FAA sets 2028 deadline to retire floppy disks from air traffic control

Overview

Updated 1 hour ago

For decades, air traffic controllers at more than 400 Federal Aviation Administration facilities have pulled weather alerts and flight data off 3.5-inch floppy disks. On Thursday, the agency said it will replace four systems dating to the 1980s with a digital display board at 435 sites by the end of 2028.

The swap is the easy part. The FAA is short several thousand certified controllers, its facilities run on disconnected analog computers, and it carries more than 11,000 upgrade schedules that are not coordinated with one another. Replacing the floppy disk fixes one input to a much larger system.

Why it matters

The floppy disk is the easy fix. The controller shortage and fragmented systems will outlast this upgrade.

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Key Indicators

435

Facilities slated for E-IDS

Sites where the FAA plans to install the new display system by the end of 2028.

Legacy systems replaced

The 1980s-era systems E-IDS consolidates into one.

$292M

Leidos contract value

Awarded in August 2020 to build the Enterprise Information Display System.

$12.5B

Congressional down payment

Approved in 2025 for air traffic control modernization.

$30B

Additional funding requested

Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy's request for further upgrades.

90%

Infrastructure due for refresh

Share of critical air traffic control infrastructure due or past due, per a September 2024 GAO report.

Voices

Curated perspectives — historical figures and your fellow readers.

People Involved

Sean P. Duffy

U.S. Secretary of Transportation

Leading the FAA modernization push and lobbying Congress for more funding

Bryan Bedford

Administrator, Federal Aviation Administration

Overseeing the E-IDS deployment

Organizations Involved

Federal Aviation Administration (FAA)

Federal Agency

Deploying E-IDS across 435 facilities

The agency that runs U.S. air traffic control and is replacing four 1980s-era information systems.

Leidos

Defense and technology company

Building and installing E-IDS

The Reston, Virginia, contractor awarded roughly $292 million in 2020 to develop the replacement display system.

Government Accountability Office

Congressional watchdog

Warning that FAA modernization planning is incomplete

The watchdog that found most critical air traffic infrastructure overdue for replacement and faulted the FAA's cost and schedule planning.

Timeline

August 2020 November 2026

8 events Latest: Today

Tap a bar to jump to that date

November 2026
FAA sets 2028 deadline to retire floppy disks
Today Announcement

The agency says E-IDS will replace four 1980s-era systems at 435 facilities by the end of 2028.
Today
October 2026
FAA memo warns airports on cable cuts
Policy

An FAA memo tells airports that recent fiber optic cable cuts have caused outages, delays and diversions.
October 23rd, 2026
Houston fiber cut triggers ground stop
Incident

A severed cable connecting Houston's airport to the FAA network causes a loss of data services and a ground stop.
October 13th, 2026
September 2026
GAO warns of uncoordinated upgrade schedules
Report

The watchdog says the FAA has more than 11,000 project schedules that are not coordinated and lacks a full cost estimate.
September 2026
Northeast flights disrupted by dual failures
Incident

A circuit failure at a Philadelphia facility and a severed New Jersey fiber cable delay or cancel thousands of flights.
September 2026
2025
Congress approves $12.5 billion for modernization
Funding

Lawmakers approve a down payment on fixing the aging air traffic control system.
2025
September 2024
GAO finds most critical infrastructure overdue
Report

A Government Accountability Office report says 90 percent of critical air traffic control infrastructure is due or past due for a technology refresh.
September 2024
August 2020
FAA awards Leidos the E-IDS contract
Contract

The FAA picks Leidos to build a replacement for four 1980s-era information display systems, at roughly $292 million.
August 2020

Scenarios

E-IDS reaches all 435 facilities by the end of 2028

Likely Resolves by End of 2028

Discussed by: FAA and Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy

The FAA installs the new display system at every targeted site before the deadline. The first five locations are Atlantic City International, Nashville International, Greater Rochester International, and data hubs in Atlanta and Salt Lake City. Meeting the date would retire the floppy-disk systems six years earlier than the original September 2034 target.

Installation slips past 2028

Possible Resolves by End of 2028

Discussed by: Government Accountability Office

The GAO has warned that the FAA lacks a comprehensive cost estimate and a coordinated master schedule, with more than 11,000 uncoordinated project schedules. Those gaps raise the risk of delays, budget overruns or installations that disrupt controller operations. A slip would leave some facilities on 1980s-era systems longer than planned.

Congress approves the additional $30 billion

Uncertain Resolves by End of 2027

Discussed by: Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy

Duffy is asking lawmakers for another $30 billion on top of the $12.5 billion approved in 2025. Approval would fund broader upgrades beyond E-IDS, including telecom systems and controller hiring. Rejection would leave much of the modernization plan unfunded.

A legacy system fails and disrupts flights before replacement

Possible Resolves by End of 2028

Discussed by: Aviation analysts and the GAO

The four 1980s-era systems remain in service at hundreds of sites during the rollout. A failure at one of them, or at the fiber and telecom links the FAA is also racing to replace, could ground or delay flights. The 2023 NOTAM outage and the September and October 2026 cable cuts show how a single failure propagates.

Historical Context

3 moments from history that rhyme with this story — and how they unfolded.

1983–1994

Advanced Automation System (1983–1994)

The FAA hired IBM to replace its air traffic control computers with a sweeping new automation system. The project grew in scope and cost overruns mounted. In 1994 the agency cancelled the core of the program after more than a decade of work.

Then

The FAA fell back on patching its existing systems, and parts of the plan were split into smaller contracts.

Now

The failure became the standard cautionary tale for large government technology projects and shaped how the FAA buys new systems.

Why this matters now

E-IDS is deliberately narrower than that overhaul: one display system, one contractor, a fixed 2028 date. The comparison shows why the FAA is now replacing pieces rather than the whole system at once.

January 2023

NOTAM system outage (January 2023)

The system that distributes Notices to Airmen, which carry safety and operational alerts, failed. The FAA briefly halted all domestic departures, and thousands of flights were delayed or cancelled.

Then

The ground stop lasted about 90 minutes, but delays rippled through the system for the rest of the day.

Now

The outage focused attention on how a single outdated system can halt the national airspace.

Why this matters now

E-IDS is meant to consolidate flight alerts, restricted airspace schedules and pilot reports into one system. The 2023 outage shows both the value of consolidation and the risk of depending on one system.

2022–2028

Paper flight strip retirement (2022–present)

The FAA began replacing paper flight strips, which controllers use to track aircraft, with electronic versions under its Terminal Flight Data Manager program. The change started in 2022 and has reached 27 major airports.

Then

Controllers at converted airports track flights on screens instead of paper strips.

Now

The FAA expects all 49 major airports to be converted by at least 2028.

Why this matters now

It is the same kind of change as E-IDS: replacing a physical, manual tool with a digital one. It also shows how long these conversions take across hundreds of facilities.