02.15.23

Cantwell Calls on FAA Leader to Strengthen Internal Systems & Increase Redundancy During Commerce Committee Hearing

Hearing examined Jan. 11 shutdown of FAA’s Notice to Air Missions (NOTAM) system that grounded 1,300 flights nationwide; Cantwell: “I want to get an answer within a week about the NOTAM system having a separate backup.”

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Maria Cantwell, (D-WA), Chair of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation, led a hearing with the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to investigate the January 11, 2023, Notice to Air Missions (NOTAM) system outage that resulted in more than 1,300 canceled flights and 9,500 delayed takeoffs.

“We know there is work to do. There have been a number of recent incidents that highlight the importance of making safety the top priority,” Sen. Cantwell said in her opening remarks. “These incidents are concerning. They impact Americans’ confidence in our aviation system and our aviation infrastructure is critical to American safety and security.”

The January 11 outage resulted in the first nation-wide ground stop since 9/11. The NOTAM system, which delivers real-time advisories and safety information to pilots and other crucial aviation personnel, was down for a little over an hour and a half.

During the hearing, Sen. Cantwell questioned Billy Nolen, Acting Administrator of the FAA, who said that the NOTAM System is 30 years old and that the agency is working to transfer to a newer system by 2025.

“I don't think we have true redundancy here. So I want to see a plan from the FAA that examines the fact that the backup systems are still subject to the same kind of, if you want to call it human error, of deletion of files,” Sen. Cantwell said to Acting Administrator Nolen. “I want to get an answer within a week about the NOTAM system having a separate backup, a totally separate backup that could be used.”

Today’s hearing followed a February 9 committee hearing, when Sen. Cantwell pressed Southwest Airlines COO Andrew Watterson about the 2022 holiday meltdown that left more than two million passengers stranded nationwide.

Video footage of Sen. Cantwell’s opening remarks is available HERE; audio can be heard HERE and a transcript can be found HERE.

Video of her Q&A with Acting Administrator Nolen is available HERE; audio can be heard HERE and a transcript can be found HERE.