Next Generation Air Transportation System Progress Challenges In Planning Implementing The Transformation Of The National Airspace System

Next Generation Air Transportation System: Progress and Challenges in Planning and Implementing the Transformation of the National Airspace System

To prepare for future air traffic growth, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), including its Joint Planning and Development Office (JPDO) and Air Traffic Organization, is planning and implementing the Next Generation Air Transportation System (NextGen) in partnership with other federal agencies, such as the Departments of Commerce, Defense, and Homeland Security, and the aviation industry. NextGen will transform the current radar-based air traffic control system into a satellite-based system. As FAA begins implementing near-and midterm NextGen capabilities, a key challenge will be the extent to which FAA is able to integrate near and midterm improvements (those between 2012 and 2018) with long-term plans (beyond 2018). Furthermore, coordination among federal partner agencies and among various lines of business within FAA is important to ensure that NextGen implementation efforts are aligned. GAO's testimony focuses on (1) current mechanisms for and challenges to coordination among FAA and its partner agencies in implementing NextGen, (2) challenges and ongoing efforts to improve coordination across offices within FAA, and (3) issues related to integrating near- and midterm implementation plans with long-term NextGen plans. This statement is based on past and ongoing GAO work, and interviews GAO conducted with senior agency officials at FAA, JPDO and its partner agencies, and selected industry stakeholders.

In 2003, Congress created the Joint Planning and Development Office (JPDO) to plan for and coordinate, with federal and nonfederal stakeholders, a transformation from the current air traffic control system to the "next generation air transportation system" (NGATS) by 2025. Housed within the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), JPDO has seven partner agencies: the Departments of Transportation, Commerce, Defense, and Homeland Security; FAA; the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA); and the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy. FAA will have primary responsibility for implementing NGATS. This report addresses (1) the status of JPDO's efforts to plan for NGATS, (2) the key challenges facing JPDO, and (3) the key challenges facing FAA as it implements the transformation. To address these issues, GAO reviewed relevant documents, interviewed agency officials and stakeholders, and conducted an expert panel.

This Government Accountability Office (GAO) testimony focuses on (1) the progress that JPDO has made in planning NextGen and some challenges it continues to face and (2) the challenges that FAA faces transitioning to NextGen. GAO's statement is based on their recent reports as well as ongoing work, all of which has been conducted in accordance with generally accepted government auditing standards.

The FAA, incl. its Joint Planning and Dev¿t. Office (JPDO) and Air Traffic Org. (ATO), is planning for and implementing the Next Generation Air Transportation System (NextGen) in partnership with other fed. agencies and the aviation industry. NextGen will transform the current radar-based air traffic control system into a more automated, aircraft-centered, satellite-based system. This testimony focuses on: (1) JPDO's and ATO's progress in planning and implementing NextGen; (2) ongoing efforts to implement midterm capabilities to address capacity constraints and delays; (3) the potential impact on NextGen of organizational changes and human capital issues; and (4) R&D and facilities maintenance and reconfiguration challenges going forward. Illus.

The Next Generation Air Transportation System's (NextGen) goal is the transformation of the U.S. national airspace system through programs and initiatives that could make it possible to shorten routes, navigate better around weather, save time and fuel, reduce delays, and improve capabilities for monitoring and managing of aircraft. A Review of the Next Generation Air Transportation provides an overview of NextGen and examines the technical activities, including human-system design and testing, organizational design, and other safety and human factor aspects of the system, that will be necessary to successfully transition current and planned modernization programs to the future system. This report assesses technical, cost, and schedule risk for the software development that will be necessary to achieve the expected benefits from a highly automated air traffic management system and the implications for ongoing modernization projects. The recommendations of this report will help the Federal Aviation Administration anticipate and respond to the challenges of implementing NextGen.

Recognizing the need for aviation system transformation to deal with our crowded skies, Congress authorized the Joint Planning & Dev¿t. Office (JPDO), housed within the FAA, to lead a collaborative effort of fed. & non-fed. aviation stakeholders to conceptualize & plan the Next Generation Air Transp. System (NextGen) -- a fundamental redesign & modernization of the nat. airspace system. JPDO operates in conjunction with its partner agencies: the FAA; the DoT, Commerce, DoD, & Homeland Security; NASA; & the White House Office of Science & Tech. Policy. This testimony focuses on the progress that JPDO has made in planning the NextGen initiative & some key issues & challenges that JPDO continues to face. Charts & tables.

The health of our nation's air transportation system is critical to our citizens and economy. However, the current approach to managing air transportation is becoming increasingly inefficient and operationally obsolete. In 2003, Congress created the Joint Planning and Development Office (JPDO) to plan for and coordinate, with federal and nonfederal stakeholders, a transformation from the current air traffic control (ATC) system to the "next generation air transportation system" (NGATS). Housed within the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), JPDO has seven partner agencies that make up JPDO's senior policy committee: the Departments of Transportation, Commerce, Defense, and Homeland Security; FAA; the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA); and the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy. This testimony, which provides preliminary results from GAO's ongoing work on JPDO, provides information on (1) the status of JPDO's efforts to plan for NGATS, (2) the key challenges facing JPDO as it moves forward with its planning efforts, and (3) the key challenges facing FAA as it