What do you do for a living?

I am an air traffic control specialist for the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA).
I am also the National Air Traffic Controllers Association Facility Representative
that represents the air traffic controllers and staff specialists at Toledo Express
Air Traffic Control Tower in Northwest Ohio.

How would you describe what you do?

Our controller handbook says that we provide for “the safe, orderly, and
expeditious flow of air traffic.”

What does your work entail?

My facility is an Air Traffic Control Tower (ATCT) with a Terminal Radar Approach
Control (TRACON, or just “radar”) in the same building. Since all of our controllers
work both tower and radar, we call ourselves an “up/down” (where “up is the tower
and “down” is the radar.)
When working in the tower behind the big glass windows, the “Local Controller”
controls all aircraft that are inbound to the airport or that are on the ground and
ready for takeoff.
The “Ground Controller” talks to aircraft and vehicles that are moving on the
airport’s taxiways, and the “Clearance Delivery” controller issues flight plan
clearances and information to aircraft.
In the TRACON, the “Radar Controller” works all of the aircraft within
approximately 55 miles of the primary airport. Besides controlling airplanes into
and out of the primary airport, the radar controller also works aircraft that are
overflying the airspace and inbounds and outbounds from numerous “satellite”
airports.
Also in the TRACON is the “Arrival Data” position. Data helps the radar controller
with amending flight plans and altitudes, issuing some clearances, and updating
important information regarding weather and metering programs into large
airports.

What’s a typical work week like?

At my facility, we work five 8 hour days followed by two days off. Some of our
controllers work straight day shifts, some work straight nights, some work shifts
that rotate from night shifts to days shifts, and one of our controllers works
straight midnights.
During a normal shift at my up/down facility, we rotate through all of the positions
mentioned above.
How did you get started?
I attended Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University (ERAU) in Daytona Beach, Florida,
from 1995 through 1999 and graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree. ERAU is
one of a limited number of colleges that have been included in the FAA’s College
Training Initiative or “CTI.” This initiative helps fast track the hiring process.

What do you like about what you do?

The ongoing joke is that we get to tell people what to do; and if they don’t do it,
men in suits will show up at their house. That’s not entirely true, but it makes for a
good story.

What do you dislike?

Honestly, there isn’t much to dislike about the job itself. It’s quite rewarding.

How do you make money/or how are you compensated?

We are hourly employees. We get overtime for anything over 8 hours worked in a
day or over 40 hours in a week. Pretty standard, really.

How much money do Air Traffic Controllers make?

The range of pay is quite large due to the different types and complexities of
facilities and the individual’s qualifications at each facility. Pay is calculated by
levels. Level 4 is a very small tower and Level 12 would be an Atlanta or O’Hare.
The pay bands go from approximately $30,000/yr to $135,000/yr before adding
locality.

How much money did/do you make starting out?

Fresh out of the FAA academy, I made about $30,000/yr with raises after getting
certified on different control positions.

What education, schooling, or skills are needed to do this?

After getting hired nearly a year after graduating college with my handy Bachelor’s
Degree, I reported to the FAA’s academy in Oklahoma City, OK. There my
classmates and I were taught the basics of air traffic control that we would apply
at our facilities.
Once reporting to the facility and learning the layouts of the airspace and the
airport, I started on-the-job training. This may be one of the most surprising
things that I tell people. We just plug in with a trainer and start talking to
airplanes. The trainer does have the power to key up their headset to keep us from
giving any dangerous instructions, but we learn by doing the job.
After a year and a half of training, I reached “Full Performance Level”, meaning
that I had been certified as qualified to work every position in the tower and the
TRACON. The FAA has since changed the name to “Certified Professional
Controller.”

What is most challenging about what you do?

Controlling requires a great deal of concentration and spatial thinking. Being able to
see a conflict between two aircraft that are 30 or 40 miles apart is important in
our line of work. Not all people have this foresight; and therefore, not all people
can do this job.
A different type of challenge is when something wrong or even tragic happens. You
have to be able to clear your mind and work through it until you can get off of
position. Several controllers, myself included, have been the last person that talked
to a pilot before a fatal accident. It is difficult to shake that feeling. Thankfully,
NATCA (our labor union) has a trained team of counselors to help us through
difficult times like those.

