Trump Administration Considering ATC Retirement Age Change

Currently, controllers typically retire at age 56 or earlier under certain conditions. They can retire with a full pension at age 50 after 20 years of service or at any age after 25 years of service. 

Most traditional federal employees need 30 years of service to retire with a full pension. There is also a provision for some ATCs to be exempt from mandatory retirement until age 61, but this is at the discretion of the transportation secretary. 

“Should these air traffic controllers be retiring after 25 years of service?” Duffy said. “Should we have another calculation that happens because of the national security component of our airspace?”

Duffy indicated his department is examining this issue in conjunction with the Trump administration.

“That's something that we're looking at with the administration,” Duffy said. “The only way you actually can build these numbers [is] if you add 2,000 people into the system and you don’t have 2,000 people who leave the system.”

The potential change comes as the ATC system faces significant staffing pressures. Duffy noted that about 2,000 new controllers are trained annually, but this barely keeps pace with retirements and attrition. He suggested the goal should be to increase new controller training to around 2,500-2,700 per year.

While acknowledging the staffing difficulties, Duffy reassured the public about air travel safety. He stated that air travel remains the “safest mode of transportation in the country” and that the DOT is “working our hearts out to make sure everything is safe.”