Copyright jalopnik
America, the wealthiest nation on Earth and pioneer of aviation, still runs its air traffic control on Windows 95 and floppy disks. Meanwhile, ATC staffing levels were already 3,500 people under target even before Congress didn't pass a budget. In other words, the FAA wants to grow the workforce by nearly 25%. To do that, though, ATC salaries really need to go up. No one should hold their breath for that. Can anything be done? Over the summer, the FAA kicked around an idea: bringing in qualified immigrants to work this important job for the benefit of all Americans. That seems like a good idea that perhaps should be incentivized across the economy. Anyway, nothing has come of that so far, and so on the shortage goes. The real risk here is that some ATCs might leave altogether, turning a temporary shutdown into permanent damage. For the moment, Congress doesn't appear to be anywhere near a budget. To fix all this, it will need to throw some serious money at the FAA when it does.
