The United States Struggles to Hire New Air Traffic Controllers

The United States is currently struggling to increase its air traffic controllers. According to the National Air Traffic Controllers Association, the current shortage is nearly at its worst in 30 years.

This means that a good number of the 10,800 certified ATCs in the country need to work “six days a week, 10 hours a day – for years at a time,” according to union President Nick Daniels during a House Subcommittee meeting this week. 

Daniels added that the US needs to hire more than 3,000 new air traffic controllers to solve the shortage. In addition to this, recent aviation-related incidents have highlighted the need for more air traffic controllers. 

Michael McCormick, a professor and air traffic management coordinator at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, said, “What is new – or more problematic or more common now – is the use of overtime.” He also added, “I would say your larger facilities are probably more problematic in use of overtime than the smaller facilities – just where you don’t want it the most.”

Aviation Accidents

In a collision between a commercial jet and a military helicopter in January that killed 67 people near Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, it was confirmed that one air traffic controller was staffing two jobs in the tower. The air traffic controller was reportedly handling both air traffic and helicopter traffic in the area.

In 2023, investigators confirmed that an air traffic controller distracted by a third plane almost resulted in a collision. However, investigators didn’t explicitly state staffing problems or exhaustion as the cause of the distraction. 

Mandatory Retirement Age

The federal government recently announced pay boost on newly hired air traffic controllers and a better hiring process. But despite their efforts, shortage still exists.

The biggest problem? Air traffic controllers must be younger than 31 to work the mandatory 20 or 25 years of service that qualify them for mandatory retirement at age 56, according to the FAA.

McCormick said that the reason they are required to start young is that the work requires both physical stamina and mental sharpness.

He said, “When you first start at an air traffic control facility, you have to do a lot of memorization.” McCormick added, “You have to memorize what’s known as the radar map. You have to know what every single dot dashed line means on the map. You have to memorize how the airspace is sectorized. So think of Tetris. There’s multiple layers and shapes that all fit together into a puzzle. That’s what airspace is like, too.”

Many air traffic controllers are responsible for more than one airport. 

Given the shortage, McCormick recommends studying whether it is safe for ATCs to work beyond the age of 56. He said, “There needs to be funded research on ‘is that mandatory retirement age still valid?’ Because that has been in place since the 1970s.” 

He added, “And since that time, there has never been any effort to validate: Is that good? Is it not good? Has the aging process changed over time?”