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An Aviation Safety Crisis: The Air Traffic Control Staffing Shortage and its

Implications for Safety in the Industry

Emma Gorman

Embry Riddle Aeronautical University

AT200: Air Traffic Basics I

Professor Romulo Gallegos

December 6, 2023
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Abstract

This research paper serves as an analysis of a safety crisis currently affecting the aviation

industry concerning the shortage of certified air traffic controllers. This is mainly due to the

COVID-19 pandemic, which created a two-year backlog in training new controllers in

addition to a large number of long-time controllers choosing to permanently retire. The

implications of the training pause are now being realized as airline business has fully

recovered after the pandemic. Meanwhile, the number of newly trained air traffic controllers

has not risen nearly enough to meet the increasing demand. Current air traffic specialists are

being forced to work mandatory overtime which involves long hours and six-day workweeks.

The strain placed on controllers has led to fatigue and distraction on the job. Consequently,

FAA statistics show that the number of runway incursions and other potentially critical safety

mishaps are not on a downward trend since they peaked in 2021. The FAA data indicates that

just between the months of January and August of 2023, there have already been 31 runway

incursions per million takeoffs and landings, whereas in 2022 there were 32 during the entire

year. Ultimately, it is now the FAA’s duty to find a way to train, hire, and schedule as many

certified controllers as possible. The findings of this study, however, indicate that the FAA

has struggled and failed to ensure adequate staffing and training for air traffic controllers thus

far. Various recommendations regarding scheduling, more direct training routes for efficient

certification, and assessment of the effectiveness of ATSA in ensuring controller competency

might be beneficial to the FAA in combating the critical staffing shortage being experienced

in the industry.
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An Aviation Safety Crisis: The Air Traffic Control Staffing Shortage and its

Implications for Safety in the Industry

I. Introduction

Maintaining and meeting high safety standards within the aviation industry is critical,

especially where air traffic operations are concerned. However, it appears that in more recent

years the nation is experiencing a significant aviation safety crisis – there is a serious

shortage of certified air traffic controllers in critical facilities nation-wide. Within the first

few months of 2023, at least six near-collisions had occurred between airplanes on runways

triggering the FAA to hold a safety summit for the first time in 14 years (Schaper, 2023).

Additional occurrences concerning severe turbulence and other various in-flight mishaps

have alerted safety professionals of a need for change (Schaper, 2023). There are implications

that the effect that the COVID-19 pandemic had on the industry has largely contributed to the

shortage of controllers. With such a strain placed on existing air traffic controllers, mishaps

are becoming more common, and it is clear that immediate action is needed from the FAA to

hire, train, and certify as many controllers as possible in order to keep up with the increasing

demands within the industry.

II. Background

There have been a concerning number of runway incursions that have occured within

2023 which have served as wake-up call to safety experts. By the FAA’s definition, “a

runway incursion is any occurrence at an airport involving the incorrect presence of an

aircraft, vehicle or person on a runway” (U.S. Department of Transportation, 2023b). These

incursions vary in cause as well as severity which is classified into four categories. Most of

the incursions that have occurred in the past decade have been either Category D or Category

C, being the two categories of lowest severity. Additionally, according to the FAA, the

amount of serious incursions has been steadily declining since the pandemic (U.S.
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Department of Transportation, 2023b). However, the same FAA data indicates that there may

not have been much realized improvement at all. During 2021, while the effects of the

pandemic were prevalent, incursions had peaked at 34 per one million takeoffs and landings.

The amount of incursions in 2022 was slightly lower at 32 per one million takeoffs and

landings. What has led to concern in the industry is that from January to August 15, 2023

there had already been 31 runway incursions per million takeoffs and landings (U.S.

Department of Transportation, 2023b). This indicates that since the rise in occurrences due to

the pandemic, there has not been much improvement in safety.

Many sources attribute the increase in runway incursions and near-misses to the

staffing shortage being experienced industry-wide, chiefly within air traffic control facilities.

