responsibility and
accountability for
achieving NextGen
benefits.
study team for the Houston Optimization of Airspace and Procedures in the Metroplex (OAPM) program. The study team recommends that ultra-high sector proposals for Houston be aligned and coordinated with potential modifications in Memphis and proposed modifications for the north Texas metroplex.
AcTION:
If the Houston design and implementation team deems ultra-high sector modifications necessary, the FAA will conduct quick-look analyses to explore potential benefits and costs. If we find potential benefits, we will forward recommendations.
REcOMMENdATION:
The FAA should monitor closely the implementation •
timeline of the Denver RNAV project because of potential delays.
AcTION:
We note that the Denver project shifted from RNAV to a full PBN, which resulted in a longer schedule than originally conceived. We will continue monitoring the Denver project.
REcOMMENdATION:
The FAA should complete the design and •
implementation of the current phase of the Chicago Airspace Program (CAP) within the time constraints of the O’Hare Modernization Project (OMP). The FAA should work with the NAC to develop potential airspace and procedure improvements for the Chicago metroplex after the CAP is finished. The FAA should consider using technology and procedures that have evolved since the CAP design process began, and that could be deployed under the current Environmental Impact Statement. Stakeholder participation in CAP development should continue in order to create as many optimized procedures as possible.
AcTION:
The FAA has ongoing work related to these recommendations, and OMP activities will require additional coordination. The Chicago OAPM process will begin in 2012 and will only undertake changes that fall within the existing record of decision.
REcOMMENdATION:
The U.S. Air Force (USAF) and RTCA should •
continue discussions to implement a Federal Advisory Committee Act process to work toward airspace that
is acceptable to the mission and business cases of all airspace users when the USAF develops large-scale airspace proposals.
REsPONsE:
The USAF reports that it is working on this process.
REcOMMENdATION:
The FAA should continue to develop Traffic •
Management Advisor, Relative Position Indicator and other NextGen air traffic management tools to help increase system capacity and improve efficiency in the NAS. Also, the agency should develop metrics to measure the tools’ effectiveness and to quantify throughput/capacity increases.
AcTION:
We are creating a consistent set of high-level metrics for NextGen. We are leveraging key automation systems to provide data to evaluate more detailed measures of operational performance. See Metrics on page 31 for more information.
REcOMMENdATION:
The FAA should work with industry and the DoD •
to optimize south Florida airspace in coordination with the commissioning of the runway extension at Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport in 2014. Caribbean airspace and routes also should be optimized with PBN. The FAA should begin work in south Florida during the 2012 OAPM process, and the effort should be coordinated with central Florida airspace.
AcTION:
The FAA has ongoing work to address south Florida airspace redesign and Caribbean routes. The OAPM study team is scheduled to start in 2012. Last year, the Southeast Airspace and Procedures Work Group discussed Caribbean route redesign; air carriers submitted Q-route proposals during a November 2011 meeting with the work group.
tRaJeCtoRy oPeRatIoNS
These recommendations reflect the NAC’s concern about establishing priorities for operational scenarios, and the FAA’s communication with industry about its plans. REcOMMENdATIONs:
The FAA should incorporate the NAC’s comments on •
22 of the 26 mid-term operational scenarios related to trajectory operations.
www.faa.gov/nextgen 33 The FAA should incorporate the NAC’s prioritization
•
of the 22 scenarios. Action:
In Fiscal Year 2012, we will review comments and determine which scenarios are actionable in support of the next iteration of the Mid-Term Concept of Operations for the NAS. Additionally, the FAA will use this prioritization to help inform NextGen segment implementation planning in FY 2012 and beyond. We will have to analyze the scenario prioritization against the trajectory operations operational improvement (OI) prioritization. We must also weigh the input for consistency against other industry recommendations, such as the RTCA NextGen Mid-Term Implementation Task Force. We will need to analyze the recommendation as part of the NextGen portfolio development process.
RecommendAtion:
The FAA should baseline the operational scenarios, •
distribute the baseline to the aviation industry and update the baseline with input from aviation stakeholders.
Action:
We will make the scenarios available through the FAA’s external Enterprise Architecture portal1 in FY 2012. RecommendAtion:
The FAA should publish in the NextGen Implementation •
Plan the prioritization of OIs needed to implement trajectory operations capabilities.
Action:
The FAA will use the NAC trajectory operations prioritization of scenarios to help inform NextGen segment implementation plans.
RecommendAtion:
The Data Comm program is crucial to achieving •
maximum benefits from Trajectory Based Operations, serving as a basic building block for NextGen capability.
Response:
The FAA suggested, in response to the NAC’s recommendation in September 2011, that the NAC consider its prioritization of OIs and NextGen operational scenarios, and incorporate this prioritization in its Data Comm recommendation scheduled for February 2012. The NAC
provided its recommendations at the February meeting, and the FAA is evaluating them.
RecommendAtion:
The FAA should leverage existing airline equipage •
in demonstration projects. Action:
The FAA will continue to encourage the use of existing equipage during demonstrations. Tailored Arrivals and three-dimensional Path Arrival Manager are two examples of demonstrations that leveraged existing aircraft equipage. RecommendAtion:
Enhancements to the navigation capabilities of aircraft, •
RNAV/RNP with Time of Arrival Control (TOAC) in the descent phase, will begin to increase benefits of trajectory operations through the adaptability of the aircraft trajectory to enable operational predictability and arrival accuracy of aircraft. Navigation standards activity to define requirements in this area is needed by mid-2013 or early 2014.
Action:
Seven action plans related to TOAC, also known as Required Time of Arrival, resulted from the Task Force recommendations. The FAA is working to implement limited TOAC capability between 2015 and 2018. In addition, RTCA and the European Organization for Civil Aviation Equipment are considering the research and development progress for the navigation standards noted.