LAS VEGAS (KTNV) — Amid a national air traffic controller shortage, the Federal Aviation Administration is looking to add thousands of controllers, including adding more to the tower here in Las Vegas.
A new incentive program will help, but one expert says it will take years to get staffing to where it needs to be.
WATCH | How the FAA is aiming to fix the shortage in Las Vegas
Travelers have likely seen the headlines about a shortage of air traffic controllers across the country. Just this past weekend, passengers with flights in and out of Newark Liberty International Airport in New Jersey encountered long delays and cancellations, with the air traffic controller shortage adding to the problem.
Here at home, Las Vegas' airport tower had 30 certified professional controllers as of 2023. But according to an FAA workforce plan, the tower should be staffed with 44 controllers.
According to that same plan, only six were in training to work at Harry Reid, still leaving a shortage.
President Donald Trump pledged to address the shortage across the nation. In a new hiring campaign, the FAA aims to hire 2,000 controllers by offering new incentives like higher pay, bonuses and touting a faster hiring process.
Aviation expert and pilot Reed Yadon says getting staffing levels to where they need to be will take years.
"So let's say from the time that you apply to the time that you leave the academy, you could be looking at eight, nine, 10 months, easily," Yadon told me.
The FAA's plan shortens the usually lengthy process to get hired, trained and into a tower. Harry Reid International Airport is among the busiest in the U.S., and travelers there told me they think controller staffing should be a priority.
"It's important to have good staffing, obviously, especially a busy airport like this, flights coming in and out," said Robert Feigum, a traveler from Minnesota.
An FAA representative also told me that in March, the agency received more than 10,000 air traffic controller applications. Of those, about 8,300 applicants were referred for testing.
See the full workforce plan below
