Summer is in full swing, and ATC is buzzing as ever! With so many controllers manning frequencies on both the training and expert servers, I want to take the time to remind everybody to focus on their responsibilities.
By that, I mean being careful. Play to your strengths and consider cutting down on the amount of things you “need to do” as a controller.
How do you do that, you ask? Good question. One possible answer is this- instead of taking both ground and tower, approach and departure, and so on, split it up and man a single frequency! Some people may think or feel otherwise, but hear me out. It is perfectly okay to take one at a time. No, it does not make you look weak. No, it does not undermine your ability to control traffic. It’s playing smart.
Think about it. Even in the real world, controllers do this for a reason. Sure, the circumstances in Infinite Flight are a little different, which is fine, but nothing’s stopping you from doing so.
In fact, here are several pros as a result.
- Quicker response times.
- Only have to worry about one set of rules.
- Dedicated focus towards traffic on your freq.
- No constant shuffling back and forth.
If you can team up with somebody, do it! It makes your life way easier. I’m not saying you have to, but it can help. Plenty of controllers do just fine with two frequencies; however, when traffic gets heavy, you may find yourself wishing for a little bit of assistance.
Honestly, I promise you guys that you will notice the difference if you buckle down and jump on one. Then, when you go back to two after an extended period of time, it’ll feel a little weird. You’d be going from “hey, I gotta worry about the people in the air” to “hey, I gotta worry about them and the people on the ground too!”
Personally, I enjoy manning one frequency. Any chance I can get, I do it. When doing it this way, I find that my focus on traffic provides way more clarity in my state of mind. It also satisfies my inner OCD of being right on the gun with responses. But that’s just me.
What will you do?
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P.S.
- Special thanks to @DeerCrusher and @cleipelt at KASE tonight for doing this- perfect example of teamwork!
- For my ATC trainer team colleagues, I can explain a transition just fine. Cue eye roll.