Where will NATS send me?

[tukachinchilla]

Originally Posted by alfaman

You also missed one: someone got a posting 1300 miles from their training base, but they're not whinging - would you prefer that?

Originally Posted by Cheesefootball

Oh and the person who was posted 1300 miles away from their training base did they know beforehand that they were going to be sent to Gib ( I presume ) or was it a complete surprise to them?

From what I have heard, the person posted to Gibraltar either volunteered or agreed to it before finishing the course.

[alfaman]

Originally Posted by Cheesefootball

I am not whinging about the postings, I am whinging about the manner in which they were delivered. A NATS representative could have easily visited Global and told them in the relatively private classroom environment because no matter what you have signed it can still take a minute or two adjust to where you are going to spend your career. It is also very poor that the TATC’s only find out at the end of the course so they have got to scrabble about at short notice to find rented accommodation.
Thank you for correcting my spelling of Prosecco ( that was the really important part of the post ), the statement was reference to NATS sending a representative for a possible jolly ( in fact they sent more than one ) meal etc which is fair enough however at least give the students the chance of adjusting to a major change in their life and then take them out later to celebrate/ drown their sorrows.

And just for the record in the dim and distant past I did not get my original choice of posting :-)

Oh and the person who was posted 1300 miles away from their training base did they know beforehand that they were going to be sent to Gib ( I presume ) or was it a complete surprise to them?

I'm afraid it is about the posting: I doubt very much that those who got what they'd hoped for are complaining. So it's not you that's "suffering" then? It's someone else who's been offered a career with one of the most respected ANSPs, with great pay & benefits, subject to them passing their final check exams? The only flaw, not at the destination they'd set their heart on. This, in spite of clearly & regularly being advised, & signing to that effect, that there's no guaranteed postings, & also told, it's a mobile contract, you can move or be moved, that's the business. That's not the case for many of those outside the larger ANSPs, it's application after application, trying to find somewhere to fit, & moving around the country to make it work - and this after paying for their training, not having it paid for them.

The two NATS managers (not"representatives") are the people responsible for their training, & who they report to: they made the effort to drive a 200 mile + round trip, in their own time, to take the course for a meal to pass on the news - rather than by post or email & that's a jolly is it? Sounds more like dedication to doing the best they can to me; certainly knowing the people involved, they don't enjoy giving uncomfortable news. How do you know they didn't ask for quieter facilities, & that simply wasn't available for reasons beyond their control? You think people go out of their way to make life difficult? Hardly, life's difficult enough as it is.

Of course people find out their posting at the end of the course - how else do you propose to balance the business need with unit requirements & personal desires, when there's no guarantee how many people there'll be until they've passed all their assessments? If there was a better system, they'd be using it. The units don't want "maybes", they want someone with a student licence, ready for unit training.

No, the person going to Gibraltar didn't know he was going there until he read his posting letter. To be posted outside the UK, he has to be comfortable with the decision, & can decline it, the NATS union agreements are clear about that. However, he'd have no say over any alternative option, he'd be back in the pot with everyone else. He may not have been the only one to say he'd be happy if the option was there, either; so it's quite possible someone else didn't get Gib, when they wanted it, too.

If people don't want to take the risk of being posted somewhere they don't like, then there are other options available to them. Most people are just happy with the immense sense of relief that they've passed that hurdle & are onto the next phase of their career.

[chevvron]

On my ATCO Cadet Course (graduating in 1974) the Course Manager, 'Mike' Hunt (try saying that quickly when you're p1ssed) sat down with each of us individually during our final course at the college (about 9 months before graduation) and discussed where we would like to go. I had already expressed a preference for Area Radar but he asked how I would feel if sent to Farnborough. A friend from my old ATC Squadron was already there and had told me about it so I said yes. He then said I could go to Heathrow if I wanted and I was tempted but I stuck to my guns and spent 34 years at Farnborough.

[off watch]

Cheesefootball - you've listed 14 postings. Do you know how many started the course ?

[Standard Noise]

If I had my time at the College again and was offered Gib, I'd take it. When I was kicked out in 95, I'd have taken it.
Sadly now, I'm too long in the tooth and married to a woman who wants my next job to be in Palma. Like there's a cat in hell's chance!

[chevvron]

Originally Posted by Standard Noise

If I had my time at the College again and was offered Gib, I'd take it. When I was kicked out in 95, I'd have taken it.
Sadly now, I'm too long in the tooth and married to a woman who wants my next job to be in Palma. Like there's a cat in hell's chance!

All you've gotta do is learn Level 4 Spanish.

[atcsstudent]

Originally Posted by chevvron

All you've gotta do is learn Level 4 Spanish.

And earn 4.000€/month, 5 on 3 off, but from may to september most of shifts 6 on 2 off. But don't worry, after 15 years you'll get to earn 4.700€/month

[Standard Noise]

And earn 4.000€/month, 5 on 3 off, but from may to september most of shifts 6 on 2 off. But don't worry, after 15 years you'll get to earn 4.700€/month

In 15 years time I'll be retired and hopefully living out there anyway, might as well stay here for now and earn enough to pay for it.
Oh, and get my Spanish up to scratch!

[Cornish Expat]

Bump

Thanks for the info, so it seems like the first posting would be at NATS discretion; what then are the chances of moving within the company at a later date? I’m keen to remain an air traffic controller after leaving the military but my wife is desperate to live in Scotland so NATS is an easier sell if there’s a possibility of moving in a few years.

[Glamdring]

Have you considered applying to ANS Edinburgh?

[AyrTC]

Or how about HIAL?

[Cornish Expat]

Thanks for the steer. I’m preparing a CV and cover letter for ANS, closing date is end of October and I’m watching and waiting for HIAL to advertise again, but they recruited for 5 ab initio controllers in May and don’t know when they will next recruit. I’d like to keep NATS as a backup (they seem to be continually recruiting) so I don’t have to give up on air traffic control, but if there’s no way of getting to Scotland with them then it’s perhaps not worth investing the time and effort into applying.