Speech - Global Aviation: Safer, More Efficient and Greener

"Global Aviation: Safer, More Efficient and Greener"

Michael Huerta, Washington, DC
May 2, 2014
Thanks Jerry [Murphy]. Im happy to be here. 2014 marks the 100th year since the
dawn of commercial flight. Weve seen great advancements the jet age
the jumbo jet and non-stop routes across the globe. Since its first flight, commercial
aviation has carried over 65 billion passengers. We can only imagine what the next 100 years
will bring.
Today, as we stand between the past and future, we have an opportunity, in this moment, to leave
our mark on global aviation. The FAA is committed to making it safer, more efficient and
greener. The FAA is doing many things to make it happen. And we look to you in industry to
do your part and work with us so we can deliver greater benefits throughout the world.
And thats exactly where our
focus needs to be on the
world. This industry is
increasingly becoming more
globalized. International traffic is
on the rise. We see more
international partnering of
manufacturers and suppliers.
Airline route structures, alliances and
partnerships are spanning the
globe. We understand the need to
take a global perspective on aviation
issues. Its more pressing
now than ever.
To respond to this need, the FAA has set a strategic priority to enhance our global leadership.
Were committed to increasing global safety, efficiency, and environmental sustainability.
These are the three areas Id like to focus on today. Ill discuss the efforts and
progress were making both here at home and around the world.
cheap business flights
Let me start with what were doing to make aviation safer and smarter which is our
top priority. It wasnt that long ago that our approach to safety was to understand why
an accident happened. And with that approach, weve driven down the rate of
commercial airline accidents to an exceedingly low level. Thats a credit to government
and industry working together. But we know there are still safety risks within our global
aerospace system. And no matter how great the record is, none of us should be satisfied.
We have to build on it.
Our focus is on identifying and mitigating safety risk before an accident has a chance to occur.
Building off already well-established safety efforts at the FAA, well continue to tap the
wealth of safety data now available from voluntary safety reports by air traffic controllers,
technicians and aviation industry professionals. We also have automated air traffic data
gathering tools and we have safety data exchange partnerships with industry. Through these
data sources, we will identify areas of highest risk and then redirect and prioritize our safety
efforts toward these areas.
With this approach, the FAA will evolve to a safety oversight model where we prioritize our safety
inspection efforts. Well have the decision tools to consider stopping certain oversight
activities for known system operators that have strong safety management systems of their own.
This way, we can achieve compliance more efficiently.
And were promoting these risk-based safety efforts globally. For instance, through
ICAO, the FAA is involved in a regional group that coordinates aviation safety efforts across North,
Central, and South America, as well as the Caribbean. One of the groups main goals is
to address accident risks. This team uses a data-informed, risk-based approach to address four
key areas: runway excursions, controlled flight into terrain, loss of aircraft control and mid-air
collisions. When safety enhancements are implemented, the group will use data again to
measure the success.
We also want to measure success from modernizing our infrastructure. This includes delivering
on prioritized NextGen benefits, which of course, benefits all equipped and capable operators that
fly through U.S. airspace.
We have been working for several years to upgrade the foundational programs that we need to
transition our airspace from a system of ground based navigational aids to a satellite based system
that shares more precise information with more users. Were nearing the completion of
these very important programs that are foundational to NextGen. This includes upgrading the
automation capabilities in our en route and key terminal service facilities by next year.
Right now, 18 of our 20 en route centers have started running the new En Route Automation
Modernization. And 15 of those 18 are using it exclusively to control air traffic, instead of the
legacy system of the 1960s. We expect that all 20 centers will be running exclusively on ERAM
by March of next year, which will allow us to retire the legacy HOST system.
Were also upgrading the computer system that runs the lower altitude airspace closer to
airports. This project Terminal Automation Modernization and Replacement, or TAMR,
is implementing a common automation platform at over 150 terminal facilities throughout the
country. These upgrades are essential for us to really unleash the benefits of NextGen.
Why is this important? Our legacy automation was limited by its processing speed and many air
traffic facilities could only accept a limited number of radar inputs. In the terminal environment,
some facilities only receive input from the one radar that sits at that airport. Trying to run
NextGen on this legacy platform would be like trying to connect to the internet using a 20-year-old
laptop with dial-up.
But with ERAM and TAMR completed, we can process more data, more efficiently, from more
sensors. This includes processing multiple radar inputs and a key NextGen technology known as
Automatic Dependent Surveillance-Broadcast.
ADS-B, this enables us to track aircraft much more precisely than by using radar. We can also
track aircraft in places where radar cant go, including in the mountains and over water.
Im proud to say the FAA completed the baseline installation of our ADS-B ground
infrastructure this past March. This is a big accomplishment. More than a hundred
facilities are currently using the technology to separate traffic. When its fully
implemented, and all operators are equipped, well be able to make even more efficient use of
our nations airspace.
To achieve global harmonization, weve worked with our European, Canadian and Australian
partners on standards for ADS-B. And were seeing that many countries including
Iceland, Singapore, Vietnam, Japan and others are adopting ADS-B technology. This helps to
drive the equipage of ADS-B avionics globally.
We all have the same goal, which is a seamless global airspace with interoperable systems.

