Lawmakers Press FAA on NOTAM Outages

Senators Amy Klobuchar and Shelley Moore Capito, among others, are urging the Federal Aviation Administration to address recent outages of the Notice to Airmen (NOTAM) system, which provides crucial safety information to pilots. Congress mandates a modernized system by September 2024 to guarantee safe and timely flights.

A group of bipartisan lawmakers spearheaded by Senators Amy Klobuchar and Shelley Moore Capito are demanding answers from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) regarding recent failures in the system that alerts pilots to safety notices.

The Notice to Airmen (NOTAM) system, essential for providing critical safety messages to pilots and flight crews, suffered outages in February and March. Lawmakers highlighted that Congress has mandated the FAA to establish a modernized NOTAM and backup system by September 2024.

"Travelers deserve flights that are safe and on time. We urge you to ensure that a modernized NOTAM system is implemented in a timely manner," the lawmakers urged in a letter obtained by Reuters.

(With inputs from agencies.)