Here's what it takes to become an air traffic controller, a job considered 'stressful' and 'tough'
Wednesday night’s fatal crash at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport involving a commercial airplane and a Black Hawk military helicopter has drawn renewed attention to air traffic controllers and what role they may have played in the accident that is believed to have killed 67 people.
The disaster, the cause of which remains under investigation, comes during a long-running nationwide shortage of air traffic controllers, and staffing may have played a factor. The control tower at Reagan airport has been understaffed for years, the New York Times reported, and at the time of the crash, a controller who was in charge of helicopter traffic was also tasked with instructing planes, the Associated Press reported. Ideally, those jobs are handled by two controllers.
Here’s a look at what it takes to become an air traffic controller, which the Federal Aviation Authority (FAA) calls “a tough job.”
Who can become an air traffic controller?
In order to be eligible to become an air traffic controller, a person needs to be a U.S. citizen who registered with the U.S. military for the draft. Applicants must be younger than 31 years of age, have completed one year of general work experience or four years of college education, speak English clearly and be willing to relocate to help alleviate staffing shortages, the FAA says on its website.
That, however, is just what is required to apply to be accepted into the FAA training program. Once accepted, “Entry-level applicants must complete required training courses and spend several months at the FAA Academy in Oklahoma City,” the FAA adds, noting that applicants are paid during the training period.
“After graduating the academy, individuals are placed in locations across the country and must gain 1-3 years on-the-job experience before becoming a certified professional controller,” the FAA states.
Michele Robson, a former air traffic controller, wrote an article published by Forbes that further details what it takes to become one.
“On leaving the college, an area controller would join an Area Control center and then do further practical training on a simulator for about 8-10 weeks. Finally, they are let loose on real planes and will be trained on live traffic with an on-the-job training instructor for up to 2 years,” Robson wrote, adding, “Training is hard with vast amounts of rules to memorize alongside needing to display many qualities. Controllers need to be confident, calm, resilient, and think in three dimensions.”
That squares with a description of the job given by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
“Their work can be stressful because maximum concentration is required at all times,” the bureau states on its website.
Once a person is hired, the average annual pay is $60,000, the FAA says. When the controller has more experience, however, that amount rises significantly. “Last year, the average salary for Certified Professional Controllers was $158,000 per year,” the FAA says on its website.
Does the FAA hire people with severe intellectual and psychiatric disabilities?
At his Thursday press conference on the crash, President Trump suggested that the crash might have been caused by diversity, equity and inclusion hiring practices.
"The FAA is actively recruiting workers who suffer severe intellectual disabilities, psychiatric problems, and other mental and physical conditions under a diversity and inclusion hiring initiative spelled out on the agency's website," he said.
No evidence has been released that any of the air traffic controllers involved with Wednesday night’s crash were disabled. In a post on X, former Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg called Trump’s insinuation “despicable” and defended the Biden administration.
“We put safety first, drove down close calls, grew Air Traffic Control, and had zero commercial airline fatalities out of millions of flights on our watch,” Buttigieg wrote.
The FAA has long had a policy of hiring people with disabilities, including during Trump’s first term as president.
“The #FAA embraces the uniqueness of all individuals in our workforce and throughout the #aviation community. National #Disability Employment Awareness Month focuses on ‘The Right Talent, Right Now,’” the agency wrote in a 2019 post to Twitter that also included a link to a since-deleted page on its website.
Air traffic controllers must undergo strict medical examinations before being allowed to oversee airport traffic.