Senate Commerce Committee Advances Air Traffic Situational Awareness Enhancement Act
Why It MattersThe bill signals continued federal attention to closing surveillance gaps at smaller and rural airports, which could reshape safety infrastructure priorities across the general and business aviation sector.
The Senate Commerce Committee has approved the Air Traffic Situational Awareness Enhancement Act, sending it to the Senate floor for full consideration. The bipartisan legislation, co-led by Senators Jeff Merkley and Senator Sheehy, aims to give air traffic controllers additional tools and training to improve safety, with particular focus on smaller and rural airports.
The bill targets a technology gap in the Federal Contract Tower (FCT) program: of the 266 Federal Contract Towers in the United States, more than 90 currently lack any surveillance tools, leaving controllers reliant on visual observation and radio calls, methods that can prove insufficient during high-traffic periods, complex mixed operations, or reduced visibility. Modern situational awareness systems such as Standard Terminal Automation Replacement Systems and radar-integrated displays are absent at many of these locations, and the legislation seeks to unlock resources to fund safety upgrades there.
The effort builds on the FAA Reauthorization Act of 2024, which directed the FAA to approve technology improving operational situational awareness at FCTs. Last summer the FAA approved the first Airborne Position Reference Tool, which uses ADS-B data to give controllers a real-time display of local airspace; the tool has since been deployed at several airports, with controllers and operators reporting improved situational awareness and controller confidence. The bill was originally introduced in February.
