Middle East ATC scene

[oxide]

What's it like to be controlling in the middle east? What are qualifications as far as ATC training goes to get into the various ATC jobs around in the mid east. Especially for expats.

Is the job outlook for expats any good and is it getting better or worse?

any help appreaciated .. cheers

[Ali Bin Somewhere]

where you are looking at moving to?

abu dhabi is a great city to live in, cheaper then dubai (except for rent) great social scene, lots to do for wives and kids and close to dubai etc.

serco has the contract here and will (hopefully) be re-bidding at the end of the year for another 3 year contract. some of the downsides are average accom and lower pay then the rest of the middle east. there are lots of other pluses and minuses and im sure if you want lots of guys will tell you about them, but overall its a pretty good place to be for me and my family.

qualifications required are 5 years experience(they have taken less in the past but not very often) ICAO/UAE recognised licence ie UK, European, SA, AUS, CAN etc. they like you to have OJTI. for UAE enroute is in abu dhabi and app is in both abu dhabi and dubai. for enroute/arrivals you have to go through theory and then 180+ hrs dual then let loose on the world. there are 2 or 3 slots avaiable here at the moment i think but always changing with all the comings and goings.

it is busy( averageing over 1000 a/c through the airspace a day)and annoying at times. lack of readbacks and inability to meet requirements by pilots are the biggest gripes i have but its only about 1/4 of the guys who are like that. the rest are professional and work with you not against you which is the opposite from back home. the crews that you work with on shift are all top quality with a good mix from all countries including locals. overall its easier document wise then back home (LI are about 1/4 of those back home for about 4 times the traffic) and traffic volume means that everyday you are doing something interesting.

hope that this has helped. if you need anymore info just yell. there are a fair few of us here who can give you all the info you need.:cool:

[GLOC]

"some of the downsides are average accom and lower pay then the rest of the middle east."

Heard from some mates of mine down there that it is VERY, VERY average accomodation in Abu Dhabi for some of the controllers and salary is ****e with current exchange rates.....

Oxide ,
Look before you leap!
:\

[Ali Bin Somewhere]

GLOC they must be in subaru bldg. its soo bad that people have left before contract is up with accomm being one of the main reasons.

they have 4 buildings that they put us up in. for married there is one good and one v.average. same as for the singles. just the luck of the draw.

i am in the v.average one but up the top so away from the muck on the lower levels and surrounded by other serco people so fairly quiet as well( no indian stock exchanges or carpenters next door). they are supposed to be addressing some of the accom and furniture issues but we will wait and see what happens!!!

yes the exchange rate is pretty bad at the moment but better then when i came over. dollar for dirahm i am just better off here, but i have low morgage that renter pays and no other links to back home. all the money stays here and i wait for a good exchange rate to transfer back.

it just depends what you are coming here for. for me its a step towards eurocontrol or similar and much easier to travel from here then back home. i.e. europe 6hrs away instead of 20. just look at exactly why you want to be here and then weigh up the pros and cons and see where you end up.

[GLOC]

I think you nailed it on the head I seem to remember a car showroom at the bottom, we went down to stay there on one occassion and it was pretty grim...not far off the Bronx really!


:ugh:

[Fox3snapshot]

Yup I can only agree.....state prison is almost more tolerable!

:yuk:

[divingduck]

Not all beer and skittles here in Muscat either!!

It's a bugger to get the staff to clean the houses properly:rolleyes: