US Senate’s new Modern Skies Act seeks $30bn to complete ATC modernisations

The requested $30 billion is in addition to the $12.5 billion already approved by Congress in 2025.
US transportation secretary Sean Duffy and senator Eric Schmitt are calling on Congress to approve an additional $30 billion for the country’s ongoing air traffic control modernisation effort.

Introduced on 28 September by Schmitt – a Republican senator from Missouri – the Modern Skies Act would provide funding to upgrade the architecture and infrastructure underpinning the US air traffic control system.

The broader push to overhaul air traffic control gained urgency following the January 2025 mid-air collision between a regional jet operated by PSA Airlines and a US Army helicopter near Washington, DC.

In May 2025, the Department of Transportation (DOT), with support of US President Donald Trump, unveiled its Brand-New Air Traffic Control System (BNATCS) initiative, designed to accelerate air traffic control modernisation.

Two months later, in July 2025 – as part of the Working Families Tax Cut Act – Congress approved $12.5 billion in funding for the initiative. The funding was described as an “initial down payment” for the wider system overhaul.

Duffy says that while that funding has already enabled significant improvements, additional money is needed to complete the project.

“With investments from the Working Families Tax Cut, we’ve already replaced the majority of outdated copper wire with high-speed fibre in our towers, transitioned nearly a third of radios controllers used and installed new surveillance technology in half of our target airports. We’ve also reimagined how we manage the airspace – deploying a state-of-the-art scheduling tool to prevent delays and cancellations,” says Duffy. “But to finally fix air travel for the American people, we need to pass the Modern Skies Act.”

The $30 billion proposed under legislation would be divided evenly among three areas.

The first $10 billion would be used to complete upgrades to the digital architecture and telecommunications systems supporting air traffic control. Another $10 billion would go towards replacing ageing airport infrastructure, including air traffic control towers, airport facilities and runways.

The final $10 billion would establish a new pilot grant programme for mid-sized “transitional” airports that serve 5-25 million passengers annually, which the DOT says often lack access to the capital they need.

The legislation would also give the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) greater flexibility to continue deploying new radars, radios, electronic flight strips, surface awareness tools and other equipment as part of the BNATCS initiative.

According to the DOT, nearly 60 aviation organisations have expressed support for the legislation, including Airlines for America, Air Line Pilots Association, National Air Traffic Controllers Association, American Association of Airport Executives and General Aviation Manufacturers Association.

Airline executives have also backed the effort.

“Air traffic control technology, infrastructure and staffing issues have been the most persistent challenges of my career and remain the single biggest drivers of delays and cancellations for our customers,” says United Airlines chief executive Scott Kirby.

“No other improvement we could make to air travel would come close to the impact of modernising this system,” he adds. “I encourage Congressional leaders on both sides of the aisle to provide the funding to finish the job.”

While the legislation must pass both the Senate and the House of Representatives before landing on President Trump’s desk for a signature, Duffy expresses confidence it will attract enough bipartisan support to do so, arguing that finishing the overhaul is what the American public want.

“As we look forward, I think the American people want the job completed,” Duffy says. “They want us to finish what we’ve started, and to finish what we started, we need more money.”

“This is probably the most bipartisan effort in Washington, DC,” he adds. “There’s nothing that Washington agrees on. But they do agree on aviation.”

The funding request comes just two weeks after the US Government Accountability Office (GAO) raised concerns about the FAA’s accelerated approach to the air traffic control overhaul.

In a 14 September report, the GAO said the FAA had not developed a comprehensive lifecycle cost estimate for the programme or an integrated master schedule for the first phase of the overhaul, warning that their speedy approach could result in cost overruns, delays and disrupted air traffic.

The FAA, however, disputed the GAO’s findings, maintaining that it has developed comprehensive cost estimates and a thorough planning schedule.

The Modern Skies Act now awaits further action from the Senate, although no official timeline for consideration of the bill has been set.

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