The nation’s top aviation regulator was thrust back into the spotlight this weekend as the Trump Administration fired hundreds of Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) employees, just weeks after the midair collision over Washington, D.C. that killed 67 people.
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00:00So, we're roughly a month into Trump's presidency, and arguably the biggest story
00:04so far is how the administration has upended the federal workforce.
00:09Thousands of probationary workers across the federal government have now been fired, along
00:13with top officials and government watchdogs.
00:15Now, this doesn't come as much surprise, right?
00:18The Trump campaign had talked about firing federal workers as part of its push to cut
00:23government spending, and Elon Musk, the billionaire who's in charge of the new Department of Government
00:28Efficiency, or DOGE, has suggested that entire agencies be deleted.
00:33He's likened them to weeds in need of eradication.
00:37And so, several agencies and its employees have been hit hard by this, including the
00:42FAA, which is the Federal Aviation Administration, which is in charge of overseeing flight safety
00:47and air traffic control.
00:49Hundreds of FAA employees were fired over the weekend, even as the agency is dealing
00:53with workforce shortages and continues to face pressure for recent flight incidents.
00:57Now, Department of Transportation officials were quick to downplay the significance of
01:01these latest cuts.
01:03They've said that they primarily affected probationary workers, those who have been
01:07employed in their current positions for less than one or two years, and that the firings
01:11did not include air traffic controllers.
01:13But many employees and the union that represents them are worried that the cuts will compromise
01:18the quality of work that's vital for air safety.
01:21I actually spoke with one of the FAA employees who was let go, and she was part of a team
01:26that built and maintained aeronautical maps that aid pilots and air traffic controllers
01:32with navigation.
01:34And she said that a quarter of her team was laid off.
01:37And so, there's fear that the agency won't be able to function as effectively due to
01:41these cuts.
01:42Now, Sean Duffy, the transportation secretary, said that he intends to overhaul the air traffic
01:48control system with help from a team of engineers from SpaceX, which is Elon Musk's aeronautics
01:54company, whose rocket launches are regulated by the FAA and which currently faces proposed
01:59civil penalties by the agency.
02:01And on Monday, that team visited the FAA's command center in Virginia to, quote, get
02:07a firsthand look at the current system and learn what air traffic controllers like and
02:12dislike about their current tools, according to Duffy.
02:15Now, we're hearing stories like this all across the federal government, not just the FAA.
02:21The Trump administration has ordered most agencies to let go of nearly all probationary
02:27employees who haven't yet gained civil service protection.
02:30And as I wrote for Time last week, many in the federal workforce see these aggressive
02:34cuts as proof that the Trump administration isn't just trying to cut costs, but dismantle
02:40the federal workforce and reduce its capacity to serve the public.