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NextGen Now | Summer 2015
For the past two years, trials and tests to evaluate Data Comm and procedures have been
underway. The FAA has provided incentives to airlines to increase levels of equipage and
accelerate readiness to transition from voice to Data Comm.
We are starting to see the results of this collaboration, and are encouraged by the successful
testing at Newark Liberty International and Memphis International airports. In cases
of flight plan re-routing clearance(s), the new system in place at Newark and Memphis
has demonstrated time savings averaging six to 12 minutes, according to its pilot users,
which include A4A members United Airlines, UPS, and FedEx. These benefits of reduced
communication time between controllers and pilots, as well as improved re-routing around
weather and congestion, translate to time saved for our passengers.
And it is not just time-saved benefits. As Data Comm becomes more widely integrated,
we will also see fuel savings. According to UPS, it is saving 12 gallons of fuel for each
minute saved through the departure clearance process. With fuel as one of airlines' biggest
expenditures, this level of savings is positive.
While there is still a lot of work to be done in both activation and equipage – currently
about 800 aircraft are equipped to use the system – we need to stay the course and keep
advancing. We look forward to seeing these benefits and successes increase as we start
the next phase of testing at William P. Hobby, Houston George Bush Intercontinental and
Salt Lake City International airports later this summer, and further as the FAA expands the
program to another 50 airports by 2016.