The Trump administration has begun firing hundreds of Federal Aviation Administration employees who maintain critical air traffic control infrastructure, CNN reports. The shooting, which began late Friday night, comes as Elon Musk’s SpaceX was tapped to help create a new air traffic control system.
It is not yet clear how many workers have been fired, but the Professional Aviation Safety Professionals (PASS) union says it hit probation workers or new hires during the probationary period. Workers were not air traffic controllers who were short on staff due to decades of long-standing staffing.
According to David Spero, president of Pass Union, workers received a late-night email on Friday saying they had been fired. According to an air traffic controller who spoke to the Associated Press anonymous state, workers include those employed to maintain FAA radar, landings and navigation aid.
Galen Munroe, assistant director of public relations for the National Air Traffic Controllers Association (NATCA), said to TechCrunch that fired workers will be air-certified specialists, aviation technology systems experts, engineers, architects and employees of the Flight Procedures team. Includes members and others.
Spero said the employee was “dismissed based on performance or behavior for no reason.” The email is not from a government email address. They came from “An’exec Order Microsoft Email Address.” ”
Congress has requested the FAA to tackle patterns of modernisation in the critical system for years, with experts saying the agency could not act on known issues.
In a statement, Nick Daniels, president of Natca, said: It’s a sad day for those who chose to serve aviation safety and public services, but it only cuts down their careers. ”
The news was a few weeks after the fatal mid-air crash in January at DC’s Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, one controller was handling both helicopter and commercial airline traffic at Busy Airport. Since then, there have been several other crashes.
A few days after the crash in Washington, DC in January, Musk said that Trump gave X the approval to “Government’s Efficiency Bureau) team and to “ensure faster safety for the air traffic control system.” I wrote it.
Neither mask nor Trump shares what these safety upgrades are.
A member of the Musk’s SpaceX team visited Virginia’s Air Traffic Control System Command Center on Monday, and said, “Looking firsthand with the current system, learning what air traffic controllers like and dislike about current tools, and what new things are. In X’s post, Imagine how to create a book, written by Sean Duffy, Secretary of the Department of Transport.
This article has been updated to include information and statements from Natca.
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