How to Be an Air Traffic Controller

Air traffic controllers do more than tell Captain Oveur what vector he's been assigned. They tell pilots which runways to taxi and take off from, track the position of aircraft in the air and relay reports from the National Weather Service to pilots. Most air traffic controllers work for the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), although some work for the Department of Defense (DOD) and individual branches of the military, while some work for private air traffic control firms at control towers not related to the FAA. The work of an air traffic controller is often tense and stressful, but if you want to become one, here's what you need to know.