Air traffic controller shortage drives new Enhanced AT-CTI training

Eastman, Georgia – A nationwide shortage of air traffic controllers has focused new attention on a growing training option that the FAA now approves for some colleges. Middle Georgia State University is one of the few schools to offer the enhanced AT-CTI pathway, which gives students another path to air traffic control careers as the FAA works to rebuild its workforce.

The recent federal government shutdown has highlighted staffing shortages, particularly as delays and reroutings mount across the country. The FAA says it wants to hire at least 8,900 new controllers by 2028. According to FAA workforce data analyzed by USAFacts, about 3,000 controller positions were vacant nationwide at the end of 2024 — although not all installations are equally understaffed.

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That shortage is sparking interest in a new FAA-approved academic pathway designed to streamline controller training at a small group of universities, including Middle Georgia State. The Enhanced AT-CTI program allows students to train to the same standards as the FAA Academy, and if they are hired and meet FAA requirements such as passing the Air Traffic Skills Assessment (ATSA), medical and safety clearances, they can go directly to a facility instead of completing the full academy in Oklahoma City, which can involve long wait lists and months-long courses.

Training difficulty increases as students learn to handle more aircraft at once on the radar. (Fox News)

Graduates always undergo installation-specific training and must be certified in the field before becoming full-fledged controllers.

Only about nine schools nationwide have been approved to offer the new and improved AT-CTI program starting in 2025, according to Kemarie Jeffers, chair of the aviation science and management department at Middle Georgia State.

Inside Middle Georgia State’s tower simulator, air traffic control student Brooke Graffagnino says the intensity of the work is what attracted her. “It makes your chest beat a little bit, because with the amount of traffic, it’s intense sometimes,” she said.

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Students also train inside the campus control tower, gaining experience with real-world airport operations. (Fox News)

She says students quickly find out if they’re a good fit for the job. “You can kind of tell who doesn’t [love it]. There were a few and they are no longer there. It takes a lot to get by,” she said.

Graffagnino says the importance of the work became clearer as she learned how controllers keep busy airspace organized. “Once you enter very congested airspace or approach large airports like Atlanta, you need someone to help you coordinate and keep everything separate and safe,” she said.

Middle Georgia State was approved as an enhanced AT-CTI school in mid-2024. Jeffers says the impact was immediate. “Before, our program had maybe 17 to 20 students. Right now we have 54. So we’ve already, in a short period of time, almost tripled the number of students that we have,” he said.

An instructor helps a student complete radar-based air traffic training during an advanced simulation. (Fox News)

To achieve the enhanced designation, Jeffers said the school must update its curriculum, revise parts of its simulator setup and install new audio and video systems. “We upgraded a lot of our equipment…we had to install audio and video equipment upstairs in our simulation tower,” he said. These upgrades allow the FAA to remotely review or verify training sessions and ensure they meet federal standards.

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The program’s biggest distinction is what happens after graduation. “The enhanced CTI eliminates the requirement to go to the academy. You’ll get your degree here and you can go straight to work,” Jeffers said. “It saves you time and effort. Again, it allows you to work sooner and make money faster.”

The FAA requires enhanced programs to employ instructors with controller experience and maintain simulator equipment comparable to FAA standards.

A comparison of the traditional FAA path to becoming an air traffic controller and the new and improved AT-CTI path. (Fox News)

As students progress, the simulations become more complex, requiring trainees to manage more aircraft at once. “As we become more comfortable and more confident, we are able to allow more aircraft into the airspace at a time,” Graffagnino said.

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Before completing the program, each student must successfully complete a final simulation that mirrors the FAA Academy evaluation process. “Our instructors will then run through a scenario and they will be graded…exactly the same way they will be graded at the academy,” Jeffers said.

According to the FAA’s FY 2025 air traffic controller workforce plan, the agency anticipates about 2,000 hires in FY 2025, 2,200 in FY 2026 and incremental increases through 2028, although retirements are expected to offset much of that growth.