The Federal Aviation Administration announced on May 19 that it will start a pilot program to transition certain higher-activity federal contract air traffic control towers into direct FAA operation. Bozeman Yellowstone International Airport in Montana and Mesa Gateway Airport in Arizona have been named as the first candidate facilities for this initiative. Under the plan, qualified controllers currently working at these contract towers will move with their facilities as they shift to FAA staffing and management.
“This is another step the Trump Administration is taking to add qualified air traffic controllers to our workforce and ensure the safety and efficiency of our National Airspace System,” FAA Administrator Bryan Bedford said. “As air traffic demand continues to grow, this program will help ensure the FAA has the experienced workforce needed to manage complex operations at these towers.”
The pilot program was mandated by Section 625 of the 2024 FAA Reauthorization Act. The agency said it expects a phased implementation, estimating that each facility’s transition will take between 29 and 44 months. Within six months after any tower completes its operational transition under this program, the FAA must submit a safety analysis report to Congress.
Lawmakers had previously identified both Bozeman Yellowstone International Airport and Mesa Gateway Airport as strong candidates for conversion from contract status. Montana Senators Steve Daines and Tim Sheehy, along with Representative Ryan Zinke, advocated for Bozeman’s inclusion in March, citing its status as Montana’s busiest commercial airport and recent staffing challenges at its tower. They also noted that $6 million was allocated for the pilot effort through the fiscal year 2026 Transportation, Housing and Urban Development Appropriations Act.
“As you know, the FAA Reauthorization Act of 2024 directs the FAA to establish the pilot program no later than 18 months after enactment and to prioritize contract towers that meet specific tower operations and passenger enplanement criteria,” Daines, Sheehy and Zinke wrote in their letter to the agency. “The Fiscal Year 2026 Transportation, Housing and Urban Development, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, which was recently signed into law, provides $6 million for the pilot program as well. The FAA is now well positioned to move forward expeditiously in carrying out the program and we believe BZN should be one of the first airports selected for consideration.”
Representative Greg Stanton’s office also supported Mesa Gateway’s candidacy; his office stated last year that it was then “the busiest contract tower in the country” but had reduced operating hours due to staffing shortages.
A March Department of Transportation Office of Inspector General report found that while there were more than 1,500 controllers across 266 contract towers nationwide by April of last year, those positions were about eighteen percent understaffed overall. Broader staffing issues are not limited only to contract facilities: according to January findings from Government Accountability Office (GAO), U.S. air traffic controller numbers dropped approximately six percent over ten years while system flight volume increased by about ten percent during that time frame.
Also on Monday, officials released an updated controller workforce plan setting a new full-staffing target at just over twelve thousand certified professional controllers—down from nearly fifteen thousand previously set—and maintaining hiring goals exceeding two thousand new controllers annually through fiscal year 2028.
