[House Hearing, 113 Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
FAA'S 2020 NEXTGEN MANDATE: BENEFITS AND CHALLENGES FOR GENERAL
AVIATION
=======================================================================
HEARING
before the
COMMITTEE ON SMALL BUSINESS
UNITED STATES
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
ONE HUNDRED THIRTEENTH CONGRESS
SECOND SESSION
__________
HEARING HELD
JUNE 11, 2014
__________
[GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]
Small Business Committee Document Number 113-072
Available via the GPO Website: www.fdsys.gov
_____
U.S. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE
88-206 WASHINGTON : 2014
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
For sale by the Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government Printing
Office Internet: bookstore.gpo.gov Phone: toll free (866) 512-1800
DC area (202) 512-1800 Fax: (202) 512-2104 Mail: Stop IDCC,
Washington, DC 20402-0001
HOUSE COMMITTEE ON SMALL BUSINESS
SAM GRAVES, Missouri, Chairman
STEVE CHABOT, Ohio
STEVE KING, Iowa
MIKE COFFMAN, Colorado
BLAINE LUETKEMEYER, Missouri
MICK MULVANEY, South Carolina
SCOTT TIPTON, Colorado
JAIME HERRERA BEUTLER, Washington
RICHARD HANNA, New York
TIM HUELSKAMP, Kansas
DAVID SCHWEIKERT, Arizona
KERRY BENTIVOLIO, Michigan
CHRIS COLLINS, New York
TOM RICE, South Carolina
NYDIA VELAZQUEZ, New York, Ranking Member
KURT SCHRADER, Oregon
YVETTE CLARKE, New York
JUDY CHU, California
JANICE HAHN, California
DONALD PAYNE, JR., New Jersey
GRACE MENG, New York
BRAD SCHNEIDER, Illinois
RON BARBER, Arizona
ANN McLANE KUSTER, New Hampshire
PATRICK MURPHY, Florida
Lori Salley, Staff Director
Paul Sass, Deputy Staff Director
Barry Pineles, Chief Counsel
Michael Day, Minority Staff Director
C O N T E N T S
OPENING STATEMENTS
Page
Hon. Sam Graves.................................................. 1
Hon. Nydia Velazquez............................................. 2
WITNESSES
Hon. Michael P. Huerta, Administrator, Federal Aviation
Administration, Washington, DC................................. 3
Ms. Paula Derks, President, Aircraft Electronics Association,
Lee's Summit, MO............................................... 9
Mr. Tim Taylor, President and CEO, Free Flight Systems, Inc.,
Irving, TX, testifying on behalf of the General Aviation
Manufacturers Association...................................... 11
Mr. Bob Hepp, Owner, Aviation Adventures, Manassas, VA,
testifying on behalf of the Aircraft Owners and Pilots
Association.................................................... 13
Mr. Kenneth J. Button, Director, Center for Transportation,
Policy, Operations and Logistics, George Mason University,
Arlington, VA.................................................. 15
APPENDIX
Prepared Statements:
Hon. Michael P. Huerta, Administrator, Federal Aviation
Administration, Washington, DC............................. 24
Ms. Paula Derks, President, Aircraft Electronics Association,
Lee's Summit, MO........................................... 28
Mr. Tim Taylor, President and CEO, Free Flight Systems, Inc.,
Irving, TX, testifying on behalf of the General Aviation
Manufacturers Association.................................. 32
Mr. Bob Hepp, Owner, Aviation Adventures, Manassas, VA,
testifying on behalf of the Aircraft Owners and Pilots
Association................................................ 39
Mr. Kenneth J. Button, Director, Center for Transportation,
Policy, Operations and Logistics, George Mason University,
Arlington, VA.............................................. 44
Questions and Answers for the Record:
Questions and Answers to Hon. Michael Huerta from Hon. Judy
Chu........................................................ 52
Questions and Answers to Hon. Michael Huerta from Hon. Grace
Meng....................................................... 54
Questions and Answers to Hon. Michael Huerta from Hon. Mick
Mulvaney................................................... 56
Additional Material for the Record:
National Business Aviation Association (NBAA)................ 59
FAA'S 2020 NEXTGEN MANDATE: BENEFITS AND CHALLENGES FOR GENERAL
AVIATION
----------
WEDNESDAY, JUNE 11, 2014
House of Representatives,
Committee on Small Business,
Washington, DC.
The Committee met, pursuant to call, at 1:00 p.m., in Room
2360, Rayburn House Office Building. Hon. Sam Graves [chairman
of the Committee] presiding.
Present: Representatives Graves, Chabot, Luetkemeyer,
Hanna, Schweikert, Collins, Rice, Velazquez, Schrader, Chu,
Meng, and McLane Kuster.
Chairman GRAVES. Good afternoon, everybody. And we will
call this hearing to order.
