Aviation Industry Urges Congress for Emergency Air Traffic Control Funding

The U.S. aviation industry is calling on Congress to approve "robust emergency funding" for air traffic control technology and staffing, as reported by the Wall Street Journal. This plea comes three weeks after a deadly midair collision near Washington, D.C., which marked the worst air disaster in the U.S. since 2001. The industry, represented by heavyweights like Boeing, major U.S. airlines, private aviation, and labor unions, wrote to lawmakers urging urgent funding and improvements to U.S. airspace.



The industry groups also called for the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to be exempt from government shutdowns to ensure a predictable funding stream, which would help maintain continued safety and air traffic control personnel hiring and training. A 2019 government shutdown left federal workers without pay for several weeks, including air traffic controllers and airport screeners, causing staffing shortages that snarled flights at several major U.S. airports.

The Biden-Harris Administration's FY 2025 Budget request to Congress aligns with the industry's needs, particularly in terms of hiring air traffic controllers, modernizing facilities, and strengthening safety oversight. The budget provides $43 million to accelerate the hiring and training of air traffic controllers, which will help the agency meet its goal of hiring 2,000 new controllers in 2025. The FAA is also taking aggressive action to expand the controller pipeline by hiring experienced controllers from the military and private industry, enhancing training initiatives, and filling every seat at the FAA Academy.

The budget also includes a new Facility Replacement and Radar Modernization proposal that dedicates $8 billion over the next five years to replace or modernize aging air traffic control facilities. This includes modernizing 377 critical radar systems and more than 20 air traffic control facilities. This recapitalization program provides a more reliable and stable funding source to ensure the national airspace system remains the safest and most efficient in the world.

The budget includes $1.8 billion for the Office of Aviation Safety to support production oversight and continued operational safety. The FAA took decisive actions after the January 5 Boeing 737-9 incident to bolster its oversight activities and the proposed FY25 budget boosts the FAA's resources for continuous safety improvement.



In conclusion, the aviation industry's urgent call for emergency funding for air traffic control technology and staffing is supported by the FAA's FY2025 budget request. This alignment between the industry's needs and the agency's funding priorities will help ensure the national airspace system remains safe, efficient, and capable of accommodating the growth in air traffic.