Wanted: Air traffic controllers in Atlantic Canada

Not everyone walks up stairs in a tower to get to work, but for air traffic controllers, it provides a bird’s-eye view of the local airport.

Amber Doiron started her career with NAV CANADA nine years ago and hasn’t looked back.

“A family friend of mine was a high-level controller in Moncton,” she explains. “My parents were having dinner with them one night, and he said that he thought maybe I had the right personality to give air traffic control a shot. And so I did.”

NAV CANADA gave journalists a behind-the-scenes look from the control tower at Halifax Stanfield International Airport in Goffs, N.S. Wednesday. It comes as the sector seeks to grow its workforce.

Intense, internal training to become an air traffic controller generally takes 12 to 27 months.

‘Tremendous’ pressure

And while not everyone is successful, those who are see salaries ranging from $84,000 to $170,000. But the responsibility of aerospace and airport safety is critical.

“The job itself has has a tremendous amount of pressure,” Doiron says.

“You need to be able to look at a two-dimensional screen and keep a three-dimensional picture in your mind at all times,” she says. “And you’re always prioritizing an ever-changing list of tasks.”

She’s not aware of any air traffic controller “who comes into work on any given day and is stressed out all day, every day.”

Part of that is balanced out with peak and lull times for flights. Generally, mornings, evenings and a period during the night are busy, says Tyson Morelli, the Moncton FIR site manager for NAV CANADA.

“They’re responsible for the comings and goings of all the arrivals and departures…. They’re also responsible for the ground traffic.”

Retirees filling contracts

About 250 people are trained annually across the country, including 30 seats in Atlantic Canada.

NAV CANADA says there are 10 to 15 vacancies in the Atlantic region at the moment.

In Halifax, Morelli says “we’re able to meet the traffic demand at the moment with the staff we have.”

“We do have some retirements that are coming back on contracts to fill holes in the schedule while we’re training,” Morelli says.

Jonathan Bagg, a NAV CANADA spokesperson, says salaried training and great benefits are two perks of the job.

“It is a challenging training,” he says. “Not everybody makes it, but if you’re up for a challenge and really interested in a career in aviation, it’s a fantastic opportunity.”

And Doiron says for people considering change, it’s time for takeoff.

“Give it a try, it’s a great place to work.”