On May 1, the Department of Transportation (DOT) announced its plan to address America’s nationwide air traffic controller shortage. The “package” of actions to tackle the issue focuses on giving the air traffic controller workforce a “supercharge.” To do so, the department wants to boost recruitment, hiring, and employee retention.
The DOT listed five actions the Federal Aviation Administration will take to solve the air traffic controller shortage regarding hiring. The actions included giving new opportunities to “veteran military controllers” and rewarding academy graduates “assigned to hard-to-staff” facilities. Another move is offering new hires and academy graduates financial incentives for completing early training milestones. Additionally, candidates shouldn’t wait over a year for their “routine medical and security clearances.” Moreover, the Air Traffic Controller Academy in Oklahoma City will get more instructors.
The organizations spearheading recruitment and retention are the FAA and the National Air Traffic Controllers Association (NATCA). The two will offer a designated “limited-time incentive package” to select academy graduates, new hires, and already working controllers. To get the incentive package, the latter group will have to be “eligible to retire but under the mandatory retirement age” for the role, which is 56.” The FAA states that air traffic controllers can technically retire and receive a full pension at any age after 25 years on the job, or at 50 years old after a minimum of 20 years of service.
What Else Should I Know About The DOT’s Plan To Address The Air Traffic Controller Problem?
Per the DOT, the FAA aims to hire 2,000 air traffic controllers this year. While discussing the nationwide issue and safety warnings at Newark Liberty International Airport, MSNBC correspondent Tom Costello said up to 3,500 air traffic controller positions must be filled.
United States Transportation Secretary Sean P. Duffy claims that the Trump administration has made leaps and bounds within its second term thus far to fix the air traffic controller shortage. The DOT claims to have “increased the starting salary for academy trainees” and shortened the hiring process timeframe via a hiring campaign started in March. In the recent press release, Duffy said, “In our first 100 days, this [Trump] administration has made more progress on addressing the air traffic controller shortage than the last one did in four years.”
“But there’s more work to be done to secure our skies,” he continued. “Today’s actions will supercharge the air traffic controller workforce from both retention and hiring side of the equation – bringing us one step closer to reversing decades of staffing declines.”
Meanwhile, NATCA President Nick Daniels gave an optimistic statement about collaborating with the DOT and the future of the air traffic controller workforce.
“This new recruitment award and retention incentive program is a meaningful step toward addressing the ongoing staffing shortages in air traffic control across the National Airspace System,” said Daniels. “We thank Secretary Duffy for his commitment to recruiting and retaining the best and brightest in the air traffic control profession and look forward to working with the Department of Transportation and the FAA on controller staffing, safety improvements, and the modernization of air traffic control systems and improvements to facility infrastructure.”
