AJINSE School of Aeronautics
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FAA-approved course · Miami, Florida

The 200-hour Aircraft Dispatcher Certification Course

FAA-approved and taught in person at our Miami facility. Eight segments, 200 hours, and the last two weeks spent dispatching. Here is everything the course covers, how it is taught and what it costs.

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The 200 hours

Eight curriculum segments, in the hours the FAA approved. Open a segment to see what it covers.

200

total hours

128

knowledge hours

72

practical hours

Federal Aviation Regulations

14 h

14 CFR Parts 1, 25, 61, 65 Subpart C, 71, 91, 117, 121 and 139; 49 CFR 175 and 830; the General Operating Manual (GOM).

Topics

  • 14 CFR Part 65 Subpart C
  • 14 CFR Parts 1, 25, 61, 71, 91, 117, 121 and 139; 49 CFR 175 (hazardous materials)
  • 49 CFR 830 (National Transportation Safety Board notification and reporting)
  • The General Operating Manual
Courseware
Federal Aviation Regulations, Part 830, General Operating Manual
Testing
Written examination

Meteorology

62 h

Weather theory, surface and en route reports and forecasts, weather charts, and hazards from windshear and icing to volcanic ash.

Topics

  • Basic weather: the earth's motion, regional and local weather types, the atmosphere, pressure, wind, states of matter, clouds, fog, ice, stability, turbulence, air masses, fronts and storm systems
  • Weather analysis and forecasts: surface and automated observations, terminal forecasts, pilot reports (PIREPs), area forecasts, and SIGMET and AIRMET advisories, every chart from surface analysis to winds aloft, radar and satellite
  • Hazards: crosswinds and gusts, contaminated runways, visibility, turbulence and windshear, icing, thunderstorms and microbursts, volcanic ash
Courseware
Aviation Weather Handbook (FAA-H-8083-28A), Pilot's Handbook of Aeronautical Knowledge, METAR and TAF decode handouts
Testing
Written examination

Navigation

16 h

Charts and chart reading, navigation systems, instrument approach procedures and minimums, North Atlantic and Pacific operations.

Topics

  • Study of the earth: time and Coordinated Universal Time (UTC), definitions, projections, charts
  • Chart reading and use; the National Airspace Plan
  • Navigation systems and airborne navigation instruments
  • Instrument approach procedures: transitions, precision and non-precision approaches, minimums and weather
  • Special navigation: North Atlantic, Pacific, global differences
Courseware
Jeppesen airway charts, AIM, Instrument Flying and Instrument Procedures Handbooks, Airport/Facility Directory, ACs 90-91, 91-70, 120-28 and 120-29
Testing
Written examination

Aircraft

20 h

The flight manual, aircraft systems, the Minimum Equipment List and Configuration Deviation List (MEL/CDL), performance, weight and balance, and flight instrument errors.

Topics

  • The Airplane Flight Manual
  • Systems: flight controls, hydraulics, electrical, air conditioning and pressurization, ice and rain protection, avionics, powerplants and the auxiliary power unit (APU), emergency and abnormal procedures, fuel
  • MEL/CDL and applications
  • Performance: principles of flight, limitations, weight and balance, instrument errors, takeoff, en route and landing performance
Courseware
Airplane Flight Manual, Aircraft Operating Manual, Weight and Balance Handbook, ACs 20-29, 91-74, 120-27 and 120-60
Testing
Written examination

Communications

4 h

Regulatory requirements, communication protocol, voice and data communications, NOTAMs and aeronautical publications.

Topics

  • Regulatory requirements
  • Communications protocol; voice and data communications
  • NOTAMs
  • Aeronautical publications
  • Abnormal procedures
Courseware
Handouts, Jeppesen Airway Manuals, Aeronautical Information Publication, Pilot/Controller Glossary
Testing
Written examination

Air Traffic Control

4 h

ATC responsibilities and facilities, airspace and route structure, flight plans, separation, holding and traffic management.

Topics

  • Responsibilities; facilities and equipment
  • Airspace classification and route structure
  • Domestic and international flight plans
  • Separation minimums, priority handling, holding procedures, traffic management
Courseware
Pilot/Controller Glossary, Orders JO 7210.3 and 7110.65, Jeppesen Airway Manuals, AC 120-57
Testing
Written examination

Emergency and Abnormal Procedures

8 h

Security on the ground and in the air, overdue and missing aircraft, declaring and reporting emergencies, NTSB reporting.

Topics

  • Security measures on the ground and in the air
  • FAA responsibility and services
  • Overdue or missing aircraft: collecting and passing information
  • Declaring an emergency: means, responsibility and required reporting
  • NTSB reporting requirements
Courseware
Handouts, Aircraft Quick Reference Handbook, GOM emergency chapter, 49 CFR 1544
Testing
Written examination

Practical Dispatch Applications

72 h

Human factors, briefings, full flight planning on a Boeing 737, weight and balance, the dispatch release, in-flight operational control and postflight duties.

