Amid a national air traffic controller shortage, the Federal Aviation Administration is looking to add thousands of new controllers.
A new incentive program will help, but one expert says it will take years to get staffing to where it needs to be.
Travelers have likely seen the headlines about a shortage of air traffic controllers across the country. Just this past weekend, passengers with flights in and out of Newark Liberty International Airport in New Jersey encountered long delays and cancellations, with the air traffic controller shortage adding to the problem.
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT | Controllers briefly lost contact with Newark planes before wider flight disruptions
President Donald Trump pledged to address the shortage across the nation. In a new hiring campaign, the FAA aims to hire 2,000 controllers by offering new incentives like higher pay, bonuses and touting a faster hiring process.
Aviation expert and pilot Reed Yadon, however, says getting staffing levels to where they need to be will take years.
"So let's say from the time that you apply to the time that you leave the academy, you could be looking at eight, nine, 10 months, easily," Yadon said.
The FAA's plan shortens the usually lengthy process to get hired, trained and into a tower.
An FAA representative told the Scripps News Group in March the agency received more than 10,000 air traffic controller applications. Of those, about 8,300 applicants were referred for testing.
See the full workforce plan below
Afn Aba 20240509 Cwp Congress by christian.hudspeth
This story was originally published by Joe Moeller with the Scripps News Group in Las Vegas.
