by Donald Wood
Last updated: 8:10 AM ET, Fri November 21, 2025
After air travel was snarled for over a month due to a
government shutdown, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) announced
Thursday that it plans to implement a new system to overhaul how air traffic
controllers receive flight data and move aircraft between facilities.
According to Reuters.com,
Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said he wants the United States government
to pay an additional $19 billion for air traffic control reform. In July, Congress
approved a $12.5 billion plan to overhaul America’s aging air traffic control
system and boost controller hiring.
To avoid potential issues in the future, FAA officials are
proposing a state-of-the-art air traffic control platform, the Common
Automation Platform, that consolidates the current en route and terminal
systems into a single system.
Air traffic controllers currently use two systems to track
and control aircraft: the En Route Automation Modernization (ERAM) and the
Standard Terminal Automation Replacement System (STARS).
The FAA revealed in September that it was working with two
candidates to become the project managers for the multi-billion-dollar
overhaul: Peraton and Parsons. Secretary Duffy said he would consult with FAA
Administrator Bryan Bedford and U.S. President Donald Trump before making a
selection.
After air traffic controllers went unpaid during the
government shutdown, the Department of Homeland Security announced last week
that it would issue $10,000
bonus checks to TSA officers who went “above and beyond” during the 43-day
shutdown.
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