Several factors contribute to the shortage of certified controllers, most of which are related to

the consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic. The most significant of these factors is the

two-year training pauses in the academy that the pandemic created. These gaps in training led

to a large increase in controller certification times, thus hindering the amount of new

controllers joining the industry to replace those who were retiring (Office of Inspector

General, 2023b). The full impact that the training suspension had on certification times will

not be realized for several years due to the varying amount of time required to be certified,

which is often longer than three years (Office of Inspector General, 2023b). However, it is

very likely that the FAA will not be able to certify enough controllers to make up for the

set-back for a number of years to come (Office of Inspector General, 2023b).

The pandemic was also the cause of many early retiring controllers. Quite a few

long-time controllers were essentially pressured to leave their jobs earlier than normal due to

the amount of strain associated with working at severely under-staffed facilities. Similarly,

the efficiency of the academy relies heavily on the amount of retired controllers who are

willing to teach at the academy. In an NPR article, the Chief Operating Officer of the FAA’s
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Air Traffic Organization stated that the academy’s greatest challenge is not the physical

space, but rather “the number of retired controllers, either military or FAA, that are available

to provide instruction” and teach at the academy (Rose, 2023). Because of the unusual

circumstances created by the pandemic, many previous controllers who would have been

eligible to teach at the academy may have chosen to permanently retire from their careers.

Overall, the setback created by the two-year training gap as well as the amount of controllers

retiring has created a massive shortage. Although the amount of people willing to travel

through airlines has recovered since the COVID-19 pandemic and is steadily increasing, the

number of certified air traffic controllers has not risen nearly enough to meet the rising

demands.

Given that air traffic control is at the forefront of maintaining the high safety

standards required in the aviation industry, a shortage of staff in this field has severely

negative implications for the industry, especially concerning critical facilites. An audit from

the US Department of Transportation determined that “20 of 26 (77 percent) critical facilities

are staffed below the Agency’s 85-percent threshold, with New York Terminal Radar

Approach Control (TRACON) and Miami Tower at 54 percent and 66 percent, respectively”

(Office of Inspector General, 2023b). As a result, facilities are requiring air traffic controllers

to work mandatory overtime, which includes six-day workweeks and routine ten-hour shifts

(Rose, 2023). This places an unsustainable amount of strain on controllers that has led to

fatigue and distraction on the job, which only increases the amount of incidents and

near-misses that occur on a yearly basis. Fatigue and stress has contributed to the

deteriorating performance of controllers, and the only feasible solution is for the FAA to

figure out a way to hire and train an appropriate number of controllers as efficiently as

possible.

III. Methodology
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Research methods to obtain the background and findings contained within this paper

began with the review of recent national news articles addressing incidents of runway

incursions and air traffic control mishaps. These articles contain reports from various

professionals within the industry including the Chief Operating Officer of the Air Traffic

Organization and the chair of the NTSB. Further investigation was conducted through

analysis of FAA published data regarding runway incursions as well as safety initiatives.

Finally, two U.S. Department of Transportation audit reports published in January and June

of 2023 respectively provided data and previously issued recommendations. The audits

covered the effect of the COVID-19 pandemic on the FAA’s controller training program in

addition to actions currently being taken by the FAA.

IV. Findings

Unfortunately, according to a DOT audit mentioned previously, “ensuring adequate

staffing and training for air traffic controllers - an essential part of maintaining the safety and

efficiency of the National Airspace System (NAS) - has been a challenge for the Federal

Aviation Administration (FAA), especially at the Nation’s most critical facilities'' (Office of

Inspector General, 2023b). The audit implies that efforts made by the FAA to solve the

indadquate staffing at controller facilities have been very limited. In addition, there has been

a failure to implement a scheduling tool in order to optimize scheduling practices at facilities

and potentially take some strain off of controllers (Office of Inspector General, 2023b).

Furthermore, FAA officials have not reached an agreement in regards to improving the

efficiency of training incoming air traffic controllers through the academy. All-in-all, staffing

challenges are still a major problem and the FAA continues to lack a solid plan as to how to

manage this problem (Office of Inspector General, 2023b).

