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Trump’s pick to lead FAA grilled by senators over air traffic control system, safety at Reagan National Airport

President Trump’s nominee to lead the Federal Aviation Administration was grilled by senators Wednesday on critical safety-related issues, including the required hours needed for pilots, the outdated air traffic control system and the ongoing problems at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport.

At a hearing held by the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation, senators raised questions about the current state of the country’s aviation system to airline executive Bryan Bedford. The FAA administrator role has been filled by Chris Rocheleau on an interim basis since the departure of former Administrator Mike Whitaker on Inauguration Day.

Top of the mind for senators was safety. If confirmed, Bedford would oversee the country’s airspace system, which has dealt with several issues over the last six months, including fatal air travel incidents and an outdated air traffic control system that has experienced technology outages.

“The system that manages our skies is showing its age,” Bedford testified. “The stresses of this antiquated system truly came into view as we all returned to the skies after Covid. Chronic understaffing, controller fatigue, outdated facilities and telecommunications technology has placed a significant strain on the men and women at the FAA, and it has absolutely frustrated travelers with excessive delays and cancellations and has caused the public to question whether it’s truly safe to fly.”

Senators pressed Bedford on major challenges facing the FAA as it grapples with repeat air traffic control systems failures at the approach control facility for Newark Liberty International Airport; aging air traffic control infrastructure nationwide; and a shortage of 3,000 air traffic controllers.

‘We need to shine a light on this’
In attendance at Wednesday’s hearing were the parents of Sam Lilley, the first officer killed in the midair collision at Reagan National Airport in January that killed 67 people.

Bedford said he met with the families that lost loved ones in the tragedy. The crash led to a ban on helicopter traffic on a four-mile stretch over the Potomac River.

“We need to shine a light on this,” Bedford said. “Transparency is going to help us find permanent solutions.”

Bedford reiterated his top priority “will be public safety and restoring the public’s confidence in flying.”

With regard to the crash, Sen. Jerry Moran, a Republican from Kansas, brought up legislation recently introduced involving ADS-B.

Civilian and military aircraft use ADS-B, which helps an aircraft broadcast its location, altitude and other key factors while monitoring other aircraft around it. ADS-B Out broadcasts aircraft information, while ADS-B In allows aircraft to receive that information.

“ADS-B In can be a significant safety improvement for the visibility of traffic because it incorporates the traffic that’s on the ground,” Bedford said. “So, when we look at the alerting systems that we have and we’re relying on, even when we’re using surface radars, it still requires the controller to be in the loop.”

But the Army often turned it off while flying on missions in Washington.

The NTSB previously confirmed the Army’s Black Hawk helicopter involved in January’s collision had the necessary equipment and was capable of transmitting, but investigators still do not know why it wasn’t.

Lawmakers held a closed-door roundtable on Wednesday regarding the safety troubles at Reagan National Airport.

In May, some helicopter flights to the Pentagon were put on hold by the US Army pending an investigation after two planes at Reagan National Airport were forced to abort landings as a US Army Black Hawk helicopter approached the Pentagon nearby.

Those Army helicopters were from the same unit as the one that crashed.

The members of the Senate Subcommittee on Aviation met with Brig. Gen.Matthew Braman, director of Army Aviation; Rocheleau and Jennifer Homendy, chairwoman of the National Transportation Safety Board.

Sen. Jerry Moran, Republican of Kansas, told reporters after the briefing that lawmakers learned the investigation will completed by the one-year anniversary of the incident: January 29, 2026.

Moran said the NTSB has made improvements since the last briefing, but there’s still uncertainty in the investigation as the NTSB has not accessed all the data from the FAA. He said there were “too many silos within the FAA” and “not enough data sharing.”

“The commitment today was those are in the works — that effort to allow everybody to see everybody else’s data,” Moran said.

He also said lawmakers were told that the NTSB tested ADSB technology in other Army helicopters.

“In most instances, even if you turned it on — I guess I should say we never knew if it was turned on, but in those instances in which they tested other Army helicopters, if you turned it on, it still was difficult,” Moran said.

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