All ATC Academy Graduates to Pocket $5,000, Courtesy of the FAA

As part of a major push to boost controller hiring, US Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy will be throwing some extra cash at ATC Academy graduates, new hires, and controllers who opt to work past retirement age. Though there has not been a cap set on the incentive, the FAA likely can’t afford this system forever.

Under the new cash incentive program, the FAA will grant $5,000 bonuses to all ATC academy graduates or new hires upon completion of initial qualification training. Graduates who are assigned to 13 facilities and have faced other struggles throughout their hiring and training process could even get a $10,000 bonus.

Air traffic controllers who are already certified can also get in on the action. Those who are younger than 56 and choose to stay in the workplace after becoming eligible for retirement will receive an extra 20 percent of their basic pay per year until stepping down.

The new incentives are part of Duffy’s plan to ‘supercharge’ ATC hiring in 2025. He is working with the FAA to cut notoriously slow hiring steps from eight to five, shaving at least four months off the timeline. Trainees were also tempted with a pay boost of up to 30 percent and the potential to earn an average of $160,000 within three years of graduation.

“This staffing shortage has been a known challenge for over a decade, and this administration is committed to solving it,” Duffy stated. “The new streamlined hiring process is just the first step to deliver on President Trump’s agenda to prioritize the American people’s safety and modernize the federal government.”

Once these efforts went public, the FAA saw a major jump in ATC Academy interest. The agency expects that it will hire upwards of 2,000 controllers within the year, according to acting Administrator Chris Rocheleau.

FMI: www.faa.gov