The federal government has selected two companies to undertake the replacement of 612 radar systems nationwide, originally installed in the 1980s, as part of a comprehensive modernization of the air traffic control system in the United States.
On Monday, Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy, alongside the Federal Aviation Administration, announced that contractors RTX and the Spanish company Indra will be responsible for upgrading the radar systems by the summer of 2028. The administration has set a target to finalize the entire modernization project by the end of 2028, coinciding with the closing stages of President Donald Trump’s current term.
FAA Administrator Bryan Bedford emphasized the urgency of the project, stating, “Our radar network is outdated and in dire need of replacement. Many units have surpassed their expected lifespan, resulting in increased maintenance costs and support challenges.”
Currently, the FAA allocates a significant portion of its $3 billion equipment budget to maintaining the aging and delicate system, which still utilizes obsolete technology such as floppy disks. Some system components are no longer in production, forcing the FAA to occasionally resort to eBay to procure spare parts.
Last spring, technical malfunctions caused radar outages for air traffic controllers at Newark Liberty International Airport, leading to numerous cancellations and delays at this crucial hub.
While system redundancy is designed to ensure flight safety, there have been instances where both primary and backup systems faltered, as witnessed at the Philadelphia facility that manages air traffic to and from Newark airport.
The FAA didn’t immediately provide an estimate of the cost of the new radar systems that will replace 14 different existing radar systems in use across the country and will simplify maintenance and repairs.
The FAA has already committed more than $6 billion of the $12.5 billion that Congress approved to pay for the overhaul, but Duffy has said that another $20 billion will be needed to complete the project. The agency has already replaced more than one-third of the outdated copper wires the system was relying on with modern connections like fiber optic lines, and it hired a national security contractor named Peraton to oversee the work.
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