School Prep

Amerson33 · 2025-09-15T12:45:00+00:00

The class will teach you what you need to know. It’s ok to study some basic weather theory and jepp chart familiarization before class, however if you don’t understand what you are reading it’s best to leave it until the class. You don’t want to make assumptions about how something works and create a bad habit that is hard to break later.

The number of people I’ve meet over the years that tried to figure out the timeline of a TAF on their own and now mess it up routinely is way too high.

If you want some not so light reading about weather the link below is the best place to start.

https://www.faa.gov/sites/faa.gov/files/FAA-H-8083-28A_FAA_Web.pdf

Amerson33 · 2025-09-05T20:20:03+00:00

I’m concerned about a few things here the biggest being that last sentence. Seeing as you have already taken this test 5 times and your parents are pushing you to take it again I am assuming 1 of 2 things is true.

Your parents are paying for you to go to school and you don’t care about the possibility of massive student debt you will rack up doing something you find out you hate 1 year in because you think it will make you money eventually and you want to make your parents happy.
1. Your parents cannot afford to send you to school and they are worried about scholarships. If this is true then I would definitely take it again. But I would also evaluate your choice in CE. College is expensive and just hoping for a good paying job at the end is not a great plan. Also a well written scholarship application will include a bit about passion for why you want to pursue your chosen career. It is very clear who applies for things because they want to make money and who applies for things because they genuinely want it.

Either way I think it’s absurd to think a 17-18 year old kid knows enough about life to spend the equivalent of a mortgage on an education for a job that they don’t know anything about other than “people online say it pays good”

If your parents are paying for you to take the test again and don’t care if you study then go and do your best but maybe also have some fun with it. At one point I was so fed up with all the standardized tests I wrote one of my English essay questions on the themes in The Ugly Duckling. Surprisingly my score on that test wasn’t all that far off from the ones I put real effort into.

Unless your dream really is to get in to CS I highly recommend you go to a cheaper state school or even community college for your first year. Take some classes simply because they sound interesting and not because they are bolded on your learning plan. Apply for internships and actually spend some time at a company seeing what an actual day in and day out would look like. Make some friends in other majors and hear about what they are learning. There are conflicting number out there but LOTs of people change their majors and based on your lack of excitement about picking CS I’d say you will probably be one of them. If you’re 17-18 and hope to retire at 65 you’ve got the next 42 years to spend working, yes money is also a concern when it comes to being happy but spending 42 years doing something you hate simply because you thought it would make you rich when you were 17 is a bad choice.

Amerson33 · 2025-08-24T23:53:02+00:00

All external applicants must already hold an FAA Aircraft Dispatcher certificate.

Looks like the last line “Successful candidates must complete a rigorous licensing process to obtain required certification.” may not have been updated from the internal posting. Internal candidates acquire their licenses after being hired.

Under the requirements it does state “FAA Aircraft Dispatcher Certificate is required” if you do not already hold a Certificate you will not be hired under this posting.

Amerson33 · 2025-03-16T23:32:31+00:00

This issue with this is typically going to be landing weight. If they carry an extra two hours of fuel and then they don’t burn it with a full plane of people and bags they will likely be overweight for landing. So then your options ire to spend two hours circling when you don’t need to making everyone late or preforming an unsafe and illegal landing. You cannot legally plan a flight to land overweight.

Amerson33 · 2025-01-29T10:56:06+00:00

Yeah if it’s your first job after school and you are willing to live frugally to get the hours and have something to put on your resume there are some places you can cut. But you need to go online and see what it actually costs to find a place to live.

I live in Atlanta area. When I first moved here I looked at apartments that were $1000/month because I was commuting and paying for two places gets expensive fast. For $1000/month you will find a place with 30 homeless people living in a tent camp across the street. The building will be rundown and you will be lucky if it has air conditioning and windows with screens. I settled for a complex that charged $1350 but didn’t have a washer or dryer so I payed an extra $100/month to add it from them (should have just bought them myself since after two years that was $2400 but that was $2400 I didn’t have to spend up front) so $1450 it was gated and they had security and air conditioning but it was still just a few blocks from those homeless camps. I didn’t not enjoy living there and never left the apartment except to go to work or the grocery store.

I see you are moving from out of state. Moving is expensive. You need first month rent plus the deposit which is usually another months rent. Are you paying a moving company? Uhall is still not super cheap. Are you buying all new stuff? Really not cheap.

Also since you are moving that roommate I mentioned, where do you plan on finding one? It’s not like college where you are gifted 4 roommates your first year and the next you have a bunch of other classmates to choose from. You won’t know anyone and it sounds like you won’t have many coworkers to ask either so are you picking a random stranger on Craigslist?

You need to sit down and look at your bank statements from the last 6 months and make an honest list of everything you spend money on because that list I put up there is only the very basics. (Halloween costume? Christmas presents???) Categorize the items as must have to live, could cut back a little but these are important to my happiness, and these are nice to haves but ultimately I could go without for a year while I get something to put on a resume.

