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ATC Training

A group blog by ATC Training in Division Updates

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Contributors to this blog

  • Daniel Crookes 35
  • Andy Ford 33
  • Samuel James 30
  • Adam Arkley 29
  • Adam Farquharson 17
  • Oliver Rhodes 16
  • Alex Beard 9
  • Will Jennings 4
  • George Wright 3
  • Fraser Cooper 3
  • Kieran Hardern 3
  • Nathan Donnelly 2
  • Sebastian Rekdal 2
  • Fergus Walsh 2
  • Chris Pawley 2
  • Jack Edwards 2
  • Craig Stewart 1
  • Simon Irvine 1
  • Kye Taylor 1
  • Reece Buckley 1

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ATC Training

British Summer Time (BST) begins Sunday 31st March at 01:00

"There is nothing stable in the world; uproar's your only music." - John Keats At 1am on Sunday 31st March the clocks will advance one hour. This means that 1am shall immediately become 2am, thieving us all of an hour of our day, and @George Wright will spend the next six months dancing 'the funky chicken' whilst dressed as Bob the Builder. For those of you in other timezones: as you were. For those of us in the UK, we must now engage in intellectual gymnastics every time we use t
Oliver Rhodes

Oliver Rhodes in ATC Training

13
ATC Training

E duobus unum: Merging Waiting Lists

Hi all, At the beginning of 2017, in the delightfully entitled post ‘Exitus Acta Probat’ (Latin for ‘the end justifies the means’, from the poetry of Ovid, if you’re interested), Sam announced the merger of the old RTSs into the Training Groups (TGs). One of the main reasons for doing so was to reduce the discrepancies in waiting times between the RTSs. In the same spirit, and following discussions with students, mentors, and staff, we have now merged the S2 and S3 waiting lists for TG
Oliver Rhodes

Oliver Rhodes in ATC Training

2
ATC Training

ATC Training

Dear All, The Training Department is looking to bring on board a number of new members to the ATC Training Team. We are looking to welcome two new Training Group Instructors (TGIs) to the team, one for each Training Group and expand our team of Division Instructors (DIs). Please find below a summarised list of responsibilities and requirements for each role. Training Group Instructor (TGI) Responsibilities: Have overall responsibility for training within their designated gro
Daniel Crookes

Daniel Crookes in ATC Training

0
ATC Training

CTS Controller Booking Etiquette

Hi all, Following a couple of queries and concerns raised over the last couple of days, I wanted to post a reminder of booking etiquette, particularly for new members who've joined fairly recently and might not be aware of the conventions. The website regulates that "booking shall not be excessive in duration", which is deliberately a rather vague rule (perhaps the main source of confusion). "Excessive" is a difficult term to define, as what may be considered excessive in one case may
Oliver Rhodes

Oliver Rhodes in ATC Training

8
ATC Training

January Changes

Hi all, After a few months of testing we are adjusting the way that ATC exams are picked up. Previously our Head Examiner has assigned exams to our examiners, the new method will allow examiners to pick up exams without waiting for them to be assigned. Our aim is to minimise the time students are waiting after being submitted for an exam. To ensure that examiner currency and any potential speculative bias is removed, we have set criteria that governs whether an examiner can  pick up and exa
Daniel Crookes

Daniel Crookes in ATC Training

5
ATC Training

More aerodromes for S1 AFISOs/AG operators

Hi all, By popular demand, we're adding another four aerodromes to the list of those which validated S1s may control: EGAD Newtownards EGCJ Sherburn-in-Elmet EGSQ Clacton EGHJ Bembridge Documentation for all four of these aerodromes - and many more - is available on the CIX VFR Club website.
Oliver Rhodes

Oliver Rhodes in ATC Training

3
ATC Training

ATC Update, Winter 2018

Hi all, As the year draws to a close, we wanted to give you all an update on what ATC Training has achieved over the past 12 months, and look forward to the next! Over the past year, we have: Issued 115 S1s (up by 51.3% from last year); Issued 58 S2s (up by 123% from last year); Issued 19 S3s (up by 46.2% from last year); Issued 4 C1s (down by 25.0% from last year, but the sample size is low - the absolute difference is by one); Inducted 90 visitors an
Oliver Rhodes

