Summary

In response to a congressional request, GAO reviewed the Federal Aviation Administration's (FAA) planning, management, and acquisition of existing and future automated systems for air traffic control (ATC) and management.

GAO found that the National Airspace System (NAS) Plan is a step in the right direction toward modernizing facilities and equipment and toward supporting needed engineering and research. However, FAA has not yet developed a comprehensive agencywide long-range plan and the NAS plan is incomplete because it does not address its long-range requirements. The NAS plan considers only the ATC system facilities and equipment, one of three major areas which make up the system. GAO also found that the management, planning, and acquisition of en route and terminal ATC automation projects have not been adequate. In addition, a review of communications and navigations projects disclosed technical problems, uncoordinated implementation schedules, and questionable user acceptance of the projects. GAO believes that FAA efforts to realign automation engineering functions and establish a central program office for the computer replacement project will help to improve management control; however, some automation functions still need to be integrated. FAA is experiencing delays and cost overruns in many systems and software development projects designed to implement safety and fuel efficiency improvements. On the communications projects which GAO reviewed, it found technical problems and a need for further testing and cost analysis.