Tim Arel, the head of the Federal Aviation Administration’s Air Traffic Organization, will retire early as part of the second round of buyouts at the Department of Transportation.
Arel, who has been working at the agency for four decades, had planned to retire at the end of 2025 but will now depart in the coming months to ensure a smooth transition, the FAA told CBS News in a statement.
As the chief operation officer of the Air Traffic Organization, Arel is responsible for ensuring the safety of air traffic services for approximately 50,000 aircraft operating every day.
But in the wake of the deadly midair collision in January, a series of concerning close calls and a fist fight in the tower between employees, the FAA brought in a new management team to the air traffic control tower at Reagan National Airport, CBS News has confirmed. Three senior managers were replaced as part of this move.
“We brought in a new DCA management team to ensure strong support for the workforce,” the FAA said in a statement. “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.”
