Transportation Secretary Sean P. Duffy publicly endorsed Sen. Eric Schmitt’s Modern Skies Act on Sept. 29. The bill would appropriate $30 billion to modernize the Federal Aviation Administration’s aging air traffic control system.
Duffy’s endorsement, joined by the Modern Skies Coalition of airlines, airports and pilot unions, puts the executive branch firmly behind the legislative effort to overhaul technology that in many cases dates back decades, according to the FAA.
The current air traffic control system relies on radar, communication and computer systems that have contributed to flight delays, cancellations and near-miss incidents at major U.S. airports. The FAA’s NextGen modernization program, launched more than 15 years ago, has repeatedly missed deadlines and exceeded cost estimates.
The Modern Skies Act would fund the replacement of legacy systems across hundreds of FAA facilities nationwide, accelerating a transition that has stalled despite bipartisan support in Congress. Flight delays cost the U.S. economy billions of dollars annually in lost productivity and consumer inconvenience.
A Cabinet secretary’s public endorsement of specific legislation significantly increases its prospects of advancing through the congressional committee process. The bill falls under the jurisdiction of the Senate Commerce Committee.
The Modern Skies Coalition includes Airlines for America, the trade group representing major U.S. carriers, as well as airport operators and the National Air Traffic Controllers Association, the union representing the FAA’s roughly 14,000 controllers.
Air traffic control modernization has been identified as a critical safety need by the National Transportation Safety Board, which has cited outdated technology as a contributing factor in multiple runway incursion and near-miss investigations.
American air travelers experience the consequences of the aging system daily, with weather-related and system-related delays cascading across the national airspace. The FAA handles roughly 45,000 flights per day across U.S. airspace.