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Last year was the busiest on record for the Port...

Last year was the busiest on record for the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey’s airports, including LaGuardia. Credit: Howard Schnapp

Federal investigators are looking into what caused the collision between a military helicopter and an American Airlines flight carrying 64 people near Washington, D.C., Wednesday night, but the incident has renewed questions about air traffic control and safety across the country.

Control tower staffing at Reagan National Airport at the time of the disaster was "not normal," with one air traffic controller doing work normally assigned to two people, according to a report by the Federal Aviation Administration obtained by The Associated Press.

The metropolitan area is one of the busiest airspaces in the United States and the world. The region has three major airports — Kennedy, Newark and LaGuardia. A radar control center in Westbury that serves the region, New York TRACON, was the second busiest in the country in 2023, after one in Southern California, according to the FAA.

Though travel slumped during the pandemic, the number of air travelers has now risen above pre-pandemic levels, with last year the busiest on record for The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey’s airports — nearly 146 million passengers combined.

This large volume poses challenges to air traffic control, which has faced severe staffing shortages for years, according to experts.

Airspaces have "higher congestion rates — higher traffic — and you're seeing less staffing and less experience is in the control towers," Jim Brauchle, a former U.S. Air Force navigator and aviation attorney who has represented victims of aviation disasters, told Newsday.

At a news conference in Washington Thursday morning, newly confirmed Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy promised a thorough investigation of the crash.

Here are some answers to questions you may have about air traffic control and the history of crashes on Long Island and in New York.

A 2023 report by the Department of Transportation’s inspector general found severe understaffing among air traffic controllers nationwide and in New York in particular.

The radar control center in Westbury was operating at only 54% of the required staffing levels, well below the FAA's 85% threshold for adequate staffing. Meanwhile, 64% of its controllers were still in training, meaning they were not yet fully certified. This was the highest percentage of any similar radar facility in the country.

The FAA said in September that it met its nationwide goal of hiring 1,800 new air traffic controllers in 2024, but the controllers’ union said it is still concerned about the shortage — particularly as President Donald Trump has encouraged federal workers to resign.

"We are concerned about the potential effect to public safety and the efficiency and capacity of the air traffic control system if FAA were to lose experienced aviation safety personnel during a universally recognized air traffic controller staffing shortage," union president Nick Daniels said in a statement.

Passenger and military aircraft communicate with FAA air traffic controllers at airports and radar facilities across the United States that guide them from takeoff to landing, according to the FAA.

After an aircraft takes off, air traffic controllers stationed at airports hand off responsibility to other controllers stationed at radar stations, such as the Terminal Radar Approach Control facilities in Westbury, which handles ascents and descents for area airports. Other facilities called Air Route Traffic Control Centers — one is in Ronkonkoma — are responsible for flights at higher altitudes.

The last major passenger plane crash in the United States occurred near Buffalo in February 2009, when Continental Connection Flight 3407 crashed on approach to Buffalo Niagara Airport, killing all 49 people aboard and one person on the ground. That crash, which investigators found was caused by pilot error, sparked stricter FAA requirements for pilot training.

In August that same year, a helicopter carrying Italian tourists collided midair with a small plane over the Hudson River — an area where air congestion can be very tight — killing nine people. The low-altitude accident happened as an air traffic controller was distracted by a personal telephone call, federal investigators found.

No.

To become an air traffic controller, an applicant must pass medical and psychological tests, as well as the Air Traffic Skills Assessment, which tests memory, attention, spatial awareness and other cognitive skills, according to the FAA's website.

They undergo a monthslong training program or coursework at a college, followed by a yearslong certification process at a facility as they work.

"There is no quota for ethnicity, race, religion, sexual orientation, gender," said Sharon DeVivo, president of Vaughn College in Queens, which offers air traffic controller degrees under an FAA initiative. "Not everybody's cut out to be an air traffic controller, because it's a very high stress position. But it's an awesome job."

Federal investigators are looking into what caused the collision between a military helicopter and an American Airlines flight carrying 64 people near Washington, D.C., Wednesday night, but the incident has renewed questions about air traffic control and safety across the country.

Control tower staffing at Reagan National Airport at the time of the disaster was "not normal," with one air traffic controller doing work normally assigned to two people, according to a report by the Federal Aviation Administration obtained by The Associated Press.

