About This Career

Flight operations specialists help with administrative functions that are necessary to keep military aircraft up and running. They prepare flight schedules and authorizations, administer aircrew training and qualification testing, perform airfield inspections, and maintain flight logs and other records. These specialists help ensure that both the aircraft personnel and equipment are prepared for mission accomplishment.

This career is part of the Government and Public Administration cluster National Security pathway.

A person in this career:

• Schedules and dispatches tactical aircraft missions and performs associated operational administrative duties
• Processes cross-country and local flight clearances, including examination for conformance with flight rules and regulations
• Prepares flight authorizations and monitors individual flight requirements and unit flying hours
• Maintains individual flight records, files of aviation operations publications, records, and correspondence in accordance with current directives
• Coordinates scheduling, standardization and evaluation, flight and ground training, flight records, and squadron operations
• Prepares and processes aeronautical orders and military pay orders
• Monitors flight physicals, physiological training, aircrew qualifications, and other aircrew and parachutist-related programs
• Performs airfield inspections and checks to include runways, taxiways, aprons, pavements, arresting systems, signs, lighting, and airfield clearance areas
• Responds to wildlife, foreign object debris, and other flight safety hazards affecting the airfield environment
• Provides aircrews with pre-flight briefings; briefs pilots current airfield status, arresting system configuration, runway surface conditions, correct taxi routes, and any hazards to operations in person and via air-to-ground radios

Working Conditions and Physical Demands

People who do this job report that:

• You would often handle loads up to 10 lbs., sometimes up to 20 lbs. You might do a lot of walking or standing, or you might sit but use your arms and legs to control machines, equipment or tools.
• Work in this occupation requires being inside most of the time

Working in this career involves (physical activities):

• Seeing clearly at a distance
• Detecting sounds and hearing the differences between sounds of different pitch and loudness
• Seeing clearly up close
• Speaking clearly enough to be able to be understood by others
• Identifying and understanding the speech of another person

Work Hours and Travel

• Overnight travel
• Rotating shift work