How to Become a Flight Dispatcher

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posted on 14 years ago — updated on 1 second ago

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When it comes to aircraft safety, a flight dispatcher plays a vital role. In fact, a pilot and a flight dispatcher work hand in hand, one from the air and one from the ground, on a number of shared responsibilities. These responsibilities include coordinating flight plans, calculating the necessary amount of fuel for a trip, taking weather and wind into account, and ensuring the safe passage of an aircraft and its passengers in compliance with FAA regulations. If you understand how to become a flight dispatcher, only a few steps stand between you and certification for a job that is vital to the safe and efficient operation of an aircraft.

Steps

Understand the duties of a flight dispatcher before you decide to pursue this career. A flight dispatcher is responsible for ensuring that safety guidelines are followed during a flight, knowing what weather patterns to expect and how to work around them, determining how much fuel will be needed for a flight, and many other things. This is an important position and comes with a great deal of responsibility, so do some research and educate yourself on what being a flight dispatcher entails.

Locate an FAA-approved flight dispatcher training school. A comprehensive list can be found at the FAA's website. Although no more than a high school diploma is necessary to enroll in an FAA-approved flight dispatcher certification course, a college background in air transportation or meteorology is beneficial to prospective students.

Apply to the program of your choice and enroll in courses where you'll learn about flight planning, navigation systems, fuel requirements, plotting charts, and other necessary skills required for the job. Be aware that training programs are rigorous and intense. They generally last 5 to 6 weeks and comprise 200 hours of training. Some programs are residential while others can be taken part-time. Night classes are generally not an option, so be aware of this if you plan to stay at your present job while training. Be aware that course tuition at training schools can often be costly, often ranging from $4000 USD to $5000 USD. Financial aid is available at some institutions. Exams can cost several hundred dollars, but most schools include the price of exams in their overall tuition. The exams are administered by your school at the end of the 5 to 6 week training program.

Prepare strenuously for the FAA required aircraft dispatcher certification exam by studying and taking advantage of any practice exams administered by the school in which you are enrolled.

Pass the FAA Aircraft Dispatcher (ADX) certification exam to qualify for employment as a flight dispatcher. The test is comprised of 80 questions which you must complete in 3 hours. The test includes assessment in 6 basic areas in the oral/practical portion: flight planning, pre-flight and takeoff procedures, in-flight procedures, landing procedures, post-flight procedures, and emergency procedures.