The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) began limited operations Monday of a new artificial intelligence (AI)-enabled air traffic control management tool in the Washington, D.C., region that officials say will help to reduce delays and cancellations for travelers.
The Strategic Management of Airspace, Routes, and Trajectories (SMART) platform centralizes 200 data streams – including weather, flight paths, traffic flow, and air traffic controller staffing – and uses AI to predict traffic flows and identify potential conflicts.
In a Sept. 21 press release, the FAA said it plans to gradually expand SMART beyond the National Capital Region. The three major airports in the Washington, D.C., area include Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, Washington Dulles International Airport, and Baltimore/Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport.
“We are already making remarkable progress on building a brand new air traffic control system. But to really improve the flying experience for the American people, we needed to build a 21st century scheduling tool like SMART,” said U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy.
“By fundamentally reshaping how we manage our airspace and preventing problems before they happen, SMART will slash those frustrating delays, reduce stress on air traffic controllers, and lower travel prices,” Duffy added.
SMART is a cloud-based platform designed to work alongside existing FAA air traffic management systems rather than replace them.
It gives the FAA, airlines, and aircraft operators a shared view of schedules, weather, airport capacity, airspace conditions, and operational constraints before flights depart. As conditions change, the system continuously updates its forecasts and planning recommendations.
“SMART cannot be used to replace the critical role air traffic controllers play or take over control of an aircraft,” the FAA said. “All of SMART’s recommendations are reviewed by FAA staff, and local leadership at air traffic control facilities can choose to accept or pass on these scheduling suggestions.”
SMART is part of a broader FAA software modernization effort. The FAA has a goal of implementing a new air traffic control system by the end of 2028.
In June, the Transportation Department selected Air Space Intelligence (ASI) to provide SMART and Flow Management Data and Services (FMDS), which the department described as the new technology backbone for the FAA’s Air Traffic Control System Command Center. SMART operates as an enhancement within FMDS, using its data to coordinate schedules and flight trajectories before aircraft depart.
The FAA and Transportation Department also partnered with ASI to build an air traffic center to facilitate a staged rollout of SMART over the next few months, according to the press release.
Congress gave the FAA a down payment of $12.5 billion under the One Big Beautiful Bill last summer to modernize its air traffic control system. That effort includes telecommunications upgrades, new radios and radars, and electronic flight strips.