Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy on Wednesday confirmed that his department is expanding the number of schools that can participate in a fast-tracked air traffic control (ATC) training program amid a major nationwide staffing shortage. Â
The move is the latest effort to fill approximately 3,000 air traffic vacancies. The Trump administration has also offered bonuses for people who completed the Federal Aviation Administration’s (FAA) ATC training academy in Oklahoma.
The Enhanced Air Traffic – Collegiate Training Initiative (AT-CTI) allows students at certain schools to bypass the training academy by providing the same air traffic control training to their students, who then head directly to an FAA facility.
Five schools have enrolled in the AT-CTI under the Trump administration so far, including Nashua Community College, the University of North Dakota and the Middle Georgia State College Eastman, according to Fox News.Â
“More schools participating in a fast-tracked air traffic control training program = more of the best and brightest managing our skies,” Duffy posted on X. “[The Department of Transportation] and the [FAA] will not leave this shortage for the next Secretary. We’re supercharging the hiring pipeline to Make Air Travel Great Again.”
It is not clear how many schools are now eligible to offer their students the alternative ATC training program.
Potential air traffic controllers who select an alternative training location than Oklahoma still have to pass the same Air Traffic Skills Assessment exam and meet the same medical and security requirements as the traditional students.
Misty Severi is a news reporter for Just The News. You can follow her on X for more coverage.
