AOPA, Coalition Urge Congress to Provide Additional ATC Modernization Funding

AOPA is a founding member of the coalition and a member of its steering committee.

“Modernizing our nation’s ATC system is a national imperative. Enhancing the safety and efficiency of the National Airspace System (NAS) is long overdue and will ensure the continued flow of people and commerce to maintain America’s global leadership role in aviation and aerospace,” the coalition wrote in its letter to House Speaker Mike Johnson, House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, Senate Majority Leader John Thune, and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer.

The funds would be in addition to the $12.5 billion “down payment” approved by Congress one year ago and would help the Department of Transportation (DOT) and Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) implement a sweeping overhaul of aging automation surveillance platforms.

The coalition points out that controllers currently rely on different platforms and that “the FAA has spent hundreds of millions for required ‘refreshes’ of these foundational yet aging systems that were developed decades ago,” according to the letter. Current estimates suggest a new Common Automation Platform would cost $10 billion.

The letter points to progress made in the first year: the replacement of copper wire with fiber, replacing paper with electronic strips, adding surface awareness detection technology, converting analog voice switches and radios to digital systems, and replacing hundreds of aging radars. In addition, a dashboard provides real-time updates on past, current, and future projects.

“We’ve seen tremendous progress in the first year of this effort, but there’s more work to do,” said AOPA Senior Vice President of Government Affairs and Advocacy Jim Coon. “We need to get this done. It is important for our nation’s economy, and we will continue to work with Congress, DOT, the FAA, and our industry partners to finish the job.”