FAA’s New ERAM, WATRS Rules Take Effect This Month

By by Chad Trautvetter

June 3, 2008
Regulations

According to NBAA, the implementation date for the FAA’s En Route Automation Modernization (ERAM) program has been postponed from this Thursday, June 5, until June 29 to prevent conflict with the start of a new charting cycle and the transition to the West Atlantic Route System (WATRS). ERAM is the largest National Airspace System (NAS) equipment replacement program in the FAA’s history, supplanting legacy Host computer processing systems used in 20 Air Route Traffic Control Centers.

The new Host systems will automatically assign preferential routes based on the equipment capability contained in an ICAO-filed flight plan, according to the FAA. The first operational use of ERAM, which will make the NAS system ICAO compatible, is scheduled for October at the Salt Lake City ARTCC.

Meanwhile, the WATRS Plus route structure redesign and separation reduction project, which takes effect this Thursday, will reduce the lateral separation standard for authorized required navigation performance 4 (RNP 4) and RNP 10 aircraft. It will also increase the number of routes available through WATRS airspace.

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