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The Next Generation Air Transportation System (NextGen) is a large-scale Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) initiative to modernize the U.S. National Airspace System (NAS). NextGen has been incrementally implemented across the country, with the FAA deploying new technologies and capabilities to improve air traffic management. NextGen's scope includes airport infrastructure improvements, new air traffic technologies and procedures, and safety and security enhancements. NextGen also helps to reduce aviation's effects on the environment. While NextGen has brought benefits, the FAA has faced challenges in its implementation, including uncertainties regarding future funding, potential air traffic control restructuring, and cybersecurity issues.
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What You'll Learn
NextGen's impact on airport noise and the environment
The Next Generation Air Transportation System (NextGen) is a large-scale US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) initiative to modernize the US National Airspace System (NAS). NextGen has a broad set of objectives, including maintaining safety and security, increasing capacity and efficiency, ensuring access to airspace and airports, and mitigating environmental impacts.
NextGen is designed to provide environmental protection and support aviation growth. To address noise issues, the FAA has several established programs. The FAA has programs to limit the number of people exposed to significant noise levels, defined as Day Night Average Sound Level (DNL) 65 decibels (dB). Between 1975 and 2000, the number of people exposed to significant noise levels was reduced by approximately 90% due to legislation mandating airplane fleets to transition to quieter, newer-generation aircraft.
However, a Government Accountability Office report on environmental impacts at airports indicated that changes in flight paths from NextGen would affect some communities previously unaffected or minimally affected by aircraft noise and expose them to increased noise levels. These levels could trigger the need for environmental reviews and raise community concerns. The report found that addressing these environmental effects can delay the implementation of operational changes, and a systematic way of dealing with these effects and community concerns may help reduce delays.
To accommodate the expected growth in air traffic, the FAA is leading a multi-agency effort to increase the efficiency, safety, and capacity of the NAS. This includes transforming the current air traffic control system into NextGen, which will require airport and runway expansion. The NextGen initiative incorporates research and development (R&D) on emissions-reduction technologies, alternative fuels, and cleaner and quieter air traffic management procedures. This R&D is necessary to meet anticipated domestic and international environmental standards and reduce the environmental impact of aviation. NextGen also helps to reduce aviation's effects on the environment by supporting programs to facilitate sustainable aviation fuel uptake, as well as aircraft and engines that lower fuel consumption and emissions.
The FAA is also examining the potential noise effects of new aircraft in the NAS, such as drones and supersonic jets, through the Continuous Lower Energy, Emissions, and Noise (CLEEN) program. CLEEN is a public-private partnership under NextGen to accelerate the development and commercial deployment of more efficient technologies and sustainable alternative fuels. The CLEEN program facilitates the integration of these technologies into current and future aircraft.
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Trajectory Based Operations (TBO)
The Next Generation Air Transportation System (NextGen) is a large-scale Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) initiative to modernize the U.S. National Airspace System (NAS). NextGen has revamped air traffic control infrastructure for communications, navigation, surveillance, automation, and information management to increase the safety, efficiency, capacity, predictability, flexibility, and resiliency of U.S. aviation.
NextGen's scope includes airport infrastructure improvements, new air traffic technologies and procedures, and safety and security enhancements. Trajectory-Based Operations (TBO) is a cornerstone of NextGen, representing a shift from clearance-based to trajectory-based control. TBO is an air traffic management (ATM) concept that enhances the strategic planning of aircraft flows to reduce capacity-to-demand imbalances in the NAS.
TBO provides tools to air traffic management personnel and controllers to help expedite aircraft movement between origin and destination airports. Aircraft trajectory, defined in four dimensions (latitude, longitude, altitude, and time), is the core tenet of TBO. This trajectory is defined prior to departure, updated in response to emerging conditions and operator inputs, and shared between stakeholders and systems. With TBO, the FAA and operators are expected to better know where and when an aircraft is anticipated to be throughout its flight. This information is shared between air and ground automation systems and used to better assess how to balance demand and capacity and minimize the consequences of disruptions.
TBO's main benefits are improved flight efficiency, increased throughput, predictability, and operator flexibility. It will enable aircraft to fly negotiated flight paths necessary for full Performance-Based Navigation (PBN), taking both operator preferences and optimal airspace system performance into consideration. TBO is a major operational transformation for aviation, basing safe separation on much higher levels of automation that assess current aircraft positions with respect to their future positions in time.
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NextGen's safety benefits
NextGen is a large-scale Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) initiative to modernize the U.S. National Airspace System (NAS). NextGen's scope includes airport infrastructure improvements, new air traffic technologies and procedures, and safety and security enhancements.
NextGen has revamped air traffic control infrastructure for communications, navigation, surveillance, automation, and information management to increase the safety, efficiency, capacity, predictability, flexibility, and resiliency of U.S. aviation. New digital communications enable a more efficient and timely message exchange between air traffic controllers and pilots. Performance-Based Navigation enables shorter, more precise flight paths that can save fuel. Satellite-enabled surveillance shows accurate aircraft location information to controllers that is more precise. State-of-the-art automation systems support air traffic controllers in managing individual aircraft in the flow to efficiently use every available slot on the most congested routes.
