Air Traffic Controller Training And Stress
Air traffic controllers regulate air traffic through Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) designated airspaces, called sectors, and they regulate arrivals and departures. Air traffic controllers watch over all planes flying in an airport's airspace. They must constantly and quickly make decisions and they must be right — a stressful condition. They are responsible to organize the flow of aircraft in and out of an airport. They generally work in a control tower but can work in a radar building.
Visual observation training is of primary concern. The controllers are in radio contact, but also learn to recognize the type of aircraft. When in sight, a controller can tell if it is a Boeing 747 or a Douglas MD-11. If in doubt, they can quickly go online and get a depiction of a non-familiar aircraft.
The air traffic controller's job is particularly stressful. There are special stress tests given to the applicants. It is so stressful that the applicant with no experience must be younger than 30 years of age. There are exceptions — if you have had military experience, you may apply even when over 30. You must go to an FAA approved air traffic controller training school however. AND you must have a four-year degree from a recognized college. There are sometimes waivers accepted.
As a traveling plane nears its half-way point, according to the filed flight plan, it is handed off to another type of flight controller in the next airspace sector — a radar controller. The entire world has been divided into airspace sectors by joint international conventions. Radar trained air controllers monitor and assist in hand offs. That controller may arrange for one plane or more to change its flight path or altitude because of heavy traffic. When an airplane approaches, the radar controller accepts responsibility for that airplane and quickly delegates it to the next sector air traffic controller.
This specialized controller has more stress than other controllers as he/she is working in semi-darkness. Psychologists have studies showing that working in darkened places is more stressful than working in daylight or well lit work places.
An air traffic controller usually controls several planes at a time; this is the harbinger of stress. The decisions must be made quickly—some planes are landing, some are taking off, and some are overhead and not landing, but going on to other airports. The air traffic controller must recognize all of this and act or react in seconds.
Within the next three years there will be an automated air traffic control system deployed that will allow air traffic controllers to deal with increased air traffic. The use of the Global Positioning System (GPS) will be implemented thus eliminating radar air traffic control. This will give controllers real-time displays of airplane locations and will allow for more efficient flight paths and reduced congestion. It will also allow controllers to handle more traffic, increasing their productivity.
Air traffic controllers who continue to meet the FAA testing and medical requirements enjoy more job security than most workers — controllers are rarely laid off. This is an open-ended career field — the sky's the limit!
