United Airlines CEO Scott Kirby on Monday outlined what he believes are three critical steps needed to fix the Federal Aviation Administration, an agency that has come under intense scrutiny in recent months.
Kirby, in a LinkedIn post, said the FAA needs to boost the air traffic controller workforce, invest in facilities, and upgrade outdated ATC systems and infrastructure.
The United CEO blamed the significant number of flight delays on air traffic restrictions. While weather often plays a role, Kirby said that even on clear days last year, 68% of United’s delays were due to air traffic control restrictions.
“The facts are stark,” Kirby said in the post, adding that taking such steps would “dramatically improve” air travel in the country.
“The American traveling public deserves much better,” Kirby said.
Kirby is confident that Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy and the teams at the Department of Transportation and FAA have the ability to fix the issues.
FOX Business reached out to the Transportation Department and FAA for comment.
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Kirby said the highest priority in the near term is addressing the worker shortage. It’s a problem he believes can be solved without lowering training standards.
He estimated a shortage of approximately 3,000 controllers, which he said is “why the FAA faces staffing shortages at 77% of the most critical facilities across the system.”
The FAA previously offered several pathways to becoming a controller, including training through military and private certified college programs, in addition to the FAA’s own training academy. But that changed a decade ago when the FAA closed all other training avenues, leaving only its own single training facility, according to Kirby.
“And unfortunately, at maximum capacity, that facility can only start training 1,800 controllers per year, and because of the very high and rigorous standards and testing, the washout rate is high,” Kirby said. “Combine that with a mandatory retirement age of 56 and last year, the FAA filled all 1,800 slots at the academy… and ended the year with only 36 net new controllers.”
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Kirby expressed confidence in Duffy’s recently announced plans to “supercharge” controller hiring. Duffy announced last month that the department is making it “more efficient” and “affordable” to begin training to become an air traffic controller.
Kirby said the FAA can also upgrade the training system by increasing capacity at the academy in Oklahoma City and expanding the collegiate training initiative to train controllers at private colleges and universities.
The most critical long-term fix, however, is boosting investment to upgrade the “antiquated ATC systems and infrastructure,” Kirby said, adding that the government agency had “long struggled to procure and deploy new technologies.”
While it looks into a long-term solution, Kirby said the FAA could begin by “decommissioning outdated and costly legacy systems, directing the money from these systems to reinvest in new tools.”
Along with removing Cold War-era technologies, he said the FAA should also implement steps to “dramatically increase the speed to market of new and innovative technologies.” He cited Canada’s use of electronic flight strips, which began about 25 years ago.
The final focus should be on what he says is a “long-overdue investment in facilities.” Kirby said the agency uses the vast majority of its facilities and equipment budget to patch together the old existing towers, centers, radars and other equipment, rather than focusing on upgrades. He argued 92% of the budget should be focused on upgrades and about 8% should go toward repairs.
Kirby also said the government needs to change how the FAA is funded.
The “funding that supports the safety and efficiency of the airspace is designated on an inconsistent, year-to-year basis,” he said.
“We can, right now, change budget treatment to designate FAA’s Facilities and Equipment account as mandatory spending. Making this change would provide funding stability for ATC facilities and equipment to allow for long-term capital planning. It would improve staffing, too,” he continued.
Kirby said the ATC system is safe, and if there are shortfalls in staffing or technology, then controllers will slow or stop aircraft from flying to maintain safety.
