GCA (Ground Controlled Approach) / ATC (Air Traffic Control), was a group organized to maintain communication and fellowship between retired personnel, personnel having served, and active duty Navy/Marine Corps involved in the control of air traffic from air, ground or sea "platforms".
Membership in the association consisted of U.S. Navy/Marine Corps Air Traffic Controllers, GCA support personnel (Electronic Technicians & Enginemen) and those Radarmen assigned to GCA units for their shore duty tour.
A convention or gathering of members was held every two years at a different location in the U.S. The first, an organizational meeting, was held in Kansas City, Kansas in 1992. Subsequent meetings have been held in St. Louis, Missouri ('94), Pensacola, Florida ('96), San Diego, California ('98) ,and Overland Park, Missouri ('00), which was in conjunction with the 50th anniversary of the establishment of the U.S. Navy Air Controlman rating, and the opening of Ground Controlled Approach (GCA), and Air Controlman Schools at NAS Olathe, Kansas, (Actually happened about 1948), Las Vegas in 2002, Virginia Beach in 2004. Minneapolis in 2006, St Louis in 2008, San Antonio in 2010, Branson in 2012, and back to Minneapolis in 2014. Our final reunion was held in Olathe, KS from Sept. 7-11, 2016.
A newsletter was mailed to all active members quarterly. The association maintains a listing of all persons eligible for membership and actively seeks addresses to update and increase the list.
