Former longtime FAA employees tell me the aviation system is safe, but those let go supported important roles and that the layoffs will increase risk. This despite the Transportation Secretary saying no one in *** critical safety position was let go. Unions and experts sounding the alarm about layoffs at the Federal Aviation Administration. This introduces risk into the national airspace system. You never want to introduce risk. I sat down with David Spiro, *** former FAA employee and union president, representing more than 130 of the roughly 400 FAA workers the Trump administration fired last Friday. He tells me those workers, people like maintenance mechanics to information specialists who update digital maps, support critical roles like air traffic controllers. You can't even turn on the lights without without. The technician workforce and without these folks that work behind the scenes to help them, the unsung heroes for the unsung heroes, you can't get the work done. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy posted *** social media Monday. Those laid off were all probationary, meaning they had been hired less than *** year ago. zero air traffic controllers and critical safety personnel were let go. This is recent scares are leaving some flyers worried. I'm concerned. There have been way too many near misses in the air on the ground, you know, just planes colliding. Americans' confidence in air travel and the agencies in charge of maintaining safety is slipping. *** recent AP poll shows confidence fell from 71% last year to 64% this year after *** deadly American Airlines crash in Washington DC as as *** Delta Airlines flight flipped upside down and caught fire. Days ago leaving *** Florida man who survived it physically bruised and mentally scarred. It'll be *** very long time, I believe, before I ever set foot on *** plane, if ever. The union president telling us that he's pushing for those fired to be reinstated. *** transportation department spokesperson telling us Friday the FAA continues to hire an onboard air traffic controllers and safety professionals, including mechanics and others who support them. Reporting from the White House, I'm Kaylin Norwood.
FAA accelerates safety notification system upgrade after recent failures
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Updated: 8:49 AM CDT Apr 22, 2025
A key aviation safety system that failed twice in the last three years and caused the only U.S. airspace shutdown since 9/11 will be replaced years ahead of schedule, the Trump administration says.The Federal Aviation Administration’s Notice to Airmen, or NOTAM system, was slated to be replaced in 2030. Now, the FAA says a new, modernized system will be online by September.“The FAA used a streamlined, innovative vendor challenge to cut through red tape to get this critical work done as fast as possible,” the agency said in a news release.NOTAMs are bulletins that all pilots are required to read before taking off. They include critical safety information such as runway and taxiway closures. The system failed in January 2023, triggering the FAA to institute a nationwide ground stop the following morning, which led to thousands of flight delays. An outage on Feb. 1 of this year led the FAA to use a backup system, but officials said there was “minimal disruption” to flights.“Over the last few years, we’ve seen multiple system outages ground regional air travel, create extensive delays, and otherwise ruin the flying experience for the American people,” Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said in a statement. “NOTAM modernization is the first step as we work to deliver an all-new air traffic control system that makes air travel safer and more efficient.”The FAA said it awarded the contract to CGI Federal, Inc., a subsidiary of the Canadian IT firm CGI.This is not the first time the Trump administration has focused on changing the NOTAM system. In February, an FAA order revised the Biden-era name change to “Notice to Air Missions,” which was created in 2021, on the grounds that it was “inclusive of all aviators and missions.”
WASHINGTON — A key aviation safety system that failed twice in the last three years and caused the only U.S. airspace shutdown since 9/11 will be replaced years ahead of schedule, the Trump administration says.
The Federal Aviation Administration’s Notice to Airmen, or NOTAM system, was slated to be replaced in 2030. Now, the FAA says a new, modernized system will be online by September.
“The FAA used a streamlined, innovative vendor challenge to cut through red tape to get this critical work done as fast as possible,” the agency said in a news release.
NOTAMs are bulletins that all pilots are required to read before taking off. They include critical safety information such as runway and taxiway closures. The system failed in January 2023, triggering the FAA to institute a nationwide ground stop the following morning, which led to thousands of flight delays. An outage on Feb. 1 of this year led the FAA to use a backup system, but officials said there was “minimal disruption” to flights.
“Over the last few years, we’ve seen multiple system outages ground regional air travel, create extensive delays, and otherwise ruin the flying experience for the American people,” Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said in a statement. “NOTAM modernization is the first step as we work to deliver an all-new air traffic control system that makes air travel safer and more efficient.”
The FAA said it awarded the contract to CGI Federal, Inc., a subsidiary of the Canadian IT firm CGI.
This is not the first time the Trump administration has focused on changing the NOTAM system. In February, an FAA order revised the Biden-era name change to “Notice to Air Missions,” which was created in 2021, on the grounds that it was “inclusive of all aviators and missions.”
