FAA to debut AI air-traffic advisor over Washington, D.C. as soon as Monday
The FAA's SMART system — an AI tool that predicts traffic flows and flags potential conflicts using airline schedules, weather, airport capacity, and airspace conditions — could go live for the three major D.C.-area airports on September 21. It's the first step toward a planned nationwide rollout across the 29 million square miles of U.S. airspace. Aviation safety consultant Philip Mann, a 17-year FAA veteran, called the limited-scope launch the 'right call' before scaling nationally.
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A limited launch could give the FAA a chance to assess the tool before extending it across the national system.
Advising controllers and replacing their decisions are different roles. That distinction matters when judging what this rollout is meant to accomplish.