ImAWhoDat
New Member
Hello all,
Long story short, I was an enlisted active duty Army soldier with the military occupational specialty of 15P, or Aviation Operations Specialist. While enlisted, I had the extreme pleasure of learning about several types of helicopters and was able to meet pilots from all walks of life. I was primarily a "record keeper" of pilot records and certifications in garrison, but also monitored air traffic, air space using Blue Force Tracker, sent NOTAMS, monitored weather, utilized proper aviation terminology and etiquette, and dispatched flights for training and range runs.
In Afghanistan in support of OEF X, I was the lead RTO for a task force consisting of Kiowas, Blackhawks, Chinooks, and Apaches and dispatched hundreds of combat, recovery, and medical (9Line) missions. I enjoyed communicating with the pilots and other aviation and combat arms Tactical Operations Centers when we supported them.
Now, the bad news. I've been out of this line of work for 7 years. I'm relatively young at 29, about to receive my college degree from LSU in December, and I applied to Southwest Airlines for a dispatcher position some time ago. Yesterday, I got a call back.
Interview next Wednesday at 10AM, starting pay at $9/hour, dress business professional. Already responded that I'll be there at 945AM.
Point blank, I'm scared absolutely ****less. I've got no idea what the interview will go like or why I even got an interview. I browse these forums and see people having gone to civilian school for this and I feel woefully unprepared to the point I may embarrass myself. I am absolutely not up-to-date on rules and regulations as I've been working in retail and banking for the past several years. I never dreamed I'd get a call back.
T-minus 6 days...where oh where do I start? If hired, do they send you to a separate school to learn/re-learn this? The starting pay indicates that there is some level of training involved, but I'm lost in the woods. My head is swimming in all of this information as I'm brushing up on my notes from Advanced Individual Training while I was in the service.
Long story short, I was an enlisted active duty Army soldier with the military occupational specialty of 15P, or Aviation Operations Specialist. While enlisted, I had the extreme pleasure of learning about several types of helicopters and was able to meet pilots from all walks of life. I was primarily a "record keeper" of pilot records and certifications in garrison, but also monitored air traffic, air space using Blue Force Tracker, sent NOTAMS, monitored weather, utilized proper aviation terminology and etiquette, and dispatched flights for training and range runs.
In Afghanistan in support of OEF X, I was the lead RTO for a task force consisting of Kiowas, Blackhawks, Chinooks, and Apaches and dispatched hundreds of combat, recovery, and medical (9Line) missions. I enjoyed communicating with the pilots and other aviation and combat arms Tactical Operations Centers when we supported them.
Now, the bad news. I've been out of this line of work for 7 years. I'm relatively young at 29, about to receive my college degree from LSU in December, and I applied to Southwest Airlines for a dispatcher position some time ago. Yesterday, I got a call back.
Interview next Wednesday at 10AM, starting pay at $9/hour, dress business professional. Already responded that I'll be there at 945AM.
Point blank, I'm scared absolutely ****less. I've got no idea what the interview will go like or why I even got an interview. I browse these forums and see people having gone to civilian school for this and I feel woefully unprepared to the point I may embarrass myself. I am absolutely not up-to-date on rules and regulations as I've been working in retail and banking for the past several years. I never dreamed I'd get a call back.
T-minus 6 days...where oh where do I start? If hired, do they send you to a separate school to learn/re-learn this? The starting pay indicates that there is some level of training involved, but I'm lost in the woods. My head is swimming in all of this information as I'm brushing up on my notes from Advanced Individual Training while I was in the service.
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