A new college has joined the FAA’s expanded air traffic control (ATC) training program.
U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy announced Monday that Nashua Community College in New Hampshire is now part of the Enhanced Air Traffic-Collegiate Training Initiative (E-CTI), making it the fifth new member school this year.
“Under President [Donald] Trump’s leadership, we’re solving the air traffic controller shortage one step at a time,” Duffy said in a statement. “Our new partnership with Nashua Community College will help us continue to attract the best and brightest to fill our air traffic control towers. To all the young Americans considering a career in this exciting field—your work will make flying safer and more efficient than ever.”
The E-CTI program allows member schools to offer the same air traffic control (ATC) curriculum and training technology available at the FAA Academy in Oklahoma City. It is meant to expand the number of recruits and help close a nearly 3,000-controller gap keeping many ATC facilities understaffed.
Nashua Community College is the first post-secondary institution in New Hampshire to join E-CTI and the third in the Northeast.
E-CTI is now offered at eight schools across the country: Nashua; Embry Riddle Aeronautical University in Daytona Beach, Florida; Middle Georgia State University in Eastman; Schenectady County Community College in New York; Tulsa Community College in Oklahoma; University of North Dakota in Grand Forks; University of Oklahoma in Norman; and Vaughn College of Aeronautics and Technology in Flushing, New York.
E-CTI students must pass the Air Traffic Skills Assessment, meet medical and security requirements, and complete performance verifications to receive an official endorsement certificate. After that, they report directly to an FAA facility to start their training.
E-CTI is different from the Standard AT-CTI program, where graduates go to the FAA Academy but can bypass the introductory air traffic basics course.
