Why Dispatch?

[RegionalDXer]

Only because Envoy uses command line Sabre same as AA so you would already know the basic dispatch commands and codes used at AA.

while that is partially correct, Sabre is going away for flight planning in the next year with flight keys coming out next year so everyone will be on same level then.. but envoy has lost 50-60 dispatchers in the past 7-8 months to everyone… AA, Delta,Southwest, Spirit, among other notable names and start ups.. 1/5th of the first SW class was envoy post Covid, something like 10 out of 60 in the first 2 SW classes were envoy compared to 12 out of 85 to AA in 3 classes..

the idea that Envoy only feeds into AA is laughable. Yes most go to AA, but that is because of the location and systems… but it shows going to any regional, can get you hired at any major

 

[RegionalDXer]

Touring Envoy SOC might turn you off from dispatching

i mean Mesa doesn’t even do a dispatch quiz or questions when you interview or atleast as of a few years ago they didn’t.. it was just a call from Hr then hey your hired after you answer a few generic HR questions lol.. so I would view that much more of a turn off than an SOC (which is much nicer than other SOCs).

 

[manniax]

One of the fun things in interviewing prospective dispatchers is asking their “origin” story. It’s such a niche position that it’s fun to hear how people found it.

I copied an ad for Sheffield inadvertently when copying an aviation article for a college course I was taking. I was trying to finish my undergraduate degree ASAP in a general aviation type of major but didn't know what kind of job I could get with it after I finished...dispatching sounded right up my alley so I took the plunge about six months after that. 25 plus years onward at five different airlines, and I still like the job.

 

[manniax]

Spotted Cow Air Lines actually did a pretty good blog story recently about DX and the happenings in an SOC. Worth a read for some insight into the career

Nice article, thanks for the link! ZW was a pretty decent regional, nice area, and it was my last "stop" on the circuit before making it to a major.

 

[kalan31]

I also never knew dispatch existed, I think that is a common theme. Stumbled onto something online and was intrigued. Dispatch combines several of my interests... Aviation, meteorology, logistics, problem solving, travel and so on. With the added benefits that I never have to interact with the passengers as part of my job and get to come home every night.

 

[Kev]

I was about ready to graduate with a music theory and composition degree and was working as a marshaller on the ramp at UPS SDF. I started wondering at the logistics of why certain types of planes were going where and how that was planned and configured ahead of time. Mentioned that to my dad, who was a pilot for them, and he told me about dispatch.

Got a behind the scenes look at the UPS NOC, or whatever they call it. Sat with erstwhile JC Forum member 69Beers watching him do North Atlantic ETOPS flight planning. And that was it! I immediately left behind what would surely have been a massively lucrative career in music for regional pay.

I truly have no passion for aviation: I've never had a desire to fly. I don't care about airplanes. I couldn't point out a difference between a 757 and 767 by looking at them in the sky. But I do take pride in the job and try to learn as much as I can, since it's a big responsibility.

I love the dynamism, coordination, dissemination of information to guess right, problem solving, occasional excitement, creating a good product, trying to keep people safe, the fancy software, the people I work with, evolving processes, thinking steps ahead, logistical challenges, all the monitor screens, the cool working environment and not being in a cubicle, travel benefits, the autonomy to control my own operation without a manager looking over my shoulder, the time off, the responsibility, the pay I've eventually been able to attain, and not having to work a minute after I leave the office.

You've really gotta be "wired" for it to love it. If you're not, you'll find out early enough.

I can't imagine doing anything else - I'm very happy I became a dispatcher.

 

[flygirl142]

I was about ready to graduate with a music theory and composition degree and was working as a marshaller on the ramp at UPS SDF. I started wondering at the logistics of why certain types of planes were going where and how that was planned and configured ahead of time. Mentioned that to my dad, who was a pilot for them, and he told me about dispatch.

Got a behind the scenes look at the UPS NOC, or whatever they call it. Sat with erstwhile JC Forum member 69Beers watching him do North Atlantic ETOPS flight planning. And that was it! I immediately left behind what would surely have been a massively lucrative career in music for regional pay.

I truly have no passion for aviation: I've never had a desire to fly. I don't care about airplanes. I couldn't point out a difference between a 757 and 767 by looking at them in the sky. But I do take pride in the job and try to learn as much as I can, since it's a big responsibility.

I love the dynamism, coordination, dissemination of information to guess right, problem solving, occasional excitement, creating a good product, trying to keep people safe, the fancy software, the people I work with, evolving processes, thinking steps ahead, logistical challenges, all the monitor screens, the cool working environment and not being in a cubicle, travel benefits, the autonomy to control my own operation without a manager looking over my shoulder, the time off, the responsibility, the pay I've eventually been able to attain, and not having to work a minute after I leave the office.

You've really gotta be "wired" for it to love it. If you're not, you'll find out early enough.

I can't imagine doing anything else - I'm very happy I became a dispatcher.

As a former music major who loved theory (but has forgotten most of it as I sit here trying to analyze a piece of music and feeling dumb), I appreciate what you have to say. I think the same things attract us to this job that attract us to what we love in music, just expressed in different ways. I love the left brained logical part of this job but also the freedom and flexibility it gives. I love that we get to be involved in the nuts and bolts but that every day is different. I don't know if I'm making sense to anyone but myself though

 

[Kev]

That makes sense. I think there's something to it. In this job, you put a lot of pieces together and pretty much conduct an orchestra of resources. You see the big picture and work with others. Like theory and orchestration, there are set rules, but you can have some flexibility with how you place everything. Don't go full Schoenberg, though!

If it helps anyone, a sports analogy is you're like a quarterback - someone hikes the ball to you and you have different options in order to execute the right play and get the ball where it needs to go for the best result. But sometimes, someone (IROP, mechanical, medical) is charging after you and you have to think fast!

Or you may have to just run the ball yourself. And there's no intentional grounding!