FAA Has 11,389 Project Schedules—but No Integrated Master Plan for Air-Traffic Modernization

Thousands of schedules do not add up to one coordinated schedule

FAA’s first modernization phase is planned for completion by December 2028. Congress appropriated $12.5 billion in July 2025, and FAA reported replacing 2,560 of 5,170 old copper-wire connections with fiber by May 2026—49.5% of the listed total.

But GAO found no comprehensive lifecycle cost estimate and no integrated master schedule. FAA instead had 11,389 individual project schedules, with installations sometimes planned at the same sites without optimization for controller operations.

FAA also estimated phase two would need about $10.2 billion, excluding facilities, without a start or completion date. GAO said phase-one estimates omitted government costs, most operating costs and all phase-two costs.

Progress does not substitute for cost and schedule controls

GAO recommended a reliable lifecycle estimate and an integrated phase-one schedule. Transportation partially concurred; both recommendations remain open.

The analysis does not predict a specific overrun or delay. It establishes that billions are committed while the two controls used to evaluate total cost and sequencing remain incomplete.