Metron Aviation. The Science of Harmonizing Air Traffic

Last week I had the good fortune to attend the Aviation Week “NextGen  Ahead 2010″ program in Washington, DC.  I think it was my good fortune because for what felt like the first time, there was a buzz around the place, not just for all things NextGen, and how progress is being made, and how it portends so very positively for the industry going forward, but I actually heard many of the speakers focus on an element that has been largely absent from NextGen dialogue, as well as planning, and participation in work groups that I’ve been among.  If you haven’t guessed by now, the missing element has been the controllers.  With the long hard days of contract negotiation behind us, I see an opportunity to garner the expertise if not support from the very men and women who will be the center of “NextGen Ahead”, clearly without their valuable input we don’t stand much chance of reaching the rather lofty goals often described by many anticipating NextGen’s bounty.   From my perspective, the newer members of FAA’s Air Traffic Control ranks will be the ones who will transition from today’s legacy systems into what will be a whole new ball game.  It’s that whole new ball game the industry is focused upon. Read the rest of this entry »

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I recently had the opportunity to spend several days at the USTDA’s U.S.-India Aviation Summit.  The program was alive with both timely and interesting panels.  We had many speakers from FAA including Administrator Randy Babbit, Peggy Gilligan, Associate Administrator for Aviation Safety, Di Reimhold Acting Administrator for International Aviation, Kate Lang, Associate Administrator for Airports, Nancy Kalinowski, Vice President, System Operations, and Carey Fagan, Director Strategy and Performance International Office.  Each of these folks delivered serious and valuable messages during their sessions.  I was taken by the breadth of FAA involvement, and their ability to address the myriad issues facing the service provider in India, as they try to build their infrastructure.  The Indian Government has a large interest in understanding what the FAA has done and what goes on here in the U.S.

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Recently I was able to both observe and participate in a skull session surrounding the upcoming closure of runway 31L at JFK.  The group of attendees was large, in the range of 30 people.  They represented many of the major airline operators, the airport operator and several FAA facilities.  I think after all of the briefings were accomplished, everyone had clarity on the anticipated impact of losing a runway for as many as four months at a time, beginning in March 2010.  I was struck by the desire to find common ground in developing plans to mitigate the expected loss.  The group went from best circumstances where there would be very little in the way of operational impact, to the “Murphy’s Law” scenario where the airport would be relegated single runway status, for a relatively long period of time.  The effect of such an occurrence, depending on the time of day and longevity would be enormous in terms of cancellations and diversions.  Read the rest of this entry »

There is an increasing interest in expanding horizons related to all manner of things associated with airport surface operations. We in the industry, as well as the traveling public, are witness to perturbations associated with inefficiencies on many of our nation’s airports. We’re not alone, the same circumstances leading to system inefficiencies, wasteful emissions, fuel burn, gate and ramp control, plague major airports world wide– much of it due to a lack of connectivity among surface providers. In Europe they began some time ago trying to find ways to better orchestrate airport operations and dubbed the effort CDM. It’s clearly a “kissin cousin” to our CDM but where we focused mainly in the air, our neighbors did it on the surface. I believe there are lessons, we can learn from our European counterparts, and lessons we can share with them too. Read the rest of this entry »

I’ve enjoyed a love affair for more than 40 years, no not with a woman, rather an industry. Clearly I’m not alone as so many of my friends and colleagues feel the same way. I’ve seen so many changes from my earliest days in Air Traffic Control (ATC), and I still enjoy watching airplanes land and take-off. Watching a heavily laden B747 climb out of Dulles Airport always makes me wonder how that big beauty can actually stay aloft. I think about all of the men and women in this industry that come together to make it all happen.

Early on in my FAA career, I had the opportunity to work in the New York area. From an ATC perspective, it was all about big egos pushing lots of “tin” to get the job done. There was a time when I thought I knew all there was to know about our industry, but clearly, all I knew was a lot about air traffic control, and really only in New York. A paltry sum when one considers the “industry as a whole.” Being the consummate professional (by New York) standards, I could “cuss” and “fuss” with the best of them. Somehow that seemed quite normal to me. If you went ugly early, you’d likely win most arguments. We argued all the time, especially with adjoining facilities (in my case, being an approach guy, with the center and towers). I recall frequent battles with what was then the central flow control facility (CF2), when they suggested we do something a way and we didn’t agree. Reason, was the first avenue pursued, but was often quickly followed by threats and worse. Read the rest of this entry »