As aircraft navigate one of America’s busiest air travel corridors, a significant transformation is taking place below ground—one that remains unseen but is essential for aviation safety.
L3Harris has achieved an important milestone in the modernization of the Federal Aviation Administration’s Telecommunications Infrastructure (FTI), successfully completing over 50% of a comprehensive effort to revamp the critical network connecting towers, radar facilities, and air traffic control centers throughout the United States.
This accomplishment is a testament to the capability of large-scale infrastructure modernization to proceed at remarkable speed without interrupting the approximately 45,000 flights that rely on these systems each day.
Building Tomorrow’s Infrastructure Today
“We’re building the modern foundation needed to meet growing demand while maintaining the safest airspace in the world,” stated Kathy Crandall, President of Mission Networks at L3Harris. “The transformation directly benefits everyone involved in aviation. For the traveling public, it translates to enhanced safety and reduced delays. For air traffic controllers, it allows the integration of modern equipment, and for airline operators, it fosters more efficient and cost-effective operations.”
The scope and pace of the work are impressive: L3Harris engineers are deploying between 150 and 200 new network paths each month, spanning various environments—from bustling urban areas to remote Alaskan facilities, from coastal installations at sea level to sites in high-altitude mountain regions—all while ensuring zero disruptions to operations.
“Operations never stop in air traffic control, so neither do we,” explained Chris Collings, Vice President and General Manager of Managed Services at L3Harris. “We implement a ‘build-then-switch’ strategy—installing new infrastructure alongside existing systems, testing everything thoroughly in parallel, and executing cut-overs during carefully coordinated low-traffic periods with comprehensive backup systems in place.”
More Than Modernization – Enabling the Future
While updating aging systems is crucial, the true significance lies in what this modern network will enable. The infrastructure that L3Harris is modernizing today will function as the secure backbone supporting the transmission of all mission-critical and safety-sensitive services across the National Airspace System—including voice, video, radar, weather data, flight information, and more.
This enhanced infrastructure will support legacy systems even as the FAA continues to modernize the remainder of the National Airspace System. It will facilitate advanced capabilities like digital communications between controllers and pilots, real-time weather data sharing, cloud-based information management, and improved surveillance systems.
In addition to improving today’s operations, the infrastructure is being crafted to address future challenges, including urban air mobility, increased drone traffic, AI-assisted air traffic management, and other emerging technologies.
“We’re not just replacing old with new—we’re crafting a flexible, future-proof infrastructure,” Crandall emphasized. “What we’re building includes software-defined networking, cloud-ready architectures, and resilient communications capable of adapting to whatever lies ahead.”
A Workforce Investment in American Infrastructure
This modernization initiative signifies a considerable investment in American talent and capabilities. L3Harris has onboarded approximately 200 telecommunications engineers at its facility in Melbourne, Florida, and maintains a team of over 250 field technicians and engineers deployed nationwide. The company plans to expand its workforce by adding 175 additional positions in 2026.
“This endeavor extends beyond technology—it’s fundamentally about people,” Collings noted. “We are developing a skilled workforce that will sustain and advance this critical infrastructure for years to come. These are quality jobs supporting families and communities throughout the country.”
The dedicated field teams operate under challenging conditions, from installing systems in austere environments to managing complex setups in active air traffic control facilities, all while upholding the reliability demanded for aviation safety.
Source: L3Harris (2026-05-11)
