NATCA President Nick Daniels Testifies Before House Transportation and Infrastructure Aviation Subcommittee
Note: NATCA released the following statement as a press release today.
(WASHINGTON) – During his testimony today before the U.S. House of Representatives Transportation and Infrastructure Aviation Subcommittee, National Air Traffic Controllers Association (NATCA) President Nick Daniels provided the union’s position on critical issues facing the aviation industry including controller staffing, safety, integration of new users, FAA reform, and infrastructure and technological modernization in the National Airspace System (NAS).
The hearing, “America Builds: Air Traffic Control System Infrastructure and Staffing,” brought together aviation stakeholders from the government, industry, and labor to offer testimony before the subcommittee. Daniels fielded questions from committee members on a wide range of issues that are critical to the future of the air traffic controller workforce.
Daniels thanked Congress for passing the FAA Reauthorization Act of 2024, including important provisions related to staffing and training, because the system is “3,600 controllers short of what’s needed,” Daniels said in his opening statement, “We are concerned that these staffing and training advances could be disrupted by a government shutdown later this month. Several years ago, when the government shut down for 35 days, the FAA was required to close its training academy and missed its original hiring target by over 500 trainees.”
Daniels stressed the importance of working with Congress, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), and Department of Transportation to ensure that NATCA is included in any initiatives that address critical issues like staffing and modernization.
“NATCA must remain involved as a productive and collaborative partner across a wide-range of critical matters to ensure that the FAA delivers these initiatives on-time and at a cost-savings to the American taxpayers,” Daniels said.
He also expressed support for Secretary Sean Duffy’s desire that the “best and the brightest” serve as air traffic controllers.
“NATCA wholeheartedly agrees and is committed to working with Congress and the Administration to incentivize the recruitment and training of the next generation of controllers, and the retention of FAA’s experienced controllers,” Daniels said.
Daniels’ written testimony submitted to the subcommittee can be found here.
FOR MORE INFORMATION: Galen Munroe, Deputy Director of Public Affairs;
202-220-9802, [email protected].
The National Air Traffic Controllers Association (NATCA) is a labor union and aviation safety organization in the United States that represents nearly 20,000 highly skilled air traffic controllers, engineers, and other aviation safety-related professionals. NATCA was certified in 1987 by the Federal Labor Relations Authority to be the exclusive bargaining representative for air traffic controllers employed by the Federal Aviation Administration. Today, NATCA is one of the strongest labor unions in the federal sector and represents a range of aviation safety professionals in 15 FAA bargaining units, five Department of Defense air traffic facilities, and 123 federal contract towers. These air traffic controllers and other aviation safety professionals make vital contributions to the U.S. economy and make modern life possible by coordinating the safe, orderly, and expeditious movement of one billion aviation passengers and millions of tons of freight within the National Airspace System each year. NATCA is headquartered in Washington, D.C., and is affiliated with the AFL-CIO.
