A recent letter to FAA Administrator Bryan Bedford from members of Congress pushes for the distribution of funding through the Aviation Workforce Development Program that has been delayed.
While the 2024 FAA Reauthorization Act required the FAA to begin the fiscal year 2025 grant cycle, the organization has failed to do so. The FAA published a Notice of Funding Opportunity earlier in 2025, but Round Three recipients have still not received funding they were approved for.
The letter from Congress stresses the importance of releasing these funds as a way to help mitigate the ongoing AMT shortage in the aviation workforce.
It reads, “The current pipeline of aircraft mechanics is insufficient to support increased aircraft utilization, commercial fleet expansion, and the maintenance needs of aging aircraft in the decades ahead.”
Congress members also highlight the significance of the Aviation Workforce Development Grant Program in the letter, emphasizing how it was created to address this shortage in 2018.
The letter says, “Every day that these grant awards go undistributed further delays the development and deployment of the skilled workforce needed to maintain the safety, reliability, and efficiency of our aviation system.”
It adds, “Continued inaction to fulfill Congress’s mandate to invest in America’s next generation of aviation workers raises serious concerns about the FAA’s commitment to air safety and the nation’s global leadership in aviation.”
Interested readers can view the full letter from Congress online.
