NYT: DC Airport understaffed for yrs amid lawsuit against FAA for discrimin against ATC applicants
based on race.
So Trump was correct to be wary of DEI playing a role in the crash. In this case, it was at least involved in the ongoing shortage of ATC's at the airport where we know that at the time of the crash, they were understaffed.. But whether it played a role here or not, DEI discrimination is an obvious danger that must be fixed.
Report of lack of ATCs at DCA comes amid lawsuit FAA trying to fill jobs based on race
A general view of the control tower at Reagan National Airport, Friday, January 31, 2025. Flights have resumed since the tragic crash on Wednesday night were an American Airlines jet collided with a U.S. Army Black Hawk helicopter. (Leigh Green for Fox News Digital)
A New York Times report saying the air control tower at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport has been understaffed for years came amid a lawsuit claiming the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) discriminated against air traffic controller applicants based on their race.
The Times report said the tower at the airport was nearly a third below targeted staff levels, with 19 fully certified controllers as of September 2023, citing the most recent Air Traffic Controller Workforce Plan, an annual report to Congress that contains target and actual staffing levels.
The targets set by the F.A.A. and the controllers union call for 30.
The lawsuit represents nearly 1,000 individuals who went to school to become air traffic controllers . They passed the normal test to obtain the position right before the Obama administration said the class was too white and threw out the tests with the applicants, the suit alleges.
Former Nevada Attorney General Adam Laxalt, who serves as co-counsel for Mountain States Legal Foundation, based in Colorado, is leading efforts for a lawsuit.
"When you travel and have a delay, it’s because there aren’t enough of these people," Laxalt told the Wall Street Journal last year. "When you see these near incidents in air traffic control, it’s because there aren’t enough people. There are only 14,000 air traffic controllers. A thousand were scrapped a decade ago, and the bottom line is they’ve never made up losing all of this pipeline."
Fox News Digital Greg Wehner contributed to this update.
Replies to: NYT: DC Airport understaffed for yrs amid lawsuit against FAA for discrimin against ATC applicants
Blood on Trump's hands. Fired TSA Director & Aviation security, froze air traffic control hires.
(no message)
Trump was more than “wary” about DEI playing a role in the crash…
He said it was “common sense” that DEI was responsible for the crash.
The press conference started so well…a moment of silence, some condolences for the families and victims, then he went full Trump. Don’t try and justify his unpresidential bullshit. All he had to do was say that there will be a massive investigation to determine the cause of the crash, so it doesn’t happen again.
I am not justifying his PC. I said he should have waited. I did not say he didn't have a point.
It is foolish to not suspect DEI played a role in the background of what happened though it is not a given that it did. It wouldn't matter if it didn't though since the danger of DEI is so blatantly obvious.
I 100% agree that Trump should have said nothing about it at that PC - he should absolutely address the issue, but not then.
But I put this important piece of contextual information out there since libs here are trying to stick up for illegal and dangerous DEI practices by somehow concluding that if Trump was wrong about this single case, that DEI has been vindicated.
There’s no justifying his “point”. It was stupid and way premature…
to even mention DEI in relation to the crash. I know you understand that.
Making DEI the culprit for the crash is a despicable comment by the President.
And your only criticism is his timing of saying such a thing, less than 24 hours after the crash, as bodies were still being pulled from the river.
If Trump said it a month from now, the comment will still be despicable and complete horseshit.
Attacking DEI as the scapegoat for any problem or tragedy is flat out dangerous, and violates every tenet of what America stands for.
Be a better person, Baron. Be a better Catholic.
Did you not read where an entire class of graduates was thrown out for being too white?
Apparently we have a shortage of ATCs because diversity was a goal. If this turns out to be true then Trump is correct. I agree he shouldn't have brought this up so soon but we all know he says and is going to continue to say stupid stuff. But I'd rather have that and problems getting solved rather than being politically correct and problems going unsolved.
conor is ok with people being passed over for being too white. He is racist.
(no message)
Yeah, Presidents should never make things about race.
Ok. Play the tape.
(no message)
Link: https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=jgVEzwpy-Us
You really don’t expect me to watch anything you post, do you? I don’t want
Any of your garbage in my history on YouTube.
It’s President Obama’s speech in Dallas.
You posted the same nonsense that all the racists on this Board have pitched about Obama being divisive whenever he has talked about race in America, which is an uncomfortable topic for folks like you who weren’t happy that our two term President happened to be black.
So the right wing playbook was to make Obama the racist.
Whenever the original source is available (as opposed to some right wing reporting that you linked)), I always like to present it, so the viewers can judge for themselves.
Feel free to watch the speech. And then apologize like a gentleman.
He was disgusting and disgraceful that day.
(no message)
Please explain why you say that...
(no message)
I've discussed his war on cops and inappropriate lectures many times.
Search away and piss off.
Let's cut to the chase, Jake...Obama has been a transforming figure...for the good...and that
absolutely rankles folks like yourself...it also conjures up what Lyndon Johnson observed and concluded from his lifelong experience with such people...and this quote sums it up...
Link: https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/lbj-convince-the-lowest-white-man/
Obama is a racist. There is no doubt about that. There isn’t a chance in hell I am going to
Watch that big eared asshole say anything. And Joan Rivers was 100% accurate.
Obama did some serious damage to law enforcement his second term.
(no message)
I disagree only w his timing. Looks like he was at least partially right. How many others?
I want safety, I want no discrimination, I want a meritocracy.
We know the ATC's were understaffed and have been dealing with it for a long time now because of DEI practices.
We know the military helicopter personnel were breaking rules - unclear if DEI in military played a role here, but the bona fides of those soldiers need to be checked as well.
We know that there was a close call at Reagan International just the day before.
We now know there has been an ongoing lawsuit by ATC's warning of this type of mishap who had their successful tests ripped up by Obama adm because they were "too white". You think that's ok?! And you think it's ok to put Americans at more risk to salve your own DEI agenda?! Shameful.
Trump has access to more info than we or the MSM does. One thing that I have learned about him....when he makes a claim he is virtually ALWAYS correct.
Always correct? WOW! You’re really reaching there.
You can Google “list of things Trump has been wrong about.” I’m not saying he is right sometimes, but he definitely ain’t right all the time.
"They were spying on me". The China Virus began in Wuhan" "There is no Russian collusion"etc, etc
Not all of the time, but on the stuff where he has more info than we do, he nails it. He has more info than we do, and he was pissed off.
He was not presidential in that PC and needs to do better. But, the DEI issue is huge in our country and needs to be fixed - and I know that you know that as well.
I’ve mentioned that I’m not a fan of DEI…
And I’m willing to bet that DEI had nothing to do with the crash.
I’m also NOT a militant when it comes to being anti- DEI. Seems the best way to be, IMO.
Trump has been wrong a lot, including this time. Sorry if that troubles you