.”
Two unsuccessful
attempts to redesign the logo
were made during the 1990s. To help
ensure its enduring look, NATCA convention
delegates in 2000 mandated
that any changes must be approved by a
majority vote at a convention.
* Kochis later transferred to two other New England facilities
before settling in at Raleigh-Durham Tower/TRACON in
North Carolina in May 1995.
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