FAA computer systems to be modernized after a database outage, but must be accelerated, says Buttigieg

The Federal Aviation Administration's FAA computer systems have been modernized after a database outage earlier this month forced a nationwide ground stop, according to U.S. Department of Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg.

According to an interview with Reuters, Buttigieg said the Biden administration was seeking the resources necessary to speed up these changes at the FAA.

A preliminary review by the FAA on Jan. 11 found contract personnel unintentionally deleted files, disrupting the Notice to Air Missions NOTAM database, and snarling more than 11,000 flights.

The system provides critical safety notices to pilots, flight crews, and other users of U.S. airspaces. It contains two interdependent systems, the 30 year old legacy U.S. NOTAM System and the newer Federal NOTAM System.

The legacy U.S. NOTAM System is set to be discontinued in mid- 2025 and phase two of the NOTAM system modernization is expected to be completed by 2030, according to a letter sent to Congress last week by the FAA.

Buttigieg, who has held the office for more than two years, said it was important to look at the broader context of aging systems and growing demand. We want to make sure we can accelerate the NOTAM modernization, but we need to pick up the pace on the FAA's wholesale system modernization from the backbone of how data moves, Buttigieg told Reuters. This is something that has been going on for a long time. FOX Business reached out to the FAA and the DOT for comment.

During the 40 year-old tenure, there have been widespread global supply chain issues and logjams at major ports, multiple instances of mass flight cancellations by airlines and a narrowly avoided nationwide strike by railroad workers that was only averted by an eleventh-hour intervention from Congress.

The latest transportation mishap was the most high-profile yet. It was the first full national ground stop since 9 -- 11