Just two companies are vying for the massive job of upgrading the nation’s aging air traffic control (ATC) system, according to a Reuters report.
FAA Administrator Bryan Bedford confirmed to the news outlet that only two companies are in the running for the role of “prime integrator,” which will manage the multibillion-dollar project and parcel out work to numerous technology, construction, and logistics subcontractors.
Reuters separately confirmed that Peraton and Parsons submitted bids to the federal government. Peraton is a privately-held national security and technology company owned by New York-based Veritas Capital, and Parsons is a multinational defense, intelligence, and infrastructure engineering firm. Parsons told Reuters it bid with IBM.
“I think we’ve got two very good candidates for integrator,” Bedford said in an interview at the International Civil Aviation Organization’s (ICAO) triennial general assembly meeting in Montreal.
Many of the larger contractors the FAA typically partners with ultimately decided not to submit bids, he added.
“They just figured they were going to go with whoever the winner was,” Bedford said.
One senior FAA source told Reuters that the tiny pool of applicants was somewhat expected given the complexity of the task ahead, which involves integrating over 100 separate computer systems and replacing outdated telecommunications links.
The agency expects to pick a winner by the end of October.
Bedford said he and his team will evaluate the companies’ proposals, then present their findings to President Donald Trump and Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy, who will have the final say.
New Modernization Plan
The Department of Transportation has so far secured $12.5 billion from Congress for the ATC overhaul, which involves not just replacing equipment but building new ATC centers and towers with colocated TRACONs.
Duffy has said he will seek additional money from Congress, perhaps up to $19 billion, to ensure the project’s completion by 2028.
Notable ATC failures over the past several months have increased the sense of urgency around the upgrade effort.
In late April and early May, outages at Newark Liberty International Airport (KEWR) in New Jersey left controllers unable to communicate with pilots. In July, the FAA replaced the copper line running between New York and the Philadelphia TRACON, which oversees Newark, with a new fiber-optic cable.
In April, Trump said only a small number of companies have the expertise to serve as manager for the ATC project and suggested IBM and Raytheon as potential candidates.
