Utah

The U.S. needs air traffic controllers. Utah State is building a pipeline

Published

4 months ago

November 14, 2025

The U.S. needs air traffic controllers. Utah State is building a pipeline

The federal government is open again, but Utah’s air travel may remain snarled for the foreseeable future.

Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy announced Nov. 12 that flight reductions will stay in place at 6% as the Federal Aviation Administration continues to monitor national staffing levels. The same goes for air travel in Salt Lake City.

“The Department of Transportation has indicated that they don’t have all of the air traffic control workers back, and so it will take some time before they are back in the saddle,” said Salt Lake City International Airport Communications Director Nancy Volmer. “It takes time to get these flight schedules back to normal.”

Volmer said the airport has not had any additional conversations with the FAA about how long flight reductions will be in place.

Even before the longest government shutdown in history, there was already a shortage of air traffic controllers. It’s something that’s felt across the airline industry.

The FAA faces a shortage of roughly 3,000 air traffic controllers. The shutdown did not make the situation any easier, with no pay, pressure from President Donald Trump and the ordered flight reductions. The country’s biggest travel hubs, including Salt Lake, felt it. But what about the smaller municipal and regional airports?

“There’s a lot of airports that would love to have [air traffic control] because it does increase your safety,” said Travis Biggs, president of the Utah Airport Operators Association and manager of the Heber Valley Airport.

Outside of SLC International, Biggs said the need for additional controllers is most acute at a place like Spanish Fork, a busy municipal airport without a dedicated control tower. An abundance of flight schools and proximity to a larger airport in Provo with commercial flights mean a crowded airspace.

“There’s just a lot of planes in the pattern,” he said. “In that congestion, that’s where your likelihood of having an incident or an accident or something like that between aircraft could happen.”

It’s something a new program at Utah State University in Logan is trying to address. Here in the classroom, students look like they’re parked in front of a complicated video game, but it’s actually part of the school’s air traffic control minor.

“I haven’t had to sell it,” said assistant professor and former air traffic controller Aaron Whittle in a video from the school. “The students just love it.”

Now in its second year, students use the simulator to learn what it takes to make sure aircraft get to where they’re headed safely.

“[The controller shortage has] been that way for years, and so we’re trying to stand where we are and make a difference from where we’re at,” Whittle said. “We’ve had four individuals get accepted by the FAA that are currently in the process of becoming air traffic controllers.”

Whittle said the goal of the program is not solely to develop new talent — the FAA has strict standards and oversees the hiring and training for those jobs — but he’s been encouraged by how students have gravitated toward the classes. Overall, more than 160 students have participated since it was first offered last fall.

An aviation student in the university’s video, Jacob Ivie, admitted his goal was to fly for an airline after graduation, but he saw the value of the experience gained in the simulator.

“It shows you all the opportunities that are out there in aviation beyond just flying the planes,” he said in the video. “It might help change a couple people’s minds and make some new controllers.”

The simulator provides students with an environment where they can practice the complex procedures and phraseology necessary in aviation without the added stress and risk of a real-world scenario.

USU’s program isn’t sending fully fledged controllers out into the world, but it is, at least, a first step to exposing students to a possible career.

Becoming an air traffic controller is a long and arduous process, according to the FAA. There’s a lengthy list of medical requirements and security clearances to meet to be considered for training, including being younger than 31 years old. Even then, less than 10% of applicants are accepted into the program. After completing the initial courses, applicants can expect 2-3 more years of education before they become certified air traffic controllers.

Source link

Utah

Why Utah Represents Arizona State’s True Turning Point

Published

34 minutes ago

February 28, 2026

Press Room

Why Utah Represents Arizona State’s True Turning Point

Arizona State basketball is at a crossroads. After back-to-back road losses to Baylor and TCU, the Sun Devils are suddenly fighting just to stay above .500.

Now, with Utah coming to town Saturday afternoon, this isn’t just another conference game. It feels bigger than that. It feels like the moment that decides whether this season still has life or if it quietly fades away.

The Danger of Falling Below .500

All season long, Arizona State has had one strange pattern.

Every time they dropped to .500, they responded with a win. They never let things spiral.

But now they’re sitting right on the edge again.

A loss to Utah would push them below .500 for the first time all year. That might not sound dramatic, but it matters for team morale.

Teams feel that shift. Confidence changes. Urgency changes. And with only a few games left before the Big 12 Tournament, there isn’t much time to recover.

That’s why this Utah game feels different.

Feb 21, 2026; Waco, Texas, USA; Baylor Bears guard Isaac Williams (10) scores a basket over Arizona State Sun Devils guard Anthony Johnson (2) during the second half at Paul and Alejandra Foster Pavilion. Mandatory Credit: Chris Jones-Imagn Images | Chris Jones-Imagn Images

Utah Is Playing Better — Especially on Defense

When these two teams met a few weeks ago, Utah was struggling.

Since then, they’ve improved. They’re still built around their top scorers, who combine for around 40 points per game, but the real difference lately has been defense.

Utah has started putting together more complete defensive performances. They’re contesting shots better. They’re finishing possessions. They’re not folding as easily in the second half.

That matters because Arizona State’s biggest issue right now isn’t effort, it’s physical depth.

