Agency To Hire Thousands Of Controllers In The Next Several Years

The FAA plans to hire thousands of air traffic controllers over the next several years, but the agency has come under fire for relaxing its standards for potential new hires.

New rules that went into effect this week do not count previous training and experience in formal air traffic control education programs.

Television station KCRA reports that the FAA is moving to an "off the street" standard for potential trainees, according to Scott Miller, a professor of aeronautics at Sacramento City College. Miller said that under the new rules, "any candidate who happens to be a U.S. citizen can apply. A high school diploma is not a requirement to become an air traffic controller."

Miller said that about 60 students who graduated from the college's program were told to reapply for positions even though they had completed a specialized program. He said that the agency may lose some of the best-qualified candidates due to the lower standards.

The FAA anticipates replacing 10,000 air traffic controllers as people currently in those jobs reach the mandatory retirement age of 56 over the next 10 years. The agency said it is trying to remove barriers to "equal employment opportunities" and "create a more diverse work force," according to the report.

FMI: www.faa.gov