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FAA Accused of Helping ATC Applicants Cheat

Washington Air Route Traffic Control Center Courtesy of FAA
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Key Takeaways:

  • The FAA's air traffic controller hiring process is under scrutiny following a Fox Business News report questioning the use of a controversial "biographical questionnaire" to screen applicants.
  • This take-at-home test, which includes questions of unclear relevance (e.g., about sports), is alleged to have been compromised by some within the FAA helping applicants cheat.
  • Critics fear a potential degradation in air traffic control quality, and applicants who were reportedly passed over due to this test have filed equal employment challenges.
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A report by Fox Business News has raised questions about the FAA’s hiring of air traffic controllers by using the results of a controversial segment of the testing to screen out some applicants while favoring others who, critics suggest, are not as qualified.

The test segment in question is a pre-employment test called the biographical questionnaire, a take-at-home test asking applicants questions of which many applicants find it hard to see the relevance. One question, according to Fox, asks applicants about their interest in sports.

Isabel Goyer

A commercial pilot, Isabel Goyer has been flying for more than 40 years, with hundreds of different aircraft in her logbook and thousands of hours. An award-winning aviation writer, photographer and editor, Ms. Goyer led teams at Sport Pilot, Air Progress and Flying before coming to Plane & Pilot in 2015.

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