Trump administration fires hundreds of Federal Aviation Administration employees

The Trump administration on Feb. 14 fired hundreds of employees of the Federal Aviation Administration, the agency tasked with administering and ensuring the safety of U.S. airspace. In the month since President Donald Trump returned to the White House, there have been deadly plane crashes in Alaska, Arizona, Pennsylvania, and Washington, D.C.

In a social media post on Feb. 17, Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said the agency had let go under 400 probationary employees that had been hired within the last year. He said, “Zero air traffic controllers and critical safety personnel were let go.” 

The FAA employs about 45,000 people, according to May 2024 data from the Office of Personnel Management. Of those, 194 are based in Wisconsin. The agency is responsible for certifying safety compliance for passenger flights at eight airports in the state.

Liz Doherty, spokesperson for the Professional Aviation Safety Specialists (PASS) union, which represents 11,000 employees of the FAA and the Department of Defense, told the Wisconsin Independent that 113 of the employees fired so far were members of the union.

In an emailed statement, a Department of Transportation spokesperson said: “The FAA continues to hire and onboard air traffic controllers and safety professionals, including mechanics and others who support them. The agency has retained employees who perform safety critical functions.” 

Many of the fired employees, however, reportedly had titles that suggested they did work in critical safety roles, including aviation safety assistant, flight operations program specialist, and maintenance mechanic. 

“These employees were devoted to their jobs and the safety critical mission of the FAA,” said David Spero, the national president of the PASS union, said in a press release. “This draconian action will increase the workload and place new responsibilities on a workforce that is already stretched thin. This decision did not consider the staffing needs of the FAA, which is already challenged by understaffing. Staffing decisions should be based on an individual agency’s mission-critical needs. To do otherwise is dangerous when it comes to public safety.” 

Spero added that, with the recent deadly aircraft accidents, cutting the agency dedicated to flight safety now is “especially egregious.” 

Asked by the Associated Press whether workers assisting with radar, landing and navigation were deemed to be critical safety personnel, a department spokesperson told the outlet they would have to look into the question.

The Trump administration has fired about 10,000 employees in many agencies of the federal government without cause. In a Feb. 11 executive order Trump said: “Agency Heads shall promptly undertake preparations to initiate large-scale reductions in force (RIFs), consistent with applicable law, and to separate from Federal service temporary employees and reemployed annuitants working in areas that will likely be subject to the RIFs.” The order included language exempting “functions related to public safety, immigration enforcement, or law enforcement.”

The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment about whether the FAA employees that were fired were in positions exempted by Trump’s executive order.