NextGen ATC To Be Deployed Throughout The State Of Florida

Here's the announcement:

NEXTGEN COMES TO FLORIDA VIA DAYJET
(http://www.avweb.com/eletter/archive...ll.html#198074)
DayJet, which operates an on-demand charter fleet of Eclipse VLJs,
said on Tuesday that it has signed an agreement
(http://www.dayjet.com/News/PressRele...l_06102008.pdf)
to work with the FAA and Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University to
deploy NextGen
(http://www.faa.gov/news/fact_sheets/...fm?newsId=8145)
technologies throughout the state of Florida over the next five
years. The project will serve as a proving ground for the
technology, to develop procedures and wring out any problems, and
it will help smooth the way for nationwide deployment over the
next 15 years. The FAA's Hank Krakowski
(http://www.aopa.org/special/fly-in/080607video.html),
the head of the Air Traffic Organization, said at AOPA's fly-in
last weekend that as a pilot himself, he will keep the needs of GA
pilots in mind as the NextGen system evolves. NextGen will create
more access to airspace, more options for pilots, and increased
efficiency, he said: "That's the promise of the new technologies."
I find it puzzling to understand how this implementation of NextGen
ATC is possible without the necessary data communications satellite(s)
(upon which I understand it is based) and integration into the current
US ATC system.

If indeed it is possible under the existing FAA funding budget, it
would appear that cost to deploy NextGen ATC nationwide must be
considerably less than anticipated, and doesn't require privatization
nor user fees.



----------------------------------------------------------------------

Press Release
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Press Contacts:
Vicky Harris Chris Stamm/Jon Siegal
DayJet Corporation Schwartz Communications
561.454.2678 781.684.0770

