Trump official seeks US$50 billion for air traffic control after outage forced nationwide ground stop

WASHINGTON – The Trump administration boosted its request for air traffic control funding to US$50 billion (S$64.36 billion) late on Nov 13 after a communications issue forced a nationwide ground stop that halted thousands of flights for hours.Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy and the White House earlier on Nov 13 asked for US$30.1 billion to upgrade the US’ ageing airports and air traffic control system.“This is an emergency,” Duffy said. “What’s more important than having an air traffic control system that actually works?”The issue impacted the FAA’s en route centres that handle traffic between airports. But the Republican-led Senate Commerce Committee said the incident highlights the need to prioritise modernising those centres over other projects and noted Congress approved US$1.9 billion to replace outdated en route centres.The world’s most complex airspace has experienced a series of events in recent years that have disrupted flights and risked safety. In January 2025, a midair collision at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport killed 67 people.Congress already approved US$12.5 billion over five years in July 2025 to upgrade air traffic control and increase the hiring of controllers following complaints about airport ​congestion, flight delays and technology ​problems.The request from White House Office of Management and Budget Director Russell Vought and Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy seeks US$10.1 billion for air traffic control modernisation, including US$7.2 billion for a common automation platform and controller workstations and US$2 billion for cloud computing.“This investment is critical to complete the modernisation of our national airspace – delivering a resilient telecommunications backbone for air traffic controllers, modern hardware and software, state-of-the-art control towers, and world-class airport infrastructure,” Duffy and Vought wrote to lawmakers asking for swift action.Major airlines including American Airlines, Delta Air Lines, United Airlines and Southwest Airlines have expressed support for the request.The US$30.1 billion request also includes US$2 billion to replace and improve Federal Aviation Administration air traffic control towers and US$18 billion for airport-related projects including US$10 billion to modernise or replace ageing terminals.The FAA relies on decades-old ​computers as well as replacement parts bought through auction websites. Last week, it said it would replace by the end of 2028 floppy disks used for weather and other critical information at more than 400 air traffic control facilities.Vought and Duffy in their letter said the FAA has replaced 68% of legacy copper telecommunications network with high-speed fibre infrastructure.The administration has called for the Republican-led Congress to approve funding in the final weeks of the year. Democrats are set to take control of Congress in January.In September, the dual failures of a circuit at a Philadelphia ​air traffic facility and the ​accidental severing of a ⁠fibre-optic cable in New Jersey by a construction crew led to thousands of flights across the densely populated Northeast being delayed or cancelled. REUTERS