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Tell Congress: Stop Trump's Cuts to Aviation Safety
America's air traffic system suffered a massive failure Friday, forcing the FAA to ground flights nationwide and leaving thousands of travelers stranded. Now, as investigators scramble to determine what went wrong, Trump wants to slash aviation safety research funding by 43%.
Could this nationwide shutdown have been prevented if America's aging air traffic control systems had already received the upgrades they desperately need?
Federal watchdogs have been sounding the alarm for years. The Government Accountability Office found that 51 of the FAA's 138 air traffic control systems were unsustainable, with another 54 potentially unsustainable. And a September report identified another $10.2 billion needed for the next phase of modernization.
Yet Trump's proposed 2027 budget would slash FAA research, engineering, and development funding from $290 million to just $165 million — cutting resources for work that helps improve air traffic control and aviation safety.
We don't yet know what caused Friday's shutdown — or whether better-funded infrastructure could have prevented it. But America shouldn't have to suffer another nationwide aviation breakdown before Congress addresses the vulnerabilities we already know exist.
Air traffic controllers rely on functioning communications equipment to guide thousands of planes safely through American skies every day. When those systems fail, families are stranded, workers miss their jobs, and the reliability of the entire aviation network is thrown into question.
With another federal budget under consideration, our members of Congress have a choice: invest in reliable aviation infrastructure now or leave critical vulnerabilities unresolved. Passenger safety shouldn't depend on outdated equipment and unfinished upgrades.
Thanks for all that you do,
Matt from the Swarm
