Flying Low

DEI at the FAA comes under fire:

The Obama-era changes to air traffic control system hiring has come under scrutiny in the past by prospective air traffic controllers and Congress alike for prioritizing diversity over merit, which critics say could compromise safety. One prospective Air Traffic Control Specialist sued in 2015, alleging that the Obama FAA discriminated in its admissions process for air traffic controller training by designing a questionnaire that prioritized minority candidates over others, even those who had completed the FAA’s Collegiate Training Initiative (CTI). Just the News reported on this lawsuit last year, which is still ongoing, after the FAA recorded 19 “near misses” at airports across the country that could have led to deadly air disasters much like the one that occurred in D.C. on Wednesday. The incident also follows recent warnings that the air traffic system is suffering from quality control issues and staffing shortages that put safety at risk. The crash between an Army Black Hawk helicopter and an American Airlines regional jet near the Ronald Reagan National Airport left 67 people dead. The prospective air traffic controller who filed the lawsuit, Andrew Brigida, said the FAA’s hiring practices, the air traffic controller staffing shortages, and the air disaster that occurred on Wednesday are all interrelated.

So it would seem...