A group of more than two dozen American lawmakers has officially petitioned the leadership of the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). The legislators are insisting on an immediate suspension of the deployment of the SMART air traffic management support system, which operates on artificial intelligence algorithms. This software complex was deployed in test mode on September 21 of the current year 2026 at three key airports serving the Washington metropolitan area, raising concerns among relevant committees.
Lawmaker Demands and Safety Concerns
In the transmitted letter addressed to the FAA and the United States Department of Transportation, the parliamentarians demand a full data array regarding safety tests conducted. In addition, the authors of the request insist on the publication of air traffic controller training parameters, reports on consultations with independent civil aviation experts, and official assessments of the tool's reliability in emergency situations. Specifically, lawmakers are interested in the algorithm's behavior under severe weather anomalies and sudden critical hardware failures.
Technological Features and SMART System Architecture
The SMART software tool is a complex system capable of aggregating over 200 different information streams in real time. This includes current commercial airline schedules, detailed weather reports, current terminal congestion, air corridor status, and operational limitations. Based on this data array, the system identifies potential conflicts and generates visual recommendations for operators. Although developers emphasize that artificial intelligence does not control aircraft directly and the final decision always rests with the human, parliamentarians point to insufficient regulations.
Contradictory Data
Despite alarming statements from the group of congressmen, the Federal Aviation Administration insists that implementing controller assistance systems meets modern safety requirements and helps relieve personnel. At the same time, critics of the initiative note the lack of public stress tests of the system under conditions of large-scale communication failures, creating grounds for discrepancies between the regulator and congressional committees.
Next Steps and Oversight Prospects
Currently, the parliamentary inquiry does not carry the legal force of a direct ban or regulatory act, but it serves as a strong political signal of the need for strict external oversight over the digitalization of critical infrastructure. The next important step in this story should be an official response from the Department of Transportation and FAA leadership, which will determine the further fate of the experimental AI complex in the airspace of the American capital.
