A fatal air crash outside Washington, D.C., in January and a serious telecommunications outage involving the Newark, New Jersey, airport this month have focused the United States on a long-known problem: The nation’s old and understaffed air traffic control system is showing cracks.
On May 8, a day before a serious 90-second loss of communications delayed Newark air traffic, Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy announced a sweeping air traffic modernization plan to address “decades of neglect.” If successful, it could ease airline delays, especially weather-related ones during the summer months.
Air safety experts generally applaud the new effort, but the aggressive timetable carries risks, they add. Congress still needs to approve the funding.
Why We Wrote This
From lean staffs to aging technology, U.S. air traffic control systems are under stress. The Trump administration has proposed fixes that could require about $12.5 billion over four years.
Is it safe to fly in the United States?
The nation operates the world’s largest and most complex air traffic control system with a very high degree of safety. Between 2014 and 2023 (the latest federal data available), scheduled U.S. commercial carriers experienced four fatal incidents resulting in six deaths total in the U.S. But some of the equipment used by air traffic controllers is so old that manufacturers don’t sell parts anymore. So officials at the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) have bought parts on eBay or built their own using 3D printers, according to Secretary Duffy.
What does the Trump administration plan to do?
On the equipment side, it would switch out old systems with new fiber, wireless, and satellite technologies at more than 4,600 sites, replace 618 radars, build six new air traffic control centers, expand the number of airports with runway safety systems, and install new hardware and software in all air traffic facilities.
On the labor side, it would streamline the hiring process and offer financial incentives to those who complete initial training, to graduates of the Air Traffic Controller Academy, and to retirement-age controllers to help retain them. Secretary Duffy says smoother hiring will help the FAA reduce a current shortfall of about 3,000 controllers.
Will it work?
Many safety experts say the Trump administration is addressing the right issues. For example, it is prioritizing the New York airports – busy hubs where delays can ripple throughout the nation. During the busiest hours, pilots flying into John F. Kennedy or LaGuardia airports would be required to have on board software that makes it possible to increase the capacity of airspace shared by two airports.
But the administration has tripped over conflicting priorities. The day before January’s midair collision between an American Airlines flight and a military helicopter, with 67 deaths, employees at the FAA received a buyout offer urging them to take “higher productivity jobs in the private sector.” The Trump administration quickly clarified that controllers were not eligible.
But the loss of experienced FAA managers will complicate the task of modernizing air traffic control while running it. “It’s hard to be running a system and changing it at the same time,” says John-Paul Clarke, a professor and expert in airspace design and safety modeling at the University of Texas at Austin.
Another challenge is making sure that FAA management modernizes procedures, not just technology, he adds. “My big worry is that we will digitize or upgrade technology doing the same things as we do now without figuring out how to change the system to make it more efficient.”
Some critics say emerging “NextGen” systems for traffic controllers should pivot toward satellite-based flight tracking more quickly. Secretary Duffy’s plan includes this – but the system’s ability to quickly incorporate change remains in question.
How long will modernization take?
If history is any guide, it will take more time than the four years that the administration has allotted. At a minimum, people hired today will require two years’ training before they become qualified controllers. And bureaucratic slowdowns, congressional meddling, and other factors have hampered past modernization plans.
How much will this modernization cost?
The administration hasn’t provided estimates, but a House committee calculates the cost at $12.5 billion. Outside analysts say it will cost more. Hassan Shahidi, president and CEO of the Flight Safety Foundation, a nonprofit advocacy group, pegs the cost at around $30 billion.
What does this mean for travelers this summer?
Mandatory slowdowns at busy airports and shortages of controllers could make the season’s weather-related delays worse. Travelers should “plan ahead, check with their airlines, [and] look at weather forecasts in terms of planning their journey,” says Dr. Shahidi.
