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1C551B Career Guide

Air Force

1C551B: Air Battle Manager

Career transition guide for Air Force Air Battle Manager (1C551B)

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Civilian Career Pathways

Top civilian roles for 1C551B veterans, with average salary and market demand data.

Air Traffic Controller

$138K
High matchHigh demand

Skills to develop:

FAA Air Traffic Control CertificationSpecific ATC equipment training

Network Systems Administrator

$85K
Good matchGrowing demand

Skills to develop:

CCNA or Network+Cybersecurity FundamentalsSpecific OS administration (Linux/Windows)

Intelligence Analyst

$80K
Good matchStable demand

Skills to develop:

Data analysis software (e.g., Tableau, Power BI)Specific intelligence analysis tools trainingEnhanced knowledge of global affairs/political science

Emergency Management Specialist

$78K
Moderate matchStable demand

Skills to develop:

FEMA certifications (e.g., IS-100, IS-700)Disaster planning experienceHAZMAT training

Technical Trainer

$70K
Moderate matchGrowing demand

Skills to develop:

Instructional Design certificationCurriculum Development experiencePublic Speaking training

Salary estimates from VWC career data

Hidden Strengths

Cognitive skills your 1C551B training built — and where they transfer.

Situational Awareness

1C551Bs must maintain a constant awareness of the airspace, friendly and enemy aircraft positions, and potential threats to ensure mission success and safety of flight.

This translates to the ability to quickly assess complex environments, anticipate potential problems, and make informed decisions under pressure in dynamic civilian workplaces.

Rapid Prioritization

Air Weapons Directors constantly assess and reassess incoming data, prioritizing threats and allocating resources in real-time during rapidly evolving air operations.

In a civilian context, this is the ability to quickly identify the most critical tasks, delegate effectively, and manage competing demands in a high-pressure environment.

Adversarial Thinking

Anticipating and countering enemy tactics is central to the 1C551B role. They are trained to think several steps ahead to anticipate and mitigate potential threats.

This skill translates to an ability to foresee potential problems, identify vulnerabilities, and develop proactive strategies to protect assets and interests in the civilian sector.

System Modeling

1C551Bs work with complex aerospace control and warning systems, requiring an understanding of how different components interact and influence the overall operation.

In civilian settings, this translates to an ability to understand how interconnected systems work, predict outcomes, and identify potential points of failure to improve efficiency and reliability.

Degraded-Mode Operations

Aerospace Control and Warning Systems Specialists are trained to maintain mission effectiveness even when systems are compromised or degraded by enemy action or technical malfunction.

This skill is directly transferable to civilian roles where maintaining operations during crises, system failures, or unexpected disruptions is critical.

Non-Obvious Career Matches

Logistics Analyst

SOC 13-2081

As an Air Weapons Director, you've been responsible for maintaining situational awareness and rapidly prioritizing tasks in dynamic environments. Your expertise in coordinating resources and managing complex systems translates perfectly to optimizing supply chains and ensuring efficient delivery of goods.

Emergency Management Specialist

SOC 11-9161

You're highly skilled in maintaining situational awareness and prioritizing tasks under pressure, as well as thinking adversarially to anticipate potential threats. In this role, you’ll plan and coordinate responses to natural disasters, terrorist attacks, and other emergencies.

Financial Risk Analyst

SOC 13-2051

With your experience in systems modeling and adversarial thinking, you can leverage these skills to identify potential financial risks, develop mitigation strategies, and protect an organization's assets. You're adept at understanding complex systems and anticipating potential problems, making you well-suited for this role.

Business Continuity Planner

SOC 13-1199

You have experience in degraded-mode operations and system modeling, which means you excel at maintaining operations during crises and understanding interconnected systems. As a Business Continuity Planner, you'll develop and implement plans to ensure that critical business functions can continue during disruptions, leveraging your ability to think strategically and anticipate potential problems.

Training & Education Equivalencies

Air Battle Manager Training, Tyndall AFB, FL

720 training hours18 weeksUp to 15 semester hours recommended

Topics Covered

  • Airspace Management
  • Radar Systems and Interpretation
  • Weapons Control Procedures
  • Data Link Management
  • Electronic Warfare (EA/EP)
  • Air Tasking Order (ATO) Execution
  • Air Defense Operations
  • Communications Systems

Certification Pathways

Partial Coverage

Certified Information Systems Security Professional (CISSP)40% covered

Requires study of information security management best practices, security architecture and design, cryptography, access control, and business continuity planning from a broader IT perspective beyond military systems.

CompTIA Security+60% covered

Requires study of network security, compliance and operational security, threats and vulnerabilities, application, data and host security, access control and identity management, and cryptography.

Recommended Next Certifications

Project Management Professional (PMP)Certified Cloud Security Professional (CCSP)AWS Certified Security - Specialty

Technical Systems Translation

Military systems you've used and their civilian equivalents for your resume.

Military SystemCivilian Equivalent
Joint Range Extension Application Protocol (JREAP)TCP/IP based data tunneling and VPN technologies
Air Force Integrated Command and Control System (AFIC2S)Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) systems for resource allocation and situational awareness
Link 16Military Tactical Data Link (TDL) to standard commercial data exchange protocols (e.g., FIX, SWIFT)
Surveillance and Control Data Link (SCDL)High-bandwidth data links for real-time video and sensor data transmission (e.g., satellite internet)
Battle Control System-Fixed (BCS-F)Air Traffic Control (ATC) systems like those from Thales or Indra
Theater Battle Management Core System (TBMCS)Mission planning and execution software, such as Jeppesen FliteDeck Pro or ForeFlight
Advanced Radar Tracking System (ARTS)Modern Air Traffic Control (ATC) radar systems from companies like Raytheon or Lockheed Martin

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