The metropolitan area is one of the busiest airspaces in the United States and the world. The region has three major airports — Kennedy, Newark and LaGuardia. A radar control center in Westbury that serves the region, New York TRACON, was the second busiest in the country in 2023, after one in Southern California, according to the FAA.

Though travel slumped during the pandemic, the number of air travelers has now risen above pre-pandemic levels, with last year the busiest on record for The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey’s airports — nearly 146 million passengers combined.

This large volume poses challenges to air traffic control, which has faced severe staffing shortages for years, according to experts.

Airspaces have "higher congestion rates — higher traffic — and you're seeing less staffing and less experience is in the control towers," Jim Brauchle, a former U.S. Air Force navigator and aviation attorney who has represented victims of aviation disasters, told Newsday.

At a news conference in Washington Thursday morning, newly confirmed Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy promised a thorough investigation of the crash.

Here are some answers to questions you may have about air traffic control and the history of crashes on Long Island and in New York.

Is there an air traffic controller shortage?

A 2023 report by the Department of Transportation’s inspector general found severe understaffing among air traffic controllers nationwide and in New York in particular.

The radar control center in Westbury was operating at only 54% of the required staffing levels, well below the FAA's 85% threshold for adequate staffing. Meanwhile, 64% of its controllers were still in training, meaning they were not yet fully certified. This was the highest percentage of any similar radar facility in the country.

The FAA said in September that it met its nationwide goal of hiring 1,800 new air traffic controllers in 2024, but the controllers’ union said it is still concerned about the shortage — particularly as President Donald Trump has encouraged federal workers to resign.

"We are concerned about the potential effect to public safety and the efficiency and capacity of the air traffic control system if FAA were to lose experienced aviation safety personnel during a universally recognized air traffic controller staffing shortage," union president Nick Daniels said in a statement.

How do air traffic controllers coordinate flights?

Passenger and military aircraft communicate with FAA air traffic controllers at airports and radar facilities across the United States that guide them from takeoff to landing, according to the FAA.

After an aircraft takes off, air traffic controllers stationed at airports hand off responsibility to other controllers stationed at radar stations, such as the Terminal Radar Approach Control facilities in Westbury, which handles ascents and descents for area airports. Other facilities called Air Route Traffic Control Centers — one is in Ronkonkoma — are responsible for flights at higher altitudes.

Have there been recent crashes in New York?

The last major passenger plane crash in the United States occurred near Buffalo in February 2009, when Continental Connection Flight 3407 crashed on approach to Buffalo Niagara Airport, killing all 49 people aboard and one person on the ground. That crash, which investigators found was caused by pilot error, sparked stricter FAA requirements for pilot training.

In August that same year, a helicopter carrying Italian tourists collided midair with a small plane over the Hudson River — an area where air congestion can be very tight — killing nine people. The low-altitude accident happened as an air traffic controller was distracted by a personal telephone call, federal investigators found.

President Trump said that those with 'severe disabilities' can be air traffic controllers. Is that true?

No.

To become an air traffic controller, an applicant must pass medical and psychological tests, as well as the Air Traffic Skills Assessment, which tests memory, attention, spatial awareness and other cognitive skills, according to the FAA's website.

They undergo a monthslong training program or coursework at a college, followed by a yearslong certification process at a facility as they work.

"There is no quota for ethnicity, race, religion, sexual orientation, gender," said Sharon DeVivo, president of Vaughn College in Queens, which offers air traffic controller degrees under an FAA initiative. "Not everybody's cut out to be an air traffic controller, because it's a very high stress position. But it's an awesome job."

A new style of bowling, the Agostino family tradition on the hardwood and the wrestling championships in Nassau and Suffolk in the latest episode of "Sarra Sounds Off." Credit: Newsday/Mario Gonzalez; Jonathan Singh, James Tamburino

SARRA SOUNDS OFF: A new style of bowling that works  A new style of bowling, the Agostino family tradition on the hardwood and the wrestling championships in Nassau and Suffolk in the latest episode of "Sarra Sounds Off."

A new style of bowling, the Agostino family tradition on the hardwood and the wrestling championships in Nassau and Suffolk in the latest episode of "Sarra Sounds Off." Credit: Newsday/Mario Gonzalez; Jonathan Singh, James Tamburino

SARRA SOUNDS OFF: A new style of bowling that works  A new style of bowling, the Agostino family tradition on the hardwood and the wrestling championships in Nassau and Suffolk in the latest episode of "Sarra Sounds Off."

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