Multi-faceted effort will promote ATC staffing and investment
The Modern Skies Coalition, which is comprised of the Aircraft Electronics Association and more than 50 other aviation industry organizations, has launched a formal public affairs campaign to put a spotlight on the need across the U.S. to hire and retain additional air traffic controllers, upgrade FAA technology and infrastructure and urge Congress to act with urgency following Department of Transportation Secretary Sean P. Duffy’s air traffic control modernization plan that was unveiled May 8, 2025.
The Modern Skies campaign will be a multifaceted effort, including a new website, social media posts (X, Facebook and Instagram), blogs, videos and other channels. The Modern Skies website will house key priorities, a form letter for the public to contact their congressional representatives, news articles, recent media interviews and more.
“We strongly support Secretary Duffy’s plan to rebuild our nation’s air traffic control system. Recent issues – especially those at DCA and EWR – remind us of the urgent need for a sharp focus on the safety and efficiency of the National Airspace System and the dire necessity to address antiquated technology and the staffing shortage,” the Modern Skies Coalition said in a statement.
“We are pleased that the secretary has identified the priorities of what must be done to maintain safety and remain a leader in air navigation services. We applaud the administration’s budget, which funds the FAA’s technology and facilities account (F&E) at $4 billion, higher than ever before. However, based on decades of federal budgets not even keeping up with inflation, the system is in serious need of continued sufficient budget requests as well as an immediate robust infusion of resources.
“We applaud Chairman Sam Graves’ critical first step in moving forward on $12.5 billion of funding. As the Modern Skies Coalition and Chairman Graves have indicated, this was a down payment to address these systemic, ongoing problems. Based on our analysis, we believe an additional $17.5 billion in emergency funding should be appropriated over the next three years above the FAA’s annual F&E budget. The staffing and technology challenges facing the NAS did not appear overnight and will require strong leadership and oversight to hold FAA accountable to maximize the value and effectiveness of these investment resources and deliver a world-class system.
“We are deeply appreciative that Secretary Duffy has made our nation’s air traffic control system a priority and look forward to working with the administration and Congress to bring this vision to fruition. We must act now with strong purpose and commitment.”
The Modern Skies Coalition is advocating for:
- Robust emergency funding for critical air traffic control technology and infrastructure and controller and technician staffing and training.
- Direction to FAA to achieve prudent divestment from legacy NAS elements and utilize their existing procurement authority to facilitate the effective deployment of state-of-the-art technology.
- Realignment and modernization of ATC facilities to improve operational efficiencies and leverage technological improvements and investments.
- Exemption of the FAA from government shutdowns to ensure more predictable funding and support for continued safety and air traffic control personnel hiring and training, and other critical FAA activities.
- Continuation of general fund support of FAA operations and consideration of additional flexibility within the Airport and Airway Trust Fund to meet existing obligations and help FAA manage long-term facility and technology upgrades through access to long-term capital funding and multiyear budgeting.
On April 29, 2025, the Modern Skies Coalition released a statement in support of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee’s ATC provisions included in their reconciliation budget proposal.
For more information about the Modern Skies Coalition, visit www.modernskies.com.