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House panel presses FAA on $22 billion budget and broad air-traffic modernization plan
Summary
Acting FAA Administrator Chris Rocheleau defended the administration's $22 billion fiscal 2026 request and outlined a multiyear modernization plan that would add facilities and equipment funding, telecommunications upgrades and a radar replacement program while Congress pressed for more detail on costs and timelines.
The House Appropriations subcommittee opened a hearing on the Federal Aviation Administration's fiscal year 2026 budget request, during which Acting FAA Administrator Chris Rocheleau told lawmakers the administration is requesting $22,000,000,000 for FAA operations and programs and that, combined with previously enacted advanced appropriations of $5,000,000,000, the agency would have $27,000,000,000 available for NAS investments.
Why it matters: Lawmakers said the nation’s aging air-traffic infrastructure and recent safety incidents make near-term modernization and sustainability urgent. Members pressed for specifics on how the FAA will balance sustaining current systems while building a new, common-platform air-traffic system.
Rocheleau described the budget’s major components and goals. “The FAA's mission is to provide the safest, most efficient aerospace system in the world,” he said in his opening statement. He told the panel the request…
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