Raquel Sánchez announces that ENAIRE is seeking to fill 137 new air traffic controller positions

The Minister of Transport, Mobility and Urban Agenda, Raquel Sánchez, announced today that ENAIRE will fill 137 new air traffic controller positions by the end of this year to address the expected increase in air traffic.

This announcement coincides with the celebration of the World ATM Congress, the ninth edition of which is taking place in Madrid this week, from 21 to 23 June.Raquel Sánchez has confirmed that the national air navigation service provider will continue to incorporate new air traffic controllers, in keeping with the provisions of its strategic plan. This strategy to reinforce the control personnel has not been paralysed by the pandemic, which has allowed ENAIRE to have a staff of air traffic controllers for this summer that is larger than the staff it had in 2019 before the crisis.

The Ministry of Transport, Mobility and the Urban Agenda is making an effort, through ENAIRE, to provide the air traffic manager with the human resources it needs to ensure that air traffic - which is already recovering in 2022 - can continue to grow safely and efficiently in coming years.

The trend in air traffic and its forecasts confirm the increase in the number of flights in ENAIRE's network. ENAIRE recovered 95.1% of flights in May compared to the record levels of 2019. During the week of 5 to 11 June, the air traffic registered at Palma de Mallorca airport exceeded the levels from 2019.  In light of the continuing upward trend in air traffic, ENAIRE has implemented the 2022-2023 Summer Plan, which includes the technical, operational and human resources measures needed to deal with the recovery with the best possible safety and service quality indexes.

ENAIRE's plan to increase the number of air traffic controllers to meet traffic forecasts has been in place since 2016. That year, ENAIRE had a total of 1,968 air traffic controllers, including active controllers and those in management and support roles. The total number of controllers currently stands at 2,117 (7.6% more).

By region, the staffing and the increase in controller numbers (those that are qualified and available for duty) are as follows: South, 250 controllers (+9.6%); Canary Islands, 264 (+9.0%); East, 512 (+8.2%), Balearic Islands, 197 (+5.9%) and Central-North, 630 (+1.7%).

In total, between 2016 and 2021, there have been five calls to fill air traffic controller positions, resulting in the addition of 528 professionals and a huge training and qualification effort in ENAIRE control centres and towers.       

In other words, with the new call for 137 controllers by the end of this year, a total of 665 new air control positions will have been created since 2016, equivalent to renewing 33.4% of the staff.    

Selection process

The call for new hires will be available on ENAIRE's empleo.enaire.es website, and will be announced in due course through the Official State Gazette (BOE) and its communication channels.

Once the selection process is complete, and as a requirement for being hired, applicants must have an Air Traffic Controller Licence or a student Air Traffic Controller Licence. The candidates must complete a specialised training course that will qualify them to work as air traffic controllers.

This course constitutes the so-called Initial Training. There are several schools certified by the National Aviation Safety Agency (AESA) that provide this type of training so the candidates can obtain the qualifications required by ENAIRE.

Once hired by ENAIRE, they must pass a Unit Training Course with an estimated duration of 3 to 6 months, depending on the unit, which will allow them to provide air traffic controller services at their assigned destination.

ENAIRE at the World ATM Congress

At stand 844 of Pavilion 9, ENAIRE presents the rollout of iFOCUCS, the most advanced traffic control post, which will be installed at all its air traffic control centres in Spain.

ENAIRE will also share its leadership in Spain in the advanced development of drone use. ENAIRE, which has been tasked by the Ministry of Transport, Mobility and the Urban Agenda with implementing the U-space system in Spain, will provide common information services through its digital platform.

About ENAIRE

ENAIRE is the air navigation service provider in Spain.

As a company of the Ministry of Transport, Mobility and the Urban Agenda, it provides en route control services for all flights and overflights from five control centres in Madrid, Barcelona, Seville, Gran Canaria and Palma, as well as approach services to every airport in the country.

In addition, 45 control towers receive ENAIRE's communication, navigation and surveillance services, and 21 airports, including the country's busiest, rely on its aerodrome control services.

ENAIRE is Europe's fourth largest air traffic manager. Since 1 January 2022, it has chaired the A6 Alliance, a coalition of air navigation providers responsible for over 80% of European air traffic, and which is seeking to modernise the air traffic management system. It is also a member of other international alliances promoting the Single European sky, such as SESAR Joint Undertaking, SESAR Deployment Manager, iTEC, CANSO and ICAO.

ENAIRE, as the agency designated by the Ministry of Transport, Mobility and Urban Agenda to implement the U-Space system in Spain will, through its digital platform, provide the Common Information Services (CIS), which are essential to facilitate U-space services to drones and Urban Air Mobility in cooperation with local air traffic services, so that all types of aircraft can fly safely in the same airspace.

ENAIRE has received the highest score in Europe on the aviation safety key performance indicator. It has also been awarded the EFQM 500 Seal for its safe, efficient, innovative and sustainable management of air navigation services.