Shutdown fallout: FAA lost up to 500 air traffic controller trainees

Shutdown fallout: FAA lost up to 500 air traffic controller trainees

The 43-day federal government shutdown pushed hundreds of prospective air traffic controllers out of the training ranks, deepening staffing strains that workers say will ripple through the system for years. Inside air traffic control facilities during the funding lapse, controllers say the warning signs were immediate. Trainees who had already cleared months of screening and begun the long path toward certification were scrambling to survive wit…