Air Traffic Control Instructor

As an Air Traffic Control Instructor, often known as an ATC Instructor, you teach and train new Air Traffic Controllers for future employment with the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) or the U.S. military, which are the two primary employers of Air Traffic Controllers in the United States.

A former Air Traffic Controller yourself — or perhaps a former Pilot — you typically work for a two- or four-year college that’s affiliated with the FAA’s Air Traffic-Collegiate Training Initiative (AT-CTI) program. Your duties as an Air Traffic Control Instructor are therefore identical to those of any other Teacher or Professor: You advise and counsel students, design courses, plan curriculums, deliver lectures, assign and grade homework, and administer exams.

Of course, your students aren’t learning about Shakespeare or World War II. They’re learning how to manage flight patterns, analyze weather data, communicate with Pilots, and safely coordinate takeoffs and landings. So, there are definitely some key differences between an Air Traffic Control Instructor and, a traditional Professor. You teach your students practical skills using sample flight plans and computer simulations.

Because aircraft safety and security are primary aviation concerns, Air Traffic Controllers can never have “too much” training. As Head Coach to them in the game of aviation, therefore, you’ve got a very big job.