In the weeks since the tragic midair collision at Reagan National Airport, mounting concerns about the Federal Aviation Administration's (FAA) hiring practices have come under scrutiny. The tragic accident on January 29, involving an American Airlines plane and a U.S. Army helicopter, claimed the lives of all 67 individuals aboard.
Democrats had a hissy fit after President Donald Trump weighed in on the issue in a press conference after the crash, during which he vehemently criticized the policies of the Obama and Biden administrations, which, he noted, prioritized DEI measures over safety. Naturally, the left wanted Trump to be the target of blame—not the DEI policies they’ve become strong advocates for.
According to current and former air traffic control whistleblowers, the FAA’s focus on Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) initiatives resulted in a decrease in the hiring of qualified personnel—likely contributing to the crash. These diversity initiatives were introduced during the Obama administration, reversed under Trump, but were inevitably reinstated under the Biden administration, bringing back the same policies that critics argue undermined the agency’s ability to prioritize competence over diversity.
Flashback: Biden's FAA Focused on Diversity, Hiring Workers With Severe Disabilities
According to these controllers, the focus on meeting diversity quotas inadvertently led to a staffing shortage and a less competent workforce. This reflects a worrying trend where qualifications are sidelined in favor of demographic representation, posing significant risks to public safety .
As PJ Media has previously reported, the problems that led to the accident weren’t new, and near misses were happening multiple times a week.
Just the News has more.
In December 2013, thousands of students who had participated in the FAA’s Collegiate Training Initiative (CTI) – a program specifically designed to prepare individuals to become Air Traffic Control Specialists – were informed that their previous scores on a cognitive and skills-based test, the AT-SAT, would be discounted. Instead, the students would have to pass a biographical survey before retaking the cognitive portion of the test.
What the program graduates did not know is that only 14% of them would pass this new biographical questionnaire, despite half of them having previously passed the skills-based test and met all of the FAA pre-qualifications to be referred on the next step to becoming Air Traffic Control Specialists.
Eventually, one of the CTI graduates, whose career was derailed by the biographical questionnaire, sued the FAA for discrimination in a class action lawsuit.
Michael Pearson, a former FAA air traffic control specialist with over 26 years of experience and a lawyer in a lawsuit against the FAA over alleged racial discrimination in hiring, told Just the News that ATC’s failure to follow proper procedure led to the crash.
Pearson noted that a conflict alert appeared on the radar, giving the controller “27 seconds to do something.” He emphasized, “When a [conflict alert] goes off, you take immediate action.”
For our VIPs: Everyone Knew DEI Would Cause a Crash
While much of the media is blaming the Army helicopter crew, Pearson argues that ATC was primarily at fault. He pointed out that the controller “didn’t tell the jet that the helicopter was in sight,” despite being “required to, and didn’t give safety advisories” when the alert was triggered. He also criticized the flight path, stating that “the helicopter route was horrible” and “the controller didn’t apply the rules properly.”
The safety of our skies should never take a backseat to diversity quotas. It’s high time for the FAA to refocus on hiring the most competent individuals who can ensure the safety of all who travel through our busy airspace. Failure to do so endangers lives and may lead to more tragedies in the future. The question remains: will the FAA prioritize safety over social agendas, or are we destined to repeat these avoidable mistakes?
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