Show Notes
Advanced airline systems technology with the head of DataArt’s Aviation Practice. In the news: cloud-based air traffic control in the Washington, D.C., area; thousands of flights delayed and canceled after FAA and NATS system failures; safety reforms after the DCA midair collision; and the loss of a new Cessna Citation Latitude.
Guest
Tim McMullen is Vice President, Business Development, Aviation and Travel Technology, at DataArt. That company provides data and analytics services, artificial intelligence and machine learning services, cloud migration and optimization, and custom software engineering to the aviation and other industries.
Tim leads DataArt’s Aviation Practice and has spent nearly twenty years working with airlines worldwide on technology, from start-ups to the largest network carriers. He has provided clients with solutions in reservations, customer care, loyalty, network planning, pricing/RM, airline operations, dispatch, crew planning and scheduling, airport operations, aircraft maintenance, and cargo.
Tim previously worked as a software product manager and managed the end-to-end lifecycle of a SaaS suite of network planning, forecasting, and fleet optimization solutions. He also has 10 years’ experience at two airlines in network planning, pricing, revenue management, and finance.
Aviation News
FAA Preparing to Field SMART in Washington, DC in First Operational Deployment
The Strategic Management of Airspace, Routes, and Trajectories, or SMART, is characterized by the FAA SMART Fact Sheet [PDF] as “a cloud-based platform system that enhances existing FAA air traffic management systems. It provides air traffic control and aircraft operators with a shared, data-driven view of the National Airspace before flights depart.”
Using AI, SMART analyzes airline schedules, weather, airport capacity, airspace conditions, and operational constraints to forecast traffic flows and identify potential conflicts before they occur. It gives the FAA, airlines, and operators a shared, continuously updated view to coordinate efficient routes and departure times as conditions change.
The FAA is preparing to put SMART into operational use in the Washington, DC area in the system’s first operational fielding. SMART is part of the Flow Management Data and Services (FMDS) platform being built by Air Space Intelligence (ASI). The company says the award covers both systems and is worth US$875m over 12 years.
See also: FAA to launch AI-enhanced software to help manage the nation’s airspace
Video: Civil Aviation at ASI
Thousands of US flights snarled due to FAA telecom problem
FAA Administrator Bryan Bedford said that a circuit blew at the Philadelphia TRACON. When the system tried to switch to the backup, it discovered that a construction crew had cut the fiber-optic line. FlightAware reported that more than 5,600 US flights were delayed or canceled. The three New York-area airports accounted for 1,200 of those flights.
UK air traffic controller blames a millisecond-software glitch for flight cancellations
On September 8, 2026, over 2,000 flights in and out of the United Kingdom were canceled. A preliminary report faults a software glitch with NATS, formerly known as National Air Traffic Services. The system, which allocates codes, allows air traffic controllers to identify flights on radar. Hundreds of thousands of travelers were impacted, and it took days to fully restore operations.
Families of D.C. midair crash victims press Congress for aviation safety reforms
Families of the victims of the January 2025 mid-air collision between an American Eagle CRJ700 commuter jet and a U.S. Army helicopter near Washington Reagan National Airport (DCA) are looking for Congressional action. Some of the family members are concerned that Congress isn’t up to the task. The father of one victim referred to it as “fading urgency” where “Something everyone agrees will make people safer gets caught in process
More from Airplane Geeks Podcast
Interviews from the Pacific Airshow, a visit to the American Helicopter Museum, and an Australia desk with news from Down Under.
FAA ATC hiring record, NBAA and ATC modernization, restrictions on flights near spacecraft launches, Army findings on the DC midair crash. Also, VFC-12 (the “Fighting Omars”), talking with Kiah Erlich and Martin Kemp, Launchpad’s last chocolates, Kinner Sportwing B-2, a new refueling squadron, and a United transatlantic flight makes an unusual fuel stop.
Bombardier and global aerospace manufacturing, air traffic controller criticism of the FAA, boom refueling for RAF tankers, airport gate access for people without tickets, restricting beverage service after pushback, and an OzDesk report.
We learn about airshow photography as we talk with a private pilot and UAV operator. In the news: Textron’s new president and CEO, controllers and the fatal Air Canada Express crash, Marine One communications with DCA tower, Boeing’s new F-15 contract, the TSA’s Gold+ privatized airport screening program, and the Airlink low pass over a Cape Town stadium.