co-pilottoair traffic controller
A co-pilot already meets 52% of what the air traffic controller role asks for. The move turns on 15 required skills not yet in the profile.
52%
56.5/ 100
1 Share of the air traffic controller role’s weighted skill requirement already met by the co-pilot profile. Required skills count in full, supplementary skills at 0.35. Directional: the figure for the reverse move differs. 2 Combines what is missing with how specialised it is, so a gap of general skills scores easier than the same number of narrow ones.
Why this move works
A air traffic controller role treats 17 of its required skills as things a co-pilot already does. These are the ones it depends on most.
- air traffic control operations
- air transport law
- aircraft flight control systems
- airport planning
- analyse work-related written reports
- apply airport standards and regulations
What stands in the way is 15 required skills the profile does not yet cover. Table 3 groups them; Table 4 says which to take first.
Table 2 · What you already bring
Of the 18 skills that carry over, these are the ones fewest other occupations ask for. A air traffic controller role needs them, and most people applying for one will not have them already. This is the part of a co-pilot background worth leading with.
- already held read 3D displays information skills
- already held carry out navigational calculations information skills
- already held operate radar equipment working with machinery and specialised equipment
- already held air traffic control operations services
- already held airport planning engineering, manufacturing and construction
- already held interpret visual literacy information skills
All 18 carried skills, including the 17 the air traffic controller role treats as required.
Table 3 · What you would need to learn
The 18 missing skills fall into 9 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, numbered below in the order worth working in: the areas carrying the most required skills come first, and inside each one the required skills sit above the supplementary ones.
- required, not held assist during take off and landing required
- required, not held apply technical communication skills required
- required, not held execute working instructions required
- required, not held give instructions to staff required
- required, not held stay alert required
- optional, not held act reliably optional
- required, not held electrical systems used in transportation required
- required, not held electronic communication required
- required, not held electronics required
- required, not held use of air traffic services document required
- required, not held comply with checklists required
- required, not held assist in the conducting of flight checks required
- required, not held operate airport control tower required
- required, not held monitor aviation meteorology required
- required, not held celestial navigation required
3 further areas in the appendix
Table 4 · Where to start
The 3 entries a air traffic controller role is least likely to hire without. The ordering is computed from the skill data, not from what pays.
- 01 assist during take off and landing skill · occupation specific
- 02 assist in the conducting of flight checks skill · occupation specific
- 03 celestial navigation knowledge · sector specific
Each entry opens a course search for that skill. Career Overlap earns nothing from these links.
Appendix · The rest of the record
All 18 skills that carry over
- already held air traffic control operations knowledge
- already held air transport law knowledge
- already held aircraft flight control systems knowledge
- already held airport planning knowledge
- already held analyse work-related written reports skill
- already held apply airport standards and regulations skill
- already held aviation meteorology knowledge
- already held carry out navigational calculations skill
- already held common aviation safety regulations knowledge
- already held ensure public safety and security skill
- already held handle stressful situations in the work place skill
- already held have spatial awareness skill
- already held interpret visual literacy skill
- already held operate radar equipment skill
- already held read 3D displays skill
- already held use different communication channels skill
- already held use meteorological information skill
- already held tolerate stress skill
The 3 learning areas not shown above
- required, not held pre-flight procedures for IFR flights required
- optional, not held perform multiple tasks at the same time optional
- optional, not held have computer literacy optional
3 supplementary skills, helpful but not required
- optional, not held act reliably optional
- optional, not held have computer literacy optional
- optional, not held perform multiple tasks at the same time optional
34 held skills the air traffic controller role does not ask for
- not needed by the target role analyse weather forecast skill
- not needed by the target role apply signalling control procedures skill
- not needed by the target role apply transportation management concepts skill
- not needed by the target role balance transportation cargo skill
- not needed by the target role be friendly to passengers skill
- not needed by the target role civil aviation regulations knowledge
- not needed by the target role communicate with customers skill
- not needed by the target role comply with air traffic control operations skill
- not needed by the target role create a flight plan skill
- not needed by the target role deal with challenging work conditions skill
- not needed by the target role ensure aircraft compliance with regulation skill
- not needed by the target role ensure compliance with civil aviation regulations skill
- not needed by the target role ensure ongoing compliance with regulations skill
- not needed by the target role ensure smooth on board operations skill
- not needed by the target role follow verbal instructions skill
- not needed by the target role geographic areas knowledge
- not needed by the target role geostationary satellites knowledge
- not needed by the target role implement airside safety procedures skill
- not needed by the target role inspect aircraft skill
- not needed by the target role operate cockpit control panels skill
- not needed by the target role operate radio equipment skill
- not needed by the target role operate radio navigation instruments skill
- not needed by the target role operate two-way radio systems skill
- not needed by the target role perform flight manoeuvres skill
- not needed by the target role perform routine flight operations checks skill
- not needed by the target role perform take off and landing skill
- not needed by the target role prepare transportation routes skill
- not needed by the target role read maps skill
- not needed by the target role respond to changing navigation circumstances skill
- not needed by the target role run preventive simulations skill
- not needed by the target role undertake procedures to meet aircraft flight requirements skill
- not needed by the target role undertake procedures to meet requirements for flying aircraft heavier than 5,700 kg skill
- not needed by the target role visual flight rules knowledge
- not needed by the target role write work-related reports skill
5 gaps that are knowledge rather than practice
Knowledge gaps usually close through study. Practical skill gaps usually need something you can point at.
- required, not held celestial navigation required
- required, not held electrical systems used in transportation required
- required, not held pre-flight procedures for IFR flights required
- required, not held electronic communication required
- required, not held electronics required
How this record was compiled
Both occupations are taken from ESCO, which lists the skills and knowledge each occupation is expected to have and marks every one required or optional. Nothing here is a prediction about hiring, and nothing here knows that a particular employer wants a particular certificate. Treat Table 3 as a starting point for your own research rather than a syllabus. The full method states what these figures can and cannot tell you.