This graphic accompanied a feature article in Conde Nast’s Traveler on the air-traffic controllers who supervise long-haul flights. The brief: 900 aircraft a day fly in a corridor across the North Atlantic. How does the system work?

The graphic was in three parts, and followed a flight from JFK to Heathrow. This is the center and principal piece. The original idea was developed from reference material taken from technical manuals, but the final presentation was obtained by talking to air traffic controllers at Gander and Prestwick, the two Oceanic Control Centers. The overall aim was to organize the information into an approachable and non-technical form that could fit well within a magazine feature.