Duffy Lays Out Sweeping ATC Modernization Plan

Project calls for the construction of six new centers and 15 towers.

Zach Vasile

Thursday, May 08, 2025 at 03:42 PM ET

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Edited By:

Travis Tingle

An air traffic control tower at John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York. [Shutterstock]

Key Takeaways:

Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy announced a comprehensive plan to completely modernize the U.S. air traffic control (ATC) system, driven by outdated technology and recent disruptions like the Newark airport blackout.
The multi-faceted plan involves replacing antiquated 1970s/80s technology with state-of-the-art telecommunications and automation, and constructing significant new infrastructure, including six ATC centers and 15 towers, with a target completion by 2028.
This major overhaul has broad support from government, airlines, and unions, and is coupled with recent initiatives to address the severe shortage of air traffic controllers through recruitment and retention bonuses.

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With Newark Liberty International Airport (KEWR) still recovering from a 90-second air traffic control blackout that left pilots in the dark, Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy laid out plans to modernize the entire country’s ATC system and build new centers and towers.

“The system we have here is not worth saving,” Duffy said at a press conference Thursday. “I don’t need to preserve any of this, it’s too old. You have a 1960s Volkswagen Beetle you’re using for transportation. I don’t want to use the Beetle, I want a brand-new car. And that’s what we’re building, a brand new car.”