U.S. Federal Aviation Administration sent this bulletin at 10/15/2026 01:52 PM EDT
Week of October 12, 2026
Controllers at Sacramento International Receive Latest Tech
Air traffic controllers at Sacramento International Airport (SMF) are swapping out antiquated paper strips for Electronic Flight Strips (EFS). EFS increases safety and efficiency by providing real-time updates and streamlining the flight-planning process. SMF is the 25th airport to receive EFS.
For information on other nationwide upgrades as part of the Brand New Air Traffic Control System (BNATCS), check out our Modern Skies website.
FAA Enhanced AT-CTI Schools Program Expanding
While college students are halfway through their fall semester, the FAA is continuing its push towards increasing air traffic controller hiring with the Enhanced Air Traffic- Collegiate Training Initiative (AT-CTI).
Shenandoah University in Virginia is the FAA’s newest school, bringing the total to 13 schools now certified under the Enhanced AT-CTI program. For students, this is a gamechanger: graduates from these specific programs can skip the standard FAA Academy in Oklahoma City and go straight to on-site facility training, fast-tracking them directly into an FAA career.
Want to learn more?
See our new video which focuses on students and instructors from three of the 13 schools. They talk about the program, the classroom-instructor relationship and why Enhanced is a game changer for controller hiring.
Read our story to hear about the benefits of the Enhanced AT-CTI program.
Check out our updated webpage to find out how schools can partner with the FAA.
This week’s guest Weather Squad forecaster is Brenden Mincheff with Sacramento’s ABC 10. Brenden shows where travelers can expect some wet weather and where temperatures will start cooling down.
ICYMI
This week, the FAA announced it is bringing back its Flight Deck Training program. This program gives controllers access to jumpseats on eligible flights to gain firsthand experience of flight deck operations, including pilot workload, cockpit procedures and how air traffic control instructions impact flight crews. Read more about the program in ourpress release.
