A long while has gone by since AT-SAT...and the loss of a friend.

The FAA asked me where my counties of preference are.

Palm Beach County, Florida
Why Palm Beach? I'm already here. No need to make a hard move. The towered airport under FAA control (i.e. not outsourced, like Boca Raton Airport) is Palm Beach International.

Martin County, Florida
I'm just south of there...the only towered facility there that is under FAA control is Stuart Airport/Witham Field.

Ventura County, California
Back in my home state, but away from LAX's Class B Airspace. The likely picks are Camarillo and Santa Barbara.

Los Angeles County, California
Some of the busiest airspace in the world, between LAX and Van Nuys Airport. Other airports that may become my second home are Santa Monica (where I started my flying), Torrance (where I was introduced to General Aviation), Hawthorne, and Long Beach.

I never thought I would be considered, as I still don't fit all the minimum requirements (a college degree in any field and a full-time job that I have held for at least two years).

I got furloughed from US Airways last year. Nearing a year away from the airlines. I worked part-time there. I slipped out of Embry-Riddle as I didn't take a class in two years (part-time with student loans from my previous school, Everglades University, held me back, and still are somewhat). I started working for a printing company/retailer about 45 days after getting the boot from the airline. I started full-time. However, I still haven't returned to school.

If I do get the job, however, I hope I can get third shift. Although it's the hardest shift, it will allow me to fulfill my responsibilities during the day without affecting my schedule. But, we have yet to see.

Regardless of the outcome with becoming an air traffic controller, I have formally dismissed the goal of becoming an airline pilot. I have become too old to compete (I know guys younger than me...albeit richer than I am...who are already flying jets, if they survived not getting furloughed).

I will keep you posted on the outcome.


Alejandro Maclean passed away this past Tuesday. He died in an accident while practicing aerobatics. His support and contagious love for flying will truly be missed. I wrote a posthumous poem to Alejandro and posted it on my poetry blog, as well as linked it to Alejandro's Facebook profile and fan page. You can read it here at GolfNovemberPoetry ("Para Don Alejandro", written in Spanish, his native language).

Te veo pronto, Don Alejandro.