Today, the Committee is going to examine the FAA's 2020
NextGen mandate, and how it is going to affect small businesses
in the general aviation community.
General aviation includes about 360,000 aircraft carrying
166 million passengers to 5,000 public airports in the U.S.,
many of which have no scheduled air service. More than two-
thirds of these 25 million flight hours per year are for
business purposes. In addition to more than 2,500 small
businesses that provide air transport services, general
aviation employs about 1.2 million people and contributes
approximately $150 billion to the overall GDP.
The NextGen initiative is a project of the Federal Aviation
Administration designed to modernize the United States'
aviation system by using satellite-based and digital
technologies to make air travel more predictable, convenient,
safe and reliable. At a time when many airports in the United
States experience high levels of congestion and safety concerns
are prevalent, the NextGen initiative offers some very positive
solutions.
As part of NextGen, the FAA is mandating that by January 1,
2020, all aircraft operating in most controlled airspace be
equipped with technology systems that are capable of
broadcasting continuous, precise positional information to
ground stations and other aircraft. This technology is known as
Automatic Dependence Surveillance-Broadcast Out, or what we all
refer to as ADS-B Out.
Despite the deadline, the general aviation community
estimates that so far, only a few thousand out of more than
150,000 general aviation aircraft that are going to be required
to equip with this new technology have done so. It seems that
cost, a potential installation backlog, and uncertainty
surrounding the mandate are creating obstacles to compliance
among the general aviation industry. It is important to address
these challenges if we are going to reap the potential safety
benefits that this new technology offers.
We are very fortunate to have with us today the
administrator of the FAA, as well as a group of general
aviation industry representatives and businesses who are going
to be affected by this mandate, and we look forward to hearing
their perspectives regarding the NextGen mandate, its economic
impact on the general aviation community, and the solutions to
accelerate and make possible the widespread adoption.
I would like to thank all of our witnesses, the first panel
obviously and the next panel, for being here, and I recognize
Ranking Member Velazquez.
Ms. VELAZQUEZ. Thank you, Chairman Graves.
General aviation operators and the services they provide
play a key role in our nation's economy. They fly to towns not
served regularly by big airlines, take families on sightseeing
tours, and train the next generation of commercial pilots. In
fact, general aviation directly generates more than $20 billion
annually and has an overall economic impact of nearly $80
million, employing nearly half a million workers.
General aviation's future success, however, is linked to
continually improving safety across the entire civilian
aviation industry. With this goal in mind, the FAA has embarked
on the NextGen initiative, a large-scale modernization of air
traffic control utilizing the global positioning system and
other technologies. GPS provides pilots and air traffic
controllers numerous advantages over the old radar-based
system, namely access to precise real-time data on an
aircraft's position, altitude, and speed that does not degrade
in bad weather or over rough terrain.
The FAA has mandated by 2020, most aircraft will need to be
equipped with ADS-B Out and equipment to broadcast GPS data to
both air traffic control and other aircraft in the area. By
combining these technologies, FAA hopes to improve general
aviation safety records, increase utilization of air space on
airports, and reduce environmental impact from noise and
emissions. ADS-B is also likely to help rescuers locate
survivors more quickly in the event of an accident.
However, these benefits are not free. In its rulemaking,
the FAA estimated the cost of equipment to the general aviation
fleet will be between $1.3 and $4.5 billion. Some industry
stakeholders suggest ADS-B could cost $1,000 to $30,000 per
aircraft.
During today's hearing, I am interested in learning whether
these costs will come down as more equipment is certified and
installation ramps up. There has also been criticism that FAA's
outreach on the 2020 mandate is lacking. Since not all aircraft
will need to be equipped, pilots and small operators have
become confused about whether the requirements apply to them.
This could result in planes unnecessarily adding this equipment
or unintended violations. Providing clear, concise instruction
on the mandate should be an FAA priority going forward. In
addition, delays in certification are another area of concern.
These delays could prevent new businesses from opening and
existing businesses from complying with the 2020 mandate.
Pursuing policies that can improve safety are necessary.
However, they must be data driven, clearly articulated, and
with minimal delay to prevent excessive industry burdens. More
sophisticated avionics technology promises a new era in
civilian aviation, one that is safer, more efficient, and
better for the environment. However, all of us must work
together to ensure delays and costs are minimized.
I thank the panel of witnesses for traveling here today,
and I look forward to their testimony.
I yield back, Mr. Chairman.
Chairman GRAVES. Our first witness today is the Honorable
Michael Huerta, the administrator of the Federal Aviation
Administration. In that role he oversees the safety and
efficiency of the largest aerospace system in the world, and he
manages a $15.9 billion budget and over 47,000 employees. He is
also responsible for leading the FAA's multi-billion NextGen
initiative.