Topics

  • Human factors: decision making, human error, teamwork and resource management
  • Applied dispatching: briefing techniques, preflight weather analysis, NOTAMs, crew and aircraft limitations, flight planning, minimum fuel, weight and balance, economics of flight, the decision to operate, filing, the dispatch release
  • Authorizing departure with the pilot in command; in-flight operational control; postflight duties
  • Eight flight-planning exercises on a Boeing 737 with MEL items, reroutes and holds, ending in a timed final
Courseware
Handouts, videos, ACs 60-22 and 121-32, International Flight Information Manual, plus all previous courseware
Testing
Written examination, graded flight plans, simulated briefing to the pilot in command

Hours and topics follow our FAA-approved Training Course Outline and 14 CFR Part 65, Appendix A.

What dispatchers read

Can you read this yet?

Every flight starts with the weather in its raw form. This is a surface observation and a forecast for Miami International, exactly as they arrive on a dispatcher's screen.

Example reports, kept here for teaching. They are not live and are never used for planning.

See the meteorology segment

METAR, the observation

Example

KMIA 211853Z 10012G18KT 10SM FEW025 SCT250 29/22 A3005 RMK AO2 SLP176 T02890222

Decoded

Miami International, observed at 18:53 UTC on the 21st. Wind from 100 degrees at 12 knots, gusting 18. Visibility 10 statute miles. A few clouds at 2,500 feet, scattered at 25,000. Temperature 29 °C, dew point 22 °C. Altimeter 30.05 inches. By week two of the course you read this without a key.

TAF, the forecast

Example

TAF KMIA 211720Z 2118/2224 10012KT P6SM SCT030 FM212000 12010KT P6SM VCTS SCT030CB BKN100 FM220200 11007KT P6SM SCT030

Decoded

Forecast issued 17:20 UTC, valid from 18:00 on the 21st to 24:00 on the 22nd. Wind 100 degrees at 12 knots, visibility more than 6 statute miles, scattered clouds at 3,000 feet. From 20:00, thunderstorms in the vicinity with cumulonimbus at 3,000 and a broken layer at 10,000. From 02:00, winds easing to 7 knots and the storms gone. That afternoon line is what a dispatcher plans the fuel around.

A week of dispatching

The last two weeks are the reason the course is 200 hours and not 128. Here is what a student does on a typical day of them.

Regional jets lined up for departure at sunset with a city skyline behind them

  1. Pull the weather yourself

    Today's surface analysis, terminal forecasts, winds aloft, SIGMETs and NOTAMs for the route, read from the live charts, not a summary.

  2. Plan the flight on a Boeing 737

    Route, altitude, fuel and alternates worked by hand on the forms, with an MEL item that changes the numbers, and a reroute or hold added partway through.

  3. Sign the release and brief the captain

    You present the plan to an instructor acting as pilot in command, defend your decisions and sign the dispatch release together.

  4. Follow the flight

    Conditions change during the exercise. You amend the release, pass the crew what affects safety, and decide when the plan no longer works.

How it's taught

Instructor-led lectures, discussion, scenarios and demonstrations. Weather is worked from the live charts of the day. Flight planning is done by hand first, on a Boeing 737, with MEL restrictions and current winds, before any tool does it for you.

What's included

  • Courseware library: selected GOM chapters, an aircraft operating manual, sample operations specifications (OpSpecs), MEL/CDL, approach plates
  • Test-prep software for the FAA knowledge test (ADX), plus decode keys for weather reports and NOTAMs
  • En route charts, weight-and-balance and flight-planning forms
  • E6B flight computer and plotter
  • FAA knowledge and practical test fees

To graduate

  1. Complete all 200 hours
  2. Score 80% or better on every school knowledge test
  3. Pass the final flight-planning exercise and the final exam
  4. Receive a graduation certificate valid for 90 days, revalidated once for 90 more after an oral proficiency exam

Every student completes all 200 hours, whatever their background. That is what the FAA approved, and we do not give credit for prior training or experience.

Week by week

Five weeks, Monday to Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. The first three weeks build the foundation; the last two are spent dispatching.

  1. Week 1Regulations, then meteorology begins
  2. Week 2Meteorology: reports, forecasts, charts and hazards; navigation begins
  3. Week 3Navigation and charts, aircraft systems and performance, communications, ATC, emergencies
  4. Week 4Human factors, briefings and the first flight plans and weight-and-balance problems
  5. Week 5Flight plans with MEL items, reroutes and holds; the timed final flight plan and the final exam

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