Natca Chief Calls for More Scrutiny of FAA’s NextGen

By: Chad Trautvetter

March 27, 2008
ATC, Government, Avionics

“We believe that Congress should call for an immediate, comprehensive evaluation of NextGen, before additional funds to implement it are expended,” Natca president Patrick Forrey said yesterday at the Washington, D.C. Aero Club. “Until a reappraisal is completed, the FAA should suspend all ADS-B contract activities.

While Natca said it endorses any technological advance to improve air traffic control operations, “NextGen, as presently conceived, cannot” do what was promised, he noted. While NextGen advocates point to new technology as a way to overcome the limiting factors of weather and runway capacity, “For us controllers, time is measured in distance, and one minute equals three miles of separation.

So, regardless of how closely spaced aircraft are on approach, only one every minute, under ideal circumstances, can land,” Forrey countered. According to Natca, the FAA needs to focus its resources on completing the 30 projects, including ASDE-X and several controller automation systems, that form NextGen’s building blocks and other modernization initiatives vital to what Forrey dubbed “NowGen.

He believes “these projects can ease congestion and delays and confer needed safety and efficiency benefits immediately, to an ATC system under significant stress.

Back

Flight Plan System Failure Causes Widespread Delays November 19, 2009 Early this morning the FAA’s computerized system for loading flight plans failed, causing widespread traffic delays of up to 90 minutes and some... [more]
Aircell Names ExecuJet Local Dealer November 17, 2009 Airborne communication specialist Aircell has appointed ExecuJet Aviation as its first authorized dealer in the Middle East. ExecuJet operates a... [more]
News Clips from Dubai 2009 November 17, 2009 Emirates Charter Intros Exotic Travel PackagesEmpire Aviation Group (EAG) has announced plans for “Lifestyle@Empire,” an extension to the... [more]
P&W gearing up on new engine November 17, 2009 While focused on delivering geared turbofan (GTF) engines for the new Mitsubishi MRJ and Bombardier C Series, Pratt & Whitney is turning its... [more]
News Clips from Dubai 2009 November 16, 2009 Golf Champ Garcia To Visit Hawker Beech Chalet Professional golfer Sergio Garcia plans to visit Hawker Beechcraft (Chalet A9) at the show this... [more]