Is there a shortage of air traffic controllers?
Although hiring has increased and reforms are underway, the FAA is working to close staffing gaps nationwide.
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) controls air traffic at 290 terminals. And as of September 2024, over 40% of them were understaffed.
In 2023, the FAA established a 85.0% staffing goal for terminal air control facilities. One-hundred and eighteen of them fell short of that target in 2024.
Meanwhile, 172 facilities met or exceeded the staffing goal. Eighty-five had staffing levels of more than 100%; this was partially due to intentional overstaffing of new hires to account for expected attrition over the next two or three years.
How understaffed were the facilities that fell short of the goal? Eighty-six had staffing ranges between 75.0% and 84.9%. The remaining 32 were staffed to 74.9% capacity or less.
In 2024, the FAA employed 14,264 air traffic controllers.
In 2024, over 40% of FAA facilities were understaffed
Number of FAA facilities by CWRG staffing targets, September 2024
Why aren’t there enough air traffic controllers?
The FAA has attributed several factors to recent understaffing, including:
- COVID-19: The pandemic interrupted staffing due to paused or reduced training. Because the FAA staffs facilities based on the number of scheduled flights, it also reduced the number of employed air traffic controllers when flight volume was down.
- Training: A long training process (two to three years) coupled with limited on-the-job training at facilities that are already understaffed.
- Yearly losses of controllers and trainees: One of the FAA hiring goals is to maintain current staffing levels. However, the administration loses current and training air traffic controllers each year due to promotions and transfers; retirement; training academy attrition; and resignations, firings/layoffs, and deaths.
In 2024, North Dakota's Grand Forks Tower was the nation’s most understaffed facility (at 53.3% of target air traffic controllers on staff). Rochester Tower in Rochester, Minnesota, (56.5%), and Columbus Tower in Columbus, Georgia, (58.3%) followed.
In 2024, FAA staffing levels ranged from 53.3% to 133.3% of facility goals.
FAA air traffic control staffing levels compared to recommended targets, September 2024
How has air traffic controller employment changed since 2013?
The nation had 3.9% fewer air traffic controllers in 2024 than in 2013. In that same time, the annual number of flights rose 6.5%.
Air traffic controller employment peaked in 2016 at 23,240 but declined 3.4% through 2024. Flight volume did the opposite, rising 8.0%.
Air traffic controller employment peaked in 2016; annual flights peaked in 2024.
Air traffic controller employment and all US carriers' flights, 2013–2024
Are all air traffic controllers federal employees?
Not all air traffic controllers work for the FAA: Of all employed air traffic controllers in 2024, 90% worked for the federal government.
The remaining 10% work in industries like non-government air traffic control, scheduled private passenger flights (like flight tours), non-scheduled passenger and cargo flights (flights that don’t fly regularly — think a chartered private flight), and technical and trade schools.
How is the FAA responding to staffing shortages?
In 2023, a Department of Transportation (DOT) audit recommended the FAA implement hiring improvements to address staffing issues at critical facilities.
Since the audit, the FAA exceeded its hiring goals in FY 2024 and FY 2025, and has committed to hire more than 2,200 new controllers in FY 2026.
In addition, the FAA's 2025–2028 workforce plan outlines several strategies to address continuing hiring challenges, including:
- Initiating a year-round hiring track for controllers with previous experience
- Enhancing the placement process for academy graduates to support long-term retention
- Increasing academy classroom capacity
- "Supercharging" the controller hiring process
- Finishing deployment of upgraded tower simulation systems in 95 facilities by December 2025.
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