Controlling the Skies Published March 27, 2015 By Airman Connor J. Marth 366th Fighter Wing Public Affairs Mountain Home Air Force Base, Idaho -- In the Idaho desert, tucked away in the corner of an Air Force base, a former grocery store deli manager flips through mounds of books in a solitary tower. She starts her days when most Airmen have already gone home. For now, her job is to learn all she can about directing traffic. However, this traffic is different doesn't have a stereo or heated seats; this traffic has wings. Airman 1st Class Cassandra Donohoe, 366th Operations Support Squadron air traffic controller apprentice, used to wear a badge "entitled manager" but she had no idea how difficult it would be to earn the badge of an air traffic controller. "I hit my one-year mark in the Air Force in January and I still haven't gotten to the hardest part of my training," said Donohoe. "It's still a very real possibility that I might not make it." Donohoe is a trainee at the Air Control Tower on base. She spends most of her days in a small room filled with books and computers, learning all there is to know about keeping pilots safe. Most career fields in the Air Force have several volumes of Career Development Courses to study after tech school. Donohoe doesn't have these courses. Instead, she has to earn three certifications by memorizing small libraries of material, spending countless hours flipping through pages to learn the finite details of controlling airspace. So far, she's completed two of the three certifications required to become an ATC. She said the final certification, local control, is what worries her. It's notorious for being the most difficult hurdle in a controller's training and where the majority of trainees wash out. This is her first assignment and she's seen three trainees attempt the final certification. They failed. "When we started, we were all saying 'I'm good, I've got this!'" Donohoe said. "We all got rated in our first two positions and then you get to the last one and it's sort of a wild card. I'd like to think that I'm going to make it but you can never know 100 percent." For a controller in training, the thought of failure is not an option and the stress that comes along with it can become debilitating. But there is an upside to all the stress. Senior Master Sgt. Aaron Agner, 366th OSS chief controller, said ATCs guide pilots in a very dangerous and high tension environment. If a controller isn't prepared and able to safely direct traffic, they put lives and multi-million dollar aircraft at risk. The pressure of the job will ultimately motivate the controllers to study harder and ensure the mission is completed safely. When her day is over, Donohoe finds a few ways to shake off the weight of the job and maintain a positive attitude. "When you have a really rough day and a trainer has been on you really hard, you need to be able to go home and separate from the stress," she said. "It's a good feeling to sit down and unwind to get ready to do it all again tomorrow." But she can't prepare for everything. "I was flying through training and now I'm stopped, staring at the finish line," she said. "It's kind of frustrating." Her training was halted to allow another trainee enough hands-on time to get his final certification. "It's all about how you approach it," Donohoe said. "I think it will all be worth it in the end. It'll be a really enjoyable time when I can simply control traffic." For now, she will continue studying and anticipate the next chapter of her career.