The School of Air Operations Control (SAOC) is the UK's training establishment for all military

air traffic controller Air traffic control specialists, abbreviated ATCS, are personnel responsible for the safe, orderly, and expeditious flow of air traffic in the global air traffic control system. Usually stationed in air traffic control centers and control ...

s (ATCs), sited at

RAF Shawbury Royal Air Force Shawbury, otherwise known as RAF Shawbury, is a Royal Air Force station near the village of Shawbury in Shropshire in the West Midlands of England. History The First World War The station at Shawbury was first used for military ...

Shropshire Shropshire (; alternatively Salop; abbreviated in print only as Shrops; demonym Salopian ) is a landlocked historic county in the West Midlands region of England. It is bordered by Wales to the west and the English counties of Cheshire to th ...

History

In 1950, the Central Navigation School joined the School of Air Traffic Control (from

RAF Watchfield RAF Watchfield is a former Royal Air Force station, opened in England in 1940 just north of Watchfield village (at that time in Berkshire, now in Oxfordshire). Its nearest towns were Highworth (Wiltshire), to the west, and Faringdon (Oxfordshire ...

in south-west

Oxfordshire Oxfordshire is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the north west of South East England. It is a mainly rural county, with its largest settlement being the city of Oxford. The county is a centre of research and development, primarily ...

), to form the Central Navigation and Control School (CN & CS). In 1963, the Central Navigation School moved to

RAF Manby Royal Air Force Manby or more simply RAF Manby is a former Royal Air Force station located in Lincolnshire, England The following units were here at some point: * No. 1 Air Armament School (1937–1944) absorbed by the Empire Air Armament School ...

East Lindsey East Lindsey is a local government district in Lincolnshire, England. The population of the district council was 136,401 at the 2011 census. The council is based in Manby. Other major settlements in the district include Alford, Wragby, Spilsby ...

Lincolnshire Lincolnshire (abbreviated Lincs.) is a county in the East Midlands of England, with a long coastline on the North Sea to the east. It borders Norfolk to the south-east, Cambridgeshire to the south, Rutland to the south-west, Leicestershire ...

, and the Shawbury site became the Central Air Traffic Control School in February 1963. In 1972 the Area Radar School at

RAF Sopley RAF Sopley was a World War II station, codenamed ''Starlight'', near the village of Sopley in Hampshire. The Radar Station was opened in December 1940. In 1959 it became an air traffic control radar station, and finally closed on 27 September ...

in south-west

Hampshire Hampshire (, ; abbreviated to Hants) is a ceremonial county, ceremonial and non-metropolitan county, non-metropolitan counties of England, county in western South East England on the coast of the English Channel. Home to two major English citi ...

moved to Shawbury, being known as the Area Radar Training School. In July 1989, the school embarked on mainly training via computers.

Women

In 1963, the first three women to become air traffic controllers qualified at the school: Flying Officer G. Lord,

Flight Officer The title flight officer was a military rank used by the United States Army Air Forces during World War II, and also an air force rank in several Commonwealth countries, where it was used for female officers and was equivalent to the rank of flig ...

S. Grieve and

Pilot Officer Pilot officer (Plt Off officially in the RAF; in the RAAF and RNZAF; formerly P/O in all services, and still often used in the RAF) is the lowest commissioned rank in the Royal Air Force and the air forces of many other Commonwealth countri ...

A.P. Scougal.''Times'', 7 March 1963, page 5

Structure

The SAOC also houses the Flight Operations Training School for Flight Operations Officers. Much of the training is done on computers, with the

Computer Systems Squadron A computer is a machine that can be programmed to carry out sequences of arithmetic or logical operations (computation) automatically. Modern digital electronic computers can perform generic sets of operations known as programs. These programs ...

(CSS).

References

External links

CATCS

RAF Recruitment
{{Shropshire 1963 establishments in the United Kingdom Air traffic control in the United Kingdom Air traffic controller schools Aviation schools in the United Kingdom Education in Shropshire Educational institutions established in 1963 Military training establishments of the United Kingdom Military units and formations in Shropshire Organisations based in Shropshire Training establishments of the Royal Air Force

History

Women

Structure

See also

References

External links