The FAA has reached its goal of hiring 2,000 air traffic controllers this fiscal year as it continues to battle a yearslong, nationwide worker shortage.
Speaking at the Regional Airline Association’s Leaders Conference in Washington, D.C., late last week, FAA Deputy Administrator Chris Rocheleau announced the agency hit its fiscal year 2025 hiring target and is now aiming to bring on 2,200 ATCs in fiscal year 2026.
The federal government’s fiscal year ends on September 30.
Rocheleau’s comments were first reported by Reuters.
The FAA is about 3,500 ATCs short of targeted staffing levels. That gap, combined with aging technology, has contributed to operational problems at several U.S. airports, including Newark Liberty International Airport (KEWR) in New Jersey, which saw severe delays and cancellations in April and May.
The U.S. Transportation Department and the FAA have implemented a number of changes meant to make the ATC application and training process quicker, more efficient, and more enticing to potential recruits. In May, officials announced graduates of the FAA Academy in Oklahoma City will receive a bonus for completing their courses and additional incentives for agreeing to work in hard-to-staff or high-cost-of-living areas.
Current ATCs who could retire but choose not to are eligible to receive 20 percent bonuses each year they stay on.
The Transportation Department is also increasing classroom capacity at the FAA Academy and expanding the number of colleges and universities certified to offer the academy’s ATC curriculum and training technology. The department is also setting up channels to hire ATCs from private industry and the military.
In August, Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy announced the FAA expects to hire at least 8,900 ATCs through 2028 to both close the existing gap and accommodate an ongoing surge in global air travel. Duffy also said the agency will hire about 4,600 safety engineers and inspectors by 2034.