Administrator, thank you for being here, and we appreciate
your testimony.
STATEMENT OF MICHAEL P. HUERTA, ADMINISTRATOR, FEDERAL AVIATION
ADMINISTRATION
Mr. HUERTA. Good afternoon, Chairman Graves, Ranking Member
Velazquez, Members of the Committee. And thank you for the
opportunity to speak with you today about NextGen and the
benefits and challenges of equipping aircraft to take advantage
of NextGen capabilities.
Even though it has been more than 100 years since the
Wright Brothers made history at Kitty Hawk, the thrill and
wonder of flight comes alive each time a general aviation pilot
takes to the skies. Our aircraft are far safer today and they
are much more powerful, and NextGen procedures give general
aviation pilots unprecedented access to runways across America
thanks to GPS.
NextGen technology brings weather and traffic information
into the cockpits and gives pilots better situational awareness
which enhances safety. The entrepreneurial spirit shown by the
Wright Brothers, which this Committee supports, is alive and
well in general aviation. The industry contributes about $40
billion per year to our nation's gross domestic product and it
creates a half million jobs. NextGen strengthens this economic
engine by making our nation's airspace more efficient.
One of the foundations of NextGen is satellite-based
surveillance. As we have discussed, the technical name is
Automatic Dependent Surveillance-Broadcast (ADS-B). We have
completed installing the ground infrastructure required for
ADS-B--more than 630 transceivers nationwide. This is an
extremely important milestone and I am proud of the work that
has brought us to this point.
But what does this mean? What benefits does this bring to
the general aviation pilot? There are considerable benefits
available right now to those who equip with ADS-B long before
the 2020 mandate.
We now have ADS-B coverage in remote areas where radar
coverage was limited before. This includes the Gulf of Mexico,
mountainous regions in Colorado, and low altitude airspace in
Alaska. ADS-B helps pinpoint hazardous weather, and it gives
pilots important flight information, such as temporary flight
restrictions and notices to airmen.
The highly precise GPS-based surveillance provided by ADS-B
is also improving our ability to perform lifesaving search and
rescue operations. Air traffic controllers have better
information about an airplane's last position, thus helping to
take the search out of search and rescue.
ADS-B technology allows general aviation pilots for the
first time to see what air traffic controllers see. Cockpit
displays show the location of aircraft in the sky around them,
creating an environment of shared situational awareness. Pilots
are already seeing the additional benefits of ADS-B in better
weather, better traffic, and situational awareness, and we
believe that they will equip to enjoy these benefits.
ADS-B Out is a foundational element of NextGen that allows
us to bring these benefits and a host of others to airspace
users. And I want to clarify that equipage for ADS-B out will
only be required in certain airspace. That is airspace where we
require transponders today so that aircraft can be seen by
controllers. Now, this, of course, includes air space located
around busy airports. But if a pilot flies in uncontrolled
airspace where no transponder is required today, there is no
requirement to equip the aircraft.
Now, we are confident that the general aviation community
sees the advantage of investing in the new technology, and ADS-
B is no exception. Right now, owners of 74,000 general aviation
aircraft have chosen to equip with a type of GPS technology
known as Wide Area Augmentation System (WAAS). This is not
required by any rule, but WAAS allows pilots to use NextGen
approaches at smaller airports that do not have instrument
landing systems. This opens up access to airports across the
country, and many WAAS receivers already come as a package with
ADS-B Out.
Nevertheless, we are very aware that increased technology
requires investment, and we are doing everything we can to
facilitate low-cost alternatives for the general aviation
community. To meet the minimum requirements for ADS-B Out, you
need three things: a GPS receiver, an extended squitter or
universal access transceiver, and an antenna. You can buy just
these three things, or you can integrate with other
technologies and capabilities.
We have done a lot of work to certify a range of products,
and companies are responding, which spurs competition in the
marketplace. We encourage aircraft owners to equip soon so that
they can take advantage of the benefits of NextGen. The
increased accuracy, predictability, and enhanced safety that
come with NextGen are taking aviation to heights that no one
could have imagined in the early days of aviation. We
appreciate your help in laying the groundwork for a modern air
transportation system that will benefit generations to come.
This concludes my oral testimony today. Thank you for the
opportunity to be here with you, and I look forward to
answering your questions.
Chairman GRAVES. Thank you, Administrator.
Obviously, they just called a series of votes, and we will
try to run through questions real quick and then we will go to
the next.
And mine, which I will just go right into, when we passed
the FAA Reauthorization back in 2012, a lot of people do not
realize, but Congress put together a program to incentivize and
accelerate obviously NextGen installation through FAA loan
guarantees, and it has been two years and this financing
mechanism has yet to be started within the FAA. And I am just
curious about the implementation of that. And also, have you
considered using the SBA to enter into an understanding with
them or get best practices? They obviously deal with this sort
of thing all the time and they are very well equipped to
process them. But I would be very curious where we are in that
process.
