A fatal mid-air collision in January involving a military helicopter and a commercial airliner, alongside several subsequent crashes, has compelled officials to concentrate on modernizing the nation's antiquated air traffic control system and recruiting additional controllers.

They believe this would help keep things safe and stop the problems that have been affecting the Newark, New Jersey, airport since its radar system stopped working for a short time last week.

Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy is set to announce a multi-billion-dollar plan to completely change the country's air traffic control system on Thursday. At the same time, the Federal Aviation Administration is working fast to fix technology and staff problems in Newark and stop similar problems from happening in other places.

In the middle of the problems, one thing is clear: an old system has trouble managing the country's more than 45,000 daily flights.

It's not clear if Duffy's plan, which President Donald Trump supports, will get enough money from Congress to work better than past reform efforts over the last 30 years. Duffy says it's needed, even though over $14 billion has been spent on improvements since 2003, and none have really changed how the system operates.

"We are committed to addressing this issue and developing an entirely new system for everyone, including your families and the American populace," Duffy stated.

However, specific information remains limited, making it uncertain if the proposal includes privatizing the air traffic control system, a measure previously endorsed by Trump. Duffy has not emphasized this potential outcome. The upcoming announcement on Thursday is anticipated to draw numerous unions, who would likely object to privatization, in addition to trade associations, industry spokespeople, and relatives of those affected by the January accident.

For years, the system has functioned adequately, resulting in its general disregard by consecutive administrations, according to University of Illinois professor Sheldon Jacobson, an expert in aviation risk assessment. “However, adequacy is insufficient when air travel is concerned, given the potential danger to human life.”

Jacobson is not sure if Duffy's idea will work. However, there might be more support after recent accidents, like when an American Airlines plane hit an Army helicopter in Washington D.C., and another plane turned over and caught fire in Toronto.

Reports and hearings have consistently underscored the vulnerabilities within the nation’s air traffic control system for many years.

Frank Lorenzo, the former CEO of Continental Airlines who helped create a big hub in Newark that United Airlines still uses after buying Continental, said, "We have an old system and old infrastructure." He added, "We haven't really given it the attention it needs."

The head of the National Air Traffic Controllers Association told Congress that much of the FAA's communication system at over 4,600 places still uses old copper wires for some parts, instead of better fiber optic lines that can handle more information. When these lines unexpectedly stop working, it often causes planes to stop on the ground at airports and seems to have caused the problems in Newark.

On April 28, the radar system used by air traffic controllers in Philadelphia to guide planes at Newark airport stopped working for at least 30 seconds. This happened because of problems with the data lines from New York, which the system needs. Some of these lines are old copper phone lines. The FAA uses these lines because Newark controllers moved from New York to Philadelphia last summer to help with not having enough staff.

On Wednesday, the FAA announced plans to change old copper wires to fiber optics and add three more data lines between New York and Philadelphia. The agency is also trying to train and certify more controllers.

It wasn't clear right away how long these steps would take, but Duffy hopes things will get better in Newark by summer. That's when a runway building project is supposed to finish. Also, some controllers are still on long trauma leave after the radar stopped working, which made the staff shortage in Philadelphia worse.

Consequently, the FAA has reduced traffic at Newark to guarantee safe flight operations, resulting in cancellations. Duffy further stated that the FAA will convene with all airlines to assess the airport's capacity. On Wednesday, Newark experienced the highest number of cancellations nationwide with 42 departing and 46 arriving flights cancelled, based on FlightAware.com data. This occurred despite United's reduction of 35 daily flights at the airport since the previous weekend.

The FAA has made improvements to its Nextgen program, which started in 2003. One improvement is the ADS-B system, which gives controllers and other planes more exact locations of aircraft. This system is important in the investigation of the January crash because the Black Hawk helicopter was not using it to share its location when the crash happened.

Additionally, Duffy has sought to expedite the recruitment of air traffic controllers by reducing the duration required for academy admission and enhancing student achievement rates. The FAA is likewise providing incentives to seasoned controllers to mitigate premature retirement.

A big problem when improving aviation infrastructure is that the FAA has to keep the old system working while they build a new one. Then, they need to find a way to change to the new system without any problems. This is one reason why the agency has made smaller, step-by-step improvements before.

The issue has persisted for decades, not due to oversight, but rather its inherent complexity, according to Jeff Guzetti, a former accident investigator who also served in the Transportation Department's Inspector General's office, specializing in aviation, for several years. He further contended that it necessitates both financial resources and effective administration, both of which the FAA has demonstrably lacked for an extended period.