By David Shepardson
WASHINGTON (Reuters) -The Federal Aviation Administration on Wednesday said it is naming a panel of experts led by a former safety board official to address air traffic controller fatigue after a series of near-miss incidents.
The FAA is facing a persistent air traffic controller shortage that has caused flight delays. At many facilities, controllers are working mandatory overtime and six-day work weeks to cover staffing shortages.
New FAA Administrator Michael Whitaker said he has asked the panel led by former National Transportation Safety Board member Mark Rosekind, a sleep expert, to make recommendations in about six weeks.
The three-member panel will begin work in January and "examine how the latest science on sleep needs and fatigue considerations could be applied to controller work requirements and scheduling."
Whitaker told Reuters he wants "to have a better understanding of what the risk is" of controller fatigue. He said he is concerned about the impact of long-term six-day work weeks.
The United States has experienced several near-miss aviation incidents this year, including some that could have been catastrophic involving apparent controller mistakes, according to the FAA and National Transportation Safety Board.
The FAA met its yearly goal of hiring 1,500 controllers for 2023 but is still about 3,000 controllers behind staffing targets.
Whitaker is also working to speed air traffic controller hiring. In September, the FAA again extended cuts to minimum flight requirements at congested New York City-area airports through October 2024, citing controller staffing shortages. New York Terminal Radar Approach Control staffing is just at 54% of recommended staffing.
The FAA says the number of New York controllers "is still not sufficient to allow the FAA to handle normal traffic levels." In the summer of 2022, there were 41,498 flights from New York airports in which controller staffing was a contributing factor in delays.
A government watchdog report said critical air traffic facilities face significant staffing challenges, posing risks to air traffic operations.
The FAA said in August it has 10,700 certified controllers, up slightly from 10,578 in 2022, which was virtually the same as in 2021 and down 10% from 2012.