How long does it take to be hired for air traffic control?

Question

im 24, enlisting in the air force for atc which is a 6 year commitment. I heard the faa doesnt hire after 31, which is cutting it close. Is this rule set in stone, or just a guideline? Also id like to hear from atc'ers on the reality of life in this profession. I know its a high stress job..ive heard working conditions arent great and employees arent treated well..please elaborate

Answer 1

As a former military controller, you are not subject to the age limitation.  You will note that this job announcement makes no mention of age:

http://jobs.faa.gov/asap_detail.asp?vac_...

Unlike this announcement for CTI hires (works the same for off the street hires) which specifies the <31 limit:

http://jobs.faa.gov/asap_detail.asp?vac_...

Answer 2

I knew an ex military ATCer that started the AF about your age.  He cut it close to the 31 year age rule, but got hired 3 months shy of his 31st.  Some of the others are talking about the military hiring program.  Yes it is much faster than CTI (if you consider time in school) and far faster than off the street, however just being military ATC doesn't wave the age restriction.  I work with an ex AF controller who can't get the waiver at 44.  

I found this.  

http://www.defenselink.mil/releases/rele...

"To be eligible for hire under this policy, military controllers must have retired after 20 years of military Service and received either air traffic control specialist certification or a facility rating to FAA standards"  

There ya are, right from the horses mouth.

Answer 3

it depends on how motivated you are at becoming a controler. tech school is about 18 weeks then after that its up to you and your trainer wherever you get stationed. depending on where you go the hours might suck or they might be nice, i got stationed where the tower is only open for about 12 hours a day (a training base) so i only work a 7 hour shift, which isnt bad. overall i guess in an average amount of time it should only take you about 10-13 months including tech school.

Answer 4

They make exceptions for women and minorities, as well as x military with ATC experience.  You can also go to work for contract towers and such, instead of the FAA. Lockhell Martian is trying to obtain tower and center contracts, because they've done so well fukking up flight service, and knowing how our federal gubment works, I'm sure they'll get the contract.

Go do your Air Force thing and don't worry about the age thing. you're a chick, so you're golden.  My wife was in AFSS  15 years, so I know the scoop.

P.S..the word "wash out" was used by a poster..well in the FAA the word "grievence" takes care of that.

Answer 5

It is a set in stone rule, however I believe the transition from Air Force to FAA is a quick one, you shouldn't have a problem. Although I went to school with a lot of controllers, I'm not one of them, so I can't speak to the working conditions.

Answer 6

I started my Air Traffic Control career with the air force and it was one of the best decisions of my life.  When I enlisted in 2002 you had the option to only sign for four years which is what I did.  The changed the rule a couple of years later because it takes some people almost two years before they get qualified and the Air Force was not getting enough of a return from the amount of time necessary it takes to train and the retainability of a four year enlistie.  So they changed it to six years.  

Yes you can get hired with the FAA if you are older then 31 as long as you are coming from the military and you have prior ATC experience.  I don't remember the name of the rule but you can still get hired.

I am not going to lie to you it is going to be really difficult.  After basic training you will go to Biloxi Mississippi for your tech-school training which is about six months.  You will think that this is hard but it is only the tip of the iceberg.   Just stick with it and study hard.  Once you get your first base assignment after you graduate then your actual training will begin.  Then you become an Air Traffic Control apprentice AKA a 3-level.  You are going to hate life as a 3-level.  You will learn what that means pretty quickly.  It is when you are in training and you are pretty much worthless to your facility because you are not qualified to work in position by yourself and you have to be monitored my a qualified controller.  You will get treated like garbage but if you are sharp, have a good attitude, and good at ATC then hopefully in a year or less you will get your qualification.  I can't stress attitude enough.  I have seen too many people get washed out who could do the job but had poor attitudes.  ATC is as much a elite club, as a job. Once you get your qualification then you will officially be an Air Traffic Controller and you will be able to work in position by yourself.  This means that your facility that you work in has deemed that you are safe enough to work under pressure and that you can get the job done.  This is when you will fine tune your skills that you learned when you were in training.  Then you will become a trainer and train others.  To this point will be about two years down the line.  

Right now I am a contractor in Afghanistan working at Kandahar International Airport.  I have been here about a year and I will be heading back to the states to work for the FAA in Southern CA.  I decided to become a contractor because of the pay cut that the FAA put on new controllers.  I was just going to wait them out but I am ready to head back to the states.  I have already turned down two jobs with the FAA but now I am going to go with them.  If I can give you any advice it would be for the long term.  Get your CTO (control tower operator license.)  Meaning get qualified in a tower.  I am a RADAR controller and i did not have the time to finish my qualifications for the tower before I got out of the AF.  For contracting purposes when you get out there are contract towers all over the US and throughout the world but very few contract RADAR facilities.  The only way to get a CTO is through the Air Force, FAA and I have also heard that there is a CTI school in Pennsylvania  that offers a CTO but there is a three year waiting list.  

I know that I am throwing a lot of information at you but get used to it.  ATC is not an easy career choice.  You should believe the roomers of what people say about it.  If you go into it with that mind frame then you should be fine and hopefully not have too many surprises.  Just do your best and work hard because if you don't...  Then you will get washed out.  There are a lot of people floating around the Air Force who are ATC washouts.  I don't want to scare you but this is not a career for everybody.  

Good luck and I hope for you the best!  E mail me if you have any other questions.