[Mifnet 🛰 76218] Re: FAA wants to reduce the number of required air traffic controllers

Mon, 18 May 2026 18:39:39 -0700 

 Reference recent DCA midair and the effect of fewer controllers. 
Eric
    On Monday, May 18, 2026 at 03:59:14 AM MST, RWM--- via Mifnet 
<[email protected]> wrote:  
 
 Tom,
According to one large airline’s dispatcher and a lengthy exchange on LinkedIn, 
once flight-planned and launched, they rarely reroute without a specific 
request from the flight deck.
They have no capability to do other than locally affect one or two flights, and 
without consideration of other dispatchers’ flights.
Even using available IROPS tools, they have no system optimization capability. 
The tools create a starting point, and focus on flight planning and release, 
not enroute sequencing and spacing using evolving resource status and 
consistent business rules. 
Continuous system optimization of 4D aircraft trajectories using real-time 
resource information is the missing magic.
- Bob



On May 18, 2026, at 01:14, Tom Ronell via Mifnet <[email protected]> 
wrote:



  
"The solution is to incentivize (or mandate) airlines to real-time manage their 
own day-of-flight 4D trajectories, system optimize aircraft flow, sequencing 
and spacing to their own business rules, using their own realtime information 
about their own resource statuses," 
 
 
What do these buildings full of meteorologists, computers and dispatchers who 
file flight plans and flight follow do? 
 
TR 
 
     
From: RWM--- via Mifnet <[email protected]>
To: [email protected]
CC: [email protected] <[email protected]>
Date: 2026-05-18T00:56:41Z
Subject: [Mifnet 🛰 76202] Re: FAA wants to reduce the number of required air 
traffic controllers

  
  
Short version… if anyone thinks that is a good idea, now or in the future.
 


 
The root cause problem and opportunity to improve ‘ATC’ system performance and 
airport throughput, effectively expanding capacity, is by preventing unmanaged, 
self-induced congestion, rather than forcing ATC to fix unmanaged, self-induced 
congestion, requiring more controllers to issue vectors, reroutes, and delays 
to more flights.
 

 

 

   

 
 
 

   
Addressing the root cause of random congestion reduces the need for ATC 
intervention, infrastructure, and controller workload, while capturing and 
allowing utilization of latent system capacity. Also improves customer, 
investor, employee and national economic outcomes.
 

 

   

 
 
 

   
The solution is for FAA to incentivize (or mandate) airlines to real-time 
manage their own day-of-flight 4D trajectories, system optimize aircraft flows, 
sequencing and spacing to their own business rules, using their own realtime 
information about their own resource statuses, which has been possible for 
decades. 
 


 
Allow ATC to real-time broker multiple carrier system optima to generate a 
global system optimum, passing edited carrier optima back for ACARS 
communication to flight decks. Possible and commercialized for more than a 
decade.
 

 

   

 
 
 

  
If these facilities had never been demonstrated and independently validated as 
producing meaningful on-time improvements and flying time (capital and 
operating expense) reduction benefits — including in FAA-funded, brokered 
multi-carrier trials — one might say ‘pie in the sky, computationally 
unscalable’. The reality is the facilities are commercially available, and are 
on the shelf for rapid deployment. 
 

 

   

 
 
 

   
Unfortunately, based on the published documentation as well as statements by 
FAA/DOT, the vaunted $30+ billion BNATCS addresses none of this. 
 


 
Ten years and way more than $30 billion from now, nothing will have changed 
except for more flights, more delays, the need for more controller 
intervention, and airlines will still be fixated on a familiar topic, more 
finger-pointing.
 


 
- Bob Mann 
 


    
 
 On May 17, 2026, at 20:35, Robert Mark via Mifnet <[email protected]> 
wrote: 
 
 
  
     I'm curious what you think about the FAA's new move to reduce overtime. 
Interesting timing, no?   
   Rob Mark   
FAA cuts target for air traffic control staffing
  
https://www.reuters.com/business/world-at-work/faa-cuts-target-air-traffic-control-staffing-2026-05-15/
   
  


       
   
   Rob Mark, MRAeS, & CEO, CommAvia, Creators of leading-edge media for the 
aviation industry.   847-644-1575 (mobile)   2400 Grant Street   Evanston, IL 
60201      
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