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Text File | 1995-10-24 | 14.3 KB | 274 lines

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Air Traffic Controllers

(D.O.T.  193.162 except -022 and .167-010)

Nature of the Work

The air traffic control system is a vast network of people and
equipment that ensures the safe operation of commercial and private
aircraft.  Air traffic controllers coordinate the movement of air
traffic to make certain that planes stay a safe distance apart.
Their immediate concern is safety, but controllers also must direct
planes efficiently to minimize delays.  Some regulate airport
traffic; others regulate flights between airports.

   Although airport tower or terminal controllers watch over all planes
traveling through the airport's airspace, their main responsibility
is to organize the flow of aircraft in and out of the airport.
Relying on radar and visual observation, they closely monitor each
plane to ensure a safe distance between all aircraft and to guide
pilots between the hangar or ramp and the end of the airport's
airspace.  In addition, controllers keep pilots informed about
changes in weather conditions such as wind shear a sudden change in
the velocity or direction of the wind that can cause the pilot to
lose control of the aircraft.

   During arrival or departure, several controllers handle each plane.
As a plane approaches an airport, the pilot radios ahead to inform
the terminal of its presence.  The controller in the radar room just
beneath the control tower has a copy of the plane's flight plan and
already has observed the plane on radar.  If the way is clear, the
controller directs the pilot to a runway; if the airport is busy,
the plane is fitted into a traffic pattern with other aircraft
waiting to land.  As the plane nears the runway, the pilot is asked
to contact the tower.  There, another controller, who also is
watching the plane on radar, monitors the aircraft the last mile or
so to the runway, delaying any departures that would interfere with
the plane's landing.  Once the plane has landed, a ground controller
in the tower directs it along the taxiways to its assigned gate.
The ground controller usually works entirely by sight, but may use
radar if visibility is very poor.

   The procedure is reversed for departures.  The ground controller
directs the plane to the proper runway.  The local controller then
informs the pilot about conditions at the airport, such as the
weather, speed and direction of wind, and visibility.  The local
controller also issues runway clearance for the pilot to take off.
Once in the air, the plane is guided out of the airport's airspace
by the departure controller.

   After each plane departs, airport tower controllers notify enroute
controllers who will next take charge.  There are 22 enroute control
centers located around the country, each employing 300 to 700
controllers, with more than 150 on duty during peak hours at the
busier facilities.  Airplanes generally fly along designated routes;
each center is assigned a certain airspace containing many different
routes.  Enroute controllers work in teams of up to three members,
depending on how heavy traffic is; each team is responsible for a
section of the center's airspace.  A team, for example, might be
responsible for all planes that are between 30 to 100 miles north of
an airport and flying at an altitude between 6,000 and 18,000 feet.

   To prepare for planes about to enter the team's airspace, the radar
associate controller organizes flight plans coming off a printer.
If two planes are scheduled to enter the team's airspace at nearly
the same time, location, and altitude, this controller may arrange
with the preceding control unit for one plane to change its flight
plans.  The previous unit may have been another team at the same or
an adjacent center, or a departure controller at a neighboring
terminal.  As a plane approaches a team's airspace, the radar
controller accepts responsibility for the plane from the previous
controlling unit.  The controller also delegates responsibility for
the plane to the next controlling unit when the plane leaves the
team's airspace.

   The radar controller, who is the senior team member, observes the
planes in the team's airspace on radar and communicates with the
pilots when necessary.  Radar controllers warn pilots about nearby
planes, bad weather conditions, and other potential hazards.  Two
planes on a collision course will be directed around each other.  If
a pilot wants to change altitude in search of better flying
conditions, the controller will check to determine that no other
planes will be along the proposed path.  As the flight progresses,
the team responsible for the aircraft notifies the next team in
charge.  Through team coordination, the plane arrives safely at its
destination.

   Both airport tower and enroute controllers usually control several
planes at a time and often have to make quick decisions about
completely different activities.  For example, a controller might
direct a plane on its landing approach and at the same time provide
pilots entering the airport's airspace with information about
conditions at the airport.  While instructing these pilots, the
controller also would observe other planes in the vicinity, such as
those in a holding pattern waiting for permission to land, to ensure
that they remain well separated.  More powerful computers are
helping controllers deal with these demands.  Traditional air
traffic controller tasks like determining how far apart planes
should be kept are now routinely done by computer.  Improved
communication between computers on airplanes and those on the ground
also is making the controller's job a little easier.

   In addition to airport towers and enroute centers, air traffic
controller specialists also work in flight service stations operated
at over 100 locations.  These specialists provide pilots with
information on the station's particular area, including terrain,
preflight and inflight weather information, suggested routes, and
other information important to the safety of a flight.  Flight
service station specialists help pilots in emergency situations and
participate in searches for missing or overdue aircraft.  However,
they are not involved in actively managing air traffic.

   Controllers carefully monitor the progress of each plane.

Working Conditions

Controllers work a basic 40-hour week; however, they may work
additional hours for which they receive overtime pay or equal time
off.  Because most control towers and centers operate 24 hours a
day, 7 days a week, controllers rotate night and weekend shifts.

   During busy times, controllers must work rapidly and efficiently.
This requires total concentration to keep track of several planes at
the same time and make certain all pilots receive correct
instructions.  The mental stress of being responsible for the safety
of several aircraft and their passengers can be exhausting for some
persons.

