How to you explain to people that you work at an ARTCC?

[FM_Weasel]

Not to mention explaning how we ultimately get to our facility. Good lord

"So you're working in Kansas City?"
"No, that's where the interview was"
"Oh, so after that you're going to Waco?"
"No...there's training in OKC...."

blah.

 

[Raydon]

just tell em you're the guy that makes the planes fly from a to b without hitting one another.

...or.. just say.. "I'm an air traffic controller"

if they ask you anything more, just slap them in the face and yell "I'm rick james #####!"

 

[bippoptl]

just tell em you're the guy that makes the planes fly from a to b without hitting one another.

...or.. just say.. "I'm an air traffic controller"

if they ask you anything more, just slap them in the face and yell "I'm rick james #####!"

lol...holy crap raydon!!! you actually had a good post, and quite funny..congrats!!! :rawk:

 

[nathanw]

just tell em you're the guy that makes the planes fly from a to b without hitting one another.

...or.. just say.. "I'm an air traffic controller"

if they ask you anything more, just slap them in the face and yell "I'm rick james #####!"

Charlie Murphy!

 

[esw2005]

not really true. a lot of centers provide quite a bit of service to the ground

some even take over for 1 or 2 TRACONs at night anic:

I was trying to keep it as simple as possible....

Why is it so hard for other people to understand?....my family and friends seem to grasp the concept of my future job...

 

[Yank&BankmyRJ145]

I was trying to keep it as simple as possible....

Why is it so hard for other people to understand?....my family and friends seem to grasp the concept of my future job...

I have told and drove past the building with my mom, many times, where I will be working. But she still thinks I will be working in a Tower, She can not understand the whole dark room thing. She asks "but how will you know where they are if you can't see them". :banghead: But she also calls me when the clouds are low at her house, and tells me to be careful when I fly into the clouds. :banghead: She lives over 200 miles away

 

[kcarpentier]

:banghead: But she also calls me when the clouds are low at her house, and tells me to be careful when I fly into the clouds. :banghead:

oh my god, when I flew to my PEPC a few weeks ago, my sister called me up and was like "I HOPE YOU DONT FLY INTO ANY CLOUDS!!! YOU WILL CRASH!" the only excuse for her is she's 14 and never flown before. but still... come on... a cloud?! :banghead:

 

[AM011309]

I used to get all the time either people thought I was the guy with the orange wands or I will work in a tower...

Now (while going through this hiring process) I work ramp at an airline and now I AM the guy with the orange wands lol...everyone I work with knows my career aspiration and since they are aviation people I was like, finally I won't have to explain all this!! Now, it is...

When you going to the tower?
...not going to a tower, a center...

Oh, so you're gonna be a dispatcher!
...no, like en route atc...

Oh yeah I know what you're talking about! One of those Flight Service Stations is right by my house!
...sigh...no not that...explain the three types of atc, artcc is this, etc etc etc..that's what i do...

Ohhhh, I get it! So what level tower are you going to then?
...I'M NOT WORKING AT AN AIRPORT!!!!!!!...


To even further complicate the explanation, you know how the centers are actually a ways outside the city "center" that they are, mine is in a different state just over the border so I get, "Oh you'll love [city] blah blah blah..."
...Well, the facility is actually located just north in [state] and that's where I'll be living...which is quite a bit different from the city.
:::blank stare:::

And some of them can't comprehend the OKC part of it either... so now I just save myself all of it and yep, I start this day at [city] tower. hahaha not quite like that but i quit trying to explain.

 

[Bigey]

It's all good. Theres plenty of fields that have complicated circumstances too.

I was telling one of my friends about how in SoCal we have 2 county law enforcement agencies.

One is the Los Angeles County Sheriff (LASO/LASD) and the other is Los Angeles County Police (LACOPS).

Sheriff have substations throughout the county and do the main law enforcement actions while LACOPS do county owned buildings, and county parks.

Technically LACOPS have certain jurisdictions in streets in which they patrol but it's paralleled with the LASD. Then wait, it gets more complicated. LACOPS and LASD have in theory complete same jurisdiction since they're both the county of LA.

And if it gets any worse, they wear the same uniform, have the cars painted the same color and scheme, yet have 0 to do with eachother. They're run seperately.

I've shot the #### with a LACOP before and it was interesting for him to explain to a passerby that he's actually considered a police officer (terms of name) and that LASD are deputy sheriffs.

Weird i know. I'm done with LE talk...

 

[darli328]

I have told and drove past the building with my mom, many times, where I will be working. But she still thinks I will be working in a Tower, She can not understand the whole dark room thing. She asks "but how will you know where they are if you can't see them". :banghead: But she also calls me when the clouds are low at her house, and tells me to be careful when I fly into the clouds. :banghead: She lives over 200 miles away

This is all too familiar to me...

 

[Raydon]

At least you have people interested in what you're doing.. here's my dialogue for the day..

(As I'm pouring wine to my customers)

Me : So now I'm going through the hiring process for air traffic
control through the FAA. Just took my entry exam and scored
a 99.8.. and now i'm just waiting on the interview.

Guests: Oh.. wow that's awesome.. so you'll be the guy in the tower?

Me : Well maybe, I could end up a couple of diff..

Guests: MM this wine is great! Sweety we should get this for our party
: Ok! sounds great.
: So.. wow, that's so neat I hope everything goes well for you.
My uncle's a pilot and he used to take me up all the time..
blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah...

:whatever:

the girl was SMOKING hot so I didn't mind much but what can you do.. I live in the biggest excuse to drink and get ignorant in the Nation...

 

[El Kabong]

Me: I work in a factory
Mom: If you get better, will they let you go to the tower?
Me: Something like that.
My brother: Dude, why don’t you move back to LA?
Me: I couldn’t afford the pay cut.

ATC-12, no pay raise again for me in January.

 

[FAA_ATC]

Re: How do you explain to people that you work at an ARTCC?

Long story short I'll be headed to Seattle ARTCC next year and I'm having a really hard time explaining to my friends and family (that are without an aviation background) what I'll be doing there...

Just tell them you're the guy planes talk to between controllers. HA!

 

[ATC RET 2003]

Tell them you have no clue, then stare off into space and twitch occasionally.

 

[CFIscare]

[yt]8auGAJrnpY4[/yt]

 

[Juliet Lima]

just tell your family and friends that your the guy at the airport with the flashlights in your hands telling airplanes where to go. they'll understand. that's the only "controllers" they see and are familiar with. it'll make it so much easier to say that, then to tell them what center controllers really do.

 

[LawnGnome]

Tell them imagine you are at a bar full of drunk people. The bar announces that they are closing and everyone must leave. Your job is to get all the drunks out the door without anyone touching anyone else.

 

[Raydon]

sweet new avatar gnomer! how you been?

 

[dredding]

Just tell them you keep airplanes safe in the sky, helping them avoid other aircraft and weather situations.

If they ask for more details, begin to explain to them that the average airline plane carries 120 people and you are responsible for those people arriving at their destination safely.

 

[nathanw]

"I just move the little blips around so they don't run into each other, and then I go home."
"Those blips are people, Russell."
"Well nobody ever told me that..."