A look at the digital flight strip system used by the FAA

Executive Summary

The FAA’s program to replace paper flight strips with a digital flight strip system across 90 airports by 2028, combined with an ongoing Common Automation Platform (CAP) procurement, materially affects several adjacent market segments named in the Tags. Affected segments include Aviation Technology; Air Traffic Management Systems; IT Modernization; Digital Transformation; Systems Integration; Software Development; and Aviation Safety Systems. Leidos’ ongoing implementations (18 airports since November 2022) and its presence among five shortlisted CAP vendors indicate an active, multi-year modernization wave with both near-term deployment activity and longer-term platform consolidation risk/opportunity.

Scale: the program spans dozens of airports with a defined deployment milestone (90 airports by 2028) and an active competitive push toward a consolidated automation platform (CAP). Contractors should pay attention now to capture teaming roles on deployments, position for the CAP procurement, ensure relevant compliance postures, and build demonstrable integration and safety credentials. Specific contracting lanes and solicitation details (beyond the CAP name and the listed NAICS and compliance surfaces) are TBD pending solicitation language.

Impact Matrix

Aviation Technology

• Risk Level: Medium
• Opportunity: Technology vendors that provide avionics-adjacent systems, human-machine interfaces, and operational tools can support digital flight strip implementations and future CAP integrations. Specific opportunities TBD pending solicitation language; applicable NAICS codes from Tags include 541512, 541513, 541330, 334511, 517919, 541519.
• Timeline: Replacement at 90 airports by 2028; Leidos implementing at 18 airports since November 2022.
• Action Required: Validate product fit for real-time operational environments, assemble FAA-focused references or pilots, and align messaging to the FAA’s digital flight strip modernization objectives.
• Competitive Edge: Demonstrate operational readiness through targeted pilots or integrations with existing FAA systems and highlight domain-specific safety/operational benefits.

Air Traffic Management Systems

• Risk Level: Medium
• Opportunity: Direct opportunity to supply components, integrations, or subsystems that support digital flight strips and interoperability with consolidated automation platforms (CAP). Specific opportunities TBD pending solicitation language; the CAP vehicle is explicitly named.
• Timeline: Replacement at 90 airports by 2028; CAP procurement active (timeline for CAP award TBD pending source review).
• Action Required: Prepare technical whitepapers showing interoperability, readiness for ground-to-tower workflows, and ability to integrate with a future CAP environment.
• Competitive Edge: Build or publicize proven interfaces to common automation platforms and emphasize low-friction integration pathways for legacy tower equipment.

IT Modernization

• Risk Level: Medium
• Opportunity: Modernization providers (cloud, enterprise modernization, data / systems consolidation) can support the migration from paper workflows to digitized, networked systems and the CAP consolidation. NAICS and compliance surfaces in Tags are relevant.
• Timeline: Replacement at 90 airports by 2028; CAP procurement ongoing (timeline TBD pending source review).
• Action Required: Ensure FedRAMP (Federal Risk and Authorization Management Program) and NIST 800-171 (NIST Special Publication 800-171) alignment where applicable; prepare migration plans and cost/benefit case studies for migrating operational data off paper.
• Competitive Edge: Offer proven secure-cloud or managed services approaches that reference FedRAMP and NIST 800-171 alignment and lower operational risk during cutover.

Digital Transformation

• Risk Level: Medium
• Opportunity: Firms offering process redesign, UX for controllers, change management, and analytics can support adoption of digital flight strips and CAP-driven workflows. Specific opportunities TBD pending solicitation language.
• Timeline: Replacement at 90 airports by 2028; Leidos deployments ongoing since November 2022.
• Action Required: Prepare transformation frameworks targeted at air traffic control operations, including training and human factors workstreams tied to FAA guidance.
• Competitive Edge: Pair technical delivery with human factors/UX credentials and measurable adoption metrics to reduce operational friction.

Systems Integration

• Risk Level: High
• Opportunity: Integrators will be needed to stitch digital flight strip solutions into tower, radar, voice, and enterprise systems and to integrate subsystems into CAP. The CAP contract vehicle is relevant. NAICS codes in Tags apply.
• Timeline: Replacement at 90 airports by 2028; CAP procurement ongoing (timeline TBD pending source review).
• Action Required: Establish teaming agreements (including with incumbents such as firms already implementing deployments), prepare system integration demonstrations, and document operational integration experience.
• Competitive Edge: Offer proven integration playbooks and references from air traffic-related system deployments; emphasize ability to work with incumbent implementers and to meet FAA operational and safety requirements.

Software Development

• Risk Level: High
• Opportunity: Development of flight-strip applications, APIs, automation modules, and analytics for both point deployments and CAP-level consolidation. Specific opportunities TBD pending solicitation language; relevant NAICS codes include 541512, 541513, 541519.
• Timeline: Replacement at 90 airports by 2028; ongoing deployments since November 2022.
• Action Required: Harden software for operational availability and safety, prepare secure development lifecycle artifacts aligned to NIST 800-171 and FedRAMP where applicable, and capture domain-specific requirements.
• Competitive Edge: Deliver field-tested code, integration toolkits, and test harnesses that demonstrate low-risk adoption and regulatory/compliance alignment.

Aviation Safety Systems

• Risk Level: Medium
• Opportunity: Safety-critical verification/validation, compliance monitoring, and fail-safe design for digital flight strip deployments and CAP consolidation. Specific opportunities TBD pending solicitation language.
• Timeline: Replacement at 90 airports by 2028.
• Action Required: Align safety cases and V&V artifacts to FAA expectations and include the digital flight strip context in safety analyses per FAA guidance.
• Competitive Edge: Provide documented safety cases and V&V workstreams that directly map to tower operational scenarios and FAA safety guidance.

Cross-Segment Implications

• Integration dependency: Systems Integration, Software Development, and IT Modernization must coordinate tightly — software and cloud modernization efforts need integration plans that account for air-traffic operational constraints.
• Compliance and procurement: NIST 800-171 and FedRAMP (and FAA Order 1370.121 as a named compliance surface) are cross-cutting requirements that raise the bar for bidders across software, IT modernization, and systems integration.
• Competitive dynamics: Incumbent deployments (Leidos at 18 airports since November 2022) and the CAP shortlist environment (Leidos among five shortlisted vendors) create a landscape where teaming with incumbents or differentiating by integration/safety credentials is critical.
• Timeline coupling: The 90-airport by-2028 deployment target creates near-term demand for deployment services while CAP procurement can reshape long-term platform suppliers, so vendors should balance short-term deployment captures with CAP positioning.