House Democrats urge FAA to pause AI tool at three airports

Twenty-five urged the FAA in October 2026 to pause SMART at Reagan National, Dulles and BWI—live since Sept. 21—until the agency explains testing, training and evaluation. The tool combines roughly 200 data streams under a 12-year, $875 million contract, with a 90-day review before nationwide rollout. Lawmakers cited the Jan. 29, 2025 Reagan National collision that killed 67. Congress appropriated $12.5 billion in July 2025 for modernization; the FAA estimates $10.2 billion more for phase two. CONTESTED: Democrats said air-traffic AI decisions are "literally a matter of life or death" and asked to "pause any use of the SMART tool." Ocasio-Cortez said control "leaves zero margin for error." Duffy replied on X that "HUMANS still control the airspace and HUMANS still make the calls." The FAA says staff review all recommendations; the National Air Traffic Controllers Association says it has not been involved in design, testing or implementation. Beyer said a talk with Administrator Bedford, who credited experienced controllers with building SMART, eased some concerns. Fetterman backed the tool as a shift from "reactive to predictive." Washington Sun dates the letter Oct. 9; Cryptopolitan says Oct. 13. The ask does not halt deployment; lawmakers say safety evaluations are still missing.