New GAO Report Finds Air Traffic Control Systems Aging, Unreliable

Government Watchdog Calls on Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg and the Federal Aviation Administration to Modernize Air Traffic Control Systems

Arlington, Va. – Today, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) released a new report strongly urging the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to take long-overdue action to modernize aging, unreliable air traffic control systems. 

“News out of the Government Accountability Office highlighting the vulnerabilities of our air traffic control systems is disturbing,” said Jackson Shedelbower, executive director of the Center for Transportation Policy (CTP), a government watchdog. “Pete Buttigieg and the Department of Transportation need to get their priorities straight. We’re urging federal officials to fast-track the repairs and modernization projects necessary to bring air travel into the twenty-first century.”

As noted in the GAO report, the FAA “relies on information systems to help air traffic controllers keep the airspace safe and efficient.” According to a 2023 GAO analysis, over three-quarters (76 percent) of all U.S. air traffic control systems are unsustainable or potentially unsustainable. Of these 105 unsustainable or potentially unsustainable systems, over half (55 percent) have “critical operational impacts on the safety and efficiency of the national airspace.” 

However, the FAA has failed to take strong corrective measures in the wake of last year’s disturbing GAO report. That’s why the Center for Transportation Policy (CTP), a government watchdog, is now calling on Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg to address these alarming shortcomings. 

The GAO report confirms that the FAA is dragging its feet, explaining: 

Last year, FAA determined that 51 of its 138 systems are unsustainable, citing outdated functionality, a lack of spare parts, and more.

Over half of these unsustainable systems are especially concerning, but FAA has been slow to modernize. Some system modernization projects won’t be complete for another 10-13 years. FAA also doesn’t have plans to modernize other systems in need—3 of which are at least 30 years old.

Read the full GAO report here.