US Careers in Aviation

[Aaron Kearney]

Hi all,

Lately, I've been pondering my future - what career would be best for me. I've been doing a lot of research, and dropped by here to look for first-hand advice from those in the aviation industry. To give you a short background on myself, I'm currently in a pretty advanced high school with a 4.0GPA and I'm predicted to score somewhere around a 30 on the ACT. I've thought about business and law - both of which I'm still quite a bit interested in - but lately, the aviation bug has bit me again. Flying for the military has appealed to me, but unfortunately my eyesight pretty much prohibits that (my vision is roughly 20/300).

My two basic objectives in looking for a career are 1) a job that lets me travel a lot(I want to see as much of the world as I can), and 2) a job that would give me no trouble in supporting my family.

Education-wise, I plan on getting at least a 4-year degree. Two careers that have caught my eye are airport management and a managerial position within an airline.

One thing that a lot of "career-finder" sites don't offer is first-hand advice about what the position is like; that's what I'm looking for here. Any advice is appreciated.

[FWA NATCA]

Aaron,

You sound like a smart kid, that has an idea what you want to do but you need help in choosing how to obtain your goals.

There are many paths that you can take within the Aviation field that may provide travel opportunities. One place that you can check out the vaious careers is on the FAA web site http://www.faa.gov click on the Job Opportunities and then have it list all. Whether you live in the UK or US, this will give you an idea of the various aviation related careers.

You can also contact the various colleges and universities that have Aviation Degree courses, Purdue, Ohio State, University of Michigan, Emery Riddle, Beaver Falls, University of Minnesota, to name a few.

With your eyesight there may be options available to you, like LASIK, or PRK, check with a certified eye surgeon about whether you are a potential canidate. I know several controllers who had bad vision like you that under went LASIK and are now 20/20 or 20/30.

Good Luck,

Mike

[Aaron Kearney]

Hi Mike,

Thanks for the reply and the link to the FAA website. That's a very nice database to browse through.

One thing I have read in a few discussions is that what you focus your degree on really "doesn't matter". From your experiences, is this true? For example, to secure a job in the aviation industry, would it be sufficient to major in business management, or would it be vital to major in aviation business management?

I've heard and read about LASIK and PRK in my quest to find the military's stance on it. From what I read, the Air Force considers any type of eye surgery an automatic disqualification for flying, and the Navy has a very limited number of slots available for pilots to receive LASIK and participate in a study on the surgery's effectiveness. For now, it looks like eye surgery will remain on the backburner. As much as I would like to fly, I also have a knack for the "business end" of aviation, and I think that's just what I may be looking for.

Thanks for your advice - I'm very appreciative of it.

[FWA NATCA]

Aaron,

To become an air traffic controller the college major didn't matter, and in fact many of our present controllers do not have college degrees because they were hired shortly after the controller strike and mass firing that occured in 1981.

If your profile is accurate and you live in Louisville KY, call the Louisville Ky airport managers office, ask for Mr. Skip Miller, tell him that Mike from the Fort Wayne Tower referred you to him.

Mr. Miller has worked his way up through the ranks of airport employee to becoming a very successful airport manager and can answer all your questions about what you need to know about becoming an airport manager. Since you are still in high school you can ask Mr. Miller if it would be possible for you to job shadow him for a day, or ask if your guidance counselor to help coordinate for you to job shadow Mr. Miller.

For the air traffic control side, contact the Tower Manager or Training Specialist at the Louisville Air Traffic Control Tower and request to job shadow a controller.



Mike
NATCA FWA

[Aaron Kearney]

Mike,

For me, a college education is a definite yes, so I've still got a good number of years to play with.

Yes, I live in Louisville (but born a Buckeye :cool: ). Thanks a lot for the referral. I look forward to contacting Mr. Miller and ATC and getting input from them.

Thanks again for the advice!