The term “FAA Approved School” is associated with the traditional “Collegiate Training Initiative” (CTI) program. AATC offers a “CTO” program. The CTO or Control Tower Operator certification course is a one year technical certificate program. When a student completes this program, they will have met all the requirements in accordance with FAR Part 65 and satisfactorily passed an FAA Facility Rating evaluation by an FAA Examiner. The FAA Examiner will then issue a Control Tower Operator certificate with Facility Rating. The FAA is the issuing authority for all CTO certificates.
A CTI program is a degree program at a 2 or 4 year college or university that agrees to teach a course titled Air Traffic Control Basics in their curriculum. This is accomplished by adding the lesson objectives to various academic courses taught at that institution. Students are also required to complete general education requirements such as english, math, science, etc. In the CTO certificate program, the focus is on the technical skills training. Advanced ATC teaches the Air Traffic Control Basics objectives the FAA requires of CTI programs as well, but we accomplish this in the first 4 weeks of training rather than spending 2 to 4 years on it. Additionally, after you have successfully completed the CTO certificate program, you are a fully certified Air Traffic Controller with a CTO certificate issued by a FAA Examiner.
No, the air traffic control career field requires technical skills. The skills of an Air Traffic Controller rely on one’s cognitive and non-cognitive skill sets, much like the skills required of a race car driver who has excellent hand/eye coordination with instantaneous decision making abilities. No amount of education will make you a qualified controller. Controllers must be able to communicate precisely while simultaneously typing on a small keyboard, writing on small pieces of paper, and making split-second accurate decisions. This is why Advanced ATC’s training program was developed. We take students with no experience and provide a full year of technical skills training by developing their skill sets to work in a variety of control towers throughout the nation.
Our expectation is to have a 100% graduation rate. It is important that we make sure an applicant meets certain qualifications and skill sets to become an Air Traffic Controller. Part of your visit will include a simulation session with an instructor on our Tower Simulator. This will give you an opportunity to “try out” the job as well as allow Advanced ATC to determine your skill sets. A personal interview with one or more members of our Executive Team will be required. The interview will assess your motivation, determiniation, flexibility, cooperation skills, social adaptability, consciousness, and emotional stability. Advanced ATC’s program is not for everyone. We want to make certain each potential student understands the commitment they are making by deciding to attend AATC and ensure their success.
The majority of our training is technical, hands on training, therefore we are unable to offer classes online. Students must attend classes on campus in Valdosta, GA. Click here to learn more about Our Location.
The price of tuition for the program is $50,000. This includes everything you will need for training. If you put this into perspective, you will spend close to the same amount just in room and board if you were to attend a four year college program. Additionally, your earnings as an Air Traffic Controller will start in the low $40,000’s, and they will increase quickly as you progress through training at your facility. The average annual salary for Air Traffic Controllers is $108,040. Click here to view Air Traffic Controller Earnings via Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Visit our Financing page to view our financing options. Our preferred lending institution offers a private student loan which will require a qualified co-signer. The borrower will have a few repayment plan options, one being fixed payments of $25.00/month through 6 months after graduation. This can help reduce your expenses while you are still in school.
All of our instructors that are certified in the Control Tower have a CTO certificate issued by the FAA. Each instructor has, on average, over 30 years of Air Traffic Control experience.
No, it is not necessary to have any flight training before beginning our ATC program.
Once accepted you will be enrolled with the Wiregrass Georgia Technical College Continuing Education Division.
No, only basic math skills will be required. There are no formulas or equations to memorize. As an Air Traffic Controller, the math you will use is similar to the math you use naturally in everyday life.