{"id":1013942,"date":"2026-08-21T01:24:16","date_gmt":"2026-08-21T01:24:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/1013942\/"},"modified":"2026-08-21T01:24:16","modified_gmt":"2026-08-21T01:24:16","slug":"san-antonio-airport-to-receive-31-million-in-air-traffic-control-upgrades","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/1013942\/","title":{"rendered":"San Antonio airport to receive $31 million in air traffic control upgrades"},"content":{"rendered":"

SAN ANTONIO<\/strong> \u2013 Travelers at San Antonio International Airport may not notice the changes happening behind the scenes, but federal officials say new technology is being installed to improve safety in the air and on the ground.<\/p>\n

The upgrades are part of a $12.5 billion nationwide investment in air traffic control and airport technology approved by Congress. The funding will come from President Donald Trump\u2019s Working Americans Tax Cut Act<\/a>, U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said.<\/p>\n

San Antonio International Airport is expected to receive about $30 million for the improvements.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ve switched over the old copper to fiber,\u201d Duffy said. \u201cWe gave them new radios. In the next couple of weeks to a month, they\u2019re going to get electronic flight strips.\u201d<\/p>\n

The electronic strips will replace the paper strips controllers use to track flights as they move from one controller to another.<\/p>\n

Duffy said the airport will also receive new voice switches, displays, radar and surface-awareness systems. Those upgrades are designed to give controllers clearer communication with pilots and better visibility of aircraft on the ground, especially during bad weather or fog.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen you have more resilient equipment, when you have radios that are far crisper versus ones that are 30 or 40 years old, the communication between the tower and the pilots is way cleaner, way crisper,\u201d Duffy said.<\/p>\n

Surface-awareness systems could also help controllers identify where aircraft are on the tarmac and help prevent ground incidents.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhere planes might bump, we saw an incident actually in LaGuardia,\u201d Duffy said. \u201cSo giving an additional tool when the weather\u2019s bad or fog is rolled in to let them see what\u2019s happening on the field as opposed to just looking out the window and seeing what\u2019s there again drives safety.\u201d<\/p>\n

U.S. Rep. Monica De La Cruz, who represents Texas\u2019 15th Congressional District, supported the funding.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat this does is allow the controllers to put more safety measures in flights for the everyday passenger,\u201d De La Cruz said.<\/p>\n

Duffy said the San Antonio upgrades are expected to be completed by the end of 2028. He said additional changes could be made as the federal government continues developing new software to help controllers manage weather, delays and growing air traffic. However, software upgrades have not all been approved by congress.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe have to have the best equipment to match the best controllers that we do have to make sure that we navigate this safely,\u201d Duffy said.<\/p>\n

Read also:<\/b><\/p>\n