DayJet and FAA Sign Agreement to Implement NextGen in Florida
Public-Private Collaboration Offers Proving Ground for Accelerated
National Deployment of Next Generation Air Transport System
BOCA RATON, Fla.—June 10, 2008—DayJet Corporation today signed a
Memorandum of
Agreement (MOA) with the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to
begin a five-year, phased
implementation of proven NextGen technologies throughout Florida in
collaboration with
Florida Department of Transportation Aviation Office and Embry-Riddle
Aeronautical
University. The agreement establishes a government-industry
partnership responsible for
developing replicable procedures that can be used for the accelerated
deployment of NextGen
technologies nationally, integrating real-time surveillance and
performance data in the air
carrier’s network control system, and setting the stage for automated
flight planning and
disruption recovery.
Setting the stage for the first integrated implementation of NextGen
capabilities for passenger
services in the continental U.S., the DayJet NextGen project is also
the first to focus on the safe
expansion of airspace outside metropolitan areas via small community
airports using modern
very light jet (VLJ) aircraft operated by a Part 135 on-demand air
carrier. Today’s news follows
the March 10, 2008 announcement by Department of Transportation
Secretary Mary Peters that
Florida will serve as the national test bed for accelerating NextGen.
NextGen is the modernization of the National Airspace System (NAS)
using digital technology
to redefine every element of air transport—from communications and
surveillance to navigation
and air traffic management—to address the nation’s need for increased
airspace capacity and
efficiency. The benefits will be a reduction in fuel consumption,
carbon emissions, noise
footprint and travel time.
- more -
ADD
DayJet NextGen
Page 2
Florida Representative John L. Mica, Republican Leader of the House
Transportation and
Infrastructure Committee stated: “Florida has a long history of
aeronautical innovation and firsts.
Our state has the leadership, expertise and innovation to take on this
important project that will
help the nation make informed, successful improvement to the national
aviation infrastructure.”
DayJet President and CEO Ed Iacobucci stated: “As the largest VLJ
operator and first fully
digital air carrier, DayJet is uniquely positioned to collaborate with
the FAA and other key
groups to bring NextGen to life. DayJet has already worked closely
with the FAA and Florida
Department of Transportation to make our ‘Per-Seat, On-Demand’ jet
service a reality. We are
proud to leverage our technology and expertise to help the nation
enter the new age of digital
aviation.”
Florida NextGen Participants
Sharing its flight data and operational implementation expertise,
DayJet will work closely with
state and federal agencies to develop priorities for airspace
procedures and airport capabilities.
Under the agreement, DayJet, over the next five years, will operate
its Eclipse 500 very light jet
(VLJ) fleet with equipment that will enable it to provide the
government with data that comprise
some of the key components of NextGen, which are necessary to achieve
Performance-Based Air
Traffic Management System including:
• New means of accurate navigation and control that will trim air
lanes from several miles
wide to a few hundred feet.
• New technology for tracking aircraft that will make the position of
aircraft known
everywhere and anywhere based on equipment in the airplane instead of
radar on the
ground.
• Networked digital radios that will bring the speed and
knowledge-gathering qualities of
the Internet into the cockpit.
• System-wide Information Management Systems for weather, traffic and
airport
conditions that will reduce flight planning costs, while increasing
flexibility and
accuracy.
The project will include major participation by the Daytona Beach
campus of Embry-Riddle
Aeronautical University which will be responsible for project
management, airspace modeling
and simulation, implementing RNP procedures and ADS-B applications
along with developing
curricula for NextGen education. In addition, the Florida Institute of
Technology will perform
studies of the energy, carbon footprint and noise benefits associated
with the implementation of
NextGen Technologies.
- more -
ADD
DayJet NextGen
Page 3
Dr. Tim Brady, Dean of the College of Aviation at Embry-Riddle’s
Daytona Beach campus said:
“We see this as the natural combination of private business, higher
education, and the federal
government working together to set the course for the future of air
traffic management.”
The Florida Department of Transportation will participate in planning
the routes and airports for
NextGen implementation. In addition, the State Aviation Office will be
involved in the
evaluation of the economic benefits of NextGen at the State and local
levels.
Florida Department of Transportation Secretary Stephanie C. Kopelousos
said: “Florida is a
nexus for air transportation challenges and opportunities, and the
leaders of the new on-demand
industry are well positioned for early adoption of NextGen by virtue
of their new aircraft, new
business models, and willingness to invest. We are proud to continue
in this tradition by working
with DayJet, Embry-Riddle and others to usher in a new age of digital
aviation that will produce
a scalable expansion of the nation’s airspace with benefits in
footprint, cost, mobility and
economic opportunity.”
Phased NextGen Implementation
The first phase of the project (2008-2010) will focus on deploying
Required Navigation
Performance (RNP) technology for performance-based navigation,
allowing aircraft operators to
fly more precise flight paths at optimum altitudes to reduce fuel
burn, carbon emissions, and
noise. In addition, this phase will deploy Automatic Dependent
Surveillance-Broadcast (ADS-B)
technology for performance-based surveillance that will enable pilots
to see other aircraft in their
vicinity, improving safety while increasing airspace capacity.
The second phase (2009-2011) will implement System Wide Information
Management (SWIM)
for enhanced weather awareness and management, and the third phase
(2011-2013) will deploy
performance-based communications for flight planning and flight plan
management.
About NextGen
NextGen is the first major technological transformation of airspace,
aircraft and airport
management systems in 50 years. By 2014, the FAA projects air traffic
to double and delays to
increase by 62 percent over 2004 levels. NextGen boosts the capacity
and efficiency of the
Nation’s Airspace System (NAS) by shifting from ground-based systems
using outdated
avionics, navigation and radar systems to digital-based systems
located inside the aircraft.
- more -
ADD
DayJet NextGen
Page 4
The innovation of NextGen creates dynamic economic development
opportunities across the
U.S. and supports a more sustainable model for growth of air
transportation than ever before.
NextGen promises to reduce carbon emissions in aviation by 12 to 20
percent while lowering
fuel consumption and cost for industry, and delays for passengers.
About “Per-Seat, On-Demand” Jet Service
DayJet has developed the world’s first “Per-Seat, On-Demand” jet
service that makes the
convenience of corporate jet travel broadly available and affordable
for more people and
organizations, turning wasted travel time into valuable business and
personal time. “Per-Seat”
means customers only pay for the seat(s) they need, not the entire
aircraft. “On-Demand” means
customers fly according to their individually negotiated time
requirements. Business travelers
can now book just the seat that they need aboard DayJet’s fleet of
Eclipse 500™ very light jets
(VLJs); customize travel according to their time and budget
requirements; fly point-to-point
between regional destinations; and return home in a single day.
About DayJet
DayJet is the largest fleet operator of next-generation very light jet
(VLJ) aircraft and the pioneer
of a new type of regional business travel. “Per-Seat, On-Demand” jet
service is sold by the
individual seat and customized for each passenger’s unique time and
budget requirements—
prices start at a modest premium to full-fare economy coach airfares.
Headquartered in Boca
Raton, Florida, DayJet is the first 100% all-digital air carrier.
Combined with the speed and
efficiency of Eclipse 500 VLJ aircraft, DayJet “Per-Seat, On-Demand”
jet service has created the
next major advance in corporate productivity and regional economic
development. For more
information, visit www.dayjet.com.
DayJet’s “Per-Seat, On-Demand” business jet service is operated by
DayJet Corporation’s wholly owned subsidiary,
DayJet Services, LLC, an air carrier registered with the Department of
Transportation and the holder of an ondemand
air carrier certificate from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA)
authorizing operations under Part
135 of the FAA’s regulations under Title 49, Subtitle VII, of the
United States Code.
# # #
DayJet™ DayPort™ DayBase™ are trademarks of DayJet Corporation. All
other trademarks and registered
trademarks are property of their respective owners.