What is most rewarding?

Helping someone get home safely is the most rewarding thing I can think of. I’ve
talked to pilots that are trying to get to an ailing family member before they pass
on, and knowing that I helped get them to their loved ones’ bedside makes me feel
like I’ve contributed to society.

What advice would you offer someone considering this career?

It is a lot of work, and it takes a certain predisposition to do this job. Besides
learning how to control airplanes, you have to learn a complex language of terms,
acronyms, and abbreviations. You have to be dedicated, and you can’t fudge your
way through it. As trainers, we’re really good at seeing through a smokescreen.

How much time off do you get/take?

Depending on years of service, you get either 4, 6, or 8 hours of annual leave per
pay period. There are 26 pay periods in a year. We also get 4 hours of sick leave
per pay period.
What is a common misconception people have about what you do?
We are not the dudes waiving the flashlights at airplanes on the ramp, and it’s
nothing like the movie “Pushing Tin.”

What are your goals/dreams for the future?

While we do have the opportunities to move to different and busier facilities, I am
quite content to finish my career at Toledo ATCT. I really hate moving!

What else would you like people to know about your job/career?
Air Traffic Control is a rewarding field, but it is difficult and not meant for
everyone. If someone is interested in ATC, they should be able to contact a facility
near them and request a tour. Since 9/11, there are restrictions, but it should be
possible to get a tour or job shadow for a day.
- See more at: http://www.jobshadow.com/interview-with-an-air-traffic-
controller/#sthash.Xrd7T4zU.dpuf

Why did you choose to become an

1.

Air Traffic Controller?

What are the two of your proudest achievements?
What was the most challenging problem you have faced in
your career and how did you overcome it?
How did you become interested in ATC?
What qualities do you have that would make you a good
ATC?
Where do you see your career going in ATC?
What was your greatest success?
What is your greatest weakness?
Tell me about a time when you were personally involved in a
stressful situation and how you handled it.
How do you handle stressful situations?
Do you have any ATC experience outside of CTI school?
Do you have any coping mechanisms?
Why do you want to be an ATC?
Why should we hire you?
Can you provide an example of when you have worked
effectively under pressure?
What do you like least about being an Air Traffic Controller?
Why do you want to be an air traffic controller?
What is your greatest strength?
This is your first job as an ATC. How do you think you�ll
succeed?
Do you manage your time well?
Have you witnessed an emergency situation before?
Do you enjoy shift work? Are there certain hours of the day
during which you would prefer not to work?
Where do you see yourself in 5 years?
Have you had to deal with an emergency situation in the
tower before? How did you handle the situation?
What are your career goals as an Air Traffic Controller?
What do you like most about being an Air Traffic
Controller?
What negative thing would your last boss say about you?
1.

What are the two of your proudest achievements?

2.

What was the most challenging problem you have faced in your career and how did you
overcome it?

3.

How did you become interested in ATC?

4.

What qualities do you have that would make you a good ATC?

5.

Where do you see your career going in ATC?

6.

What was your greatest success?

7.

What is your greatest weakness?

8.

Tell me about a time when you were personally involved in a stressful situation and how you
handled it.

9.

How do you handle stressful situations?

10.

Do you have any ATC experience outside of CTI school?

11.

Do you have any coping mechanisms?

12.

Why do you want to be an ATC?

13.

Why should we hire you?

14.

Can you provide an example of when you have worked effectively under pressure?

15.

What do you like least about being an Air Traffic Controller?

16.

Why do you want to be an air traffic controller?

17.

What is your greatest strength?

18.

This is your first job as an ATC. How do you think you�ll succeed?

19.

Do you manage your time well?

20.

Have you witnessed an emergency situation before?

21.
Do you enjoy shift work? Are there certain hours of the day during which you would prefer not to
work?

22.

Where do you see yourself in 5 years?

23.

Have you had to deal with an emergency situation in the tower before? How did you handle the
situation?

24.

What are your career goals as an Air Traffic Controller?

25.

What do you like most about being an Air Traffic Controller?

26.

What negative thing would your last boss say about you?