The benefits of ADS-B are many. In airspace over the Pacific, were partnering with
United Airlines to document the fuel saving benefits of ADS-B In, which enables pilots to see traffic
and weather information in the cockpit. The trial is taking place over oceanic airspace
controlled by Oakland en route center. United has equipped 12 of their 747s with ADS-B
In, which the FAA supported and certified. With ADS-B In, these pilots can see 200 miles in all
directions, as compared to only about 40 miles ahead without it. By knowing the location of
nearby aircraft, the pilots can safely request climbs into more fuel efficient cruise altitude more
often. As part of the trial, United has been requesting about 12 of these procedures a
month. They are seeing a savings of about 500 pounds or 71 gallons of fuel on
each flight. This translates into a savings of about 1500 pounds of carbon emissions.
This is pretty significant. And we need to ramp it up. We should be using these procedures
more than a dozen times a month on these international long hauls. We ask you to work with us so
we can accelerate these kinds of benefits. It benefits all of us.
In 2016, we plan to expand this ADS-B In capability to oceanic airspace controlled by New York and
Anchorage Centers. U.S. bound flights over the Pacific and the Atlantic that are equipped with
ADS-B In will be able to take advantage of these fuel saving procedures. This spring, we expect
that ICAO will officially approve this procedure, which should encourage greater interest in using
this technology.
Just as we are seeing the benefits of NextGen over the Pacific, we are also seeing it in our control
towers. We are conducting a trial of Data Communications at Newark and Memphis airports.
Data Comm allows controllers and pilots to communicate by sending and receiving digital data
instructions, in addition to voice communications. With this capability, we are able to increase
overall efficiency, reduce congestion on the airwaves, and reduce the likelihood of communication
errors that can occur from voice exchange.
Right now, we are testing Data Comms departure clearance capability. Our airline
partners include United, FedEx, UPS, British Airways, Lufthansa, and Scandinavian
Airlines. Theyre seeing the benefits, including faster taxi out times, reduced delays, and
reduced pilot and controller workload. Were in the process of documenting these
benefits, as well as lessons learned, as we prepare for testing at additional towers in Houston and
Salt Lake City next spring.
I think some of you are saying, What more testing? We recognize that
we have to go beyond testing. We have a plan that gets us to deployment. And were
delivering on that plan. Were on target to start regular operations of Data Comm in
equipped control towers beginning in 2016 and in en route control centers in 2019.
Were in this for the long term and we will partner with you for the long term.
A good example of our commitment to international collaboration is how we worked to standardize
data communications. The FAA and SESAR have agreed on the final destination for data
communications, and together we are working to meet that mutual goal. We have provided the
additional material and engagement that RTCA and EUROCAE (Euro-Kay) need to move to a final
standard next year. Understanding that this standard is just the first step to these advanced
data communications capabilities, the FAA is committed to maintaining this cooperation throughout
development and deployment to assure that implementation challenges are addressed together
across the Atlantic.
NextGen means greater efficiency it paves the way for greater interoperability and it
also makes aviation greener. We are promoting a greener aviation system, both here at home
and across the world through a combination of air traffic management innovation fostering
new aircraft technology and developing sustainable alternative fuels.
In air traffic, we have an Asia and Pacific Initiative to Reduce Emissions. We call it ASPIRE.
Through this effort, were working with international partners, both air navigation service
providers and airlines, to promote fuel saving procedures available on daily flights across the Pacific
Ocean. Since ASPIRE started in 2008, weve identified 19 city pairs, like Los Angeles-
Singapore and Sydney-San Francisco, where we can apply a minimum of three fuel saving
procedures on these flight operations. These procedures include user preferred routings
which are customized profiles that meet the specific needs of the operator.
We continue to work with our partners to identify new city pairs and to develop modeling and
metrics to measure these benefits. On this note, Id like to call on our air carriers, both
domestic and international, to work with us to come up with a way to share information about these
benefits. This includes sharing any performance data from these ASPIRE flights that will
illustrate the fuel-saving benefits so that more users will take advantage.
The FAA is also taking steps to promote quieter and cleaner aircraft. We set up the Continuous
Lower Energy, Emissions and Noise program. We call it CLEEN, and its a joint effort
with industry to share the costs required to advance alternative fuels and mature more
efficient and quieter airframe and engine technologies to speed their entry into the fleet.
Were also supporting the work of ICAO in various environmental areas including the
development of a new aircraft standard for CO2 emissions and a proposal for a Global Market Based
Measure for international aviation.
The things I mentioned today are just a few of the many things the FAA is doing to make aviation
safer more efficient and greener, both in the U.S. and around the world. These
efforts are important. Consider that while it took one hundred years for commercial aviation to
carry its first 65 billion passengers its been forecast that this industry will carry its
next 65 billion passengers in the next 15 to 20 years.
The success of commercial aviation over the past century has been largely due to the exponential
growth and innovation of technology. Today, success will be a function of how we
collaborate. We can achieve our collective goals more rapidly when we collaborate and leverage
each others efforts globally.
One hundred years from now, our successors will celebrate the bicentennial anniversary of
commercial aviation. The aviation system they will have and the benefits they will enjoy
will be shaped by the decisions and choices we make today. By working together, as an
aviation community, we can give them something we can all be proud
of.