US Transportation Department seeks $30bn for air traffic modernisation

The US Department of Transportation is seeking an additional $30bn from Congress to modernise air traffic control towers, technology infrastructure and airport terminals, Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said in Washington.

The request follows a serious telecommunications failure on a Monday that halted air traffic along the east coast of the United States for several hours, disrupting thousands of flights.

The proposed package would be split three ways: $10bn for replacing ageing air traffic control towers, $10bn for telecommunications infrastructure and other air traffic control technology systems, and $10bn for airport facilities and improvements. Part of the funding is also intended to expand a new software platform, according to the source.

Congress approved $12.5bn over five years in June 2025 for air traffic control reforms, but authorities consider that amount insufficient. Speaking about the shortfall, Duffy said: "We are going to ask Congress for $30bn. We have to see how the country has changed and what the needs are at airports."

The failures have lent urgency to the modernisation push, with officials pointing to outdated towers, ageing software and structural gaps in terminals as the targets of the new spending.