Recruitment and Training of ATC Staff
Recruitment and Training of Student Air Traffic Control Officers (SATCOs)
The recruitment and training of ATC staff have to be carefully planned and managed to meet anticipated air traffic growth and manpower needs. As qualified ATCOs are not readily available in the local job market, individuals will usually join this profession as SATCOs at the entry level. After receiving specialised training, they will progress from SATCO to ATCO.
During the recruitment of SATCOs, eligible candidates will go through different stages of stringent assessments. These include aptitude tests, interviews, critical thinking appraisal, occupational personality questionnaire and Assessment Centre's in-depth job related assessment. These assessments aim at identifying the suitable candidates with necessary English proficiency, cognitive power and personality traits, etc.
The training programme of SATCOs is carefully designed and arranged to meet the established performance benchmarks. It comprises training modules at different stages and adequate consolidation is allowed before advancing to the next stage. Each training module includes classroom lectures, practical training in the ATC Radar Simulator or Aerodrome Simulator, and on-the-job training at operational positions. After passing the validation check, the officer will be allowed to carry out operational duties independently. The training of a SATCO to become a fully qualified controller at the rank of ATCO II will normally take around seven years.
Apart from local training, SATCOs will also attend overseas basic ATC courses. The scope of this overseas training spans a wide range of aviation topics including ATC procedures, meteorology, radar operations and principles of flight. The aim of this training is to broaden their exposure to various aspects of ATC operations.
As at 31 March 2018, there were 296 ATCOs and 119 Air Traffic Flight Services Officers (ATFSOs) (supporting staff to ATCOs) established posts respectively.
ATC Training for Other Ranks of ATCO staff
One of ATMD's major tasks is the provision of professional ATC training to staff. Training courses and on-the-job training activities were conducted regularly throughout the year.
During the year, 11 professional ATC training courses were conducted, leading to the issuance of 39 ATC ratings and the attainment of various professional ATC qualifications. Radar refresher training was conducted for 163 Radar Control personnel. The refresher training aims to ensure controllers' competency in responding to unusual circumstances, such as poor weather operations and aircraft emergencies. In addition, senior ATCOs were selected to attend advanced training in Safety Management System, Operations of Modern Aircraft, Aircraft Incident Investigation and Flight Procedures Design, etc., to broaden their horizons, and enable them to undertake more specialised duties as well as management and supervisory responsibilities.
