WASHINGTON (DC News Now) — Hundreds of Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) workers have been fired as the Trump Administration continues to slash the federal government.
The move has also raised deep concerns about flying safety, fresh off last month’s midair collision over the Potomac River. That was the deadliest plane crash the country has seen in more than two decades.
One former FAA worker, Jason, said he woke up Saturday morning to an email that he was fired just two months after he started his job with the FAA. He described his role to DC News Now as “tech support” for air traffic control software in the airspace around the airport.
“People reach out to us for issues that are out in the air space,” Jason said.
While the layoffs targeted probationary employees, Jason said many of them have a lot of experience. He previously worked as a contractor for years before he joined the FAA.
“I think they’re going to lose a huge knowledge base, not just with me, but with everybody.”
The Transportation Department told the Associated Press that no air traffic controllers were part of the cuts, nor were people who perform “critical safety functions.”
David Spero, who leads the Professional Aviation Safety Specialists union, told DC News Now the last few days have been “chaos” as an estimated 300 workers were fired.
“Let’s call them the unsung heroes behind the unsung heroes,” he said of those fired, which included maintenance mechanics, aeronautical information specialists, and more.
While Spero said flying is still safe, he believes the firings are harmful.
“We have plenty of backups and redundancies out there to make sure that if one thing doesn’t work, another thing picks it up,” he said. “But at the end of the day, we have to be able to sustain that. And if we don’t have the people available to do it, it’s going to erode.”
