The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) recently invested the first $1 billion of $5 billion into the nation’s air traffic control system.
Funding for the upgrades is through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. It will be used to sustain, repair or replace hundreds of buildings and equipment.
The system includes hundreds of towers at airports and terminal approach control facilities and centers handling aircraft at high altitudes. These facilities depend on power systems, navigation and weather equipment, and radar and surveillance systems.
“Air traffic control facilities are the nerve centers of our airspace system, and a big part of the reason why flying is the safest mode of transportation,” U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said. “The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law will repair, replace and modernize the infrastructure that our air traffic control system relies on to keep the traveling public safe for generations to come.”
The FAA controls more than 5 million square miles of airspace over land and more than 24 million square miles over ocean.
The FAA will invest $1 billion in reinforcing navigation, weather, and tracking equipment; replacing power systems; enroute flight centers; long-range radar; replacing towers; improving towers and approach & departure facilities; environmental and safety; personnel and travel; and facility security.