[Warning: Long Post]

On Jun 11, 6:21*am, Larry Dighera wrote:
Here's the announcement:

* * NEXTGEN COMES TO FLORIDA VIA DAYJET
*(http://www.avweb.com/eletter/archive...ll.html#198074)

I think this post is interesting. I was about to write a post about
NextGen, and the PAV program, so I will piggy-back here.

After poking around the Internet of the last year or so, I have
concluded that there is significant ossification in the lower-echelons
of innovation in aviation. What I mean by ossification is a bit hard
to describe, but I will try:

It seems that there is a historical dynamic that has been created by
pilots, aircraft manufacturers, parts manufacturers, FBO's, etc. The
dynamic is a bit complex, but the net result is that costs associated
with owning and operating aircraft seems to be far higher than they
should be.

Each time I open GA News, Private Pilot, etc I see components that
sell for far more than they could. Sometimes the cost is 10x or even
more than what they could be. Some of you will resurrect the argument
that costs are driven by certification, which I disagree with, but we
can still discuss. I think these costs are driven more by a
circuitous, incestuous dynamic that has been created by the aviation
community, rooted in early days of aviation and what it takes to
become a proficient pilot.

So what does NextGen have to do with this?

NextGen, it seems to me, is an attempt to brake this ossification (pun
intended).

Take for example an examination of the word choice of FAA officials
who speak about technological advancement in aviation. In every
article I have read about NextGen, the protagonist always takes great
pain to preemptively reassure pilots that NextGen represents a benefit
to them, not a detriment. Why? Each time I ask myself, "Which pilots
in the aviation community are so blind that they cannot see that this
is good for aviation? Which pilots are so sensitive that the
protagonist goes to such lengths so as not to offend them?" I think
the reassurance is necessary because there is an intransigence that
has developed over the last 80 years in aviation, and the FAA
offiicials are acutely aware of the danger of disturbing it.

This intransigence seems to be rooted in a philosophy of anti-
technology, anti-commodity, anti-advancement.

To me, the objectives of NextGen are virtuous, and valuable. If
realized, they would open up aviation to a much wider audience. They
would provide an evolutionary path from the unscaleable hub-and-spoke
model driven primarily by commercial aviation toward a new model where
the aircraft and the flying experience becomes very personal, much
like driving a car.

Not long ago, I had errononeous, preconceived notions that the FAA was
the major impediment to technological advancement.
I was wrong about the FAA. The FAA is not the problem. I had a
similar experience with the FCC. I learned a decade ago that the FCC
is very liberal when it comes to experimentation with new
technologies. One would think that FCC would be a burden, handicapping
and snapping at any attempt to advance the field through unorthodox
experimentation, so as not to allow "interference" by disruptive
devices. But quite the opposite is true. The FCC *wants* engineers to
experiment, so long as they follow a few rules and not disrupt service
of deployed technology.

What I have seen, to my surprise, is that the FAA has the exact same
attitude. They *want* aircraft designs to build the New-And-Improved.

And thus is the thesis of my post:

It seems that, if there is any blame for the slow progress toward
personalizing aviation, it lies not with the FAA, as the FAA is
bending over backward trying to get the aviation community to go
futuristic, as exemplified by NextGen.

I think a big part of the ossification comes from the most suprising
sub-group of all - the pilots themselves.

