Babbitt presses Congress, airlines to invest in NextGen

By Aaron Karp | April 28, 2011

US FAA Administrator Randy Babbitt cautioned that he is "concerned" the level of agency funding called for in the reauthorization bill recently passed by the House of Representatives would be too low and, if enacted, could "degrade" safety and efficiency.

The House earlier this month passed a four-year, $59.7 billion FAA reauthorization bill that Transportation and Infrastructure Committee Chairman John Mica (R-Fla.) said, "saves $4 billion by streamlining and consolidating FAA programs and facilities, increasing the use of cost-effective programs, and responsibly increasing the role of the private sector in facility operations" (ATW Daily News, April 4).

Speaking Wednesday at the US Chamber of Commerce's Aviation Summit, Babbitt pushed the House and Senate to soon pass a unified reauthorization bill that adequately funds the agency and establishes a fiscal path for the full implementation of the satellite-based NextGen ATC system. The 18th temporary extension of FAA funding expires at the end of May. "For over three-and-a-half years we've been operating on extensions," Babbitt noted. "It's been very difficult to run an agency on extensions … We need to restore long-term stability to funding."

The administrator gave a spirited defense of FAA's progress in implementing NextGen, pressing Congress and airlines to make the necessary investments to realize the full benefits of ATC modernization. "This technology exists and it's being utilized now," he said, noting that continuous descent approach initiatives underway at select airports (ATW Daily News, July 26, 2010) are already yielding millions of dollars in annual fuel cost savings. He rejected the notion that NextGen is "some far off future … never-never land" concept. "NextGen is adding real dollars to the bottom lines of airlines … right now, not in the future," he insisted. "I'm very confident that given the [appropriate level of] funding, given the support from the industry, we're on track with NextGen."

Even considering US federal government budget restraints (ATW, March 1) and the fact that airlines are struggling to achieve consistent profitability, Babbitt said NextGen needs to be funded, which includes airlines spending the money to equip cockpits: "What's it going to cost us not to do this? Can we afford not to redesign the airspace in the metroplexes in our country?"

Also speaking at the Chamber of Commerce conference, Russ Chew, managing partner of NEXA Capital Partners and head of FAA's Air Traffic Organization from 2003-2007, said, "There's an institutional and political risk [in establishing NextGen] that's just as significant to overcome as the financial risk. There's an overall feeling [in Congress] that this is something we should move ahead on. [But] we haven't been able to translate that into a tangible investment … We can't be afraid to innovate." He added that Congress should include as part of FAA reauthorization "some sort of program that allows government to jumpstart private capital" for NextGen aircraft equipage, such as loan guarantees.

Speaking at the conference after Babbitt and Chew, US Airways Chairman and CEO Doug Parker said, "I am indeed a huge fan of NextGen. I'm just not a huge fan of paying for it." He added, "The price tag [for equipping airline cockpits] looks … in excess of the benefits in aggregate."

Photo: US FAA Administrator Randy Babbitt.

Discuss this news 13

27 Apr19:36

And how much has the FAA

By Anonymous

And how much has the FAA already overspent their budget on NexGen? And how expensive will it really be? Most likely many times what the FAA says. Then what will it cost the aviation community? Very likely the costs will be more than the savings in retro-fitting current or near future aircraft. Add to that "specs" that keep changing. It would be one thing to put an upgradable box into an aircraft, but having to replace....

28 Apr08:24

It's always nice to hear the

By Greg Gerard

It's always nice to hear the opinion of Mr. Anonymous. Actually, not an opinion but questions to stir the pot. The skies are the safest they've ever been and NexGen will only ensure that trend continues. More efficiency is need to satisfy the air travelers desire for safe, affordable, and timely travel. My opinion, not a question, is that modernization of our national air system is what we should do to lead the world into the future of aviation. Mr. Anonymous, we'll let you help us pay the bill.

28 Apr09:20

Unfortunately what isn't

By Anonymous

Unfortunately what isn't mentioned is that NexGen is built upon the ERAM system, a program that replaces the majority of aging EnRoute Automation equipment in the FAAs 20 ARTCCs. ERAM is some 2 years and millions of dollars behind schedule and as yet does not operate as designed despite being already deployed at a significant number of the target facilities. Thank the contractor, Lockheed Martin, for that exemplary performance. With the foundation for NexGen in question the cost of development and deployment for NexGen makes it a budgetary pipe dream.

28 Apr09:55

This is a project I am very

By Anonymous

This is a project I am very familiar with and when you are working with unqualified federal employees it makes it that much harder to accomplish a project. For example you would expect to have an employee with a senior engineer title to have a degree in engineering not a GED with years of experience.

