The U.S. Department of Transportation is launching a new campaign aimed at recruiting video gamers to become air traffic controllers, tapping into a demographic the Federal Aviation Administration believes already possesses many of the skills the demanding job requires.
Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy announced Friday that the FAA will open its annual air traffic control hiring window at midnight on April 17, with applications accepted through April 27. No college degree is required to apply.
The campaign, which targets young adults through platforms including YouTube, is built around the idea that gamers naturally develop abilities that translate directly to the control tower. The FAA points to cognitive agility, multitasking, spatial awareness and strategic problem-solving as key transferable skills — traits that experienced controllers themselves have credited to their gaming backgrounds.
"To reach the next generation of air traffic controllers, we need to adapt. 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," Duffy said. "Thanks to President Trump—we've already made incredible progress with the highest controller staffing levels in six years. There's never been a more exciting time to become a controller and level up into a career with a strong purpose—keeping American families safe."
The push comes as the FAA faces a shortage of roughly 3,000 controllers at facilities across the country, a gap the agency is working aggressively to close. With approximately 65 percent of Americans—more than 200 million people—regularly playing video games, officials see an enormous untapped talent pool.
Starting salaries for new controllers run around $55,000, with veteran controllers at the nation's busiest airports earning upwards of $225,000 annually.
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