Exceeds Goal With 2,026 New Controllers Hired

U.S. Secretary of Transportation Sean P. Duffy announced that the FAA met and exceeded its goal for hiring air traffic controllers for Fiscal Year 2025 by bringing on 2,026 new controllers. The goal was 2,000 controllers, and the number of new hires is 20 percent more than the previous administration hired from January to September 2024.

The rate of hiring under Duffy’s turbocharged effort is tracking toward more than 2,200 new controllers in 2026 and at least 8,900 through 2028.

Secretary Duffy said, "Since taking over the Department, I pledged to help place more of the best and brightest Americans into our towers. These latest numbers show our supercharge effort is continuing to hit milestones, and we are making progress on that promise. Our work is just getting started. This Department will continue to use every tool at our disposal to chip away at decades of controller staffing declines because the American people are counting on us."

FAA Administrator Bryan Bedford added, "Thanks to Secretary Duffy’s leadership, we are hiring controllers at a record pace. These are the men and women who keep our skies safe and it’s important to invest in their success as we’re building a modern, resilient air traffic system the American people can rely on for decades to come."

Since February, when Secretary Duffy announced his plan to accelerate hiring, more than 10,000 applications have been submitted to the FAA, with 8,300 progressing to aptitude testing. The newly streamlined process has shortened the time-to-hire for open positions and shaved off more than five months from the old process.

The FAA Academy in Oklahoma City has posted two record months in a row this year of enrolled student trainees: 550 in July and 600 in August.

FMI:  www.faa.gov/