Mr. HUERTA. Sure. As you pointed out, the Act did include
permissive authority to establish a new loan guarantee program,
and in 2012, we had two public meetings and issued two market
surveys to seek input from interested stakeholders on which
NextGen capabilities are needed, and then also what would
happen in the face of this financing opportunity. We also held
meetings with aircraft operators and potential private
partners. In December 2013, an interested private partner
submitted an application to the FAA for an incentives program
specifically targeted at general aviation. We are currently
reviewing that application, and we are working with the DOT's
Credit Council. The DOT does oversee other lending programs on
the viability of the application and the program.
We do currently lack one provision, and that is the
necessary appropriations authority in order to implement
partnership incentive programs with a private investor. But, as
we work through the application, that is something we would
need to work through with the appropriators.
Now, this would certainly accelerate NextGen equipage. We
believe it would do that, and we also know that there are
currently many other private sector nonsubsidized lending
sources that are out there to pilots, including a program that
is being overseen by AOPA.
Chairman GRAVES. And we would love to help you out with
that, too, as far as appropriations. We do think that it can be
run much like some of the SBA programs in terms of ultimately
being neutral in terms of revenues and fees being able to cover
everything obviously. But we would love to work with you and
work through that process because I think it is a program that
is going to work. And I do not think the appropriations request
has ever actually been made either, and we have to have a
request from FAA, too, before we can move forward.
Mr. HUERTA. Yes. And it would be based on the scoping of
the program. And since we have this single application that we
are looking at, it would be based on what comes out of that.
Chairman GRAVES. Ranking member?
Ms. VELAZQUEZ. Mr. Chairman?
Okay, I would like to ask you, what do you need the
appropriations for?
Mr. HUERTA. The Congress long ago recognized that
authorizations for agencies to provide loan guarantee programs
could have an impact on the Treasury if the potential liability
was not recognized. So pursuant to the Federal Credit Reform
Act of 1990, there is a requirement that loan guarantees be
accounted for in an appropriations act, notwithstanding any
other provision of loss. So what we need in an appropriations
act is essentially the ability to enter into the program.
Ms. VELAZQUEZ. But also under the act, the costs of
guaranteeing and administering the loan program could be upset
by fees charged to lenders and borrowers similar to the 7(a)
program.
Mr. HUERTA. Sure.
Ms. VELAZQUEZ. My question to you is have you ever
contacted SBA so that you could draw from their experience in
this area?
Mr. HUERTA. Yes. And we have contacted everyone that
administers guarantee programs, and essentially, what the
appropriation deals with is not specifically an appropriation
of the fee.
Ms. VELAZQUEZ. Okay.
Mr. HUERTA. What this is an appropriation for is a risk
premium as for any lending program in the situation which could
emerge of a loan default or something like that. That is what
we need the authority for.
Ms. VELAZQUEZ. Okay. What happens if a small operator
cannot get equipped in time due to conditions out of their
control, like supply chain issues or installation backlogs?
Mr. HUERTA. Well, as of today, we have no installation
backlogs, nor do we have a backlog in certifying repair
stations to do the installation. We are still five and a half
years ago, and it is for that reason that we encourage people
to get ahead of this so as to ensure that we do not have an
installation backlog as we get to January 1, 2020. And we do
think there are benefits for early adopters because they are
able to take advantage of the safety benefits, as well as the
operational benefits that come from deployment of ADS-B. We do
not want people to wait.
Ms. VELAZQUEZ. Okay. FAA's strategy right now is to bring
everyone into compliance at roughly the same time. Can you
explain the pros and cons of this approach?
Mr. HUERTA. Well, the requirement was implemented in 2010,
and it provided a 10-year implementation period for commercial,
non-commercial, all users of the national air space system to
be equipped with ADS-B Out by 2010. And the reason for that is
that you can only have the safety benefit, as well as the
foundational efficiency benefits that come through ADS-B if
everyone is equipped. Otherwise, there is no incentive because
you will have a moving target. So you need everybody in the
program in order to get the benefits across the national air
space system as a whole.
Ms. VELAZQUEZ. Okay. Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Chairman GRAVES. Mr. Collins?
Mr. COLLINS. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I will be relatively
quick.
As a VFR general aviation pilot, I can tell you, you have
answered my questions. My biggest concern would be the
exemption for someone flying in uncontrolled airspace. I think
that is necessary. You have answered the question. I also think
your 10-year rollout is quite reasonable, and the fact that you
can get benefits today, I can imagine a lot of people would go
ahead and move forward. And there is always a cost issue to
most anything. I do not think the cost here--for most people
flying airplanes, there is a basic cost in that hobby, and
while there is a cost here, I do not think that is going to be
a detriment to those who want to continue flying, and I think
the safety far outweighs it. So I applaud everything you are
doing there.
