Careers and Concerns

Air Traffic Controllers Work at local towers, TRACONs, ARTCC centers, FSS and the ATCSCC Work 40 hours per week (also some additional overtime hours) Earn between $36,000 and $87,000 depending upon experience (median income = $64,880 as of 1998) Receive 13 to 28 days paid vacation and 13 days paid sick leave Can retire as early as age 50 with 20 years active service or at any age after 25 years active service

What does it take to be an air traffic controller? To be a ground controller, you have to memorize the position of aircraft on the runways and taxiways with a single, short glance. Local, TRACON and ARTCC controllers must be able to think and visualize in three dimensions. All controllers must be able to gather information from what they hear, make decisions quickly and know the geography of their own airspace, as well as that of others. They must be able to read and interpret symbols as well as predict the whereabouts of aircraft from course headings and speeds, and they must be able to concentrate intensely. To test your skills as an air traffic controller, see pages 17 through 67 of the "Gate to Gate" CD ROM: Student Activity and Career Guidance Package.

Air traffic controllers at all levels are employed by the FAA. To become an air traffic controller, you must apply through the federal civil-service system and pass a written test that assesses your abilities to perform a controller's duties. Abstract reasoning and 3-D spatial visualization are tested on the exam. Applicants must have three years of work experience, a four-year college degree or some combination of the two.

If you are accepted into the training program, you will attend the FAA Academy in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, for seven months of training. While there, you will learn the air traffic control system, equipment, regulations, procedures and about aircraft performance. You will need to pass a final examination before you graduate.

Photo courtesy NASA Air traffic controller training on TRACON systems

After graduation, you will accumulate work experience at various sites across the country, from airport towers to ARTCCs. You must be certified for various positions, such as ground controller, associate radar controller and radar hand-off controller. You will be required to pass annual physical examinations, semi-annual performance examinations and periodic drug screenings. Air traffic control positions are highly competitive jobs, and the controller workforce is relatively young (most were hired after the air traffic controller strike in the 1980s, when President Ronald Reagan ordered that all striking controllers be fired).

Air Traffic Control Problems

Air Crash In the event of an air crash or runway incursion (two planes on a collision course), the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) investigates. The NTSB team reconstructs the air-traffic services given to the plane, examines radar tracking data and studies transcripts of the controller-pilot conversations. See NTSB: The Investigative Process for details.

Air travel has increased dramatically since the U.S. federal government deregulated the airline industry in the 1970s. However, the construction of new airports and runways has not kept pace with the increase in air traffic. This has put excessive pressure on the air traffic control system to handle the nearly 50,000 flights per day, a number projected to increase in the near future. To handle these flights and avoid delays and collisions, the FAA and NASA have developed modern software, upgraded existing host computers and voice communications systems and instituted full-scale GPS (global positioning system) capabilities to help air traffic controllers track and communicate with aircraft. The FAA is currently redesigning U.S. airspace to make more room for increased traffic. For example, the U.S. military has freed previously restricted airspace off the coast of North Carolina for use by commercial aircraft. These efforts should help ease traffic and minimize delays in the short term; however, increasing airport capacity by building new runways and airports is ultimately the way to handle the problem.

For more information about air traffic control and related topics, check out the links on the next page.