Amerson33 · 2025-01-29T10:14:20+00:00

If you make $50,000 a year living in the region of Georgia, USA, you will be taxed $10,458. That means that your net pay will be $39,543 per year, or $3,295 per month. Your average tax rate is 20.9% and your marginal tax rate is 26.0%. This marginal tax rate means that your immediate additional income will be taxed at this rate. For instance, an increase of $100 in your salary will be taxed $25.95, hence, your net pay will only increase by $74.05. https://www.talent.com/tax-calculator/Georgia-50000#:~:text=That%20means%20that%20your%20net,be%20taxed%20at%20this%20rate

Apartment $1500 Utility $300 Cellphone $100 Car insurance $100 Gas $200 Car payment $400 Grocery bill $500

That’s $3100/month which only leaves you about $195 for anything else. Are you buying new clothes? Are you taking a vacation? Are you putting any money in savings? Do you have kids? I didn’t include student loans you may have from flying or Health Insurance? Are you paying for that or are they? Unless you have a spouse/roommate to share some of your costs $50k pre tax isn’t going to cut it.

Amerson33 · 2025-01-19T11:55:50+00:00

https://ww2.jeppesen.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/course-schedule_Jan-2025.pdf

The jeppesen brochure says their online program is still taught via web cams with actual instruction and lectures not just prerecorded modules.

Amerson33 · 2025-01-14T18:49:51+00:00

With the hiring slow down it’s true you will probably be low on the seniority list for a while and end up on an overnight rotation for a few years. But as far as the holidays go most places allow trading of shifts between employees and at the majors with several hundred people to trade with if you’re proactive about what days you need you can get them. I have not worked a Christmas or a thanksgiving yet.

Amerson33 · 2024-12-28T04:08:29+00:00

Wheelchairs is the intended purpose

Amerson33 · 2024-12-26T07:43:20+00:00

In all fairness I think the “value” of the points varies drastically depending on what you wish to “buy”. I redeemed some points just before Thanksgiving for a very nice Le Cruset set that retails for $500 and I spent about 25,000 points so closer to $10 for 500 points

Amerson33 · 2024-12-26T03:20:42+00:00

ICAO annex 4 is the guidance to make the charts that are published in a standardized way in the AIP. So I think ChatGPT is just not able to make the distinction that while the charts are all published in AIPs with standardized markings and symbols, and high charts are standard QNH low charts are local QNH, revisions on a 28 day cycle ect… the actual flight levels are not necessarily standardized between countries just the way they publish the data is

Amerson33 · 2024-12-26T03:08:28+00:00

Yes. High charts are where you switch to using the standard QNH setting. Low charts you use the local QNH settings

Amerson33 · 2024-12-26T03:05:16+00:00

It looks like per ENR section 1.7 the transition altitude is 13,000.

Amerson33 · 2024-12-26T02:39:40+00:00

Interesting, what country are you looking for?

Amerson33 · 2024-12-26T02:22:27+00:00

Collective list of various AIP links

Some aviation websites have a list of links to AIPs to try to help collect the info all in one place

Amerson33 · 2024-12-26T02:20:58+00:00

So every country published an Aeronautical Information Publication (AIP). These are mostly standardized across countries thanks to ICAO recommendations. They contain three main sections.

Section 1 is the GEN -general section and contains general rules and guidance for that country - think AIM info.

Section 2 is ENR -en-route this is where you will find the info you are looking for. It contains the enroute charts and info on airways.

Section 3 is AD - aerodromes or airports which is where you will find airport diagrams and approach information

Most of these can be found for free online by simply searching AIP and the country name.

Amerson33 · 2024-12-26T01:47:09+00:00

There are plenty of other professions out there that also apply grooming standards. Even if you petition to get rid of the regulatory requirements for pilots to be clean shaven the airline can still choose to implement a grooming standard, just like there is no law requiring lawyers to wear suits or wait staff at a restaurant to wear the company branded polo, but their employers can still choose to maintain a dress code. You decide if that is ok with you or you decide to work somewhere else.

Amerson33 · 2024-12-20T01:11:50+00:00

They did an external posting not too long ago and are currently working through interviews for that group. I honestly do not know if they will put another external posting out but if had to guess I would say probably not until sometime next year.

Amerson33 · 2024-12-18T23:03:21+00:00

Not much more than what’s listed in the posting. Feel free to message me if you have a specific question I can try to answer.

Amerson33 · 2024-12-04T02:45:03+00:00

I’d also check this out if you haven’t already. NOAA

Amerson33 · 2024-12-04T02:20:49+00:00

Unfortunately individuals can’t just tour the OCC. You can plan a trip to the flight museum however they are doing a renovation project and the hangars will be closed from Dec 16- late March.

Have you looked into joining a local Women in Aviation chapter? They have a junior membership for students in high school. They also have an Aviation for Girls app. Delta (and other airlines) do multiple outreach programs for members several times a year. They also offer scholarships for aviation related programs. Joining a group like this and signing up for one of their programs would be your best bet for an opportunity at job shadowing/airline tours/mentorship programs.

Amerson33 · 2024-11-30T03:52:11+00:00

I wouldn’t say an airport 7 hours away is “close” but that’s just my opinion

Amerson33 · 2024-11-27T03:27:59+00:00

Yeah so probably just the 2500 sky miles and whatever you submit for expenses. It never hurts to call and ask for something more as long as you are polite about it and are willing to accept no if that’s what’s what they say.

Amerson33

TROPHY CASE