Jessica Reed is a writer and editor with AIN. She joined the team in the fall of 2023 after two years covering the aviation industry at Avionics International. She earned her bachelor&#039;s degree in English (Writing &amp; Rhetoric) from Pepperdine University. Her hometown is St. Louis, Missouri, and she since has resided in Santa Barbara, California, and Brooklyn, New York, among others. She is currently based in Philadelphia.

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Jessica Reed

The aviation industry’s approach to workforce development may rely too heavily on isolated outreach events rather than building connected pathways from youth engagement to career placement. Sharon DeVivo, president of Vaughn College of Aeronautics and Technology, highlighted critical disconnections in how the industry recruits future workers this week at the JetNet iQ Summit in Washington, D.C.
While age 10 is the optimal time to begin reaching out to potential aviation professionals, current efforts lack continuity, DeVivo said. “The problem is we do this: you come to a great event, let’s say you come to an airport and you get an airside tour, and then we do a lot of this [crossing our fingers], and we hope they get to us, right? [It’s a] one-shot idea, and what we don’t have is a very connected pipeline."
Vaughn College, located across from New York LaGuardia Airport and serving approximately 1,500 students with an average family income of $42,000, demonstrates the income mobility potential within aviation careers. The institution ranks as the best in the country at moving students from the bottom 20% income bracket to the top, according to DeVivo.
Aviation maintenance technicians now start at $40 per hour, reaching $60,000 to $70,000 within 15 to 18 months, and crew chiefs can earn $125,000. Air traffic controllers begin at $125,000 when returning to work in New York, and experienced controllers on Long Island earn much more.
The improved compensation has fundamentally altered the economics of aviation education. DeVivo noted that the $40,000 to $45,000 investment required for airframe and powerplant certification now makes financial sense, compared to when starting wages were $18 per hour.
<h3>Air Traffic Controller Shortage</h3>
The FAA faces a projected shortage of 4,000 air traffic controllers over the next 20 years, driven by multiple factors including mandatory retirement at age 56, Covid-related training shutdowns, and mass retirements of controllers hired 25-plus years ago.
Training challenges compound the shortage. At the Long Island Tracon facility, washout rates reach 65% to 75%, partly because new hires wait up to a year for training due to instructor shortages. Two to five years are required for controllers to achieve full certification.
“Part of the problem is that they sit there for a year waiting to be trained because there’s nobody to train them,” DeVivo explained.
To address workforce challenges, DeVivo recommended industry partnerships with established youth organizations rather than isolated company efforts. She specifically highlighted Civil Air Patrol, which operates in all 50 states and Puerto Rico, accepting students at age 12 and providing aerospace education and free private pilot licenses, in addition to maintaining one of the world’s largest drone fleets.
Companies should consider placing employees as instructors in A&amp;P schools, enabling early talent identification while addressing instructor shortages caused by competitive industry wages.
Manufacturing Month events in October present co-sponsorship opportunities with organizations like Boys &amp; Girls Clubs, particularly important for reaching underrepresented communities where aviation awareness remains low unless family or friends work in the field.
The FAA has expanded training capacity through its Enhanced Air Traffic Collegiate Training Initiative, allowing students at approved institutions to bypass Oklahoma City training while maintaining certification standards.
Vaughn College maintains a 95% employment rate within one year of graduation, with 78% of graduates working in their field of study. Over nearly three decades, the placement rate has dropped below 90% only once: during the height of the Covid pandemic.
The institution’s enrollment splits evenly between aviation maintenance training and academic programs, including engineering, pilot training, and air traffic control. DeVivo noted that maintenance program popularity has reached levels not seen since before 2001.
Young people seek organizations demonstrating clear value through defined career pathways, a sense of belonging, and transformative opportunities extending to their families, according to DeVivo. “When you think about what attracts young people to your companies and organizations, it is about seeing the value that you put in them. They want to see a career pathway. They want to join places that give them a sense of belonging and provide them with a transformative experience. An opportunity to take their whole family somewhere."

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