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| Photo NATS |
The UK's air traffic control operator NATS is looking for more staff to become Aircraft Control Position Operators. In a normal year (pre-Covid) NATS staff handle 2.5 million flights and 250 million passengers travelling in UK airspace.
It is a demanding job, but rewarding, but what does it actually involve?
Lauren Dixon explains all about it and exactly why you should apply....
"Hi, I’m Lauren Dixon and I’m an Aircraft Control Position Operator (ACPO) at NATS.
Normally, when I tell people what my role is, they look at me and say ‘what?!’. In simple terms, the best way to describe what I do is that I am effectively a ‘pseudo pilot’. This means that I sit on a desk with an interactive touchscreen and a radar screen in front of me and act as if I were a pilot, in an aircraft, talking to a controller. This helps controllers to train for the airspace that they will eventually be responsible for."
Find out about careers at NATSs here.
NATS have around 4,500 employees dedicated to advancing aviation and keeping the skies safe. That includes 1,700 Air Traffic Controllers, 650 Air Traffic Service Assistants, 1,000 engineers, and 1,000 other specialists.