British News Agency

The White House stated that years of insufficient investment had left the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and the air traffic control network outdated, announcing that modernization efforts were being prioritized to ensure safe flights for Americans.

The White House acknowledged that much work remained to be done but stated that the Trump administration was taking decisive steps to improve aviation safety. It emphasized that Congress needed to approve critical funding so the administration could continue building a state-of-the-art, resilient air traffic control system for decades to come.

According to the official data released, on January 21, 2025, the FAA and the Department of Transportation (DOT) were instructed to restore merit-based hiring and eliminate diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) policies. On January 30, 2025, an emergency aviation safety assessment was ordered. It was also noted that $12.5 billion under the Working Families Tax Cut was being used to fund partial air traffic control (ATC) modernization, including replacing outdated radar and radio systems, expanding the workforce, and training personnel to address the shortage of air traffic controllers.

The White House also stated that the executive orders "Restoring American Airspace Sovereignty," which strengthens airspace security and protects critical infrastructure against unmanned aerial vehicle threats, and "Leading the World in Supersonic Flight," which removes regulatory barriers to innovation in subsonic aviation and space technology, had been implemented.