Domestic ATC firms cite China concerns in latest effort to stifle competitors

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Domestic contractors vying for U.S. air traffic control modernization projects are citing Chinese business ties as well as cyber and national security concerns in their latest bid to shut out foreign-owned competition.

Leidos and RTX Corp. are warning Congress and the Trump administration of their competitors’ relationships with China, according to people familiar with the matter. Their French and Spanish competitors, Thales and Indra, have both sold air traffic management software platforms to the country, and Frequentis of Austria has active business relationships in China.

The five companies are competing to provide the Federal Aviation Administration with a Common Automation Platform (CAP), a key software pillar of its ATC modernization effort likely to cost hundreds of millions of dollars. Leidos privately argues that selling the same CAP technology to the FAA that is used by a key U.S. rival could create serious national security risks, the familiar people said. Indra and Thales told The Air Current they staunchly reject the notion that their systems could pose a risk, and Frequentis said it does not sell these products in China.

Previously, Leidos and RTX also argued that the selection or consideration of these European-owned companies for ATC modernization projects is counter to the administration’s “America first” initiatives, especially given some aviation-specific restrictions on U.S. companies competing in the European Union. 

That argument largely fell flat, but with the importance of China in the current American defense posture, the U.S.-based firms are finding more purchase for their national security-focused lobbying effort. In recent weeks, Congress has responded with bipartisan, bicameral draft legislation that would direct the FAA to look deeper at all contractors’ foreign relationships as a part of its award process for the CAP.