KENT, Ohio — Between a reported industry-wide shortage of employees and aging technology, students and educators at Kent State's College of Aerospace & Engineering told News 5 that improvements need to be made when it comes to air traffic controllers.
So far, in 2025, there have been several high-profile plane crashes.
In January, 67 people died after a U.S. Army black hawk helicopter collided with an American Airlines plane trying to land in Washington D.C.
A Delta flight flipped upside down after landing in Toronto in February.
Neither of those crashes have been directly tied to mistakes made by air traffic controllers. However, that has not stopped a heightened spotlight on the industry, which is currently dealing with a nationwide shortage of about 3,200 air traffic controllers.
Typically, industry experts say there should be around 14,000 air traffic controllers, but right now, there are only about 10,800.
The airplane was on a perfect and routine line of approach to the airport. The helicopter was going straight at the airplane for an extended period of time. It is a CLEAR NIGHT, the lights on the plane were blazing, why didn’t the helicopter go up or down, or turn. Why didn’t the…
— Donald J. Trump Posts From His Truth Social (@TrumpDailyPosts) January 30, 2025
However, getting the job is no easy task.
Kent State's College of Aerospace & Engineering currently serves as a feeder school for the nation’s central FAA training program in Oklahoma.
It’s a job that can pay more than $160,000/year.
"The goal immediately after graduation for both of us is to go to the FAA Academy in Oklahoma City," senior Jack Oliver said. "It’s just a matter of trying to get there. They're very selective with who they hire."
The wait, Oliver told News 5, can drag on for years.
"Some students will find out within a month and some students will apply three times and find out three years later they’ve gotten picked up," Mo McFarland, Associate Dean at Kent State, said.
Applicants must pass a medical exam, psych evaluation, background check, and specialized tests to get to the FAA Academy in Oklahoma City.
RELATED: Kent State aeronautics program taking off with pilots, air traffic controllers in demand
From there, you’ll be trained further for about three months, followed by at least another year of on-site training.
"I know how many people are graduating and I know those who have not gotten picked up," she explained. "It’s a bit frustrating because we don’t know why they aren’t getting selected. I don’t know how they’re short[staffed] so that’s frustrating."
McFarland told News 5 that the bottleneck had left an impact on their pool of students, and they now only see about 30-40 new students each year.
"There was a time when we had 100 when the FAA was really hiring," McFarland said.
Dr. Maureen McFarland, Associate Dean and Marine combat veteran, discusses how @KentStateCAE uses real-world scenarios to train future aviation professionals. Our advanced ATC lab is the only one in Ohio with all three air traffic control domains. https://t.co/8k4NWDCnbH pic.twitter.com/1lmA9UluOh
— Kent State Aeronautics & Engineering (@KentStateCAE) February 1, 2025
Associate Dean McFarland added that she's optimistic that their enrollment in the program will increase in the coming years after changes are made to their curriculum.
In addition, it appears that frustration over a lack of hiring appears to have made its way to Washington D.C.
"When you say, 'I want to be an air traffic controller, I've taken the test,' and it can take you 2.5 years to get a seat in the academy," U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said last month during a luncheon with airport executives, "Well, you're like, 'I'm going to go do something. I'm not waiting 2.5 years to see if I can become an air traffic controller. You leave. You go to something else.'"
FAA trying to fix staffing shortage
In February, the federal government announced plans to tackle this shortage and lure more people to the industry, including increasing starting salaries and trying to streamline the application process.
Being an air traffic controller is a great job—that’s why I’ve streamlined the hiring process to get qualified candidates into the @FAANews Academy faster. We will give them better tools, pay, and hours that reflect their critical role in getting us all where we need to go. pic.twitter.com/hTe2iwVYEW
— Secretary Sean Duffy (@SecDuffy) March 28, 2025
An FAA spokesperson told News 5 that the hiring push in February and March yielded more than 10,000 applicants, 8,300 of which were referred to testing.
"It hasn’t really worked out but I’m hoping with me graduating that puts me at the top of the priority list," Oliver added.
In addition, the FAA announced plans to increase starting salaries for candidates who attend the FAA Academy.
"We may need some other schools to step up and help in that effort as well, but we need to have more air traffic controllers," Secretary Duffy added.
There's another issue with air traffic controllers: aging technology
But the perceived problems with the FAA don’t start and end with processing new hire applications.
Back in the simulator, News 5 observed firsthand some of the standardized procedures that have been criticized as antiquated, including the handwritten notes on paper slips to indicate a plane that passes through the process of takeoff and landing at an airport.
"We're using paper strips passing from one controller to the next as aircrafts move from one controller to the next," Secretary Duffy said. "This is insane. We're the United States of America. We are the most advanced market and have the most advanced technology in the world, and we are using the most antiquated old system that anyone could imagine. It's 25-30 years old and so this has to be updated."
The push comes as more aircraft are expected to enter the airspace in the coming years. News 5 has highlighted how NASA is helping map out the highways in the sky as drone and autonomous aircraft use is expected to increase.
RELATED: How Cleveland plays a role in mapping out a new sky highway for drones, autonomous aircraft and more
"It is time to innovate and really focus on it and have a clear path forward," McFarland added. "When you start talking about advanced air mobility, we need to come up with an answer pretty quickly because we have one of the most congested air spaces in the world and we like to use it."
"We don’t have a choice," Secretary Duffy said. "We're starting to see cracks in the system. The system us safe, but we're seeing the cracks. If we don't do it now, then five to 10 years from now, we're going to see the consequences of not taking action."
Clay LePard is a special projects reporter at News 5 Cleveland. Follow him on Twitter @ClayLePard, on Facebook Clay LePard News 5 or email him at Clay.LePard@WEWS.com.
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