Historical Context and Current Challenges of Air Traffic Control

Flying in the U.S. is still exceptionally safe, but the system relies on outdated tech and is under tremendous strain. Six experts tell us how it got this way and how it can (maybe) be fixed. (Part one of a two-part series.)

• SOURCES:
  • Dorothy Robyn, senior fellow at I.T.I.F.
  • Ed Bastian, C.E.O. of Delta Airlines.
  • John Strong, professor of finance and economics at the William and Mary School of Business.
  • Kenneth Levin, retired air traffic controller.
  • Polly Trottenberg, former deputy secretary of the U.S. Department of Transportation.

• RESOURCES:
  • "Brand New Air Traffic Control System Plan," (Federal Aviation Administration, 2025).
  • The Air Traffic Controller Workforce Imperative: Staffing Models and Their Implementation to Ensure Safe and Efficient Airspace Operations, by the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine (2025).
  • "Annual Aviation Infrastructure Report: 2025," by Marc Scribner (Reason Foundation, 2025).
  • "New air traffic academy died in Congress despite dire need for more staff," by Lori Aratani (The Washington Post, 2025).
  • "The Real Problem With the FAA," by Dorothy Robyn (The Atlantic, 2025).
  • "How Much Do Jet Aircraft Pay into the Airport and Airway Trust Fund to Fly from Dallas to D.C.?" by Ann Henebery, (Eno Center for Transportation, 2018).
  • Managing the Skies, by John Strong and Clinton Oster (2016).

• EXTRAS:
  • "Freakonomics Radio Takes to the Skies," series by Freakonomics Radio (2023).
  • "In Praise of Maintenance," by Freakonomics Radio (2016).

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