NATCA Going Down in Flames

Here is a list of newer Air Traffic Control systems. I hope this is
helpful.

The state of the art for TRACONs and RAPCONS is STARS (Standalone TRACON
Automation Replacement System). The prime contractor for the STARS program
is Raytheon, and it is now being deployed to major TRACONS around the
country. (It is already online at the new Boston TRACON and major airports
like Philadelphia, etc). This program has been much delayed and reworked,
after numerous problems, such as ignoring controllers human interface
concerns (early data block windows covered up radar information behind
them) and controllers didn't like the standard QWERTY keyboards. (too easy
to learn?) for some reason. 10 years later, this is now the TRACON system
of the future.

ARTCCs have been upgraded as well. (Acronym?) I believe the prime
contractor is/was Lockheed Martin and it used a lot of Sun Microsystems
hardware. Even before the upgrades were underway, the ASD or 'Ollie"
screen came about just to replace the aging and failing green screens from
ARTS. The ASD was kind of a bootleg program that was more grassroutes than
officially sanctioned. .

DSR - (Display System Replacment) - replaces old ARTCC displays with new
Sony high resolution color displays. Superimposes NexRad weather on
displays, modern strip printers, etc. .

ATOP - (advanced technologies and oceanic procedures) Automates manual
oceanic airspace practices. Deployed at oceanic ARTCCs, such as New York,
Boston, Anchorage, Oakland. Lockheed Martin is the prime contractor and
calls it Ocean 21 .

HOCSR (Host and Oceanic Computer System Replacement). The host computers
(at the FAA command center across the street from Dulles airport in
Herndon) have had an upgrade program too, it is managed by Lockheed Martin:

ASDE-X (Airport Surface Detection Equipment - the X is the latest version)
is the next generation ground radar, used in airports with issues with
taxiing (usually in bad visibility). At these airports, pilots are asked
to leave Mode C on when on the ground. KPVD was one of the first airports
to get this, as a result of the near disaster when a US Airways flight was
repeatedly and angrily cleared for takeoff by a controller with an attitude
(pilot rejected) after a United jet got lost in fog and had reentered the
runway.

(D-BRITE ) FAA Digital Brite Radar Indicator Tower Equipment Program.
Newer version of BRITE screens, which provide satellite towers with a basic
radar screen for limited use. I believe this is going away.

Small Tower Radar Display (Lockheed Martin) For some airports that didn't
have D-BRITE.

STARS LITE (STARS Local Integrated Tower Equipment) Radar screens for
satellite towers.

ARTS IE Newer system for VFR towers that aren't connected to a TRACON.
Receive radar information from centers, using ARSR or ASR Radar data.

TARDIS (Terminal Automated Radar Display and Information System) This is
an interesting one. A sort of bootleg cheaper radar display for satellite
towers. It hasn't been certified and there are no plans to do so. The FAA
brass wasn't too pleased that TARDIS was spreading (too cheap, quick to be
implemented, and it worked!), but influential congress people were
demanding that it be deployed towers that didn't have funds to get another
radar display. Should be replaced by STARS LITE, which is certified.

ARTCCs have been upgraded as well. (Acronym?)

Air Route Traffic Control Centers

Jose
--
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Jose wrote:

ARTCCs have been upgraded as well. (Acronym?)

Air Route Traffic Control Centers

Heh. I meant for the upgrades, not for ARTCC itself. I think I have
that one down but there are numerous pieces/blocks of ARTCC
modernization, and being government you need a lot of acronyms to handle
that.