FAA Will Finally Stop Using Floppy Disks for Air Traffic Control
The FAA is finally starting to get rid of floppy disks that are still being used in parts of the U.S. air traffic control system.
The agency announced this week that it has begun rolling out a new Enterprise Information Display System, or E-IDS, which will replace four older systems dating back to the 1980s. Some of those systems still rely on floppy disks to handle important weather and operational information.
The new E-IDS system puts information such as weather alerts, equipment issues, airspace restrictions, pilot reports and other operational updates into one digital platform, making it easier for controllers to quickly access and share information.
The first upgrades are being installed at:
- Atlantic City International Airport
- Nashville International Airport
- Greater Rochester International Airport
- FAA data processing hubs in Atlanta
- FAA data processing hubs in Salt Lake City
The FAA says that it plans to install the new system at 435 facilities by the end of 2028.
For those who are not familiar with floppy disks, they largely disappeared from everyday use decades ago. But some FAA systems have remained in service because replacing air traffic control technology can take years of testing and certification. The E-IDS project itself has been in the works for several years, with the FAA awarding a major contract for the system back in 2020.
The floppy disk replacement is just one part of a much larger effort to modernize the country’s aging air traffic control infrastructure. The FAA has also been replacing copper wiring, installing electronic flight strips and rolling out newer voice and surface-awareness systems.
