Utah
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.
A Utah physician is warning that 21 data centers in various stages of development could significantly worsen air quality along the Wasatch Front.
Dr. Brian Moench, with Utah Physicians for a Healthy Environment, said the planned data centers are cause for alarm. Each facility is expected to generate its own electricity using natural gas power plants.
While natural gas is cleaner than coal, Moench said it still produces nitrogen oxide, which contributes significantly to ozone, particulate formation, and smog.
“There’s no safe level of air pollution. All of it is harmful, even at the very lowest doses,” Moench said.
Moench said health advocates have legitimate reasons to be concerned about what the facilities could mean for public health in the region.
“There is a real legitimate concern on the part of any health advocates about what this impact will mean to the Wasatch Front and public health if all these data centers are built or even if just a few of them are, and that’s not to address the impact on the Great Salt Lake shrinking up and becoming a toxic dust bowl. That’s the next leg of this argument,” he said.
Moench also raised concerns about electronic waste. As computer chips and equipment become obsolete and are replaced, he said the volume of e-waste produced is something no one has yet addressed.
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UTAH COUNTY, May 11, 2026 (Gephardt Daily) — Two males, ages 14 and 19, were transported to area hospitals Sunday after the side-by-side they were riding rolled down the side of a mountain.
Utah County Sheriff deputies and Santaquin police responded to the 6:07 p.m. call. Two medical helicopters were called to the scene, in the Pole Canyon area, as was a Department of Public Safety helicopter with a hoist in case it was needed, Sgt. Austin Edwards, Utah County Sheriff‘s Office, told Gephardt Daily.
“Eventually, rescue workers were able to make it to the spot on the hill where the vehicle had come to rest, and they were able to secure the victims, stabilize the victims, and get them back down the hill again to where the helicopters were waiting,” Edwards said.
“The 19-year-old male was transported to Utah Valley Regional Medical Center in Provo, and the 14 year old was transported to Primary Children’s in Lehi.”
Both were said to have critical injuries, which were not considered to be life threatening, Edwards said.
“The cause of the rollover is still under investigation, so we don’t have that information available just yet.”
Photos: Utah County Sheriff
In what has a chance to be one of the most important nights in Jazz history, the Utah Jazz jumped in the NBA Lottery to the #2 spot for the upcoming NBA draft.
Here are the final results, which show all the movement.
Aside from it being a massive night for the Wizards, Jazz, Grizzlies, and Bulls, it was a devastating night for a few teams, but no one more than the Indiana Pacers. The Pacers, in their trade for Ivica Zubac, had a stipulation on their pick that if the pick was top-4 they kept it. But if it fell below 4, they would give it to the Clippers which is exactly what happened. Now, the Clippers, who are without Zubac, find themselves with a #5 pick to build around.
For the Jazz this is a culmination of four years of rebuilding that ends with an extremely satisfying end. Utah will now have one of the tier-1 players from this draft: AJ Dybantsa or Darryn Peterson. The player Utah drafts will be one of their cornerstone pieces and will have the chance to not only play, but be a part of a team that will be competing for the playoffs this season.
The Utah Jazz now have a Sinister Six core: Darryn Peterson (If AJ Dybantsa goes #1), Keyonte George, Ace Bailey, Lauri Markkanen, Jaren Jackson Jr., and Walker Kessler (if he signs). It’s quite the core with a mix of youth and veterans in their prime. With this group, the Jazz will have a chance to be one of the top teams in the Western Conference. Yes, the Thunder and Spurs are going to be difficult to beat, but Utah has the mix of talent, coaching, and depth that could absolutely do the trick.
Now the Utah Jazz look forward to the NBA Draft that be on June 23rd. Let the posturing begin!!
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