But let me bring up one thing maybe a little bit off topic.
I was county executive of Erie County when Colgan Flight 3407
went down a mile from my house. That was about five years ago.
And as frustrated as I was and others with some of the FAA
delays on the safety issues that came out of the Airline Safety
and FAA Extension Act in 2010, they are mostly now implemented.
The pilot fatigue, the pilot training, and the new licensing
requirements are all now implemented and that is good, but
could you quickly update me on the last remaining piece, which
is the pilot record database? In this case, the pilot had
failed several check rides. He did not disclose that on his
application to Colgan. There was no way for Colgan to verify
that, in fact, this particular pilot--and it was 100 percent
pilot error--crashed because of the lack of knowing that he was
frankly just not qualified. Can you update me, and those in
Western New York especially, where we stand on the database?
Mr. HUERTA. Sure. To go back to the beginning, the Act
required a 90-day period to begin the development on the pilot
records database, and we did meet that. We established an
aviation rulemaking committee in February of 2011, which
delivered their report to us later that year in July. In
August, we issued what we call an info. That is an information
for operators to ensure that the industry is aware of the need
to retain records, all in anticipation of the development of
the planned pilot records database. In August of 2012, we
conducted two IT proof of concept tests to determine whether we
have a workable technical solution because this is information
that comes from a whole lot of different sources. Based on
those results, we did initiate a rulemaking and are currently
working toward the development of the notice of proposed
rulemaking, which we hope to publish soon.
Mr. COLLINS. Any guestimate on when this might be finished?
Mr. HUERTA. I will have to take an IOU and get back to you.
Mr. COLLINS. Yeah, could you?
Mr. HUERTA. Yes.
Mr. COLLINS. I get questioned about that all the time.
Mr. HUERTA. Sure. Okay.
Mr. COLLINS. I yield back, Mr. Chairman.
Chairman GRAVES. Mr. Schrader?
Mr. SCHRADER. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Thank you for coming, Administrator. I appreciate it very
much.
Can you describe briefly your outreach to the industry
before the mandate came out and stuff so we have a clear
impression of how the stakeholders are involved?
Mr. HUERTA. We are working with the various industry groups
that represent the segments of the general aviation industry.
You will be hearing from them in the second panel here on this
hearing. That includes the manufacturers who represent the
avionics manufacturers, as well as many of those that are in
the business of the installations. We are working with the
electronics industry, who represents both users, as well as
repair stations that supply it, the Aircraft Owners and Pilots
Association.
Mr. SCHRADER. I was referring to before the mandate and
stuff.
Mr. HUERTA. Before the development of this it was done
through the standard public process that we would do in terms
of outreach for any rule that we would develop and any
mandatory notice and comment in consultation with stakeholders.
Mr. SCHRADER. Questions come up about why not use the SBA
for the loan program and you indicated that there are a bunch
of agencies that do have loan incentive programs. The SBA I
would respectfully suggest is uniquely set up to do that sort
of thing. Rather than have the agency itself recreate another
process or bureaucracy within itself, it might be smart to
contract out with the SBA or pick an agency, but SBA is small
business friendly. They get that. They have a lot of experience
with the guarantee-type programs. Have you actually talked to
the SBA and gotten involved with them in a discussion along
these lines?
Mr. HUERTA. I have not but our credit team and our finance
team have talked extensively with the government partners, you
know, about how to structure this. But to be clear, we are not
proposing to set up a bureaucracy or an office to do this. The
application we have is from a private lending entity that we
would simply be providing the guarantee behind.
Mr. SCHRADER. Okay. And I am fine with a private entity as
long as they are reputable and will follow through on that. I
just would suggest it might be smart to have at least someone
to compare the two, make sure to compare apples with apples
frankly. But I think it is an option there.
Mr. HUERTA. Sure.
Mr. SCHRADER. And then the request for the appropriation
authorization. That is a technicality it sounds like. When do
you think given, working with the provider, maybe the outreach
here to the SBA, when do you think that might occur?
Mr. HUERTA. It has to be done in an appropriations act, and
so it is however that----
Mr. SCHRADER. It is probably next year is what you are
suggesting unless there is a specific bill that deals with this
alone?
Mr. HUERTA. Probably. Yes.
Mr. SCHRADER. Okay. Okay.
And then I guess I just want to thank you personally for
how the agency works. I have had opportunity to reach out to
the agency on more than one occasion. We get responses. We get
telephone calls back. The contract tower program is a big deal
for a lot of small airports around the country, a lot of
general aviation folks. And we had an airport in Aurora we were
concerned about personally, but I think you guys played
straight with us, talked about what was in the appropriation
bills or not and how that might happen, and I just appreciate
the way the agency conducts itself and wish other agencies
would do the same thing.
