Surprisingly not actually. I can only speak for myself, but I tend not to think of my charges as aluminium tubes full of pink bodies. To me, they're just a blip on a screen among many other blips. The game is to keep the blips separated by a healthy margin. And it is a game. One where you only have one 'life' and the consequences of loosing don't bear thinking about, but a big video game none the less. We are always aware of the hardware up there, performance characteristics is what we need to think about. But the people inside? No, I think a controller should think about a career change if he stays awake all night worrying about little pink bodies. It's not conducive to flight safety. As for the aptitude, well a series of tests and interviews will discover whether you have it or not. It's all about being able to see a 3D picture on a 2D screen. Being able to think upside-down and inside-out. Being able to multi-task and prioritise, without loosing 'the big picture' and being able to see into the future. Not too far though, just about five minutes of track prediction in your head is all that is needed. And that is the best part of the job for me, I don't have to think more than five minutes ahead. No dead-lines that are weeks away. I can go home at the end of a shift and relax, because tomorrow is a clean slate. Much like ambulance work, I would have thought. [Fig works at the London Terminal Control Centre in West Drayton]