Feb 21, 2026; Waco, Texas, USA; Arizona State Sun Devils head coach Bobby Hurley disputes a call with an official during the first half against the Baylor Bears at Paul and Alejandra Foster Pavilion. Mandatory Credit: Chris Jones-Imagn Images | Chris Jones-Imagn Images

The Real Niche Problem: Guard-Heavy and Worn Down

Here’s something that doesn’t get talked about enough: Arizona State’s roster balance is off.

Because of injuries, especially the likely season-ending absence of Marcus Adams Jr., the Sun Devils are extremely guard-heavy right now. More than half of the available players are guards. That creates matchup issues, especially against physical teams.

We saw it against TCU. They got to the free-throw line 36 times.

They won the physical battle. Even when their best scorer struggled, they still controlled the game inside.

ASU just doesn’t have the same frontcourt depth.

With only a few true bigs available and some undersized forwards playing bigger roles than expected, the team can get worn down.

Late in games, that shows up in missed rebounds, second-chance points, and tired legs.

It’s not about hustle. It’s about bodies.

Why Saturday Truly Matters

If Arizona State beats Utah, everything changes.

Suddenly, you’re heading into Senior Night against Kansas with momentum. Win that, and you’re talking about a possible 7–11 conference finish and a much better Big 12 Tournament matchup.

From there? Anything can happen.

But if they lose Saturday, the math and the hope get much harder.

That’s why this game isn’t just about Utah.

It’s about belief. It’s about roster limitations. And it’s about whether this team has one more push left in them before the season runs out.

Source link

Utah

Utahns first or eroding the Utah way? House OKs measure cracking down on illegal immigration

Published

13 hours ago

February 28, 2026

Press Room

Utahns first or eroding the Utah way? House OKs measure cracking down on illegal immigration

SALT LAKE CITY — A controversial Utah proposal to crack down on the presence of immigrants in the country illegally that had seemed stalled gained new life Friday, passing muster in new form in a relatively narrow vote.

In a 39-33 vote, the Utah House approved HB386 — amended with portions of HB88, which stalled in the House on Monday — and the revamped measure now goes to the Utah Senate for consideration.

The reworked version of HB386, originally meant just to repeal outdated immigration legislation, now also contains provisions prohibiting immigrants in the country illegally from being able to tap into in-state university tuition, certain home loan programs and certain professional licensing.

The new HB386 isn’t as far-reaching as HB88, which also would have prohibited immigrants in the country illegally from being able to access certain public benefits like food at food pantries, immunizations for communicable diseases and emergency housing.

Moreover, Rep. Trevor Lee, R-Layton and the HB88 sponsor, stressed that the new provisions in HB386 wouldn’t impact immigrants in the country legally. He touted HB88 as a means of making sure taxpayer money isn’t funneled to programming that immigrants in the country illegally can tap.

Rep. Lisa Shepherd, R-Provo, the HB386 sponsor, sounded a similar message, referencing, with chagrin, the provision allowing certain students in the country illegally to access lower in-state tuition rates at Utah’s public universities. Because of such provisions “we’re taking care of other countries’ children first, and I want to take care of Utahns first. In my campaign I ran and said Utahns first and this bill will put Utahns first,” she said.

If we stop young folks who have lived here much of their life from going to school and getting an education, it is really clear to me that we have hurt that person. It’s not clear to me at all that we have benefitted the rest of us.

–Rep. Ray Ward, R-Bountiful

The relatively narrow 39-33 vote, atypical in the GOP-dominated Utah Legislature, followed several other narrow, hotly contested procedural votes to formally amend HB386. Foes, including both Democrats and Republicans, took particular umbrage with provisions prohibiting immigrants in the country illegally from being able to pay in-state tuition and access certain scholarships.

As is, students in the country illegally who have attended high school for at least three years in Utah and meet other guidelines may pay lower in-state tuition, but if they have to pay out-of-state tuition instead, they could no longer afford to go to college.

“If we stop young folks who have lived here much of their life from going to school and getting an education, it is really clear to me that we have hurt that person. It’s not clear to me at all that we have benefitted the rest of us,” said Rep. Ray Ward, R-Bountiful.

Rep. Hoang Nguyen, D-Salt Lake City, noted her own hardscrabble upbringing as an immigrant from Vietnam and said the changes outlined in the reworked version of HB386 run counter to what she believes Utah stands for.

“I fear that what we’re doing here in Utah is we are eroding what truly makes Utah special, the Utah way. We are starting to adopt policies that are regressive and don’t take care of people. Utahns are one thing. Citizens are one thing. People is the first thing,” she said.

Rep. John Arthur, D-Cottonwood Heights, said the measure sends a negative message to the immigrant students impacted.

“If we pass this bill today, colleagues, we will be telling these young people — again, who have graduated from our high schools, these kids who have gone to at least three years of school here — that you’re no longer a Utahn,” he said.

If we are compassionate to those who come the legal way and we are compassionate to those who already live here, that does not mean that we lack compassion for others in other ways.

–Rep. Kristen Chevrier, R-Highland

Rep. Kristen Chevrier, R-Highland, said the debate underscores a “fallacy” about compassion. She backed the reworked version of HB386, saying Utah resources should be first spend on those in the country legally.

“If we are compassionate to those who come the legal way and we are compassionate to those who already live here, that does not mean that we lack compassion for others in other ways,” she said.

The original version of HB386 calls for repeal of immigration laws on the books that are outdated because other triggering requirements have not been met or they run counter to federal law.

The Key Takeaways for this article were generated with the assistance of large language models and reviewed by our editorial team. The article, itself, is solely human-written.

Source link