Trump begins firings of FAA staff just weeks after fatal DC plane crash

Trump administration has begun firing several hundred Federal Aviation Administration employees, upending staff on a busy air travel weekend and just weeks after a January fatal midair collision at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport.

Probationary workers were targeted in late-night emails Friday notifying them they had been fired, David Spero, president of the Professional Aviation Safety Specialists union, said in a statement.

The impacted workers include personnel hired for FAA radar, landing and navigational aid maintenance, one air traffic controller told The Associated Press. The air traffic controller was not authorized to talk to the media and spoke on condition of anonymity.

In a message posted to X late Monday, Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said fewer than 400 FAA employees were fired and “Zero air traffic controllers and critical safety personnel were let go.”