New York School Joins Enhanced Air Traffic Controller Training Program 

WASHINGTON - The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has signed an agreement with SUNY Schenectady County Community College in New York to become the next school for the Enhanced Air Traffic – Collegiate Training Initiative (AT-CTI).   

The FAA has authorized seven programs at six schools to provide the same thorough curriculum and advanced training technology offered at the FAA’s Air Traffic Controller Academy in Oklahoma City. 

“The Trump administration is taking aggressive action to supercharge the air traffic controller workforce," said U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean P. Duffy. "By expanding the FAA Academy’s extensive curriculum to colleges like SUNY Schenectady, we’re making it more accessible for the best and brightest to pursue a career as air traffic controllers—helping to ensure air travel remains the safest mode of transportation."

Enhanced AT-CTI school students must pass the Air Traffic Skills Assessment (ATSA), meet the FAA’s medical and security requirements, and pass performance verifications to receive an official endorsement certificate. After meeting these requirements, these graduates report directly to an FAA facility to begin their training.   

This is different than the Standard AT-CTI, where graduates go to the FAA Academy but can bypass the introductory Air Traffic Basics Course.   

The FAA has also signed an agreement with Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University – Daytona Beach in Florida for the school’s En Route program. Embry-Riddle will be the first Enhanced AT-CTI school to provide this option to students, who will have the option to head to a FAA Air Route Traffic Control Center upon passing the ATSA. This is the first school to offer programs for both Tower and En Route.  

As part of U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean P. Duffy’s efforts to supercharge the workforce, this Enhanced AT-CTI program allows more of the best and brightest candidates to get into air traffic facilities and on the job faster. Additionally, from the March 2025 supercharged hiring campaign, the FAA has already qualified and referred more than 8,320 candidates to the ATSA. We also have a year-round hiring opportunity for experienced controllers from the military and private industry and are enhancing training with modernized simulators to help get new hires through more efficiently. 

The FAA will continue to take aggressive action to get the best and brightest to join our team and increase our controller workforce. Controllers’ work is critical to meeting our safety mission, and we’ve made the hiring process more efficient than ever.  

Schools interested in becoming an Enhanced AT-CTI school can continue to submit applications online year-round.