James Clyburn Questions Sean Duffy About Hiring Process For Air Traffic Controllers

Added: 2026-05-23

[00:00:00]Thank you. Mr. Clyburn.

[00:00:02]Thank you very much, Mr. Chairman. Mr. Secretary, I've got a safety question that is a two-parter, one involving manpower, the other methods.

[00:00:14]The first one is, you know, we've uh spent what, $96 million to um hire new air traffic controllers. And I understand that um uh there's been a sort of a >> [snorts] >> new supercharge hiring process uh that is is being undertaken. Uh but it's been called to my uh attention [snorts] that the uh NATCA, uh the air traffic controllers union uh was not involved in this process at all.

[00:00:47]Uh um Could you explain why uh the group representing uh the employed uh were not Yeah. was not uh brought into this? That's a great great question, and thank you, Congressman, for asking it. Um so, just if you give me I'll try to be quick. The historic level of staffing up till 2024 was the 1.87, uh which is what we've gone back to right now. Um and it was bumped up to a higher staffing level um for the last 2 years, but historically, that's the number that we've determined is a safe staffing level um to operate the national airspace. But because of the disagreement between the FAA that wanted the historic number and NATCA that wanted the the bigger number, um you all told me to go to the transportation transportation research board and have the transportation research board, independent, non-partisan, look at this and tell us what's right, what's the right staffing levels. And they did come back, and they've said that the staffing level that we've come out with, the historic staffing level, is the right level, not the heightened one from from Natca. I just by the way, I do work very well with Natca and the team and I'm grateful for the controllers and have a wonderful relationship with them.

[00:02:06]Well, I I hope that that the relationship will continue because I do believe irrespective of what one's feeling may be about organized labor.

[00:02:17]Uh when there is a legitimate group uh representing employees, uh I think uh irrespective of whether or not we follow their suggestions, bringing them into the process, uh I think it's a good thing. Uh my other question on safety is this.

[00:02:36]Now, I understand uh that um our commitment to modernizing uh your efforts uh has been um uh met with some uh skepticism about uh a fee that you talked about charge uh in order to uh facilitate that modernization. Could you tell me tell me a little bit about this fee and Oh, no, thank you. That was someone that asked me a question um about how could we fund this? So, I would tell you I the 12 and 1/2 billion that you all gave me um I'm by the way, that was a leap of faith. That was truly a leap of faith because this goes back to the next gen in early uh early 2000s, we knew this was a problem and you all gave billions of dollars and that you never got the deliverable. And so, that you [clears throat] were seeing all the aviation incidents and you took a leap of faith on giving us that money, I'm I'm grateful for, but that's not enough.

[00:03:34]So, we're doing the infrastructure. I mentioned the the telecom and the radios and the radars, all the all all that's being done.

[00:03:42]But, the deliverable for the American people, the magic for the American people is going to be the software because I think people don't want to be delayed. They don't want to be canceled.

[00:03:49]If it's It's issue or it's weather, like we can't control that, but we'll have more uh more airplanes, commercial, general, eVTOLs, drones in the airspace, and the software is a big part of it, and I don't have the money.

[00:04:02]I keep asking for money. Uh haven't got it yet. I'd love if you all wanted to give it to me. Um but if that wasn't the case, another option, I'm just an idea factory over here. If you wanted to charge a fee and put that on to, you know, come in and and fund this.

[00:04:17]Um but I'd prefer that you all just gave me the dollars. And just if I could make one of the clarification, the the way this works is that you're very strict in how I can spend the 12.5 billion. I don't have a lot of latitude. I wish I had latitude to take some of the money and move it towards software development. I don't think we want to wait till the 12.5 billion is deployed and we got a better infrastructure, and then you're like, "Well, then let's take another 3 years and start to develop the software." Like, we should I think we could do it all together, and that's what I'm Have you given us a plan of how you would do this and how much it would cost? Y- I have I I think I did. Um I So, I'm I'm going to ask for So, I wanted another Originally, I was at 31.5 billion dollars. You gave me 12.5.

[00:05:05]Well, in everyone here has a problem with a a tower in their in their community. Everyone There's everyone calls me about their towers cuz they're really old.

[00:05:14]I took the tower money out now, and I'm asking for 10.2 billion. I think you all are going to give me money for towers in your own districts cuz everybody has a problem cuz it's really old. But the 10.2 gives us some money for the Chicago, um the the the Chicago tower, and then gives us the money for um the software that we're going to need. And I'd happy to Your time has expired, but I I'd I'd welcome to sit down and or give your team a call on what we want to do.

[00:05:40]>> I'd like to know a little more about this fee.

[00:05:43]Sure.

[00:05:44]Thank you, Mr. Chairman.