With that, I yield back, Mr. Chair.
Mr. HUERTA. Thank you.
Chairman GRAVES. Thank you very much.
With votes, we will go ahead and move to that. If any other
members have a question for the administrator, please submit it
and I will make sure you get it.
Mr. HUERTA. Thank you.
Chairman GRAVES. And I would hope to--I do not know if you
can leave one of your staff around to hear the industry experts
on the next panel.
Mr. HUERTA. Absolutely. We will.
Chairman GRAVES. That would be fantastic. And we appreciate
you coming up, and I apologize for the votes, but thank you
very much for taking the time.
Mr. HUERTA. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Chairman GRAVES. And we will go ahead and seat the next
panel while we are in recess, and we will be gone for a little
bit.
[Recess]
Chairman GRAVES. All right. We will call the hearing back
to order. I apologize again for the vote series in the middle
of this. But our first witness today is Ms. Paula Derks. She is
the president of the Aircraft Electronics Association, which is
based in Lee's Summit, Missouri, which I am very proud to
represent.
As president of AEA, Ms. Derks presides over an
organization that provides regulatory representation, training,
and member services to more than 1,300 general aviation and
electronics entities in 43 countries. She was named president
of AEA in 1996 after beginning her career there as managing
editor of Avionics News.
Thank you for being here. I appreciate your testimony.
STATEMENTS OF PAULA DERKS, PRESIDENT, AIRCRAFT ELECTRONICS
ASSOCIATION; TIM TAYLOR, PRESIDENT AND CEO, FREEFLIGHT SYSTEMS,
INC.; BOB HEPP, OWNER, AVIATION ADVENTURES; KENNETH BUTTON,
DIRECTOR, CENTER FOR TRANSPORTATION, POLICY, OPERATIONS AND
LOGISTICS
STATEMENT OF PAULA DERKS
Ms. DERKS. Chairman Graves, Ranking Member Velazquez, and
members of the U.S. House Committee on Small Business, thank
you for the opportunity to appear before you today to speak
about the benefits and the challenges of the NextGen mandate on
the general aviation industry.
My name is Paula Derks, and I am president of the Aircraft
Electronics Association, and as Congressman Graves said, we are
an international organization representing nearly 1,300
companies of which nearly 80 percent are small businesses.
Included in our membership are nearly 200 avionics
manufacturers, many of whom are producing systems to meet ADS-B
Out requirements.
Our largest category of membership is the 900-plus
government-certified repair stations with approximately 700 of
those located here in the United States and certified by the
FAA to maintain and install avionics, and an additional 200
repair stations in more than 40 countries around the world.
My comments today will focus on three primary areas. Number
one, industry's ability to meet the mandate. Number two,
certifying new equipment and receiving field approvals on the
installation. And number three, the refocused effort needed
from the FAA leadership to expedite implementation of this
safety-enhancing technology and sign off on the
congressionally-authorized financial incentives for the
aircraft operator.
Right here today on this date, repair stations have the
capacity to perform ADS-B installations at a rate necessary for
the expected 160,000 general aviation aircraft to comply with
the mandate by January 1, 2020. Obviously, demand is expected
to increase as the deadline nears, and a recent survey of our
membership indicates that more than 75 percent of the 700 U.S.
repair stations will expand and hire new employees and new
technicians and support staff. This alone is job creation.
But industry has received mixed signals from the FAA in
regards to the mandate, and this leads to confusion, rumors,
and mistrust of the very agency charged with implementing the
Next Generation Air Transportation System in our nation.
As you might imagine, when it comes to being forced by a
government mandate to spend hard-earned, personal cash to
upgrade when benefits to the consumer have not yet been fully
realized, it is not an easy sell. But since the mandate was
first announced in 2010, my association, along with our sister
associations, have worked hard to educate industry and
encourage early equipage.
From day one, Administrator Huerta's office has been a
vocal proponent of NextGen. They have promised a reasonable
transition, and they have worked to make sure the ground
infrastructure is in place, only to have their efforts derailed
by the back office of the FAA, whose individual interpretation
of the rules, excessive micromanagement on projects, and
personal opinions compete with the overall objectives of this
program.
Rumors are swirling that the mandate will be extended.
These rumors and mistruths create a very confused consumer.
Several of our repair stations tell us that their customers,
the aircraft operators have decided to wait until the last
minute to equip because they assume the FAA will operate as
usual, with delays, and they will have to extend the deadline
to equip.
And for operators who have decided to equip early, the FAA
is still a constraint. We have a member in Las Vegas who
supports a helicopter fleet operator wanting to equip a fleet
of 90 helicopters. He currently has the correct ADS-B equipment
installed, but because his aircraft has not been FAA
``approved'' for ADS-B operations, he cannot turn the system
on.
