VFR Training

bucks · Post by **bucks** » Tue Oct 16, 2007 2:45 pm

I was wondering if anyone had any information on the upcoming VFR courses at NCTI.. I'm currently on the waiting list for both IFR and VFR and am looking for a bit of a timeline..

Pounder YWH · Post by **Pounder YWH** » Wed Oct 17, 2007 1:27 am

I too seek such knowledge.

tower controller · Post by **tower controller** » Wed Oct 17, 2007 3:56 am

From what I can see there is a VFR course in NCTI now that finishes in Dec, there's another one starting early Jan, and the next one after that is starting late May of 08.

There aren't any names associated with the Jan course yet so is could be that there are still slots available.

That is the VFR courses.

IFR courses are another thing entirely and I don't have that information here.

Hope that helps

bucks · Post by **bucks** » Wed Oct 17, 2007 8:14 am

That's very helpful.. so its possible that there is still a chance to get loaded on the Jan course? how much notice to they normally give before a course do to all the pre course study package?

Pygmie · Post by **Pygmie** » Wed Oct 17, 2007 11:54 am

The Jan and May courses have all been selected.

bucks · Post by **bucks** » Wed Oct 17, 2007 12:32 pm

The Jan and May courses have all been selected

how far ahead are they selecting candidates? Do the people on the May course already know?

Pygmie · Post by **Pygmie** » Wed Oct 17, 2007 12:44 pm

From what I understand the calls go out about 6 months or so ahead of the start date, sometimes more.

Sean Connery · Post by **Sean Connery** » Wed Oct 17, 2007 1:45 pm

I don't know exactly how this factors into training, but NavCanada has just issued a memo regarding a reduction in VFR staffing. 20 positions are to be cut, mostly from the east side of the country. Early retirement has been offered, and if not, they will force move 20 of the junior staff.

I would assume that they would slow VFR training, if they have a surplus of controllers, which they claim to have.

Unless, of course, there is a hidden agenda.

Pounder YWH · Post by **Pounder YWH** » Wed Oct 17, 2007 2:21 pm

That sucks. I sure hope that's just a bad rumour.

Gonna be a lot of disappointed test-writers.
Sounds like that's par for the course though....

kevenv · Post by **kevenv** » Wed Oct 17, 2007 3:03 pm

I'm not sure how you got the idea that what Sean C wrote is a bad rumor. He told you that the company just released a memo on the topic. What he said is fact. If the senior person doesn't take the buyout, a move will be offered to everyone to a same grade or lower tower in order of seniority. If no one jumps at it, the junior person(s) will be moved to where the company wants them. Period. There are some chronically understaffed towers and some with a surplus. This is how the company chose to deal with the situation. Welcome to NavCanada.

bucks · Post by **bucks** » Wed Oct 17, 2007 3:06 pm

So if I can boil this all down .. basically if you havn't heard that your loaded on the May course already.. then you're pretty much out of luck for a while?

Pounder YWH · Post by **Pounder YWH** » Wed Oct 17, 2007 3:16 pm

kevenv wrote:I'm not sure how you got the idea that what Sean C wrote is a bad rumor.--

When he intimated that there may be a "hidden agenda" certainly gave the impression that it was not set in stone. That's how I 'got the idea'...

Sean YOW · Post by **Sean YOW** » Wed Oct 17, 2007 3:49 pm

Is there a chance that someone may have been selected for the May course and not yet notified?

Also I recently changed my first choice from IFR to VFR......will that affect my chances of being offered an IFR course?

tower controller · Post by **tower controller** » Wed Oct 17, 2007 4:16 pm

From what I was told this afternoon, the May course has not been selected as of yet. Some seats on the course have been slated for people who are already employees of the company, but all the seats for May haven't been filled. There are also a few seats in January up in the air as not everybody offered seats have completed their paperwork yet, ie medicals.

The seats slated for employee's are subject to "operational requirements" for the employees in current jobs, in other words if it's going to cost a lot of overtime to backfill their position while they are training for ATC they aren't going to get a seat........

In a convoluted kind of way, the buyout's the company is offering is probably going to mean more training rather than less. Everyone who was offered a buyout is already eligible for retirement, this is just an incentive to get em out the door and get some new people in.

bucks · Post by **bucks** » Wed Oct 17, 2007 5:12 pm

Thanks for clearing that up.. back to waiting by my phone

Sean Connery · Post by **Sean Connery** » Wed Oct 17, 2007 11:40 pm

Speaking of the buyout, I'm not in a position to take it, but I wouldn't anyways, it's ridiculously low, almost insulting. I know people who've been bought out of grocery jobs for twice that amount.

Unless you'd already planned to retire this year anyways.

NJ · Post by NJ » Thu Oct 18, 2007 12:16 am

Half of the postings that they mentioned with surplus positions have had ab-initio trainees sent there from NCTI in the past couple years. Their planning problems shouldn't be our problem to fix.

invertedattitude · Post by **invertedattitude** » Thu Oct 18, 2007 10:35 am

Unfortunately, by the looks of things those people who are applying or have active applications for the next 8-10 months or so will see a lot of changes and confusion happening.

Speaking as someone who applied through SHL and got in, now qualified. I can tell anyone here that it's quite the "show" to put it mildly, the recruitment portion I mean. I very much doubt it's going to get any better for the next 10 months or so