NATCA Bookshelf

We are also working with CAMI on a study focusing on the effectiveness of training throughout the field. Sites are chosen that have both a high and low rate of success for employees reaching certification. The sample group will include developmentals, CPC- ITs, OJTIs, and operational supervisors. Employees will be asked to participate in an on-site survey pre-loaded on an iPad. The surveys will take approximately 15 minutes to complete and will be conducted on duty time. Once all of the field data collection occurs for the projects listed, the next step will be to process and analyze the data. This phase will consume most of 2019. NEXTGEN Adam Rhodes (I90) is the National NextGen Representative for NATCA. His report is below: NextGen Portfolio Manager Reviews (PfMRs) – NATCA participated in seven PfMRs, where FAA NextGen Programs make presentations on the current status of their respective programs. These included Collaborative Air Traffic Management (TFMS), Time Based Flow Management (TBFM), Safety System, Improved Multiple Runway Operations (IMRO), Improved Surface Operations, Performance Based Navigation, and Separation Management. Remote Offshore Meteorology Information Demonstration (ROMIO) – This program is an effort to bring real-time, long-range modeling and a depiction of oceanic convective weather into the flight deck. NATCA participates in the bi-weekly meetings. There have been several outages both planned and unplanned regarding ROMIO recently, and no new major developments have taken place. Fort Collins, Colo. (FNL) Remote Tower – During the month of November NATCA participated extensively in the Remote Tower Phase zero testing at Fort Collins, Colo. The initial system is in place and running and currently being optimized for the next round of testing which is slated to begin in March 2019. During the next phase of training a mobile tower will be in place to provide air traffic services while other air traffic controllers will be placed in the remote tower to mimic the mobile tower actions. Upon the successful completion of this phase, air traffic services will be moved to the remote tower with the mobile tower becoming the backup. Further testing will continue to take place. Leesburg, VA (JYO) Remote Tower – Testing began at JYO to start providing clearance delivery/flight data to pilots. In the past, pilots received this information from PCT. Testing will soon begin combining different positions at JYO similar to what operating control towers do today when traffic conditions warrant. NATCA participated in a workshop which was the first of a group of workshops that will help shape the operational requirements for remote tower systems similar to FNL and JYO. The next workshop is scheduled for Jan. 10, 2019.

• Cover
• ERAW received a briefing from Second Level Engineering and the Program Office on the Alternate Display Path in support of R-side Tech Refresh. The goal is to allow the AIX processor to provide data to the glass in the event of an MDM failure due to th...
• SE2 Use Case Updates
• o 4th Line – The team reached agreement on the 4th Line use case referencing the ON/OFF switch functionality. Once all team members concur, the use case will be sent to SLE.
• o Airspace Transfer – The team discussed the changes to the use case and a section was added for the "Push" function. The team also decided that language should be added to capture review of national procedures.
• DataComm CHI
• o The uplink type for Speed and Route Generic Uplinks was discussed. A recommendation was made to modify the classification of the Confirm Speed (uM134) and Confirm Assigned Route uplinks from Temporary Generic Uplinks to Permanent Generic Uplinks. Th...
• ER 195554 AHI and Point Outs
• o The team reviewed and reached agreement on the problem statement, "The desired behavior is to add system functionality that will insert an AHI (Auto Handoff Inhibit) for an aircraft from the initiating sector to the receiving sector after the receiv...
• ER 194653 Pending Font and Brightness
• o The team discussed and reached consensus on the problem statement, "Its desired behavior is to change the button functions on the SAA Filter Menu so that both hot and pending airspaces can be changed independently."
• Altimeter CAR
• o The team discussed updating altimeters at a more frequent rate. A task team has been created to work the issue with SLE and respond to the CAR.
• ER 186070 Weather Updates
• o The ER describes a situation where the weather report for a specific station did not update and the old weather remained displayed. A draft problem statement will be created with a desired behavior of reporting weather observations as missing, if th...
• PDRR/ABRR
• o Critical AIMS 196440 was written against PDRR and a software fix is needed to correct the issue. The ERAM fix will be delivered in April 2019, and the TFMS fix in 2020 or later. The initial suggestion is to disable PDRR at the facility level until t...