Keep in mind, the systems he is installing in this fleet
have already been approved by the FAA in thousands of
airplanes, but because this is a fleet of helicopters, the
approvals do not count. So the penalty for this operator, who
is willing to early equip, is experiencing six months of costly
administrative burden and tens of thousands of dollars in
certification fees.
To avert a chokehold as early as 2016, the certification
and approval process must be streamlined. The AEA is also
helping promote the NextGen GA Fund. This fund is designed to
take advantage of the public-private partnership funding
authorized by Congress. It creates low interest, privately-
funded government back loans for aircraft operators. The lack
of FAA's willingness to embrace the fund is a testimony to the
cancer that has reaped havoc on the agency for the past decade.
The agency seems to have a culture of ``cannot,'' rather than a
culture of ``can do.'' We simply ask the FAA administrator to
restore the culture of ``can do'' to his agency and encourage
his agency and encourage his workforce to work with the
industry. This should be a partnership with a shared goal, and
that being safety and efficiency. It is this type of historical
culture that has created the greatest general aviation industry
in the world.
In closing, the challenges that we ask Congress to address
include an effort by the FAA to incentivize aircraft owners by
immediately signing the loan guarantee certificate for the
NextGen GA Fund, streamlining the certification and approval
process, and restoring aircraft owners' confidence in the FAA
that this deadline will not be extended and their money will be
well spent.
Thank you for this opportunity to testify on behalf of the
general aviation electronics industry.
Chairman GRAVES. Our next witness is Tim Taylor, who is the
president and CEO of FreeFlight Systems, which is an aviation
manufacturing company based in Texas that is developing
innovative solutions to assist in NextGen compliance.
Mr. Taylor has 35 years of leadership experience in the
aerospace and defense industries, and prior to starting
FreeFlight Systems, he was the CEO of Elbit Systems of America,
a global defense electronics and commercial aviation company.
There, he pioneered new technology-based systems for customers,
including Gulf Stream Aerospace and Federal Express. Mr. Taylor
is testifying today on behalf of the General Aviation
Manufacturers Association.
We appreciate you being here and look forward to your
testimony.
STATEMENT OF TIM TAYLOR
Mr. TAYLOR. Chairman Graves, Ranking Member Velazquez, and
other distinguished members of the Committee, my name is Tim
Taylor, and I am president and chief executive officer of
FreeFlight Systems. Today, I have the privilege of also
representing the General Aviation Manufacturers Association,
and I am honored to provide testimony to the Committee on their
behalf.
I appreciate the opportunity to discuss today the benefits
of the nation's transition to NextGen for general aviation and
to highlight the importance and ability of industry to meet the
FAA's 2020 Automatic Dependent Surveillance or ADS-B Out
mandate. As the leader of a small aviation manufacturing
business, I thank the Committee for holding this hearing and
look forward to describing how NextGen avionics, specifically
ADS-B equipage, is readily available, affordable and easy to
install.
FreeFlight Systems designs, manufacturers, and supports
electronic systems that enable the NextGen air traffic
management transformation. We certified our first ADS-B Out
radio in 2011, obtained our first installation approvals in
2012, and have delivered around 1,000 ADS-B radios and around
3,000 ADS-B position sources since then.
As a small business, we made the investments, over $3
million, upfront to allow aviation operators the ability to
meet the FAA's 2020 ADS-B mandate. In short, we have already
accomplished the ``heavy lifting'' required to make our
solutions readily available, affordable, and easy to install.
We are seeing rapid acceleration today in the adoption and
installation of ADS-B systems in both airborne and airport
surface vehicle applications.
FreeFlight Systems does all this as a small business in
Texas that currently employs 53 people. We either perform or
source our manufacturing in the United States, predominantly in
Texas, but we are also part of the global aviation industry,
exporting around 40 percent of our products.
The potential benefits of NextGen to the aviation community
are significant. The transformation enables improved safety,
increases the capacity of the airspace system, and reduces the
cost and complexity of air traffic control. For GA operators,
many of these benefits, such as access to weather and traffic
information, or ADS-B In, are immediately available upon
appropriate equipage, but realizing the full-potential of
NextGen across the national airspace system will require
significant additional work by the FAA.
The more airplanes that equip, the more dramatic the
improvements in capacity and safety become. The full potential
can be realized only when all aircraft in controlled airspace
are equipped, which the FAA has mandated by January 1, 2020.
The rule and mandate were established early in 2010, giving
aircraft operators 10 years to equip. Equipment manufacturers
have had longer. The system architecture was finalized in 2007
and the rules and requirements have not changed substantially
since then. The ground infrastructure for the system is largely
deployed and is operational across the country. There are no
regulatory or infrastructure barriers to full equipage to meet
the mandate. This long-term stability is essential if small
businesses are to participate in the NextGen transformation.
