Hello [firstname]
The latest FFDO Stakeholders meeting was held in Anchorage, AK at the Alaska Airlines Hanger in May 2026. A special thanks to Anchorage Base Chief Pilot, Captain Julie Thiele and her team for the outstanding arrangements.
General Info
January 3, 2026: FFDO program surpassed 24 million mission flights covered since the start of the program. In fiscal year 2025 we again covered over 1,000,000 missions. So far in fiscal year 2026, we are well on our way to breaking the 1,000,000-mission mark again.
Our 2026 budget is just over 27 million, although we are still waiting for our fiscal year 2027 to be finalized but hope for at a minimum $30M
On May 2, Spirit Airlines ceased operations. The pilots of Spirit Airlines have made major contributions to our program and inflight security. Spirit pilots had zero international incidents. When a Spirit pilot comes back to a 121 carrier, they would only need to requalify to become active. If a pilot is out for more than one year, they will need to attend an RTP in ACY, ATL or DFW.
ACY Proof of Concept
A proof of concept ITP was conducted at the TSA Training Center (TSATC) in Atlantic City on April 26 – May 2, 2026. 24 candidates completed the training, were deputized, and sworn in. Overall feedback was positive from both the program office and the new FFDO’s. Additional funding will be required before ITP can be moved from Artesia to Atlantic City (a long-time initiative).
SSI over ACARS
Currently there is a public mobile app that transcribes ACARS communications between aircraft and their companies. Most airlines guidance is not to send SSI via ACARS to dispatch. Your company should already know who their FFDO’s are while flying, but they do not know if you’re on mission or non-mission status. The program office will verify your mission status with your company through the FFDO Dashboard (very important to input EVERY mission/non-mission flight). If you need to pass along SSI information to your dispatcher it is recommended that you use a SAT phone or email/app through your company provided IPAD if available.
International Harmonization
Currently the program office is in negotiations with 22 countries with verbal approvals from eight countries. Every international incident makes it exponentially more difficult to expand our international footprint. This is especially important to countries we are actively negotiating with or who have verbally approved our expansion. So far in 2026 the program has experienced SEVEN International incidents.
Dashboard
It has been observed by the APB that some FFDO’s are not current with dashboard messages or dashboard usage. Additionally, DHS is changing IT system requirements. This means that users of all DHS systems, regardless of which system, will be required to login within a set period. The Program is trying to make that timeframe work for the unique nature of the FFDO, but DHS will have the final determination. Look for changes to the dashboard in the future requiring at least quarterly logins.
Incident Review Board (IRB)
The IRB reviews and considers allegations of possible FFDO violations of the FFDO Standard Operating Procedures (SOP). The IRB as an entity will be the initial determination authority of the violation. The Branch Manager or their designee will serve as the Appeal Authority and serves as the final determination authority. Adjudications for an FFDO SOP violation range from a Letter of No Action to permanent Revocation from the Program.
In 2025 a total of 172 cases, were adjudicated. The largest infraction still remains lost or stolen credentials or equipment. A majority of violations occurred with one to five years of service and within two years of ITP or RTP. Please take time to review the SOP and remember your dashboard requirement.
Ammunition Update
In April the program office resumed issuing training ammunition at the conclusion of training events.
Curriculum Review Conference (CRC)
On March 3-5 the APB held a Curriculum Review Conference (CRC) at the TSA Training Center (TSATC) in ACY. The CRC was required in CY2026 to remain in compliance with 49 U.S.C. 44921.
The CRC reviewed all training curriculum. Significant focus on initial training and applicability and compatibility at ACY. In the near future the FFDO course of fire will be updated to include target scoring. The main change will be scoring the target rings, the fourth ring will no longer be counted as a 5 for scoring. New rings will be counted 1,2,3,4,5.
Senior FFDO Training Program (SFTP) Review, these discussions included the current requirements vs any updates that might bring more FFDOs to the SFTP. Maintaining the sentiment, safety, and dedication to service is of the utmost importance.
Submitted by,
Darrick Dorn
FFDOA Vice-President
Industry Engagement
Thank you FFDOA VP Darrick Dorn for preparing a comprehensive review of the stakeholder meeting in May!
Bill Cason
President
FFDOA
