GREELEY, Colo. — Aims Community College has been designated as one of only 11 schools in the country authorized to send graduates directly into air traffic control facilities, bypassing the Federal Aviation Administration’s training academy in Oklahoma City.
Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy named the school in Greeley to the FAA’s Enhanced Air Traffic – Collegiate Training Initiative this week, a designation that allows program graduates to skip the agency’s Oklahoma City academy and begin on-the-job training immediately after graduation.
The move comes as the United States faces a shortage of nearly 4,000 air traffic controllers, according to FAA documents. Colorado alone is short dozens of controllers…