Employment

Air traffic controllers held about 23,000 Federal Government jobs in
1992, at airports in towers and flight service stations and in
enroute traffic control centers.  The overwhelming majority worked
for the FAA.  About 18,000 controllers were actively working
controlling air traffic; 4,000 worked at flight service stations and
another 800 worked in administative staff positions; a small number
of civilian controllers worked for the Department of Defense.  In
addition to controllers employed by the Federal Government, some
worked for private air traffic control companies providing service
to non-FAA towers.

Training, Other Qualifications, and Advancement

Air traffic controller trainees are selected through the competitive
Federal Civil Service system.  Applicants must pass a written test
that measures their ability to learn the controller's duties.
Applicants with experience as a pilot, navigator, or military
controller can improve their rating by scoring well on the
occupational knowledge portion of the examination.  Abstract
reasoning and three-dimensional spatial visualization are among the
aptitudes the exam measures.  In addition, applicants generally must
have 3 years of general work experience or 4 years of college, or a
combination of both.  Applicants also must survive a 1 week
screening at the FAA's Aeronautical Center Academy in Oklahoma City
which includes aptitude tests using computer simultors, physical and
psychological examinations.  Successful applicants receive drug
screening tests.  For airport tower and enroute center positions,
applicants must be less than 31 years old.  Those 31 years old and
over are eligible for positions at flight-service stations.

   Controllers must be articulate, because directions to pilots must be
given quickly and clearly.  Intelligence and a good memory also are
important because controllers constantly receive information that
they must immediately grasp, interpret, and remember.  Decisiveness
is also required because controllers often have to make quick
decisions.  The ability to concentrate is crucial because
controllers must make these decisions in the midst of noise and
other distractions.

   Trainees learn their craft through a combination of formal and
on-the-job training.  They receive 3-4 months of intensive training
at the FAA academy, where they learn the fundamentals of the airway
system, FAA regulations, controller equipment, aircraft performance
characteristics, as well as more specialized tasks.  Based on
aptitude and test scores, trainees are selected to work at either an
enroute center or a tower.  Regardless of the type of training,
students must demonstrate their ability to make quick, correct
decisions in simulated air traffic situations.  After graduation, it
takes several years of progressively more responsible work
experience, interspersed with considerable classroom instruction and
independent study, to become a fully qualified controller.  This
training includes instruction in the operation of the new, more
automated air traffic control system including the automated
Microwave Landing System that enables pilots to receive instructions
over automated data links that is being installed in control sites
across the country.

   At airports, new controllers begin by supplying pilots with basic
flight data and airport information.  They then advance to ground
controller, then local controller, departure controller, and
finally, arrival controller.  At an enroute traffic control center,
new controllers first deliver printed flight plans to teams,
gradually advancing to radar associate controller and then radar
controller.

   Failure to become certified in any position at a facility within a
specified time may result in dismissal.  Controllers who fail to
complete either the academy or the on-the-job portion of the
training are usually dismissed.  Controllers must pass a physical
examination each year and a job performance examination twice each
year.  Controllers also are subject to drug screening as a condition
of continuing employment.

   Controllers can transfer to jobs at different locations or advance
to supervisory positions, including management or staff jobs in air
traffic control and top administrative jobs in the FAA.  However,
there are only limited opportunities for a controller to switch from
a position in an enroute center to a tower.

Job Outlook

Employment of air traffic controllers is expected to grow more
slowly than the average for all occupations through the year 2005.
Employment growth is not expected to keep pace with growth in the
number of aircraft flying because of the introduction of laborsaving
air traffic control equipment that should make controllers more
productive.

   Competition for air traffic controller jobs is expected to remain
keen because the occupation attracts many more qualified applicants
than the small number of job openings stemming from growth of the
occupation and replacement needs.  Turnover is very low; because of
the relatively high pay and liberal retirement benefits, controllers
have a very strong attachment to the occupation.  Because most of
the current work force was hired after the controller's strike
during the 1980's, the average age of the current work force is
fairly young.  As a result, most controllers will not be eligible to
retire until 2005 or later.

   Air traffic controllers who continue to meet the proficiency and
medical requirements enjoy more job security than most workers.  The
demand for air travel and the workloads of air traffic controllers
decline during recessions, but controllers seldom are laid off.

Earnings

Air traffic controllers who started with the FAA in 1993 earned
about $22,700 (grade 7) a year.  Controllers at the grade 9 level
and above earn 5 percent more than other Federal workers in an
equivalent grade.  A controller's pay is determined by both the
worker's job responsibilities and the complexity of the particular
facility.  Earnings are higher at facilities where traffic patterns
are more complex.  In 1993, controllers averaged about $53,800 a
year.

   Depending on length of service, they receive 13 to 26 days of paid
vacation and 13 days of paid sick leave each year, life insurance,
and health benefits.  In addition, controllers can retire at an
earlier age and with fewer years of service than other Federal
employees.  Air traffic controllers are eligible to retire at age 50
with 20 years of service as an active air traffic controller or
after 25 years of active service at any age.  There is a mandatory
retirement age of 56 for controllers who manage air traffic.

Related Occupations

Other occupations that involve the direction and control of traffic
in air transportation are airline-radio operator and airplane
dispatcher.

Sources of Additional Information

   A pamphlet providing general information about controllers and
instructions for submitting an application is available from any
U.S.  Office of Personnel Management Job Information Center.  Look
under U.S.  Government, Office of Personnel Management, in your
telephone book to obtain a local Job Information Center telephone
number, and call for a copy of the Air Traffic Controller
Announcement.  If there is no listing in your telephone book, dial
the toll-free number 1-800-555-1212 and request the number of the
Office of Personnel Management Job Information Center for your
location.