alt Hacker NewsI know we're all having fun in the comments. But please think about this next time you vote, local/county/state/national. There are people in charge who are not funding upgrading these systems, because their constituents don't want their taxes raised to pay for it. That lack of funding is annoying to some, has an enormous economic impact to many, and is now risking tens of thousands of lives who are literally up in the air. There are planes carrying body parts destined for transplant that are grounded. People who need to get home to their families. All because nobody wanted to pay for what we knew we needed to fix.
One thing to add is that this is bipartisan: both parties have failed to adequately fund ATC updates, and it sometimes feels like there's more interest in vanity projects than fundamental infrastructure funding and solving personnel shortages (ATC is a very difficult career, and the pay, benefits and prestige are not incredible. Fewer and fewer people are choosing to go into this very critical line of work).