Amid reports that new AI-powered tools, designed to predict and prevent flight delays, are being rolled out this week at the D.C. region’s three airports, passengers at Dulles International Airport were hopeful the system will be fully tested.
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The Strategic Management of Airspace, Routing and Trajectories — or SMART — program is designed to analyze airline timetables, weather patterns and other factors to forecast congestion and propose alternative routes to alleviate delays. The system is located at the Federal Aviation Administration’s Air Traffic Control System Command Center, in Warrenton, Virginia.
“I’m not sure about that,” mused one flyer who was headed to Cancun. “A lot can be at stake if AI makes a simple mistake.”
“Air traffic is very sensitive and very delicate, so any tool like that should be tested very, very well,” he said.
That appears to be the tack taken by the FAA and airlines, who have held several meetings discussing the feature in the $875 million system.
According to the U.S. Department of Transportation, the SMART system will not replace any air traffic controllers or direct any changes to flight routes. Instead, the system will offer recommendations that air traffic controllers, based on their years of training and personal judgment, can implement or ignore.
While the SMART system is designed to analyze schedules and congestion data up to a month in advance, during the initial roll-out, the AI system only offers alternatives to avoid same-day weather delays.
Does the leery passenger think that will help assure safety?
“I hope so — they’re the experts, they should know what they’re doing the right amount of time to let it mature and get the best out of it,” he said.
A passenger on his way to Charlotte, North Carolina, was enthusiastic about the possibilities of an AI-assisted travel system.
“Anything that aids the air traffic controllers in helping them do their job and do it successfully is always beneficial,” he said. “And, if it helps us travelers not be delayed and not face cancellations or at least know a bit sooner, it’s all quite good.”
Like most AI models, he expects the system will need to be trained.
“If it works great right away, that’s awesome,” he said, but added he preferred “having a little test bed, and having it deployed slowly until it’s full-scale.”
The FAA has maintained that SMART will not replace human controllers.
The National Air Traffic Controllers Association has said no technology should replace the experience, training and professional judgment of air traffic controllers. In addition, the controllers say they were not involved in the design or testing of SMART.
IUSTITIA.BG – Investigations 2009-2026 2026-09-21 18:00:54
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