Nöbetçi Eczaneler
Nazmiye Göyük, who began her career at the General Directorate of State Airports Authority (DHMİ) in the 1950s and received her Air Traffic Controller License in 1956, became one of the most important figures in Turkish aviation history. Air traffic services at Esenboğa Airport began in 1955, and Göyük served as an “air traffic technician,” the title used at the time, working in the Tower–Approach–Area Control Center. She continued her career as Türkiye’s first female air traffic controller.
Air traffic controllers are responsible for ensuring the safe, efficient, and orderly flow of air traffic in control towers and related centers. They monitor and manage traffic, oversee flight operations, detect unexpected situations, and resolve issues related to air traffic. Air navigation services are provided by the authority designated by the state. In Türkiye, DHMİ is responsible for airport operations and air traffic management within Turkish airspace. Nazmiye Göyük started her career at a time when Türkiye’s aviation activities were managed with only a few radios and small control towers.
Historically, air traffic was managed under visual meteorological conditions using simple radios, but by the 1950s, modern technologies of the era began to be adopted. Radar facilities established in the late 1950s significantly improved traffic management. Due to the increase in air traffic during the 1960s and 1970s, congestion became common, and the workload of controllers grew. From the 1980s to the 2000s, the air traffic system entered an era of rapid technological advancement. Göyük witnessed not only the evolution of Turkish aviation but also the transformation of the global air traffic system.
Devoted to Atatürk’s reforms, Göyük carried out her profession with pride as a pioneering woman in her field. Despite many challenges, including the Ulus aviation accident and the armed terrorist attack at Esenboğa Airport, she continued her work at both national and international levels. Göyük served at DHMİ for 43 continuous years and retired in 1993. She acted as the Director of EUROCONTROL in Türkiye by proxy, taught air traffic control courses within DHMİ, and later became a lecturer in the Air Traffic Control Department at Anadolu University’s School of Civil Aviation.
After retirement, she continued contributing to Turkish aviation and helped train many air traffic controllers. In 2023, her biography was written by Ümit Yaban, her colleague, one of her last students, and a fellow woman in the profession. The book “Gönlüm Göğe Dayalı” presents the memories of Türkiye’s first air traffic controller in a chronological and compelling narrative.