The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has struggled for years to find enough air traffic controllers to address the shortage, with the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) saying in January that the number of people in the job in the U.S. has declined by about 6 percent “over the past decade.” Now the Trump administration is launching a recruiting campaign targeting gamers ahead of the opening of the annual air traffic control recruiting window on April 17.
Even with the drive, getting qualified individuals through training and into the role can still be a challenge: According to the Department of Transportation’s Office of Inspector General (OIG), the FAA faces “considerable challenges with training, including a shortage of qualified trainers, training capacity limitations, an outdated curriculum, and high training failure rates.”
An FAA video full of clips of things like madden nfl, Fortnite, League of Legends eSports, and the Xbox One stinger of commercials promises an average salary of $155,000 per year after three years and says “this is what you’re training for.”
In a press release, the FAA says air traffic controllers said in exit interviews that gaming impacts “their ability to think quickly, stay focused, and manage complexity.” The FAA’s website about the application process encourages applicants to “level up” their careers. However, the Trump administration is not the first to target gamers for this role; according to the new York TimesIn 2021, the Biden administration launched a “Level Up” recruitment campaign, encouraging gamers as well as women and members of minority groups to become air traffic controllers.
Getting more air traffic controllers has been a focus of President Trump’s Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy, and he announced plans to “supercharge” hiring shortly after being sworn into the job last year. The OIG says that campaign kicked off in March 2025 and “attracted more than 10,000 applications,” resulting in about 600 trainees entering the Comptroller Training Academy. And the GAO says that some attrition during the air traffic controller hiring process “can be prevented,” noting that the hiring process can be “difficult to navigate” and that by the time they receive an offer of employment, applicants may have already accepted other jobs.
The National Air Traffic Controllers Association (NATCA), the union representing air traffic controllers, “welcomes the innovative approach to expanding the candidate pool,” including “access to individuals with high-level qualifying skills such as gamers,” according to a statement from NATCA President Nick Daniels.
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