04:54 PM EDT, 03/27/2025 (MT Newswires) -- No contract to upgrade US air traffic control system is being challenged by recent testing of Starlink communication terminals at select US airports.

Chris Rocheleau, acting head of Federal Aviation Administration told a Senate subcommittee on Thursday that the terminals are being tested only and are not plugged into the air traffic control systems.

There had been reports that Verizon's contract to upgrade US air traffic control systems might be challenged by Elon Musk's Starlink.

Democrats in Congress have questioned whether Musk is using his affiliation with President Donald Trump to win federal contracts for Starlink and SpaceX. Those concerns were amplified after Secretary of Transportation Sean Duffy recently criticized Verizon for the pace of its work on the upgrades.

No Department of Government Efficiency employees had any role in the testing Starlink terminals at a handful of airports, Rocheleau said, answering questions by Sen. Ed Markey, D-Massachusetts, during the hearing.