Dispatcher's Career Lenght
Thread Starter
Joined: Feb 2009
Posts: 37
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From: A6
Dispatcher's Career Lenght
Would any one care to tell me how far in his career can a dispatcher go?
I know he can become an ops manager, but can he become director of ops?
What about salary ranges at higher levels, i know differnt contries have different ranges, but a few figurs would be nice !
I know he can become an ops manager, but can he become director of ops?
What about salary ranges at higher levels, i know differnt contries have different ranges, but a few figurs would be nice !
Joined: Jul 2001
Posts: 20
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From: VAN NUYS, CA
Requirements for the Director of Operations in the USA are laid out in FAR part 119.71. It requires an ATP license plus 3 years management/supervisory experience, though there are some provisions for a small carrier requiring only a commercial pilot certificate (pretty sure that would be FAR Part 135 ops only, not Part 121).
Joined: Jun 2005
Posts: 1,420
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From: AEP
Dispatcher careers
Hola OLT -
xxx
You specifically ask about dispatcher careers. Dispatcher is one of the many careers existing in the administration offices of an airline, and part of "operations". Then you are asking about director of operation positions and careers.
xxx
Regarding dispatcher, it is generally a position you reach after having worked a few years in an operations office, as "office help" first, learning numerous dispatch activities, such as crew scheduling, flight planning, load control, ramp handling, communications, and eventually passing the exams (if FAA) as flight dispatcher. Could involve many things "outside aviation proper" such as arrange alternate crew hotels, transport at remote places.
xxx
Licenced dispatchers with a few years of experience are well qualified individuals, with many responsibilities. We have chief dispatchers on duty at the company operations office, and they are on duty 24/7, with a few dispatchers and assistant dispatchers working as a team, in charge of various activities.
xxx
With my airline, we had a manager ground operations, and a manager flight operations, on top of which we had a director of operations. Generally, the directors of operations are former pilots... but with one airline, I recall a director of operations who was a former catering manager. With USA airlines, there are some specific requirements to meet, such as having held a ATPL . Incidentally, I knew of pilots who lost their medical, and continued their airline career as dispatchers.
xxx
Salaries vary... depends of the country and the airline you are with. There are countries where US$1,000 monthly salary make you a well paid individual, and some other places in the world where the same job would pay a salary of $5,000. Sri Lanka would have different pay scales than Norway, and that salary in Sri Lanka might provide you with a high standard of living, and be very tight in Norway. So it is all relative.
xxx
Happy contrails
xxx
You specifically ask about dispatcher careers. Dispatcher is one of the many careers existing in the administration offices of an airline, and part of "operations". Then you are asking about director of operation positions and careers.
xxx
Regarding dispatcher, it is generally a position you reach after having worked a few years in an operations office, as "office help" first, learning numerous dispatch activities, such as crew scheduling, flight planning, load control, ramp handling, communications, and eventually passing the exams (if FAA) as flight dispatcher. Could involve many things "outside aviation proper" such as arrange alternate crew hotels, transport at remote places.
xxx
Licenced dispatchers with a few years of experience are well qualified individuals, with many responsibilities. We have chief dispatchers on duty at the company operations office, and they are on duty 24/7, with a few dispatchers and assistant dispatchers working as a team, in charge of various activities.
xxx
With my airline, we had a manager ground operations, and a manager flight operations, on top of which we had a director of operations. Generally, the directors of operations are former pilots... but with one airline, I recall a director of operations who was a former catering manager. With USA airlines, there are some specific requirements to meet, such as having held a ATPL . Incidentally, I knew of pilots who lost their medical, and continued their airline career as dispatchers.
xxx
Salaries vary... depends of the country and the airline you are with. There are countries where US$1,000 monthly salary make you a well paid individual, and some other places in the world where the same job would pay a salary of $5,000. Sri Lanka would have different pay scales than Norway, and that salary in Sri Lanka might provide you with a high standard of living, and be very tight in Norway. So it is all relative.
xxx
Happy contrails
Joined: May 1999
Posts: 748
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From: Vancouver, BC.
