Airline Crashes + DEI Initiatives - What do you think? How do we solve this together?

Sarah Tuberty

On January 29th 2025, there was a devastating crash between a CRJ American Airlines Flight 5324 and a US Army Sikorsky UH-60 Black Hawk Helicopter. The collision occurred mid air on the approach to Ronald Regan Washington National Airport. Both aircrafts fell into the Potomac River with no survivors. A deeply painful event that has shaken those connected with commercial aviation, with 67 left without the ability to hug their lived ones again. On board the CRJ were several ice skaters returning from a competition in Kansas City. The investigation is ongoing, and we may not have answers for a long time.

At a press conference on January 30th, 2025, the American President, Donald Trump offered condolences to victims and families and outrage for the crash. President Trump then progressed to state

“ Brilliant people have to be in those positions and their lives are actually shortened, very substantially shortened because of the stress. Where you have many, many planes coming into one target and you need a very special talent and a very special genius to be able to do it. Targeted disabilities are those disabilities at the federal government as a matter of policy, as identified for special emphasis in recruitment and hiring, the FAA's website states. They include hearing, vision, missing extremities, partial paralysis, complete paralysis, epilepsy, severe intellectual disability, psychiatric disability and dwarfism all qualify for the position of a controller of airplanes pouring into our country, pouring into a little spot, a little dot on the map, a little runway.

The initiative is part of the FAA's Diversity and inclusion hiring plan. Think of that. The initiative is part of the FAA's Diversity and Inclusion hiring plan, which says diversity is integral to achieving FAA's mission of ensuring safe and efficient travel. I don't think so. I don't think so. I think it's just the opposite. The FAA website shows that the agency's guidance on diversity hiring were last updated on March 23rd of '22. They wanted to make it even more.

And then I came in and I assume maybe this is the reason, the FAA, which is overseen by Secretary Pete Buttigieg, a real winner. That's the guy's a real winner. Do you know how badly everything's run since he's run this Department of Transportation? He's a disaster. He was a disaster as a mayor. He ran his city into the ground and he's a disaster now. He's just got a good line of bullshit. The Department of Transportation, his government agency charged with regulating civil aviation while he runs it, 45,000 people and he is run it right into the ground with his diversity. So I had to say that it's terrible.”

The air traffic controller working the evening of January 29th did not belong to the disability community.

Regardless of anyone’s political affiliation, there has been this link to disability community members being hired to positions without the training, skills, or qualifications.

I reflect on my own experiences; I am a woman who has a congenital limb difference and works in aviation as a flight attendant for a major US Airline. I do not believe that I was hired because of my limb difference to fit any type of DEI initiative I felt expected to learn, test, and pass training just as everyone else in my class.

I believe, from my experiences, that I am a qualified flight attendant, and I was hired based on my qualifications.

How can I assure all of my passengers know that I had to pass training?

How do you all come to understand how you are the “most qualified” for your jobs as disabled employees? Where is the line for the benefit of DEI programs to help create more inclusive work environments vs hiring people for positions when they don’t have skills? How is this different then the nepotism of hiring friends/cousins/ for positions when they don’t have the skills either? What makes someone qualified for a position? Is it the skills for the job? Is the soft skills for how to work with others? How can we create the opportunities for Disability Community members to be seen, interviewed, and selected for roles? What is your take on DEI initiatives? How do they benefit/harm us?

Please engage in a very kind and respectful conversation, I don’t know how to process all of these things and am so so excited to learn from you!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G-syqa0xb_k