New guy in the room...

LX015

LX015

Well-Known Member
Hey everyone, I'm a newcomer to this site. Was referred here from another aviation site. I'm looking to find a dispatcher school in the NYC area. I've recently come across Academics of Flight, does anyone here have any opinions of this school or can you recommend a school in NYC?

Thanks in advance
 
I think Flight Safety is in the NYC area, but I have heard some negative things about their program also. Good luck finding a school that works for you!
 
LX015 said:
Hey everyone, I'm a newcomer to this site. Was referred here from another aviation site. I'm looking to find a dispatcher school in the NYC area. I've recently come across Academics of Flight, does anyone here have any opinions of this school or can you recommend a school in NYC?

Thanks in advance
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FlightSafety LGA. I went there and I got my ticket and I got hired right out of school.


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Both Flight Safety and Academics of Flight are good schools from what I've been told, I think AoF is a little cheaper.
 
I attended Flight Safety. Great group of guys. They work with you. Always there to answer questions and provide guidance. By the time you are ready to take the FAA Practical, you are more than prepared... At least I felt I was.

I think Vaughn College (its in the same area.. campus across the street from the airport) now offers a DX program.
 
Really appreciating the feedback from everyone, thank you. Always nice to find a forum with helpful members!
 
JetCrew said:
I attended Flight Safety. Great group of guys. They work with you. Always there to answer questions and provide guidance. By the time you are ready to take the FAA Practical, you are more than prepared... At least I felt I was.

I think Vaughn College (its in the same area.. campus across the street from the airport) now offers a DX program.
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Do you work at JFK? How likely is it to find work in the NYC area (not just the big 3 airports)?
 
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Unfortunately, I don't work in NY. I left NY to take a job in CLT. Not that many DX jobs in the area that I know of. There's B6 and Atlas. I do come across a few coordinator jobs on Indeed.com which require a license. For what those jobs pay, it isn't worth it from a financial standpoint but they can provide invaluable heavy jet and international experience. Recently saw a post for Air India ops out of JFK. You just need to look around. The Flight Safety Guys can also help with job placement. People go to them when they need DXers. They once sent me an offer for a corporate gig but I had already started my CLT gig so I turned it down...
 
JetCrew said:
Unfortunately, I don't work in NY. I left NY to take a job in CLT. Not that many DX jobs in the area that I know of. There's B6 and Atlas. I do come across a few coordinator jobs on Indeed.com which require a license. For what those jobs pay, it isn't worth it from a financial standpoint but they can provide invaluable heavy jet and international experience. Recently saw a post for Air India ops out of JFK. You just need to look around. The Flight Safety Guys can also help with job placement. People go to them when they need DXers. They once sent me an offer for a corporate gig but I had already started my CLT gig so I turned it down...
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Thanks again. Do you, or anyone else for that matter, think it's better to start out as a ground ops person or go to a dispatcher school when trying to break into this field of work?
 
LX015 said:
Do you work at JFK? How likely is it to find work in the NYC area (not just the big 3 airports)?
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I will say that if you are planning to make dispatch a career - you have to be prepared to move. It's very unlikely you'll find a position where you're currently living right out of school. Now, if you are set on staying in the NYC area, then you could look for work as a ramper/ops agent at one of the NYC area airports, since I'm sure lots of those types of jobs wouldn't require you to move. And, you could try getting your dispatch license and find work for a foreign carrier ops agent position like the Air India one previously mentioned at JFK where they prefer their agent have a dispatch license. However, if your goal is to dispatch for one of the "Big 6" US airlines someday, you need to get your license first, then get some practical 121 dispatching experience (regional or supplemental)...and neither airline based in the NYC area (JetBlue or Atlas) hires dispatchers without any experience. Good luck with your career!
 
LX015 said:
Do you feel like you were adequately prepared for the 'real world'?
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No school prepares you for the 'real world'. The purpose of your school is to provide you with a knowledge foundation such that your employer's dispatcher training program can teach you how to be a dispatcher. There are a few ticket mills who pump out dispatchers unable to read a METAR or understand basic FARs. Combine that with a poor airline training program and you have a recipe for a bad day.
 
I attended Vaughn College and received my license along with my degree. Someone correct me if I'm wrong, but I believe you need to be enrolled in a degree at Vaughn in order to enroll in the DX course. With that said, I have several friends and colleagues who attended Academy of Flight and they have only positive things to say about that school. The instructor is very flexible and works with your schedule to the best of his ability.

Regarding finding a DX job in the NYC area, most people tend to start on the ramp or at the gates of a major in which gives them the flexibility to transfer into their respective SOC. NYC is fairly limited although not as limited as other cities (i.e Chicago-UA, SFO-VX).

Hope this helps.
 
mmosko76 said:
I attended Vaughn College and received my license along with my degree. Someone correct me if I'm wrong, but I believe you need to be enrolled in a degree at Vaughn in order to enroll in the DX course. With that said, I have several friends and colleagues who attended Academy of Flight and they have only positive things to say about that school. The instructor is very flexible and works with your schedule to the best of his ability.

Regarding finding a DX job in the NYC area, most people tend to start on the ramp or at the gates of a major in which gives them the flexibility to transfer into their respective SOC. NYC is fairly limited although not as limited as other cities (i.e Chicago-UA, SFO-VX).

Hope this helps.
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Flight safety had an agreement with Vaughn , the DX part of your degree is given by flight safety. and when you get your license i think it counts for some credits

you can still sign up with flight safety for the non degree , just regular DX course
 
This may be an old thing then- when I received my license in 2014, the entire course was at Vaughn taught by Vaughn (non-Flight Safety) instructors.
 
Re: dispatch jobs in NYC...don't forget about business aviation. Aside from private jet operators, I believe companies like Citi and Time Warner have their own aviation divisions. A friend of mine worked for one of them. The work is challenging, but they said the pay was enough and there were some fun perks involved. New york being what it is, I'm sure there are a few Part 135 opportunities to be had, if not a handful. If you have your sights on a major carrier, some will say Part 135 is not the best step ladder for your goals. It's a different ballgame for sure. Examples don't make rules, but the few people I know from the 135 world are very sharp and articulate aviation professionals, more capable of high-level dispatching than many of the click-and-senders from 121 regionals.
 
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LX015 said:
Do you feel like you were adequately prepared for the 'real world'?
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As others have said, dispatch school does not prepare you for the real world. Working at a regional and the couple 121/Supplemental carriers and maximizing what I learned during OJT taught me more than I ever did in dispatch school.


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