Elon Musk Calls On Retired Employees To Return To Work At FAA: 'There Is A Shortage Of Top Notch Air Traffic Controllers'

Billionaire and Department of Government Efficiency lead Elon Musk on Thursday called on retired air traffic controllers to return to work.

What Happened: “There is a shortage of top notch air traffic controllers,” Musk said in a post on X, formerly Twitter. “If you have retired, but are open to returning to work, please consider doing so.”

Musk’s post comes on the heels of the FAA calling for entry-level air traffic controllers. Interested candidates can apply now through March 17.

U.S. Department of Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said on Thursday that the FAA is streamlining the 8-step hiring process at the agency into a 5-step process.

“This will accelerate the time-to-hire for these critical positions by shaving more than four months off the old process. We want the best and brightest to get expedited entry into the academy, and as an incentive to apply, we will be increasing the pay for those in training,” Duffy said. “This administration is committed to solving the air traffic control shortage that has existed for too long.”

Duffy said in a statement that the starting salary for candidates who go to the FAA’s academy for training will increase by 30%, making the average certified professional controller salary go over $160,000 a year.

What Happened: Earlier this month, Duffy said that the FAA has about 45,000 employees and the new government has let go "less than 400" who were probationary. Those laid off were at the agency for less than a year and did not include air traffic controllers or critical safety personnel, he said.

The Professional Aviation Safety Specialists union told Benzinga that a total of 130 probationary employees represented by the union were terminated. The terminated job roles include aviation safety assistant, environmental protection specialist, management and program analyst, and maintenance mechanic, among others, it said.

The rising demand for air traffic controllers comes on the heels of multiple plane accidents in the recent past. In January, a collision between an army helicopter and a plane while it was nearing the runway at Reagan Washington National Airport killed 67 people.

The FAA is nearly 3,500 air traffic controllers short of its targeted staffing levels.

Check out more of Benzinga’s Future Of Mobility coverage by following this link.

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