Fancy being a Pilot or Air Traffic Controller?

Hello again...

High up on my hobby / obsession list is aviation. I love planes and all the associated stuff that goes on with them. The smell of jet fuel at an airport gives me goosebumps and sends me off in to some kind of aviation related stupor. 

I blame my parents as they used to take me to Manchester Airport when I was a child to "plane spot". This was back in the late 1970's when flying was still reserved for the rich and / or famous. I used to marvel at these huge iron birds lurching into the air after eventually winning their battle against gravity. This was before the quieter engines we have today. This was in the times of the BAC 1-11 and Trident. The roar from the engines would shake any loose fillings from your teeth without even trying.

Anyway, I'm reminiscing and not really getting to the point of this post.

One of my dream jobs when I was younger was to either be a pilot or air traffic controller. Unfortunately neither of them worked out due to the (i) the hideous cost associated with learning to fly and (ii) no air traffic controller vacancies being available when I left college. I ended up working in IT.

Fast forward 30 years and I discover a thing called Vatsim (Virtual Air Traffic SIMulator). Here, with the aid of the right bits of software and an internet connection, you could join a network of like minded enthusiasts and fly or control but virtually ie no threat to human life! 

After signing up and after reading a few articles about what was expected of me whilst connected to the Vatsim network, I tried my first virtual flight. 

I decided to fly from Amsterdam-Schipol to Manchester, which usually takes around an hour. What could possibly go wrong?! To cut a long story short, everything. I'd been introduced to this whole new world, this whole new language. 

"Tomson 1010, cleared to Manchester via the GORLO3V departure, squawk 3564, QNH 1010, information Mike."

I was like, huh? What did he just say? So, I promptly disconnected from the network and started devouring You Tube videos and online articles about how to fly in the real and virtual world. 

I had learn about ILS approaches (the thing the pilot uses to make sure you land nicely on the runway), SIDs, STARs, Transition Altitudes, etc etc. It took a few months but eventually I became more and more confident in my ability and decided to fly another trip online. This time it was much better. I knew what to say to the controller, I could fly my plane correctly (a 737 if anyone is interested) and got safely from Amsterdam to Manchester.

Needless to say, I was hooked... Flight after flight, hour after hour, I kept learning and improving... 

Then one day I stumbled across the Air Traffic Control section of Vatsim. I thought, "hang on a minute, lets give this a go...". I enrolled, sat through an introductory training session, downloaded another bit of software (Euroscope) and was let loose, controlling aircraft on the ground at Manchester (virtually).

I was the guy you hear in the movies saying "Speedbird 123, taxi holding point Juliet 1, via Delta, Kilo and Juliet" or "Ryanair 332 Foxtrot, cleared to Heathrow via SANBA1R departure, squawk 3155, QNH1021, information Delta". 

Again I was hooked...

Now air traffic controlling needs different skills than being a pilot. You have to be able to think in 3 dimensions but also plan ahead whilst keeping a game plan in your mind. You are thinking all the time. You need to know what's going on and who is going where. You don't want two aircraft crashing in to each other because you took the eye off the ball. I work with a layout as shown below. The aircraft will park at the stands (numbers) and I guide them to the runways (black strips at 45 degrees) via taxiways. Sounds easy? Not at all...

You might think why do I do this for "fun"? It can be stressful. Controlling 15 aircraft at once during one of the "events" is very difficult. If you lose track you can slow the whole process down for everyone. It doesn't look professional and you'll get ridiculed by your friends and "colleagues"!

To be honest I'm not really sure. I think it's because it's the closest I can get to being a pilot or controller without investing a huge amount of money and changing career. I'm 46 and have certain responsibilities. I don't think a career change (and salary drop) at my time of life is a good idea. 

Vatsim is the closest I can get to realising my dream of being a pilot or controller. Yes, I spend hours flying or controller but its in the comfort of my own home. My family know where I am (physically if not virtually) and I feel happy that I'm fulfilling my passion for aviation.

In later posts I'll go in to more detail about flying and controlling on Vatsim but I'll leave it here for now.

Hope you've found this interesting and feel free to leave any comments or questions below.

Thanks for reading.