Oliver Rhodes in ATC Training

15
ATC Training

Time to say goodbye

Dear all,   It is with regret that I will be leaving my role as ATC Administrative Manager, with immediate effect.   For the most part, I have thoroughly enjoyed my time within the department. During my time, we have seen a huge improvement which has only been possible with the immense effort put in by each and every person within the department, both past and present. It also wouldn't have been possible without the mentoring team dedicating their time, and students showing a wil
Alex Beard

Alex Beard in ATC Training

24
ATC Training

Training Staff Changes (ATC)

Bon Soir! After a few discussions over the past couple of days, @Luke Collister is stepping down from his role of TGI for TG2 due to his availability and other commitments. With that being said, @Lee Roberts will move into the role of TGI for TG2 whilst retaining his current role as TGM - TWR for a short period.  Please join me in thanking Luke for his time as TGI and in wishing Lee Roberts good luck in his new role. Dan ✈️
Daniel Crookes

Daniel Crookes in ATC Training

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ATC Training

EGNX: Training Aerodrome Update

Effective immediately, East Midlands (EGNX) as a training aerodrome will be moving to TG2 from TG1. The training places of those who are already training on EGNX will not be affected. The trial of using East Midlands for training again went well and at present TG2 has a large number of students going through the system on a lower number of aerodromes (compared to TG1). We are therefore moving East Midlands to TG2 to increase the capacity. If in the future, TG1 starts to have capacity issues
Andy Ford

Andy Ford in ATC Training

0
ATC Training

Example Theory Questions

We have published a selection of example theory questions for all levels of ATC examination in the UK. These questions are intended to give exam candidates an idea of the sort of things that they might be asked by the examiner after completing the practical aspect of the exam and the level of detail they need to read into. These questions are provided without answers. It is intended that students will do the necessary reading in their own time to understand the subject matter and become con
Andy Ford

Andy Ford in ATC Training

0
ATC Training

Tower Syllabus Updated

Version 1.1 of the S2 (TWR) Syllabus is now available for download. The document has been updated based on member feedback to clarify a number of points and to add some extra reading material. We have also introduced a section for attitude towards self-learning. The progress sheets will be updated in due course to incorporate the new criterion.
Andy Ford

Andy Ford in ATC Training

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ATC Training

S2 and S3 Theory Questions: Revisited

Many of you who have taken your S2 and S3 theory exams recently may have noticed that quite a few of the questions weren't exactly relevant and some were, well, too easy. It turns out that some of our theory questions are very old, with some of the S3 questions dating back to the pre-GRP days when S2 didn't exist and S3 was in-part a TWR rating. You will all be glad to know (or maybe not, if you were hoping for an easy pass!) that we have removed a lot of questions and added new ones to ref
Andy Ford

Andy Ford in ATC Training

4
ATC Training

S3 Training at Heathrow

With the appropriate staff and support now in place, we are pleased to announce the resumption of Approach Radar (S2->S3) training for UK Students at Heathrow. Heathrow will draw from the existing waiting lists of TG1 and TG2. When a training place becomes available, it will be offered to the first eligible student on one of the lists. Completion of training will result in the awarding of an S3 rating and the Heathrow APP Major Endorsement. Solo Approach Validations (SAV's) will be handl
Andy Ford

Andy Ford in ATC Training

4
ATC Training

ATC Rating Progression: The Story So Far

Hi Folks, We're now well into the second half of the year and I've taken this opportunity to have a look at the statistics and let you know how we're doing. The good news is, we're way way up on exam passes, compared to where we were this time last year! To this day in 2017, we had a total of 16 exam passes: 8 TWR 6 APP 2 CTR So far this year, we've had a total of 41 exam passes: 29 TWR 11 APP 1 CTR As well as the above, we currently ha
Andy Ford

Andy Ford in ATC Training

0
ATC Training

S1 AFISO/AG Validation: Additional Airfields

Now that things have had time to settle, we're adding some additional aerodromes to the list of those that S1 rated members holding the AFISO/AG validation may control. They are as follows: Barra (EGPR) Bodmin (EGLA) - airfield information sufficient to VATSIM needs is available on the airfields website - Bodmin does not feature in the AIP. Wolverhampton / Halfpenny Green (EGBO) We decided not to add Barrow/Walney Island (EGNL) at this time, due to instrument approach an
Andy Ford

