NATCA Bookshelf

ISSUES National Air Traffic Controllers Association | www.natca.org NiW Today 27 Overview NATCA takes great pride in our role making the National Airspace System (NAS) the safest and most efficient in the world. The air traffic controllers and other aviation safety professionals who NATCA rep- resents throughout the FAA, Department of Defense (DOD), and private sector Federal Contract Tower (FCT) program are vital to the U.S. economy, ensuring the safe and efficient movement of millions of tons of cargo annually within the NAS. However, one issue that could jeopardize our ability to maintain the highest standards of safety and efficiency for the NAS is the lagging effort to maintain the FAA's current air traffic control (ATC) technology, modernize outdated ATC technology, and upgrade its rapidly aging physical infrastructure. Message NATCA members have been collaborating with the FAA to implement modernization programs for more than 15 years. NATCA plays a critical role in testing, developing, and implementing important modernization and safety programs. We have had many successes, and we anticipate many more, as we work with the FAA to ensure the strategic prioritization of resources allocated to these programs. Since last year, Secretary of Transportation Sean Duffy announced his critical initiative to modernize the FAA's physical and technological infrastructure, titled the Brand New Air Traffic Control System (BNATCS). BNATCS aims to ensure that the U.S. continues to be the gold standard for global aviation by replacing outdated equipment and technology such as radar, software, hardware, and telecommunications networks. NATCA continues to strongly support BNATCS and we thank Congress for providing a $12.5 billion downpayment to modernize the air traffic control system. Although FAA will need an additional $20 billion in dedicated funding to complete the entire BNATCS program, NATCA stands ready to partner with Congress, the administration, and industry stakeholders to achieve these goals. Historically, the FAA struggled to maintain and modernize the NAS due to an unstable and unpredictable funding stream, which negatively affected all aspects of the FAA. The FAA's annual F&E budget requests were not sufficient and did not keep up with inflation for most of the past 15 years, resulting in significant backlogs of NAS system sustainment and ATC facility sustainment, in addition to mounting delays in the implementation of NAS modernization and system improvements as well as ATC tower and radar facility replacement. This loss of spending and buying power for F&E programs forced the FAA into a fix-on-fail model by requiring it to prioritize mandatory costs, leaving little to no money for modernization and infrastructure programs. For example, in fiscal year (FY) 2024, the FAA requested roughly $3 billion in annual appropriations for F&E, even though the Agency's internal budgetary estimates showed that it needed at least $4.5 billion. FAA also projected that its F&E needs would quickly approach $6 billion. However, last year the FAA's FY 2025 F&E budget request, for the first time in over a decade, acknowledged the Agency's true need. In addition to needing another $20 billion in supplemental funding to complete BNATCS, the FAA must continue to be transparent with its annual request for increased F&E funding so that it can meet its equipment sustainment, replacement, and modernization needs into the future. Physical Infrastructure Needs The FAA's physical infrastructure also continues to need attention. Each of the FAA's air route traffic control centers is more than 60 years old. The FAA has many towers and TRACONs that need repair or replacement. Many of these facilities have exceeded their expected lifecycle, while others need replacement of critical systems including roofs, windows, HVAC systems, elevators, and plumbing. In order for modernization and infrastructure programs to be successfully completed in a timely fashion and at the lowest possible cost to taxpayers, the FAA needs stable and sufficient funding. Without stable and sufficient funding, modernization programs and new user integration will continue to be threatened by delays and budget shortfalls that will jeopardize their timely deployment and success. Integration of New Technologies In the coming years, the FAA will face unprecedented safety and technological challenges. The continued development and rapid proliferation of commercial space operations, advanced air mobility, unmanned aerial systems (drones), and other new entrants must Issue Increased Funding Critical for Modernization and Infrastructure Efforts

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