US Edition
Duffy: Effort to recruit gamers as air traffic controllers ‘wildly successful’
The agency says gamers have skills that fit controller work, and it is offering salaries above $155,000 plus bonuses to fill thousands of openings.
- On Friday, April 17, the Federal Aviation Administration opened its annual hiring window for air traffic controllers, specifically targeting gamers with salaries of at least $155,000 to address persistent workforce shortages.
- The air traffic controller workforce declined by about 6% over the last decade due to retirements and government shutdowns, leaving the agency thousands of controllers short of targeted staffing levels.
- Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy argued that gamers possess "hard skills" like multitasking and decision-making, while the FAA offers $10,000 rewards for those willing to take positions in hard-to-fill locations.
- Within seven hours of the window opening Friday, the FAA received 6,000 applications, with officials capping total submissions at 8,000 to manage intake.
- Expert Kivanc Avrenli, professor of practice at Syracuse University Whitman School of Management, called the strategy "reasonable" but warned gaming "does not fully replicate" the job's life-or-death pressures, noting certification requires years.
35 Articles
35 Articles
Thousands apply to be air traffic controllers after campaign targets gamers
Thousands of people applied to be air traffic controllers after the Department of Transportation and Federal Aviation Administration rolled out a campaign aimed at recruiting video gamers. U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said at Semafor World Economy in Washington, D.C. that 6,000 people applied since the hiring window opened at midnight Friday. The portal closed once it received 8,000 applications. “We’ve had a flood of young people co…
Trump admin sees record of 8,000 air traffic controller applicants after effort to hire gamers
Duffy said that as of Friday, more than 8,000 qualified applicants in just 13 hours had applied for air traffic control roles, calling it the “Fastest application pace in American history."
King5 News
'Mission accomplished': US breaks hiring record for air traffic controller applicants
FAA’s gamer-themed hiring campaign coincided with a surge of qualified air traffic controller applicants, reaching its goal soon after April 17 opening. (AP Photo)
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