Andy Ford in ATC Training

5
ATC Training

Shifting Focus: Enroute Training

Having restructured the Tower and Radar training schemes, we are now in a position to take the final step, release of the first version of our restructured C1 syllabus. Thank you to everyone who commented and gave feedback. The key points of this re-thinking of our syllabus are as follows: A number of competencies have been designated as self-taught. In the past, these were included in practical mentoring reports, which led to some students assuming that the mentor would teach them. N
Andy Ford

Andy Ford in ATC Training

0
ATC Training

Training Aerodrome Preferences

Under the old RTS' System and also under the early days of the new system, we took students aerodrome preference into account during the early stages of training and only offered the student a place when their chosen aerodrome came up. This sometimes led to students becoming disappointed in the waiting times if the student in front of them took longer to pass and thus held up a training place at their chosen aerodrome whilst their friends at other aerodromes passed before them. Under a new
Andy Ford

Andy Ford in ATC Training

0
ATC Training

Reciprocating Effort

The re-drafting of the training syllabus has brought with it an encouragement for students to learn on their own, by designating significant portions as self-taught. That is, the student is expected to read the material on their own and bring any questions to sessions, not expect to have it spoon-fed to them by mentors. Most of you have risen to the challenge with enthusiasm. Of course, there are still one or two who aren't reciprocating the effort that their mentors are putting in to train
Andy Ford

Andy Ford in ATC Training

0
ATC Training

Returning Mentors: An Exercise In Trust

Effectively immediately, we are going to be trialling out a new policy for mentors returning to us after a break from the network. In the past, returning mentors were usually subject to the same training regime as new mentors, which was often discouraging. We're still quite unsure about this one - with some good arguments both supporting and refuting the idea. So, we thought the best thing to do was give it a go and see how it pans out. The trial process as follows: If a mentor has been "s
Andy Ford

Andy Ford in ATC Training

0
ATC Training

Shifting Focus: Approach Training

Following on from the restructuring of our S2 syllabus, we are now in a position to release the first version of our restructured S3 syllabus. Thank you to everyone who commented and gave feedback on the request for comments thread. The key points of this re-thinking of our syllabus are as follows: A number of competencies have been designated as self-taught. In the past, these were included in practical mentoring reports, which led to some students assuming that the mentor would teac
Andy Ford

Andy Ford in ATC Training

6
ATC Training

Military ACC Course - Released

We are pleased to announce the release of our Military Area Radar Moodle Course and the re-introduction of Military ACC endorsements. A massive thank you to Callum Presley and Lee Roberts for creating this course for us. The course is open to view to all members. Members holding a permanent controller rating of C1 or C3 and also a Military APC endorsement are invited to take the exam (please submit a ticket to the helpdesk to have the exam enabled) at the end of the course to gain their Mil
Andy Ford

Andy Ford in ATC Training

7
ATC Training

Self Study Exercises For Radar Students

To coincide with the impending release of the new S3 syllabus, the department has created a number of simulator scenarios for EuroScope. The purpose of these scenarios is to allow radar students to practice specific competencies on their own, with a few tips and aspects to consider provided - thus avoiding the distractions of trying to learn many things at once and also imperfect pilots. These are more directed towards the practical aspects of Approach Radar such as vectoring, rather than h
Andy Ford

Andy Ford in ATC Training

13
ATC Training

Solo Enroute Validations (S3)

Effectively immediately, the division will be utilising Solo Enroute Validations (SEV's... or SCV's, if you prefer the American term). These will be granted to S3 rated members upon submission for their CTR exam, in order to have a several days to practice solo without the guidance of a mentor in preparation for the big night. The validations will be valid for a single parent enroute sector and may be used to open relevant splits and TMA positions where division policy permits. The val
Andy Ford

Andy Ford in ATC Training

5
ATC Training

Military PAR Course - Released

We are pleased to announce the release of our Military Precision Approach Radar (PAR) Online Moodle Course. This course is for those members that want to take their Military Approach controlling up a notch, offering pilots the opportunity to be talked all the way down the final approach (similar to a SRA), with vectors and glideslope information. A massive thank you to Trevor Hannant and Callum Presley for creating this course for us. The course is open for all members to view and self-enro
Andy Ford

Andy Ford in ATC Training

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