FAA tech overhaul update

The Trump administration says it is rebuilding the technology behind U.S. air traffic control, starting with $12.5 billion already approved by Congress. (faa.gov) The Federal Aviation Administration’s plan replaces the basic systems controllers use to talk, track and route planes: radar, software, hardware and telecom networks. The agency says the goal is to finish the new system by the end of 2028. (faa.gov) That includes swapping copper lines for fiber, wireless and satellite links, replacing voice switches and radios, and installing new radar at airports and en route centers. The agency also says it will deploy Terminal Flight Data Manager to replace paper flight strips and Enterprise Information Display Systems to replace floppy-disk-based tools. (faa.gov) Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said on April 21 that the first $12.5 billion is not enough to complete the overhaul. Reuters reported he is now asking Congress for another $10 billion, after previously saying the full gap was closer to $19 billion. (usnews.com) Federal Aviation Administrator Bryan Bedford said in December that the project would need another $20 billion to finish. In the same announcement, the agency named Peraton as the prime integrator managing the buildout and tied the contract to deadlines and performance targets. (faa.gov) Air traffic control still runs on a patchwork of old and new equipment, and the government says equipment-related delay minutes in 2025 were about 300% above the 2010-2024 average. The Federal Aviation Administration says the current system remains safe, but failures now force it to slow flights more often to protect that margin. (faa.gov) Recent disruptions have kept pressure on the system. Reuters reported that in March the Federal Aviation Administration twice halted traffic at the Washington region’s three airports for more than an hour because of aging technology, and said telecom outages also affected Newark traffic last year. (usnews.com) The buildout is large even by federal infrastructure standards. The Federal Aviation Administration says the finished system is supposed to include 5,170 high-speed network connections, 27,625 radios, 612 radars, 435 tower display systems and one new consolidated Air Route Traffic Control Center, the first new center since the 1960s. (faa.gov) Officials have also been explicit that the next gains depend less on cables and radios than on software. Duffy told Reuters that “the real magic” is software that can manage airspace more efficiently, and public radio reported Bedford is also pushing for artificial intelligence tools as part of the next phase. (usnews.com, wuwm.com) For travelers, the near-term promise is less dramatic than the engineering list: fewer outages, fewer equipment-related ground stops and a system that no longer depends on paper strips, copper circuits and floppy-disk-era workarounds. Congress now has to decide how much of the next phase it is willing to fund. (faa.gov, usnews.com)