Already that time of year again, oh joy.

Training at a level 10 in ground and have been in a pickle with getting different info from different trainers. A few trainers say not to delay a heavy or international flight even if they don't have a slot time. Just get them taxiing and out of here as we can call for new times on domestic departures. Along those lines, I've gotten talked to for giving heavies a tab stop when taxiing or telling them to taxi behind someone.

I can't find anywhere in the 7110 that even remotely speaks to this. I asked my Supervisor and they said the reg doesn't speak to any priority and work traffic from a first come first served standpoint.

So get back in position that afternoon and get talked to about putting a VFR Piper in front of a heavy.

What gives!?!? I feel like my trainers are just making rules up to be honest.

The survivor benefit is the one 6(c) decision people rush at the retirement counter and second-guess for years after, so I put together an example to show what it actually does in dollars. Dana here is made up, but the numbers run on current (2026) rules.

So say Dana is an ATC retiring at 52, married, high-3 around $165K, 23 years of good time. Her gross pension before the survivor election lands at about $61,762 a year, or $5,147 a month.

Here's the fork. FERS full survivor knocks 10% off her own pension for life. In her case that's $6,176 a year, so her check drops from $5,147 to $4,632 a month. Call it $515 a month, every month, for as long as she lives.

What does that $515 buy? If Dana dies first, her spouse keeps 50% of her unreduced pension for the rest of their life, with COLAs. That's $30,881 a year, about $2,573 a month, that keeps coming after she's gone. Take "no survivor" instead and the spouse gets $0 from the pension the day she dies. (And the survivor annuity is also what keeps a spouse eligible for FEHB. Drop it and they can lose the health plan too.)

Now the part that fools people. If you only look at the household's take-home while Dana is alive, "no survivor" wins every single year. Bigger check. Out to age 90 the no-survivor path averages about $683 a month more take-home and roughly $319,825 more in total. So on a spreadsheet that stops at her death, skipping survivor looks like free money.

It isn't. That $319,825 is the price of the protection, and the protection pays out after the spreadsheet ends. Every one of those bigger no-survivor checks is a bet that Dana outlives her spouse. If she goes first at, say, 72 and her spouse lives into their late 80s, that $2,573 a month (growing with COLA) is income the no-survivor path zeroed out. Fifteen-ish years of it, gone.

So it isn't "which path has the bigger number." It's "am I comfortable self-insuring my spouse's income for the rest of their life to keep an extra $515 a month now." For a household with a big TSP and a spouse who has their own pension, maybe that's fine. For a single-pension household, that's a heavy bet to make at a counter in twenty minutes.

See comprehensive reports of the full scenario broken down WITH FULL or WITHOUT the survivor benefit.

That's how the math shakes out. If you see a hole in it, call it out, I'd rather fix it than be wrong quietly. And I'm curious how others weighed this one, especially anyone who took the reduced survivor and later felt good or bad about it.

What scenario should I run next week?

For the longest time, I’ve had a genuine passion for becoming an air traffic controller. Shortly, I’ll be graduating from high school, and I am looking forward to applying. My main concern however, is how confident I should be into getting into this profession because I won’t be able to apply until the beginning of the college year. Should I apply, and not go to college, hoping I get an offer, or should I go to college, and if I get an offer in college, what would I do then? If I don’t qualify in the ATSA, do I try again, or is that an indicator it’s not for me? I was talked out of doing E-CTI by a controller, so the academy is really something I’m hoping to get the opportunity to do.

And no, I already know the hiring process, so I hope this doesn’t break the rules

This seems like it should have been put out by the FAA, not the union in charge of negotiating our pay increases. Natca obviously thinks we make enough.

Hello. I've got a audio record of an approach facility.

I just wonder you guys know what this sound is.

What manufacturer of voice switch that makes this sound?

Those who are currently in training at NATS or who have already been through it, how is it?

I understand that it’s quite full on with theory in the beginning and then sim work later. I’m interested in understanding how the sim sessions usually look; what do you actually do, are the sessions done one on one with the instructor etc.

Also I’ve heard the washout rate is very high, have you found that to be true?

I think I want to become an atc but I really don't want to have to go to Oklahoma City for a few months and then have to move to another city for on the job training. Is there another academy that isn't in Oklahoma City or am I just stuck with going there?

I’ve been seeing people based in New York/New Jersey get told that their chances of being placed in the NYC area are good, but what about Chicago and other major cities?

I am currently based in Chicago, and I don’t know if moving across country would be ideal but I would do it if necessary. Just wanted to know thoughts and opinions on this placement.

We have genuine disagreement at work and can’t seem to find a published answer for ICAO airports.

Are published speed restrictions on a STAR considered like a “speed check” where I only need to comply with the speed AT THE WAYPOINT and can slow at pilots discretion after (assuming it’s the last waypoint with a restriction on the STAR), or is it treated like an assigned speed that must be maintained until canceled by ATC later.

We found the FAA guidelines on this, but can’t find any ICAO guidance.

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

I've been wondering whether an AI ATC simulator could become a genuinely useful training tool for student pilots if the practice scenarios and feedback were reviewed by real air traffic controllers and CFIs. Would you trust an AI ATC simulator more if real controllers helped build and vet the scenarios?

I flew out of the NY area in my GA airplane yesterday, and the N90 controllers I spoke to did an awesome job of helping me get out of there despite a myriad of TFR's and the normal airliner traffic. I was fully expecting to have to stay out of the B, but they gave me a clearance and got me on course way earlier than I expected. They also showed exceptional patience with another GA pilot that obviously hadn't read the TFR NOTAM's and kept asking questions.

Back in the day, VFR handoffs between facilities often dropped the destination airport (and maybe the whole strip). So we learned to include our destination in the initial call to a new facility.

