The US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is aiming to recruit gamers as the next generation of air traffic controllers to solve the prolonged shortage of personnel in the industry.
The FAA announced that it will begin receiving applications from April 17, as the current force of about 11,000 controllers and 4,000 trainees still does not meet the demand. The agency said it needs thousands more personnel to reach full operations.
Transportation Minister Sean Duffy emphasized the need to change the approach to attract new generations. The recruitment campaign is designed in a game style, encouraging candidates to "upgrade their careers" with requirements called "tasks".
According to the FAA, common skills in gamers such as quick reflexes, concentration, and handling complex situations can be suitable for air traffic control work, which requires high intensity and high accuracy.
The recruitment page also promotes an average income of over $155,000 per year after 3 years of work, along with benefits such as paid training and government benefits.
The air traffic control industry in the US is facing many challenges. A report by the US Government Accountability Office shows that the number of controllers has decreased by about 6% in the past decade. The shortage is affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, government shutdowns and labor market fluctuations.
The FAA is implementing a multi-year plan to modernize the system, eliminate old technologies such as floppy disks, copper wires and flight tracking paper, towards a more modern air traffic control system.
The recruitment process will stop when 8,000 applications are received. Candidates will undergo competency tests, medical and security assessments before being trained at the FAA academy. Efforts to improve the process have helped shorten the recruitment time by more than 5 months compared to before.
However, air traffic control work is still assessed as high pressure. A recent accident at LaGuardia airport when an Air Canada Express plane collided with a fire truck raised concerns about a shortage of personnel and a large workload, although the cause is still being investigated.
The FAA said it has recruited 2,400 controllers recently, but still needs more personnel to compensate for the prolonged shortage and the number of retirees.
