Yes, the Federal Aviation Administration announced a plan last month to hire and train over ten thousand air traffic controllers over the next decade, according to its Air Traffic Controller Workforce Plan 2013-2022. According to the plan, the FAA expects to hire 6,200 controllers over the next five years to staff its 315 air traffic control facilities and its national Command Center and even more thereafter. These facilities range from the air traffic control towers passengers commonly see at airports to radar control centers that provide air traffic control services outside the areas handled by the control towers. Some of the air traffic control towers are radar towers and some, at smaller airports, are non-radar towers. Jobs will be opening throughout the country at all levels of facilities.
Of particular importance to interested applicants, the FAA is opening its hiring to the general public. This is not always the case as sometimes the FAA recruits exclusively from the military or students who have completed an FAA-approved air traffic course of study at the collegiate level. This year the FAA will be opening a general recruiting announcement seeking applicants from the general public who have no air traffic control experience. According to the FAA, this is to add “more depth and diversity to our controller hiring sources.”
If you are interested in applying, the FAA is sponsoring two virtual career fairs, January 29 and February 12 from noon to 4 pm EST in advance of a scheduled public jobs announcement in www.USAJOBS.gov some time in February. Registration for the virtual career fair is at vshow.on24,com/vshow/network/registration/5492# or follow the link on www.faa.gov/jobs/career_fields/aviation_careers/.
To be eligible, members of the general public must pass an Air Traffic Selection and Training exam which tests for qualifications the agency deems necessary for success as an air traffic controller. These include: numeric ability, prioritization, planning, ability to work in a high-stress environment and visualization. In addition, as for all jobs with the United States government, applicants must be US citizens. But for these jobs, they must also be able to speak English clearly enough to be understood over electronic communications and pass stringent medical, psychological and security requirements. Last but not least, applicants can be no older than age 30 as there is an age limit of 31 on beginning training and of 32 on becoming a controller. Further information is available at www.faa.gov/jobs.
I've worked with air traffic controllers my whole aviation career and I can say that it is a demanding job but certainly one with many rewards both professional and financial.