For example: “Toledo Approach, Bugsmasher 123AB level six thousand five hundred landing Dowagiac.”

Is this still a thing, or am I just old?

• What is the main difference between the two certificates?
• If I hold a Navy Class 3 Medical Certificate (DD Form 2992), can I work ATC with the FAA or at an ATCT using just that form?
• If I hold an FAA Class 2 Medical Certificate (Form 8500-9), can I work ATC at a Navy DoD facility using that certificate?
• Is it safe to assume that holding one current certificate automatically qualifies you for the other?

been following the FAA hiring push and it sounds like half the workforce is training the other half at this point. i'm not a controller, just an aviation nerd who reads way too much about this world.

everyone describes the plugged-in part of OJT - the stress, the "my trainee was MEH today" stories - but nobody ever talks about what happens after the trainee unplugs. what does the rest of it actually look like for the instructor?

I'm a student that wants to become an Air Traffic Controller. I have some experience already in roleplay groups on Roblox such as ATC24. I strive under stress and I've had a passion for aviation since a young age.

I recently went to the careers counsellor at my college and they pointed out the aviation management degree which covers ATC. I'd like to know what's the difference between getting an aviation management degree first and then applying for ATC or applying to become an ATC trainee at Airservices Australia first. I've heard mixed opinions on an aviation management degree, some say it's useless and some say it can lead to good aviation careers such as airport management etc.

Would getting an aviation management degree open up more opportunities? Should I take a gap year first to see if I can even become a trainee and pass it?

https://www.griffith.edu.au/study/degrees/bachelor-of-aviation-management-1367

https://www.airservicesaustralia.com/careers/air-traffic-control-careers/

Hi all,

I didn’t think I’d qualify after I took the ATSA back in May. 2 months later I’m emailed TOL. Pending psych, physical, backgrounds, clearances, etc.. I work FT so I realize I’d have to give notice upon getting academy start date.

I’d be flying to OKC for academy + wherever I’d get assigned for the 2-3 yrs of post-academy OTJ training that my wife & I would have to move.

Would appreciate any advice and/or stories of your experience at the academy and wherever you got assigned for OTJ training much appreciated!

Hello, I am doing a survey for my special studies class about the implementation of AI into Air Traffic Control. If anyone can take the time to do my survey that would be greatly appreciated. It takes less than a minute. The link is attached:

https://qualtrics.ou.edu/jfe/form/SV_ebTMhohT73Y0pf0

Hi all,
I have applied and luckily got the chance to be assessed by AIRNAV Ireland.

What should I expect the initial technical exam to be like?

Also are there any online materials I can use to practice?

The test deadline is Sunday 26th July

Thanks all

To anybody in this subreddit who trained with NATS, how would you describe the experience? Was predominantly positive or negative? Would you recommend this to other people?

I’ve previously worked for organisations where workplace bullying can be somewhat common, I’ve been accepted for a position with NATS, and I’d just like to know honestly if this will be the case, or if the training, and job is positive.

Many thanks in advance :)

Personal opinion follows.
I occasionally listen to Mike Rowe's podcasts or peruse his posts on Facebook. One of his latest posts ties into the "Building Freedom" push by the current administration and linked to a White House press release. Reading the "Remarks from Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent (May 29, 2026)," a certain phrase really stood out to me.

"It [economic security] does not mean rejecting efficiency. It means refusing to worship efficiency when efficiency leaves our nation exposed. "

The phrase was intended to discuss the imbalance of trade, America's production capacity, and our downward spiral of outsourced supply chain solutions. Out of context, applied to ATC and Secretary Duffy's circus, it takes on a whole new meaning. Secretary Duffy has done little more than promote the "improvements" to the national airspace, which are entirely technological in nature. Some of them are certainly long overdue, and the majority of them are still years in the making.

However, the reality of daily life has not changed for the controllers safeguarding our airspace. Overtime assignments are still mandatory for the vast majority of certified controllers. Facilities are short staffed regardless of the arbitrary reductions showing "staffing goals were met." Newly hired controllers arrive at facilities with bare comprehension of the fundamentals of job requirements. Yet the public relations agenda proclaims that the national airspace is safe.

Controllers are human, and those hired in the 2007-2012 cycle are soon reaching retirement eligibility. They aren't going to stay long term for temporary bonuses which don't move their retirement income. After decades of overtime abuse, shift work, holidays, and weekends, what choice is there between extending the abuse or finally retiring to enjoy life?

When the revised training courses at the Academy are shortened, provide less instruction, and become driven by score results, the next generation of controllers will be ill equipped to deal with the pressures of the system without the more senior controllers to support them.

Significant effort is underway to make the numbers look good, as if the safety of the NAS were a business ledger to be judged on the color of the numbers. Unfortunately, efficiency has already become paramount to safety. Numerous newsworthy aircraft conflicts, errors, and the DCA crash stand as testament to a management system unwilling to make the expensive and correct improvements for safety. Innocent people have already paid the price, but when will the red number in the ledger become excessive enough to demand the correct solution? The root cause is insufficient staffing -- something all too obvious to those who are overworked within the system.

Yes yes yes, I joined the dark side.

But I need to know: What are we expected to wear as supervisors? I never got any word on it nor cared to pay attention to what my Supe’s wore.

I got the job to be close to my ailing father who’s in the same town, and this route was the best option as NCEPt didn’t help.

Just need help with what attire :)

I’m not talking about exactly mon-fri 8 to 4, but rather of not having your shifts change every week. It can be any day and time, but how rare is it to have them the same every week? Is it more likely to happen in smaller airports? Or only when you work for many years and eventually get to choose shifts?