OLT
Being a flight dispatcher doesn't limit you in anyway. The expereince you gain working in flight dispatch is a solid grounding for many operational jobs, and often a stepping stone to promotions into operations management, fleet control or planning and many others. Perhaps the most important factor is the size of the airline and the nature of their organisation.
Notwithstanding the valid comment regarding the FAR's made by bcp7 and BelargUSA, flight dispatch it is by no means a dead end job, quite the contrary.
Being a flight dispatcher doesn't limit you in anyway. The expereince you gain working in flight dispatch is a solid grounding for many operational jobs, and often a stepping stone to promotions into operations management, fleet control or planning and many others. Perhaps the most important factor is the size of the airline and the nature of their organisation.
Notwithstanding the valid comment regarding the FAR's made by bcp7 and BelargUSA, flight dispatch it is by no means a dead end job, quite the contrary.
Joined: Mar 2001
Posts: 71
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From: God's Country - Scotland
Go for an Operator. It's much more likely that they'll be in business longer nowadays than a handling company as contracts for handling are changed as often as your bedclothes.
Keep your chin up, it's a wicked business out there now as most of us in Airline Ops and Dispatch will testify.
PS Any ops jobs out there?
Keep your chin up, it's a wicked business out there now as most of us in Airline Ops and Dispatch will testify.
PS Any ops jobs out there?
Joined: Feb 2008
Posts: 881
Likes: 68
From: UK
spelling
Dispatcher's Career Lenght
Would any one care to tell me how far in his career can a dispatcher go?
I know he can become an ops manager, but can he become director of ops?
What about salary ranges at higher levels, i know differnt contries have different ranges, but a few figurs would be nice
hi OLT
sorry to say (and im not being perdantic here) but i see a few spelling mistakes in your post...
you are asking about career levels and advancement here so.....
if i were to be reading anyone's c.v. with so many mistakes in the first paragraph i would not be impressed ! sorry mr
and yes my punctuation is poor, but i am trying to just highlight bad spelling too LOL
Would any one care to tell me how far in his career can a dispatcher go?
I know he can become an ops manager, but can he become director of ops?
What about salary ranges at higher levels, i know differnt contries have different ranges, but a few figurs would be nice
hi OLT
sorry to say (and im not being perdantic here) but i see a few spelling mistakes in your post...
you are asking about career levels and advancement here so.....
if i were to be reading anyone's c.v. with so many mistakes in the first paragraph i would not be impressed ! sorry mr
and yes my punctuation is poor, but i am trying to just highlight bad spelling too LOL
Thread Starter
Joined: Feb 2009
Posts: 37
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From: A6
thanks but no thanks!
ROG747...thank you for pointing out my spelling mistakes, i did not realize that i had to spell check, proof read, make sure that i cited my sources correctly and followed APA...
and if you were reading my C.V, you would'nt be reading it on pprune...would you?
pardon my ignorance, but my concern is not here to impress any one with my vocabulary or my english...
i am here to ask a question and sometimes if i am able to, then answer some questions too...so if any one has a problem with understanding my post, they have a legitimate right to complain. So mr. wise guy, if you have some constructive information on a dispatcher's career advancement, please feel free to post, if not then please keep your toughts to yourselv.
p.s: i didnt check this post for spelling errors either, but i am pretty sure you got the point of the post.
and if you were reading my C.V, you would'nt be reading it on pprune...would you?
pardon my ignorance, but my concern is not here to impress any one with my vocabulary or my english...
i am here to ask a question and sometimes if i am able to, then answer some questions too...so if any one has a problem with understanding my post, they have a legitimate right to complain. So mr. wise guy, if you have some constructive information on a dispatcher's career advancement, please feel free to post, if not then please keep your toughts to yourselv.
p.s: i didnt check this post for spelling errors either, but i am pretty sure you got the point of the post.
