ATC assisstant

[dogtired2]

My son is hoping to become an ATC assistant when he leaves college next Summer. Have searched this and posts over ten years old suggest the position may have been phased out. Do ATC assistants still exist...if so would you recommend it as a route into Air Traffic Controlling.

[chevvron]

The post still exists at most airfields and at Area and Terminal Control units. I would suggest you contact the NATS HR Department at CTC Whiteley for further information or altenatively your nearest airfield with Air Traffic Control (Not FISO).
With all due respect, if your son is going to college, surely his qualifications will enable him to apply to be a controller rather than an assistant; HR will want to know this.

[dogtired2]

My understanding was there is at least a year between applying (which he can't do unil he is 18 in July) and starting the course. The assistant seemed like a good way to get appropriate experience and some cash in the shorter term.