Not your average couple

Published April 15, 2011
By 1st Lt. Elizabeth Vaccaro
305th Operations Support Squadron

JOINT BASE MCGUIRE-DIX-LAKEHURST, N.J. -- "I like that my wife takes care of all the finances," said Airman 1st Class Joseph Herndon.

This may sound like a typical spouse's statement, but the bond between air traffic controllers goes beyond that.

Despite a demanding schedule including shift work, deployments, and TDYs, members of the 305th Operations Support Squadron make time for downtime.

Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst is home to the 305th Air Mobility Wing Airfield Operations flight, a 130-member flight made up of five officers, 15 airfield-management personnel and 110 controllers. Out of those 110 controllers, six of them are married to other controllers.

The career of an air traffic controller starts in technical school at Keesler Air Force Base, Miss. Every controller goes to technical school for four months and then, the challenge of becoming a controller begins.

The airspace and complexity of traffic at McGuire make it one of the most difficult facilities in the Air Force to obtain a rating. A typical air traffic controller can take anywhere from 18 months to two-and-a-half years to obtain their five-skill level after graduating from tech school. During that time, these Airmen will essentially relearn how to speak and think in order to become a proficient controller.

This process can be very stressful and hard for "outsiders" to understand. The exclusivity and complexity of the ATC language sometimes make for a lonely world. Many believe this is why there are so many controller-controller marriages.

The couples push each other to succeed; they help each other study; and they work through their ATC problems together. However these marriages aren't all business.

These couples will face all of the struggles couples encounter, but at end of the night, when the work day is over and the chores are done, she turns to him and says "So there I was ... ". He'll listen to her, understand her and sympathize with her, but he still won't put the dishes back the way she wants them.