U.S. DOT Orders Airlines to Terminate DEI Pilot Hiring
The directive, transmitted through a new Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Operations Specification (OpSpec), requires airlines to verify they have eliminated all diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) protocols from pilot selection processes. Carriers refusing compliance risk triggering federal scrutiny.
"When families board their aircraft, they should fly with confidence knowing the pilot behind the controls is the best of the best," Transportation Secretary Sean P. Duffy declared Friday. "The American people don't care what their pilot looks like or their gender – they just care that they are the most qualified man or woman for the job."
FAA Administrator Bryan Bedford emphasized that safety considerations drive the regulation.
"It is a bare minimum expectation for airlines to hire the most qualified individual when making someone responsible for hundreds of lives at a time," Bedford stated. "Someone's race, sex, or creed has nothing to do with their ability to fly and land aircraft safely."
The Trump administration's scrutiny of aviation workforce policies escalated after a catastrophic midair crash between an Army Black Hawk helicopter and an American Airlines regional aircraft that claimed 67 lives last January, occurring shortly after President Donald Trump's inauguration. Trump subsequently attributed blame to DEI recruitment methods at the FAA, which he claimed were inherited from the prior administration.
Though the FAA has already eliminated its DEI departments and elevated performance benchmarks, "allegations of airlines hiring based on race and sex remain," the DOT confirmed. The new OpSpec aims to address this concern by mandating airline disclosure.
The policy reflects Trump's broader initiative to eliminate DEI programs throughout federal agencies and their regulated sectors.
The Department of War recently unveiled a "line-by-line" examination of its small business contracts, which Secretary Pete Hegseth characterized as "the oldest DEI program in the federal government" and a "breeding ground for fraud."
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