San Francisco Frontiers - US unveils ambitious air traffic control upgrade

Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy described the initiative as once-in-a-generation upgrade -- a project involving the rebuilding of some air traffic control towers and the replacement of radar, sensors and telecommunications with completely state-of-the-art versions.

"I don't need to preserve any of this," Duffy said, pointing to a table with 1980s computers, floppy disks and other outmoded equipment still in use at US air traffic facilities.

"We're going to build a brand new car," Duffy said. "It's a brand new system."

Speaking to the event on speaker phone, President Donald Trump pledged the overhaul "will bring American air traffic control into the highest level of anybody, any country anywhere in the world."

Such a transformation could require tens of billions of dollars that would need congressional support at a time when Trump's administration is also seeking deep across the board spending cuts to finance tax cuts.

Duffy did not release an overall price tag during a 75-minute launch event that often resembled a pep-rally.

Funding for air traffic infrastructure has averaged $3 billion per year for the past 15 years, according to a Transportation Department handout, which called for "an immediate infusion of funding to address critical infrastructure needs."

Duffy said he would push Congress to provide "all of the money up front" to ensure the project meets an ambitious three to four year timeframe.

The House transportation committee last week approved a preliminary plan for $12.5 billion as a step towards air traffic control modernization, but that proposal is still winding its way through Congress.

- Newark in focus -

At the launch event, Duffy and other speakers acknowledged people who lost relatives in the fatal January collision between a regional passenger jet and a military Black Hawk helicopter not far from the White House, the first major US commercial crash since 2009.

The effort also comes on the heels an April 28 incident at Newark Liberty International Airport in which air traffic officials stationed in nearby Philadelphia were unable to connect with planes on radar or by radio for 90 seconds.

The Federal Aviation Administration has been reducing arrivals and departures at Newark following the incident, which traumatized some air traffic control staff and caused delays and flight cancelations.

Duffy said the Newark incident underscored the need for action, warning that without a fix "you'll see new Newarks in other parts of the country because it's an aging system."

Speakers at the event included National Transportation Safety Board Chair Jennifer Homendy, who said the watchdog body has seen recommendations for system upgrades going back almost 30 years get ignored.

"This is bold, but I have to tell you it is absolutely necessary to ensure safety in our skies," Homendy said.

This is "a once in a lifetime opportunity," said Nick Calio, president of Airlines for America, which represents US passenger and cargo airlines. "It's to finally get something done to stop the deterioration of our airspace."

In the buildup to Thursday's announcement, Duffy has taken frequent shots at his predecessor, Pete Buttigieg, blaming the Biden administration transportation secretary for the problems at Newark and elsewhere in the system.

But Duffy, a former reality television star who served in the House of Representatives for nine years, adopted more of a big tent approach to Thursday's event, welcoming Democratic Representative Rick Larsen, a senior lawmaker on transportation, who echoed the need for action.

"We've talked about how this effort spans, sometimes spans administrations," Larsen said. "We don't want the effort to span generations."

Y.Harris--SFF