28 Apr10:01

This is another give away by

By Anonymous

This is another give away by loan gaurantees with our tax dollars. We might as well just send taxes direct mail to this cause and no accountability at all. Who cares anyway!

28 Apr13:44

Perhaps the FAA could defund

By Bruce Larsen

Perhaps the FAA could defund the reregistration of all aircraft, and then save that money or spend it on items that will really increase safety. I find their argument interesting that lifetime registration is problematic for local law enforcement when in Montana the state allows for permanent registration and license plates on all vehicles over only nine years in age. Considering the majority of the private airplanes are at least nine years old, why can't that common sense prevail at the FAA?

28 Apr13:48

The FAA needs to revaluate

By FAA Retired

The FAA needs to revaluate its priorities, inefficiencies, and waste.

ATC is a great information service. Can aircraft take off and land without ATC, yes. Is it safer to operate without ATC, no. Is ATC inefficient, yes.

All functions of the FAA must be reviewed and addressed. Funds to
FAA most certainly should be withheld until this agency can prove it is responsive to all aviation safety needs and it is complying to its responsibilities as enumerated in the original FAA Act of 1958.

28 Apr14:07

You're wrong about NEXGEN.

By Randy

You're wrong about NEXGEN. I've seen what it can do for the future and I've sat in front of a radar display for 34 years. NEXGEN equipment is cheaper than radar, virtually self-maintaining inasmuch as ADS-B does not require human intervention as does radar and the GA gear (978 UAT) can probably be installed in a light airplane for far less than $5,000. We use this same technology now on many of our cellphones. There's nothing here to ... about unless you give it a chance and find out different.

28 Apr15:28

@Anonymous: With the notable

By JQ

@Anonymous: With the notable exception of ERAM, which is being rescheduled due to technical problems and cost overruns, what NextGen projects have been substantially overspent? ADS-B, Datacomm, and many other major programs appear to be doing well: http://it.usaspending.gov/portfolios/agency=021,bureau=12

The FAA has comletely overhauld its acquisition system to one driven by business case analyses. These are extraordinarily complicated systems and the system is far from perfect, but it seems to be generating results.

28 Apr18:36

I see another excuse to ramp

By Randy Gee

I see another excuse to ramp up the "costs" in an effort to put user fees on general aviation. What a nice way to further the rapid decline of an American tradition, ownership and cost available general aviation for the avarage person. Let's tax this out of existence.

Airline flying is now a subsidized business. Cut out the subsidies and charge proper seat mile fees for an airline seat , perhsps l the airlines can afford the upgrades and tax base.

02 May12:50

Don't shut the FAA down, FIX

By Anonymous

Don't shut the FAA down, FIX IT!

If you want the funds withheld from the FAA, by all means, go ahead. Just remember that you are the one responsible for the nation wide ground-stop that will happen. Without funds, noone gets paid. While I am a dedicated FAA employee, willing to do more with less, I am not working for free, and no, I am not an Air Traffic Controller.

If the people don't get paid, the airplanes don't take off.

Millions of people will be affected. FAA employees will be out of work and collecting state unemployment benefits. Airline employees and all the support companies will be likewise affected. Deliveries will no longer be overnight without UPS and FEDEX boxhaulers.

I do not believe going back to 1958 is the solution to FAA problems. I believe that having people in decision makng positions that understand the ramifications of those decisions is more important. The FAA does need work, I will agree with that. There are too many things, like ERAM, that have had money thrown at them because they sounded like a good idea at the time, only to fail miserably.
...
There are many things wrong in the FAA, but there are many things right too. Safety is suppose to be our main concern, not the budget. Many of us still remember that.

04 May18:23

Civil aviation is not

By Steve

Civil aviation is not required for a thriving economy, A sustainable budget with responsible spending is. If the airlines think NexGen is such a great thing then the airlines should pay for it.

05 May17:35

Anonymous sounds like he has

By Anonymiss

Anonymous sounds like he has a personal axe to grind. His focus is one sided negative attention on only a single element of NexGen. NexGen is much broader than just ERAM. He fails to provide sufficient supporting facts to justify an all encompassing opinion of failure of NexGen. One only has to examine the many successes of NexGen. One example being Automatic Dependent Surveillance Broadcast in the Gulf which has provided radar coverage over the waters where previously it was not available. It has increased safety and provided substantial savings benefits to operators in the Gulf. There are other similar significant advances that have proven NEXGEN to be beneficial and necessary.