Flying Magazine
• Jack Daleo
The FAA is bringing back a program that lets air traffic controllers ride along on commercial, general aviation and military flights. Controllers can observe cockpit procedures and pilot workload in real operating conditions; the program had been paused at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic.
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The FAA is bringing back a program that lets air traffic controllers ride along on commercial, general aviation and military flights. Controllers can observe cockpit procedures and pilot workload in real operating conditions; the program had been paused at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic.
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Democrats on the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee are asking the GAO to review the FAA’s developmental air traffic management system and have urged the agency to pause its use until questions are answered. The tool analyzes schedules and factors such as weather to predict traffic flows; lawmakers warn it could produce inaccurate, safety-critical information.
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An air traffic controller is urging the FAA to stop using an AI air traffic tool at Washington-area airports, citing the consequences of error. A separate controller perspective emphasizes that flight safety depends on clear communications and controllers speaking up when concerns arise.
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More than two dozen lawmakers have asked the FAA to suspend use of its SMART AI tool for assisting air traffic controllers at Washington-area airports. Their concerns center on the system’s safety testing, controller training and oversight, and they are seeking answers from the agency before deployment continues.
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Two German Air Force Eurofighters scrambled after a Corendon Airlines Europe Boeing 737-800 flying from Corfu to Nuremberg transmitted a hijacking or emergency code. The aircraft landed safely; the airline attributed the alert to a radio malfunction, and authorities found no danger after a temporary suspension of airport operations.
Legislation introduced in both chambers would increase federal funding for air traffic control by $30 billion, building on $12.5 billion approved in 2025. The available reporting does not specify how the proposed money would be allocated or the bills’ prospects, but the measures put ATC investment before Congress as a substantial funding question.
The FAA has curtailed aircraft pattern work and parallel departures at Centennial Airport, according to the AOPA. The association says the agency issued no NOTAM; pilots were instead notified by airport email, leaving the scope and duration of the restrictions unspecified in the available report.
Congress should tie approval of Sean Duffy’s $30 billion FAA modernization request to enforceable requirements, including redundant physical routes, milestone-based funding and integrated staff training. The proposal argues that the scale of the investment alone will not ensure a durable modernization plan.
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