Secretary Buttigieg warns of a lengthy air traffic control staffing shortage
US Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg warned Tuesday of the air traffic controller shortage stretching well beyond this summer as the FAA works to rebuild its ranks after the pandemic. “This is going to be a journey, especially when you factor in attrition, to get to levels we want to see,” Buttigieg said Tuesday during a summer travel briefing in Washington, D.C. “I think it’ll be a while before we’re at levels we’d like to see.” The FAA is about 3,000 air traffic controllers short of target levels this summer, he said. That shortage translates to roughly 81% staffed nationally this summer and, in the busy New York market, just 54% staffed. The agency plans to hire roughly 1,500 new controllers this year and, subject to budget approval, another 1,800 controllers next year. New controllers require up to three years of training. The shortage prompted the unprecedented move by the FAA to waive usage requirements at New York’s JFK, LaGuardia, and Newark airports for 10% of the slots or runway timings this summer in an effort to reduce delays. The waiver is effective from May 15 through September 15. Airlines are scheduled to fly nearly 3% fewer flights but 0.3% more seats on US domestic flights from New York this July compared to last year, according to Cirium Diio data. US air traffic control staffing has become a hot button issue in the pandemic air travel recovery. Last summer, Delta Air Lines CEO Ed Bastian raised some of the first alarm bells when he called the FAA’s air traffic control organization the most “stressed” in the aviation ecosystem. Other issues affecting the industry include its own staffing levels, lower productivity rates, and supply chain issues including delays of new planes and shortages of certain spare parts. But the air traffic control situation remains top of mind to many in the U.S. amid the continued surge in travel demand and the pending reauthorization of the FAA’s budget. “We need to get an FAA reauthorization bill that gives them money for technology and staffing,” United Airlines CEO Scott Kirby said Tuesday. “This is what I’m most worried about.”<br/>
https://portal.staralliance.com/cms/news/hot-topics/2023-05-24/general/secretary-buttigieg-warns-of-a-lengthy-air-traffic-control-staffing-shortage
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Secretary Buttigieg warns of a lengthy air traffic control staffing shortage
US Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg warned Tuesday of the air traffic controller shortage stretching well beyond this summer as the FAA works to rebuild its ranks after the pandemic. “This is going to be a journey, especially when you factor in attrition, to get to levels we want to see,” Buttigieg said Tuesday during a summer travel briefing in Washington, D.C. “I think it’ll be a while before we’re at levels we’d like to see.” The FAA is about 3,000 air traffic controllers short of target levels this summer, he said. That shortage translates to roughly 81% staffed nationally this summer and, in the busy New York market, just 54% staffed. The agency plans to hire roughly 1,500 new controllers this year and, subject to budget approval, another 1,800 controllers next year. New controllers require up to three years of training. The shortage prompted the unprecedented move by the FAA to waive usage requirements at New York’s JFK, LaGuardia, and Newark airports for 10% of the slots or runway timings this summer in an effort to reduce delays. The waiver is effective from May 15 through September 15. Airlines are scheduled to fly nearly 3% fewer flights but 0.3% more seats on US domestic flights from New York this July compared to last year, according to Cirium Diio data. US air traffic control staffing has become a hot button issue in the pandemic air travel recovery. Last summer, Delta Air Lines CEO Ed Bastian raised some of the first alarm bells when he called the FAA’s air traffic control organization the most “stressed” in the aviation ecosystem. Other issues affecting the industry include its own staffing levels, lower productivity rates, and supply chain issues including delays of new planes and shortages of certain spare parts. But the air traffic control situation remains top of mind to many in the U.S. amid the continued surge in travel demand and the pending reauthorization of the FAA’s budget. “We need to get an FAA reauthorization bill that gives them money for technology and staffing,” United Airlines CEO Scott Kirby said Tuesday. “This is what I’m most worried about.”<br/>
