Transportation Department targets gamers in ATC hiring push

The Department of Transportation is launching a new campaign with a focus on gamers as part of an air traffic controller hiring push, according to a Friday announcement. The agency is targeting early career professionals for the technical role as it prepares to open its annual hiring window next week.

“To reach the next generation of air traffic controllers, we need to adapt,” Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said in a statement. “This campaign’s innovative communication style and focus on gaming taps into a growing demographic of young adults who have many of the hard skills it takes to be a successful controller.”

The hiring push aims to attract candidates with “demonstrated high cognitive functions,” multitasking skills, spatial awareness and problem solving, according to the agency. 

“This effort is focused on reaching talented young people pursuing alternative career paths, many of whom are active in gaming,” the agency said. “Feedback from controller exit interviews reinforces this, with several controllers pointing to gaming as an influence on their ability to think quickly, stay focused, and manage complexity.”

Across the federal government, leaders have stripped degree requirements from jobs in hopes of easing recruiting challenges. The House passed a bill in February that pulled back educational prerequisites for federal contracting jobs, including for tech workers. Roles that are part of the Trump administration’s Tech Force hiring sprint also do not require a traditional degree. 

DOT’s nontraditional hiring campaign comes amid ATC staffing shortages and turnover challenges.

The Federal Aviation Administration employed about 6% fewer controllers at the end of fiscal 2025 compared to 2015, while total flights increased by about 10% during the period, according to a Government Accountability Office report published in December. 

FAA has pointed to a number of factors contributing to the workforce difficulties, from a smaller talent pool with required experience to the public’s limited awareness of the profession. Some progress, however, has been made, according to the FAA. 

The DOT unit said it hit its ATC hiring goals several months early last year and has already reached the halfway point for its goal this year. The hiring window opening next week will close after the FAA receives 8,000 applications. 

Candidates that are chosen will attend the FAA Academy to learn fundamentals through classroom instruction and hands-on workshops before beginning work at one of the ATC facilities located across the country. 

The newly appointed controllers will arrive amid massive technology changes as part of the ongoing, multibillion modernization initiative. The effort includes improved flight data management, communication systems, radars and infrastructure. 

“Safety is the FAA’s top priority, and that starts with hiring top talent and equipping them with world-class tools,” FAA Administrator Bryan Bedford said in the announcement Friday.