Take the CAFE/PAV Challenge for example: http://cafefoundation.org/v2/main_home.php

I found this program utterly fascinating when I first read about it.
Then I read about the entrants during the 2007 contest. It was
embarrassing. The contestants entered no new, experimental aircraft
aimed at solving the problems outlined by the contest, but existing
commercial aircraft. I made a mental excuse..."Maybe they will do
better next year. After all, the program might be only 2 or 3 years
old." Then I found that the program is over a decade old.

Granted, making an aircraft of any kind is extremely complex, but it
is the _attitude_ toward doing so that seems to be an issue.

This attitude, which I still find incredible odd, can be seen in
pilot's regard toward cost of aircraft components. There are
components that I see in aircraft that where the cost is simply
outrageous. I know that the raw component in a standard FM receiver
cost less than $2.00US. No aircraft is going to fall from the sky if
a "cheap" FM radio is built around such a component for, say, $20, and
fails. But if one attempts to get an FM radio for his aircraft, the
price goes sky-high, with all kinds of questionable justifications.
What is remarkable is that the main supporters of the justifications
comes not just from the manufacturers, but the pilots themselves. It
is almost as if the pilots willing pay whatever it costs to maintain
their hobby, and accept it because their financial positions allow
them to, almost like a rite of passage, a ticket to an exclusive club
that, though costly, places them in a distinguished position,
unreachable by the fiscally-challenged.

This is why NextGen is somewhat a depressing proposition, in its
current state.

I imagine that there are multiple proponents within the FAA who are
extremely excited by the possibilities of NextGen, and so are pursuing
the relationship with the State of Florida and Embry-Riddle University
as a means of accelerating progress toward tangible results.

But there is a problem here - someone has to know how to actually do
the thing.

Who are these people, these designers, engineers, technicians,
visionaries, who know the details, of how to do the thing? Are they in
Florida? Are they at ER?

I do research in computer networking of wired and wirless devices. I
am intimately familiar with what is required to achieve true mobility
of networked devices. The following sentence from the article caught
my attention:

"• Networked digital radios that will bring the speed and
knowledge-gathering qualities of
the Internet into the cockpit. "

The solution to this problem is non-trivial, and if it is done right,
requires simultaneous application of concepts from electrical
engineering, computer science, and mathematics. It is difficult for
me to see these solutions being solved in a peripheral field like
aviation when the people in computer science and electrical
engineering are already struggling very hard to solve the exact same
problem (though, that does not mean that someone from aviation will be
successful). And this problem, the mobility problem, is only one of
many problems that must be solved to realized within the vision of
NextGen. [Ironically, the people who decided to solve the mobility
problem, and the redo-the-Internet problem in general, named their
philosophy NextGen too.]

So that is the pity:

The FAA very much wants the aviation community to think futuristic.
But perhaps they realized that the devil really is in the details.
Perhaps they realized that, to show progress, they must incite those
who know how to do the thing. W this agreement with Florida and ER,
they begin a risky scramble, a gamble where vision might fail to
precipitate to substance, because problem-solving requires
disciplined, unfettered, imaginative thought, and the expectation of
success stimulated by premature promises often has a strong tendency
to eliminate to opportunity for disciplined thought and fetters much.

Who is responsible for this situation?

It is not the fault of research organizations like NASA, etc. They
have their hands full, and they do offer token awards and grants,
under programs like CAFE/PAV, and to universities, respectively.

It is not the fault of the FAA. They are practically begging for
someone to go ballistic with a solution.

It is not the fault of commercial aviation. I see no barriers-to-entry
being created here, though it would not be unreasonable to assume
that, *if* someone were to create a PAV under the NextGen model, the
airliners would not sit idly by.

It is not the fault of the non-pilots. Most non-pilots, like myself,
assume that, if it were possible to be better, cheaper, etc., it would
have been by now. After all, who in his right mind pays 5x as much
for something than what he could?

I think a large responsibility lies with the pilots. While it is not
the pilot's job to create futuristic aircraft, I think the pilots,
more than any group, has the responsible for setting the moral
compass, and providing primary impetus toward innovation.
I think every pilot everwhere should be asking himself/herself a
simple question:

"Can this be done better, and if so, how much better?"

Then expect better, and insist on it.

-Le Chaud Lapin-