The FAA is stuck in the 60's because there is a massive industry supporting the ancient technologies in general aviation. Modern stuff, like you point out, is

The FAA is stuck in the 60's because there is a massive industry supporting the ancient technologies in general aviation. Modern stuff, like you point out, is far more reliable, cheaper, lower power consumption, and more functional. That better reliability means less need for aircraft mechanics and avionics shops. Nobody would want their discreet component transponder overhauled if it could be replaced with a cheaper unit that uses modern wizardry like logic chips or even (gasp) a microcontroller. Ditto for leaded fuel air cooled piston engines with manual mixture controls that require teardowns all the time. That bullshit is only still around because Continental and Lycoming want it to.