Airside
Eddie Saunders
01 September 2025
The US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is stepping up efforts to recruit thousands of new air traffic controllers, but a shortage of instructors threatens to undermine the programme.
At the FAA’s training academy in Oklahoma City, many of the teachers are retired controllers in their mid-60s. With a surge in student numbers, they are now working double shifts stretching from 7am to midnight.
Although a new labour contract has raised their pay to around $46 (£35) an hour and increased their daily housing allowance from $60 to $90 from January, many instructors say the workload is unsustainable.
Documents obtained by Bloomberg show that while only six of 105 instructors were scheduled for double shifts on 6 March, by early September that number is set to rise to 42. Some staff said the long hours were leaving them “walking around like zombies” and questioning whether they could provide quality instruction.
FAA’s controller recruitment drive hampered by shortage of instructors
