What to know about the air traffic controller shortage

The Trump administration is promising to fix the nationwide shortage of air traffic controllers after latest control tower mishaps and a string of crashes earlier this year The need for more controllers who direct planes across increasingly crowded skies though isn t a new issue or one that will be resolved rapidly How big is the shortage of controllers The Federal Aviation Administration has about air traffic controllers More than were hired last year the largest number in nearly a decade and the authorities is on track to hire even more this year Still there s a need for about more to fully staff the system What are the impacts Understaffing has meant controllers often are forced to work mandatory overtime sometimes six days a week That has led to concerns about fatigue after highly publicized close calls between planes that were following orders from controllers The FAA agreed last summer to increase the minimum rest time between shifts In a few high-traffic areas including New York and Florida the FAA has limited the number of flights because of the lack of controllers Why is there a shortage if thousands are being hired It s a demanding and stressful job with unpredictable hours and a high turnover rate Plenty of don t make it though the first sparse years And experienced controllers face a mandatory retirement age of Is this just a contemporary concern The National Air Traffic Controllers Association has been raising concerns for more than decade telling Congress in that the shortage was at a situation level It disclosed then that the FAA had missed its hiring targets for five years in a row The union again declared last spring that the number of fully certified controllers was down from where it was years ago What s the Trump administration s plan The administration wants to supercharge the controller workforce and disclosed a campaign last week to speed up hiring and give existing controllers more money not to retire early But because it takes years to train and certify new hires Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy disclosed it still will take at least three or four years to meet the current necessities How do you become a controller The majority go through several months training at the FAA Academy in Oklahoma although about one-third of the candidates don t make it to the end Others are taught the job in the military and a handful of colleges offer the same training detected at the academy Trainees then go on to work as developmental controllers in airport towers or radar centers until they re ready to be certified That final step typically takes two to three years What are the requirements The FAA says trainees must be willing to go anywhere across the U S while working nights and weekends Applicants must be a U S citizen younger than and able to pass a health exam background check and a skills assessment The FAA says less than of applicants are accepted into the training scheme Source