Former USAF Weather Foresaster

Weathurgeek

Weathurgeek

New Member
Hi all, I'm a former AF weather forecaster/current Senior Weather Observer and was wondering about the various Flight Dispatcher courses. There are expedited courses for someone like me, but I'm wondering if I don't go to a five-week long course I might miss something. I have 14 years of aviation meteorological experience, and want to know the best route to go. Also any study guides you all might recommend. I'm leaning towards Jeppessen's course in Denver since I still have my GI Bill. Thanks guys!
 
Based on your background, I personally think you should do the expedited course. I had less experience than you, did the expedited course, and did just fine. Just knock out the day written exam before starting the course
 
Check out the stickie New Dispatcher FAQ. A JC member compiled a lot of good info there for people looking to get into dispatch.

You've already got the wx down so maybe spend some time at faa.gov and start going over Part 121 regulations, especially subpart U. Also, grab the Gleim ATP test prep software and start studying up for the written. The test you'll take is the ADX but it's the ATP software/book (I preferred the software) that you'll purchase. If you elect to go that route, just call Gleim's cust service and explain what test you'll be taking and they will hook you up with the correct one.

As far as a shortened course... At Jepp, the first 2 weeks are primarily wx but the rest of the course dives into everything else dispatch. Not sure if they would allow you to come week 3. I suppose that would be ideal for your situation but when I was there, the shortened course for those with aviation experience had them arrive the last 2 weeks. Talk to jeremy.vincent@jeppesen.com.

Good luck!
 
Thank you very much Genderspecificpilot! I have the Gleim on my Amazon wish list, should I buy the test prep directly from Gleim? These expedited courses make me nervous. But I still have my GI Bill so even if it's just review I can cash in a little
 
You say expedited courses for "someone like you." Are you sure they are for you? Have you actually verified with the various schools that you qualify for the short course? Yes, you have a lot of weather expertise, and weather is the single biggest portion of the course, but it is less than 40% of the total course content. Dispatcher certification courses are required to be at least 200 hours of instruction. I can't cite the source, but I believe 75 hours must be meteorology/weather. The rest is regulations, national airspace systems, aircraft systems, flight planning, emergency procedures, dispatch resource management. aircraft performance, etc.

If you haven't already done so, confer with the schools you are looking at to make sure you qualify. That said, at this point, I'd still recommend taking the whole course. It would be a good review of what you know, and a nice way to tie it in with what you don't. Just my opinion, of course.

Welcome to the profession.
 
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I think you'd be okay for the accelerated programs at most schools. I took the 2 week program at Sheffield very recently and came from a background as a helicopter flight engineer in the USAF. Most of the stuff was totally new for me, but I had experience with jeppesen charts, systems and limits, and just overall flight planning, but was very weak at weather and was what I found to be the most difficult part. Regs can be a little difficult, but it's just one of those things you memorize and when you start using them in planning it starts to click.

If you have any specific questions about the class feel free to shoot me a message or ask in here.
 
If you want to use the GI bill you have to do the full class and I know Sheffield does participate. I decided to pay out of pocket and do the 2 week since i was still employed (different line of work) and couldn't get 5 weeks off from work as well as not wanting to be away from my wife and kids for that time.

One thing i'd do before attending any class is knock out the ADX, that will give you way more time to study other stuff. Stress of the ADX and having to split studying time seemed to be the biggest single cause of failure I saw (given it's a small sample size).
 
FEtoDX said:
One thing i'd do before attending any class is knock out the ADX, that will give you way more time to study other stuff. Stress of the ADX and having to split studying time seemed to be the biggest single cause of failure I saw (given it's a small sample size).
Click to expand...

I'd caution that if you do this, make sure your school of choice will credit you for the cost. I know that Jepp has the written included in the course cost but am not sure if they credit you if you take it before class begins.
 
If you want to knock out the written portion of the test, check with your education center to see if they offer it. I know the education center at Andrews AFB offers the ADX test for free to US service members. I think that will save you $150. I spoke with Jeremy back in June (and toured their campus) and he had stated that they were going to start charging students for taking the written portion as the VA will not cover it (I need to find proof of why the VA won't). I would re-verify with him, but a free test is a free test.
 
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