Tim Arel, the head of the Federal Aviation Administration’s Air Traffic Organization, is stepping down from his position.
The ATO chief is retiring as part of the Department of Transportation’s voluntary deferred resignation program, the FAA confirmed in a statement to the Washington Examiner. The DOT is among a slew of federal agencies seeking to reduce the size of their workforce by creating employee buyouts as incentives to push federal workers to quit voluntarily.
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“After 40 years of federal service, he had been planning to retire by the end of 2025. He has committed to stay for the next few months to ensure a smooth transition,” the FAA said.
Arel’s resignation comes as the Trump administration restructures the FAA and replaces senior management in the wake of recent critical breaches of aviation safety that were overseen by the agency, according to CBS News. The most serious incident involves a plane collision in Washington, D.C.’s Potomac River in which 67 passengers on the two aircraft involved died.
“We brought in a new DCA management team to ensure strong support for the workforce,” the FAA told the outlet. “Their priorities will include: reviewing safety data trends while preventing/correcting drift, performance management, and ensuring facility training is robust and consistently meets national standards.”
The FAA took a number of steps to address safety concerns following the Potomac crash in January, including increasing operational supervisor staffing from six to eight and reassessing Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport’s arrival rates, which are “disproportionately concentrated in the final 30 minutes of each hour.”
TRUMP ADMINISTRATION OFFERS FEDERAL WORKERS SECOND CHANCE TO RESIGN — OR RISK BEING FIRED
Arel’s move to resign from the FAA and take the DOT’s buyout offer comes after the transportation agency earlier this month confirmed to the Washington Examiner that it renewed deferred resignation offers to employees. The DOT’s offer allows workers to leave government service in exchange for pay and benefits until Sept. 30, 2025.
“We’re providing DOT employees a second chance to voluntarily leave. This is just one part of our effort to make DOT more efficient and accountable to the taxpayer. Those who perform safety-critical functions are exempt from this program,” a DOT spokesperson said.