NextGen Implementation Plan
Program Reference Sheet for Data Comm
Data Communications in support of Next Generation Air Transportation System (NextGen)
FAA Strategic Goal: Greater Capacity – Increase capacity to meet projected demand and reduce congestion.
The FAA has identified this program as a “Transformational” program for NextGen. Most NextGen goals require digital data communications infrastructure.
Description of Problem:
In the current air traffic system, all communication with airborne aircraft is by voice communications. Aircraft route of flight revisions must be communicated through multiple change-of-course instructions or lengthy verbal reroute instructions, which must be repeated, are prone to verbal communication errors and entry errors into an aircraft’s flight management system. The use of voice communication is labor and time intensive and will limit the ability of the FAA to effectively meet future traffic demand. Voice-only communications will not support the NextGen vision, especially in the areas of net-enabled information access and aircraft trajectory-based operations.
Description of Solution:
Adding an air-to-ground data communications capability will meet the needs of the NextGen vision, while significantly reducing controller-to-pilot communications and controller workload, and enhancing safety. This program will provide comprehensive data communications, including ground automation message generation and receipt, message routing and transmission, and aircraft avionics requirements. Initially, data communications will be an additional means for two-way exchange between controllers and flight crews for air traffic control clearances, instructions, advisories, flight crew requests and reports. Eventually, the majority of communications will be handled by data communications for appropriately equipped users. Automated data communications will support the NextGen vision by enabling air traffic control to issue an entire route of flight with a single data transmission directly to an aircraft’s flight management system. This Data Communications program will progressively move the National Airspace System (NAS) toward NextGen by building incremental capabilities that reduce unit costs while enhancing capacity and safety.
To meet the NextGen timetable, the Initial Investment Decision for Data Communications in support of NextGen is scheduled for June 2008. For FY 2009, $28,800,000 is requested to complete FAA Investment Analysis, initiation of system development contracts, and continuation of long-lead operational and regulatory activities. FY 2009 efforts will include finalizing system-level requirements, achieving Final Investment Decision approval, preparatory work required for rulemaking, contract award for Data Communications enhancements to En Route and Tower automation applications and interfaces, and final preparations for acquisition of air/ground communications services. During FY 2009, operations and human factors research to mitigate design and operational risks associated with initial data communications services will be completed, and research supporting advanced NextGen-enabling data communications capabilities will continue.
Benefits:
Data communications are at the heart of NextGen advanced airspace management concepts. The operations and services enabled by data communications will allow us to strategically manage the airspace, and meet traffic demand while constraining operational and life-cycle costs.
Analog voice communications can contribute to operational errors due to miscommunications, stolen clearances and delayed messages due to frequency congestion. In FY 2004 and FY 2005, approximately 20 percent of en route operational errors were voice communications related. Of those, 30 percent of the high severity operational errors were deemed to be communications-related. With total aircraft equipage, data communications can substantially reduce communications-related operational errors.
Data communications will enable air traffic controller productivity improvements, and will permit capacity growth without requisite growth in costs associated with infrastructure equipment, maintenance, labor, and training. As a result, unit costs (the resources necessary to provide air traffic management service per aircraft operation) will decrease. Data communications achieves these results by automating repetitive tasks, replacing voice communications with less workload-intensive data communications, and enabling ground systems to use real-time aircraft data to improve traffic management efficiency. Numerous studies suggest that with 70 percent of aircraft data-link equipped, exchanging routine controller-pilot messages and clearances via data can enable controllers to safely handle approximately 30 percent more traffic. This increase in traffic handling ability has a direct correlation to an increase in capacity. Data communications enabled NextGen services, including 4D trajectories and conformance management, will further improve capacity and efficiency by shifting air traffic operations from short-term, minute-by-minute tactical control, to more predictable, and planned strategic traffic management.