V. Discussion
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While the COVID-19 pandemic was an unfortunate incident which was especially

damaging to the aviation industry, it has brought to light problems which may have already

existed within the industry in regards to training and hiring competent professionals. Rates of

training for air traffic controllers vary greatly, especially given that there are multiple routes

for certification. Individuals may choose to either gain military experience or obtain a degree

from an FAA certified school, known as Approved Air Traffic Collegiate Training Initiative

(AT-CTI) Schools. From there, an individual may be eligible to apply and gain acceptance

into the FAA academy in which training times may vary. After graduating the academy, one

to three years of on-the-job experience must be completed before becoming a certified

professional controller (U.S. Department of Transportation, 2023a). Assessment of character

and competence are two major factors when it comes to hiring eligible controllers, which

contributes to the amount of time required for the training process. This poses a significant

problem for the FAA; while the hiring rate for controllers must increase as quickly as

possible, quality and thoroughness of training must still be preserved. Due to the training

backlog created by the pandemic, it is apparent that the FAA is now being forced to consider

whether or not the training system that has been in place is as effective as it could be and

efficient enough to keep safety standards within the industry afloat.

VI. Conclusion

Safety is paramount in the aviation industry, especially where air traffic control is

concerned. However, the nation is currently experiencing an aviation safety crisis: critical

controlling facilities are severely understaffed and consequences are being realized. Since the

COVID-19 pandemic, there has been a shortage of controllers due not only to early retirees,

but more significantly, a two-year pause in training which has created a backlog of certified

air traffic controllers entering the workforce. The strain of working mandatory overtime

places stress on controllers leading to fatigue and distraction on the job. As a result, the
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industry is experiencing a concerning amount of mishaps and runway incursions, and the

number of occurances has seen little to no improvement since the pandemic. The only

feasible solution to this problem is FAA action involving the swift training, hiring, and

scheduling of controllers to fill positions in critical facilities. Currently, the FAA lacks a plan

to address this situation and is struggling to reach any agreement on necessary changes to

training and scheduling systems in place. It is imperative, however, that some form of change

occurs in order for the FAA to effectively preserve aviation safety.

VII. Recommendations

Recommendations that could be issued to the FAA address methods for the training

and hiring of air traffic controllers. First, improved staffing control may be beneficial. While

this does not address the rate of training new controllers, an organized labor distribution

system could assist in balancing the strain placed on existing controllers. Second, training

systems should be analyzed. The amount of time it takes to go through the military or an

AT-CTI school in addition to academy training will likely prolong the shortage of air traffic

specialists for many years. The development of a more direct route for controllers to enter the

workforce should be seriously taken under consideration. Finally, if a more direct training

route is created, the FAA would need to ensure that individuals who have undergone training

are continually meeting competency standards. The Air Traffic Skills Assessment (ATSA)

which was deployed in 2016 serves as a system to evaluate and identify successful air traffic

control specialists (Office of Inspector General, 2023a). The FAA should analyze the

effectiveness of the ATSA to ensure that it is sufficient as a pre-employment screening tool.

All of these recommendations address actions the FAA may need to take in order to combat

the current staffing shortage.

References

Office of Inspector General, U.S. Department of Transportation. (2023a, January 11). FAA

Has Taken Steps To Validate Its Air Traffic Skills Assessment Test but Lacks a Plan To

Evaluate Its Effectiveness. Audit Reports – U.S. Department of Transportation.

https://www.oig.dot.gov/library-item/39243

Office of Inspector General, U.S. Department of Transportation. (2023b, June 21). FAA Faces

Controller Staffing Challenges as Air Traffic Operations Return to Pre-Pandemic

Levels at Critical Facilities. Audit Reports – U.S. Department of Transportation.

https://www.oig.dot.gov/library-item/39530

Rose, J. (2023, November 9). A shortage of air traffic controllers is hurting safety, aviation

experts warn Senate. NPR.

https://www.npr.org/2023/11/09/1211838624/air-traffic-controllers-shortage-close-call

s-senate-safety-near-miss-senate

Schaper, D. (2023, March 16). Near misses and other mishaps are setting off alarm bells in

the aviation industry. NPR.

https://www.npr.org/2023/03/16/1163835032/near-misses-and-other-mishaps-are-setti

ng-off-alarm-bells-in-the-aviation-indust

U.S. Department of Transportation. (2023a, September 5). Be ATC - FAA Hiring Air Traffic

Controllers. Federal Aviation Administration. https://www.faa.gov/be-atc

U.S. Department of Transportation. (2023b, November 15). Ending Serious Close Calls.

Federal Aviation Administration. https://www.faa.gov/closecalls