Sacramento City College is about to reach an achievement that may transform aviation training on the West Coast.
On Monday, Dec. 8, U.S. Representative Ami Bera, Los Rios Community College District officials, Sacramento County leaders and aviation production partners gathered at Mather Airport (MHR) in Rancho Cordova to recognize City Colleges’ progression to provide a dual-certified Enhanced Air Traffic College Training Initiative program.
The gathering came just before a critical Federal Aviation Administration site visit that will determine if City College has the ultimate approval. If approved City College will be the first enhanced Air Traffic College Training Initiative on the West Coast and one of two campuses in the entire country permitted to wholly train students for both tower and air traffic control professions.
That means City College would be able to authorize licensed students to skip the FAA Academy in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, which has been a necessity and caused personal and economical opposition for future air controllers. The relocation creates a strain on the air traffic control industry as a whole, which has been trying to manage a nationwide shortage, not just with future controllers but for the instructors in charge of teaching them.
“You’re asking someone that’s in their mid-60s, approaching 70, who’s already retired, already has a pretty good pension to relocate to Oklahoma City to work basically from 8 a.m. till midnight, five days a week.” Tener said. “It’s hard to find people. So there’s a process happening right now with the instructors that’s where they’re burning some of them out.”
This new approval would allow the students to finish their training and become certified instead of having to relocate.
This comes at a critical time where there is a shortage for air traffic controllers due to an aging staff approaching retirement and training setbacks from the federal disorder. The country needs an estimated 3,500 more controllers to reach the FAA’s staffing targets according to the Aero News Journal.
Rep. Bera noted in a press release issued by City College that the new training program will create abilities for high-paying jobs locally and build up the aviation labor force in Sacramento County.
“This is a big win for our region,” said Representative Bera. “Once approved, Sacramento City College would be one of only two places in the country where students can complete their entire air traffic control training without having to relocate. That would make this good-paying career path more affordable and accessible for local students, while helping to address a nationwide shortage of air traffic controllers. I’m excited to see SCC on the verge of final certification and to further cement Sacramento County’s position as a leader in aviation workforce development.”
