A team from SpaceX visited the Air Traffic Control System Command Center in northern Virginia Monday as officials look for ways to overhaul the system in the wake of last month’s deadly midair collision near Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport.
Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy stressed that SpaceX and owner Elon Musk are not receiving “special treatment” and that he was open to input from other major tech companies on how to develop a dramatically improved system.
“SpaceX team will be visiting the Air Traffic Control System Command Center in VA to get a firsthand look at the current system, learn what air traffic controllers like and dislike about their current tools, and envision how we can make a new, better, modern and safer system,” Duffy, 53, said on X Sunday evening.
“Because I know the media (and Hillary Clinton) will claim Elon’s team is getting special access, let me make clear that the @FAANews regularly gives tours of the command center to both media and companies.”
Earlier this month, Duffy tangled with the former first lady and secretary of state over his plans to bring Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) team into the Department of Transportation.
At the time, President Trump had called for the creation of a “brand new” air traffic control system rather than renovating an “old broken” one. Musk also indicated that he would be involved in efforts to “make rapid safety upgrades to the air traffic control system.”
In addition to the Jan. 29 collision between an American Airlines regional jet and an Army UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter that killed 67, the Federal Aviation Administration’s main warning system for pilots went through an outage at the beginning of this month.
“America deserves safe, state-of-the-art air travel, and President Trump has ordered that I deliver a new, world-class air traffic control system that will be the envy of the world,” Duffy contended.
“To do that, I need advice from the brightest minds in America. I’m asking for help from any high-tech American developer or company that is willing to give back to our country.”
In tandem with plans to upgrade the air traffic control system, Duffy is seeking to ramp up hiring for air traffic controllers, which will take years to achieve due to the lengthy training process.
Later this week, Duffy plans to visit the FAA Academy in Oklahoma to huddle with air traffic control instructors.
Meanwhile, “several hundred” probationary workers at the FAA have received termination notices, the head of the Professional Aviation Safety Specialists (PASS) union claimed over the weekend.
“These are not nameless, faceless bureaucrats. They are our family, friends and neighbors,” fumed David Spero, national president of PASS, which represents some 11,000 people, in a Saturday statement.
“They contribute to our communities. Many military veterans are among them. It is shameful to toss aside dedicated public servants who have chosen to work on behalf of their fellow Americans.”
Musk’s DOGE team has fanned out across government agencies to pore over internal data in order to map out areas to cut and streamline the federal bureaucracy.
So far, his team claims to have saved taxpayers billions of dollars, but some of their actions have faced legal challenges.
Musk’s and the Trump administration’s cost savings initiatives come as the country deals with a $36 trillion national debt and a deficit that ballooned to $1.8 trillion during the last fiscal year.
The Post has reached out to the FAA for comment.
