GoKawiilFAA Begins Testing AI Air Traffic Tool at Three DC-Area Airports
The Federal Aviation Administration and the Department of Transportation have launched a trial of a new AI system called Strategic Management of Airspace Routes and Trajectories, or SMART, at Reagan National, Dulles International and BWI Thurgood Marshall airports. The $875 million system pulls together roughly 200 data streams covering flight paths, weather and staffing to predict delays and cancellations and suggest actions to controllers, who retain final decision-making authority.
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The trial responds to years of chronic air traffic controller shortages that have caused delays and congestion, according to aviation management professor Margaret Wallace, who says calls to modernize the system have gone unanswered for years. She characterizes SMART as an important first step but cautions that human controllers must stay central to every stage, suggesting the technology's real impact will depend heavily on how carefully it is rolled out.
- SMART is being trialed at three Washington-area airports: Reagan National, Dulles and BWI.
- The $875 million system aggregates about 200 data streams to predict delays and recommend actions, not replace controllers.
- An aviation expert says the tool could modernize air traffic management but only if implemented with controllers kept central to the process.
Source: cnet.com — Macy Meyer, 2026-09-23
Published there as: “The FAA Is Testing an AI-Powered Air Traffic Management Tool”
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