Illinois senators blast FAA administrator for holding air traffic controller raises “hostage”

Illinois Democratic Sens. Tammy Duckworth and Dick Durbin harshly criticized FAA Administrator Bryan Bedford for holding up a pay raise for air traffic controllers that Congress approved as part of legislation President Trump signed into law in April.

The Homeland Security and Further Additional Continuing Appropriations Act set aside $140 million to give controllers a 3.8% pay raise, but they have so far only received the 1% raise given to all government employees. In a letter Friday, obtained exclusively by CBS News, the senators call on the Federal Aviation Administration to immediately roll out the rest of the pay hike. 

“Holding air traffic controllers’ remaining 2.8 percent pay increase hostage to force a workforce that has operated under mandatory overtime for years to work longer hours is petty, disrespectful and counterproductive,” the senators wrote.

Under Bedford, the FAA recently submitted its 2026 Controller Workforce Plan, which the agency says identifies opportunities to improve scheduling efficiency with a goal of raising the average hours of productive time per eight-hour shift from four hours to five. 

Duckworth is the ranking Democrat on the Senate Aviation subcommittee and Durbin, who is retiring in January, is the No. 2 Senate Democrat.  

Their letter references a recent interview with the Washington Examiner in which Bedford linked the raise to changes in controller scheduling and workforce utilization to “unlock more productivity.” 

“Squeezing more ‘utilization’ out of air traffic controllers who have been understaffed, underpaid and overworked for years will weaken retention and undermine aviation safety,” the senators wrote in their letter Friday. “Air traffic controllers are operating a strained system, using antiquated technology, while adapting to air traffic control modernization in real time.”

“Controllers work long, high-stress hours and make split-second decisions that keep millions of passengers safe every day,” they continued. “The last thing our National Airspace System needs is a cynical FAA Administrator so hellbent on stretching them thinner that he is willing to withhold their modest 2.8 percent pay raise.”

Some controllers tell CBS News that the delay in receiving the pay hike is impacting morale and becoming a point of contention. 

The measure Congress passed included statutory conditions related to the controller pay raise calling for “improvements in workforce scheduling, staffing utilization, or other operational efficiencies … that contribute to addressing workforce shortfalls and enhancing aviation safety” as determined by the FAA administrator “in his sole discretion.”  

The senators say those conditions are “not a high bar,” arguing the FAA’s failure to reach an agreement with controllers “means that what you are requesting must not benefit controllers.”

“As the statute makes clear, Congress—not the FAA—made the pay increase contingent on the FAA Administrator determining that improvements in workforce scheduling, staffing utilization, or other operational efficiencies have been achieved that contribute to addressing workforce shortfalls and enhancing aviation safety,” the FAA told CBS News in a statement. “The FAA looks forward to talking with NATCA to review historic scheduling practices and identify opportunities to achieve more productive schedules that will improve safety and controller quality of life.” 

The National Air Traffic Controllers Association, or NATCA, told CBS News, “We continue to advocate for meaningful improvements for controllers, including the pay parity wage increase passed by Congress, through ongoing engagement with the FAA. We appreciate the support of our allies in Congress who understand the importance of recognizing the hard work of our nation’s air traffic control workforce.”

The FAA has been focused on increasing air traffic control hiring as it works to reduce a staffing crunch that has left most FAA facilities understaffed. A 2025 CBS News report found more than 90% of air traffic control towers were understaffed.

Last month, Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy announced the FAA had hired a record number of controllers this year after the agency targeted video gamers as potential candidates.  

“Just in this calendar year, we hired more than 2,000 controllers, got them through the academy and got them hired,” Duffy told CBS News in August. “We had over 12,000 applicants in less than 24 hours when we put out our pitch to gamers, and I think it was 8,000 that were qualified. When you get better applications, more applications, we get to pick the best and the brightest to get into the system.”

In their letter Friday, the senators called on the FAA to “expeditiously approve the pay increase” for controllers.