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Summary

This report presents our initial assessment of FAA’s plan to replace its telecommunications systems, known as the FAA Telecommunication Infrastructure Project (FTI). The FTI project team has addressed many telecommunication needs that will enable FAA to better support modernization of the National Airspace System with more efficient digital communications and to improve management of telecommunications operations. However, FAA faces significant challenges and risks with the proposed FTI project. The major risk factor is that air traffic control systems, which now operate on dedicated networks, would share the same network with administrative systems having direct connections to the Internet, thereby making air traffic control systems more vulnerable to unauthorized intrusion. In our opinion, FAA should not go forward with the network integration until it can give sufficient assurance that combining the National Airspace System with administrative systems on one integrated network will not compromise security of the National Airspace System.