The FAA is too slow to hire and train new air traffic controllers, NATCA said this week, and the result is that towers and centers across the country are chronically understaffed. Controllers are repeatedly working six-day weeks at TRACON facilities in Atlanta, Chicago, Dallas-Fort Worth, Houston and New York, according to NATCA. “Bureaucratic inertia” is causing the problem, said NATCA President Paul Rinaldi. NATCA is calling for a congressional hearing, citing data that shows staffing nationwide has fallen nearly 10 percent since 2011.
Safety is not at risk, Rinaldi said, but efficiency and modernization are falling behind. “We have far too few controllers in our towers and radar rooms,” he said. “If left unaddressed, the situation could result in delays.” For the last five years, NATCA said, the FAA’s hiring has not kept pace with workforce attrition. It takes two to four years to train a controller, and about 25 percent of new hires don’t complete their training. Currently, the number of fully certified air traffic controllers is at the lowest level in 27 years, Rinaldi said, and 30 percent of those workers are eligible to retire.
