Members of Congress asked the Government Accountability Office (GAO) to examine the FAA's SMART air traffic tool before it was expanded to all 22 en route centres, KXAN reports. KXAN says officials have not established any connection between SMART and the communications failure behind Friday's ground stop.
The FAA expanded SMART, an AI-supported air traffic planning tool, to all 22 air route traffic control centres on 10 November.
According to KXAN, the lawmakers' letter questioned SMART's safety, reliability and oversight. It asked the GAO to examine the FAA's risk assessments, testing, certification, controller training and coordination with airlines. KXAN does not give the date of the letter.
The letter questioned whether the FAA had adequately evaluated risks from SMART's AI, including interference with controllers' decision-making and inaccurate safety-critical information, KXAN reports. It also questioned the decision to pilot SMART first in congested airspace, including the National Capital Region.
"The nation's frontline aviation safety workforce apparently had little to no input into SMART's development and have received limited training and information during the current deployment process"
The letter cited a September GAO report on cost and schedule planning for the FAA's modernisation effort, according to KXAN.
The oversight request shows concerns were raised before the rollout. It is not a finding on the cause of the ground stop.