ATCOs to wear shirt and tie
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ATCOs to wear shirt and tie
ATCOs dont get to meet their customers face to face very often, but when we do shouldn't we be dressed in a smart manner? Do pilots expect a certain standard of dress when they visit operational units? Should they?
I wouldn't want my holiday B737 pilot to wear scruffy jeans and a T-shirt. So should I wear a jacket and tie to the radar? Truth is, I don't! But I am having second thoughts about my casual approach to work clothes.
I wouldn't want my holiday B737 pilot to wear scruffy jeans and a T-shirt. So should I wear a jacket and tie to the radar? Truth is, I don't! But I am having second thoughts about my casual approach to work clothes.
More than just an ATCO
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Go back to the 1960s, a missive came down from above that we were allowed to take our jackets off, and - shock, horror - remove our ties and roll our sleeves up at LATCC.
No thank you, wear whatever you are comfortable in.
No thank you, wear whatever you are comfortable in.
Last edited by Lon More; 17th Aug 2005 at 16:32.
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From my own experience i have found that those of us at the Airports tend to wear slightly smarter clothes than our colleagues at the centres, shirt and Tie is commonplace all be it hardly formal.
I really don't think clothes should be an issue, we do not have a public persona so I think we should be comfortable rather than formal.
My personal dress wear tends to be smart casual as that is what I feel is appropriate but I do believe in each to their own.
I really don't think clothes should be an issue, we do not have a public persona so I think we should be comfortable rather than formal.
My personal dress wear tends to be smart casual as that is what I feel is appropriate but I do believe in each to their own.
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I say, mandate black pants, white, long-sleeved shirt (coffee stains and a crumpled pack of smokes in the pocket required), skinny black tie, and an “astronaut” haircut.
Wait a minute! That’s me!
Wait a minute! That’s me!
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I started my 'new' job at VIE some months ago (in the operations department) and when I was told that wearing a uniform is standard in this department I was quite annoyed.
After some weeks I discovered that this is a good idea when you are a lot on the apron - so you are identified as one who is allowed to be in this area even before people can read your ID.
But I consider it absolutely useless for controllers to dress in a special way for normal duty - for special events like press conferences maybe, but why in the TWR / ARTCC?
Just dress in a manner you feel good in ...
Regards, Bernhard
After some weeks I discovered that this is a good idea when you are a lot on the apron - so you are identified as one who is allowed to be in this area even before people can read your ID.
But I consider it absolutely useless for controllers to dress in a special way for normal duty - for special events like press conferences maybe, but why in the TWR / ARTCC?
Just dress in a manner you feel good in ...
Regards, Bernhard
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If a mere ATCO was to wear a shirt and tie then how much gold braid do the supervisors and watch managers wear. I used to wear jeans and a t shirt whilst at LATCC the bosses were not bothered as long as I did my job right. I did not keep my tie on during my flying career either. I wore it to and from the aircraft. For some of the naive people out there, take a trip to the area centre at Amsterdam where you will find jeans, t shirts, fag packets tucked under the sleeves etc. In a safety environment if there is no need for safety clothing then a person should be allowed to wear what they feel comfortable working in. i.e no distractions due to a tie. I remember one colleague working the Daventry sector (flat radar displays) lost sight of a few a/c due to his tie being on the display. Explain that.
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Forget the shirt and tie...(short) skirts all year round
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/3129401.stm
BBr
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/3129401.stm
BBr
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Dress code has been an issue with me for a lot of years. It all began in the '70s in Chicago. I was sent home for wearing pants deemed inappropriate. Looking back, perhaps they were inappropriate - goofy "hippy" style things - but I bristled at the thought that the "pants police" had diciplined me.
In later years the dress code evolved - or perhaps, devolved - into a more "casual" look. OK, make that "ratty" look. Yet, once again I was dispatched to the clothes closet; this time for wearing "deck shoes" to work in Puerto Rico.
These days I see folks in grubby, risque t-shirts and tattered shorts in the controll room and I wonder if we haven't gone too far. Being older - and therefore wiser - than the new kids, I agree with Ben Stein: if you wish to be thought of as a professional by those who see you at work, dress the part!
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ATC Chat Now!
In later years the dress code evolved - or perhaps, devolved - into a more "casual" look. OK, make that "ratty" look. Yet, once again I was dispatched to the clothes closet; this time for wearing "deck shoes" to work in Puerto Rico.
These days I see folks in grubby, risque t-shirts and tattered shorts in the controll room and I wonder if we haven't gone too far. Being older - and therefore wiser - than the new kids, I agree with Ben Stein: if you wish to be thought of as a professional by those who see you at work, dress the part!
---
ATC Chat Now!
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I am wearing the same uniform as the janitor in my building, the waiters at the local Arabic restaurant and the guy pumping gas across the road....but I am sooooo proud of it! 
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I don't necessarily subscribe to ties.... but be smart and casual. Is that totally impossible? The majority of people I worked with at Heathrow Tower were thus clad.. and I was horified when some of us moved to West Drayton to see controollers wearing jeans with the knees hanging out, etc. Strangely, those same people used to tart themselves up in suits for validation boards so they were capable of looking smart..
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As someone who's handsome knees can often be seen through ripped jeans, does it really matter in the scheme of things? I'm comfortable with what I wear and can't understand this obsession with "smart" clothes being somehow more acceptable than "casual". It's just a job when all's said and done, I'm not in the public eye, and why should I tart myself up ( board or no board) - my ability to do the job is not affected my what I wear, so why should anyone be horrified?
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I recently turned up for work in a jacket and tie just for a change. I had to go home half way throgh the shift to change into my usual Hawaiian shirt and shorts as I was getting too much stick from colleagues such as "What time is the court case", "What time is the interview" concluding with someone sticking on my back an advertisement for undertaker. I thought I was quite stylish!