Trump Presses for Air Traffic Control Overhaul, Elon Musk Points to 'Rapid' Upgrades

President Donald Trump said Thursday he would ask Congress to pass a bill reforming air traffic control following a fatal mid-air collision near Washington, D.C. that killed 67 people. 

“We should have had better equipment, we have obsolete equipment,” Trump said in an address to lawmakers and global leaders at the National Prayer Breakfast.

He said he would speak to Senate majority leader John Thune, Senate minority leader Chuck Schumer and House Speaker Mike Johnson about passing “a single bill” to reform the air traffic control system. 

“We spend billions of dollars trying to renovate an old broken system instead of just saying, ‘Let’s cut it loose and let’s spend less money and build a great system,’” he said. 

The fatal collision on January 29 involved an American Airlines regional jet and a U.S. Army Black Hawk helicopter. The National Transportation Safety Board is currently investigating the incident, but so far, the collision has raised concerns about the air traffic controller shortage and aging infrastructure within the National Airspace System.

Currently, around 91% of air traffic control facilities in the U.S. operate below the Federal Aviation Administration’s recommended staffing levels, according to a New York Times report that used data from unions representing air traffic controllers. 

FAA Deals With Delays in Modernizing

It’s unclear what reforms the bill would call for, but Trump mentioned using “a great computerized system” for air traffic control towers. The FAA has sought to modernize air traffic control through its NextGen project, which involves using more computerized technology. 

However, questions about future funding, leadership changes within the FAA, and technical issues have hindered the project’s progress, according to reports from the Government Accountability Office and the Department of Transportation. 

The FAA Reauthorization Act that Congress passed last year also includes multiple provisions for hiring more air traffic controllers and modernizing the National Airspace System. 

Trump further suggested that “two or three companies” could be in charge of the air traffic control technology rather than the dozens that currently supply such technology. 

During his first term in office, Trump advocated for privatizing air traffic control, describing the current system as “ancient, broken, antiquated.” Countries like Canada and Germany have a privatized air traffic control system.

DOGE and the FAA

Trump’s comments come after Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy posted on X that he spoke with Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency about reforms to the aviation system. 

“Big News - Talked to the DOGE team,” Duffy said on X. “They are going to plug in to help upgrade our aviation system.”

Musk also said on X that DOGE would make “rapid safety upgrades to the air traffic control system,” in reference to the issues the FAA has dealt with concerning “Notice to Air Missions” — or NOTAMs. The agency experienced a temporary NOTAM outage February 1, but it didn’t have any impact on the National Airspace System. 

Duffy and Musk didn’t specify what reforms DOGE planned to make to air traffic control.