System Safety Management is a NextGen portfolio of initiatives to develop and implement policies, processes, and analytical tools that the FAA and industry use to ensure the safety of the NAS. The goal is to be certain that changes introduced with NextGen capabilities maintain or enhance safety while delivering capacity and efficiency benefits to NAS users. Improved risk analysis processes and new safety intelligence tools help safety analysts go beyond examining past accident data to detecting risk and implementing strategies to prevent accidents. The System Safety Management Transformation program enables safety analyses to determine how NAS-wide operational improvements will affect safety and evaluate potential ways to reduce safety risks.
NextGen also helps to reduce aviation's effects on the environment. The FAA supports programs to facilitate the uptake of sustainable aviation fuel, as well as aircraft and engines that lower fuel consumption and emissions. The Continuous Lower Energy, Emissions, and Noise (CLEEN) program is a public-private partnership under NextGen to accelerate the development and commercial deployment of more efficient technologies and sustainable alternative fuels.
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NextGen's impact on flight paths
NextGen is a large-scale Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) initiative to modernize the U.S. National Airspace System (NAS). NextGen's scope includes airport infrastructure improvements, new air traffic technologies and procedures, and safety and security enhancements.
NextGen has revamped air traffic control infrastructure for communications, navigation, surveillance, automation, and information management. New digital communications enable a more efficient and timely message exchange between air traffic controllers and pilots. Performance-Based Navigation (PBN) enables shorter, more precise flight paths that can save fuel. However, the consolidated flight paths of PBN can also increase noise exposure for people who live under them. A Government Accountability Office report on environmental impacts at airports indicated that NextGen changes in flight paths would affect some communities that were previously unaffected or minimally affected by aircraft noise and expose them to increased noise levels.
The FAA has traditionally followed the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) process when designing and implementing procedures. However, more community involvement has been necessary, especially when flight paths are changed due to new PBN procedures. The FAA has increased its public engagement to educate communities about how the agency develops procedures and measures noise, and listened to residents' concerns. The FAA also works with airports, airlines, and community officials to determine how the agency can best balance the pursuit of safer, more efficient flight paths with the needs of nearby communities.
NextGen capabilities are now integrated throughout the U.S. National Airspace System (NAS). Satellite-enabled surveillance shows accurate aircraft location information to controllers. State-of-the-art automation systems support air traffic controllers in managing individual aircraft in the flow to efficiently use every available slot on the most congested routes. Enterprise-level integrated information management improves shared decision-making, scheduling, and analysis.
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NextGen's challenges and delays
NextGen is the Federal Aviation Administration's (FAA) program to modernize the National Airspace System (NAS). The FAA has been working on NextGen improvements since 2007 and plans to finish its implementation by 2030. The program has a budget of $14 billion through 2022, with an estimated final cost of $20.6 billion.
NextGen has faced several challenges and delays. Firstly, the FAA has not updated NextGen's life-cycle cost estimates since 2017, which could help them better assess budget needs and performance. Secondly, the FAA does not have a risk mitigation plan to address the highest programmatic risks, which could help them manage the program more effectively. The COVID-19 pandemic has also played a significant role in causing delays, impacting system testing and training.
NextGen's transition to an interconnected internet-based system has raised concerns about cybersecurity risks, and the FAA has been questioned about its preparedness to address these risks. The FAA's organizational culture has also been criticized for being slow to embrace NextGen's transformational vision, with issues such as frequent management turnover hindering progress.
Additionally, the FAA's practice of dividing its programs into multiple segments for funding has been criticized as it may mask the final costs, and managing three versions of the National Airspace System (legacy, NextGen, and post-NextGen modernization) strains resources as demands increase while funding remains constant. The interoperability of air and ground systems, along with the need to synchronize equipage and industry investments with FAA programs, has been a primary challenge.
Furthermore, NextGen changes in flight paths have affected communities previously unaffected by aircraft noise, leading to increased noise levels and community concerns. Addressing these environmental impacts can cause delays in implementing operational changes. Several key NextGen features have been delayed from 2025 to 2030, and others have been delayed indefinitely.
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Frequently asked questions
NextGen FAA will affect airport operations by providing electronic communications to clear planes for departure, which will expedite clearances and reduce errors. NextGen also includes airport infrastructure improvements, new air traffic technologies, and safety and security enhancements.
NextGen capabilities have improved surface traffic operations at 39 of the 40 busiest airports in the United States. NextGen's Terminal Flight Data Manager will replace paper flight strips with an electronic system, containing planned and current flight data. NextGen will also improve flight efficiency, increase throughput, predictability, and operator flexibility.
Some challenges to implementing NextGen at airports include uncertainties regarding future funding, potential air traffic control restructuring, and cybersecurity issues. Another challenge is whether aircraft owners will equip their aircraft to use NextGen improvements.
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