For the light end of GA, ADS-B equipment can be relatively
inexpensive and easy to install. FreeFlight Systems offers
complete solutions today at a list price that is less than
$4,000. That is what it looks like as a small system. And we
are seeing installation times that are typically in the 20 to
40 range, for a total cost of $6,000 to $8,000. This estimate
includes rule compliant ADS-B Out, as well as ADS-B In for
aircraft that have no modern avionics at all. In newer
aircraft, ADS-B In, for example, can utilize existing display
to show beneficial situational awareness. In an older aircraft
that has not seen a new piece of avionics since the 1960s, ADS-
B can simply utilize an iPad.
For NextGen to be effective, however, systems users need to
adopt the technology. For the system to work to its full
potential, every aircraft that enters controlled airspace needs
to meet minimum equipage standards or it will
disproportionately disrupt operations. A mandate is the only
way to ensure that happens and to ensure that everybody who
invested in the new system, industry users and government, get
the return they deserve on the investments that they have made.
In our view, the best incentives from government and
industry are already in place: infrastructure, a firm schedule,
stable requirements, and aggressive pricing. However, there is
always more that could be considered.
One area of concern is the inconsistency in the application
of certification standards across different FAA branches and
regions. Many NextGen programs are being given priority in
modification approvals, but strong leadership and training can
address these inconsistencies, reducing delays, and increasing
the number of installers willing to aggressively price and
perform ADS-B installations.
Low interest, government-backed financing has been
discussed in the marketplace and authorized by Congress and is
popular among FreeFlight customers. Congress should examine how
this can be made to move forward.
The timely introduction of NextGen technologies is vital
supporting the safe and efficient operation of our nation's
airspace system and to maintaining U.S. global leadership in
aviation. Any wavering or mixed signals hurt NextGen progress,
safety, and small businesses that are playing by the rules.
Thank you for the opportunity to testify this afternoon,
and I look forward to answering any questions that you may
have.
Chairman GRAVES. Thank you, Mr. Taylor.
Our next witness is Bob Hepp, who is a retired Army
lieutenant colonel and owner of Aviation Adventures, which is a
flight training school based in nearby Manassas. After
graduating from Bowling Green State University and obtaining
his private pilot certificate in 1977, Mr. Hepp joined the
Army, and in 1989 started Aviation Adventures with one aircraft
operating off a public ramp in Laughton, Oklahoma. Aviation
Adventures has won the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association
Outstanding Flight School Award twice and won its 2013
President's Choice Award for innovative contributions to the
flight training community.
Mr. Hepp is testifying on behalf of AOPA, and we appreciate
you being here and look forward to your testimony.
STATEMENT OF BOB HEPP
Mr. HEPP. Thank you, Chairman Graves, Ranking Member
Velazquez, and members of the Committee. I am Bob Hepp, the
owner of Aviation Adventures, a flight school with locations in
Manassas, Warrenton, Stafford, and Leesburg, Virginia.
Our staff of 41 employees provides flight instruction at
all levels from initial flight training through the Airline
Transport Pilot certification. We also provide rental aircraft.
I am also representing the Aircraft Owners and Pilots
Association (AOPA). I have been a member of AOPA since 1981.
AOPA's mission is to effectively represent the interests of its
more than 350,000 members as aircraft owners and pilots
concerning the economy, safety, utility, and popularity of
flight in general aviation aircraft.
My testimony today will cover the following points:
One, the general aviation community has long supported the
move from ground-based to satellite-based navigation. However,
at this time, the benefits associated with the FAA mandate are
unclear and inadequate for many general aviation users.
Number two, the FAA's mandate to equip ADS-B Out by 2020 is
costly and will be prohibitive for most small flight schools,
businesses utilizing aircraft, and recreational aviators.
Three, providing low-cost loans for GA equipage and
leveraging existing cockpit technologies, such as handheld
devices, can help move NextGen modernization forward without
imposing unmanageable burdens on small businesses.
For most general aviation pilots, there is no direct
benefit of the ADS-B Out mandate. Complying with the mandate
will simply allow pilots to continue using the national
airspace system that they are using today. Complying will be
prohibitively expensive for many small aviation businesses,
including flight schools. Aviation Adventures owns and operates
39 aircraft. I estimate that the total cost to equip these
aircraft for minimal compliance with the ADS-B mandate will be
$312,000, a major investment for small businesses and many
flight schools, one that many flight schools will be unable to
make.
Unlike investing in additional aircraft or facilities, the
money spent on ADS-B Out equipment will not bring a direct
return because it will not increase our customer base, will not
allow us to serve more clients, provide new capabilities, or
otherwise help grow our businesses. For that reason alone, it
is not currently a sound business decision to equip early.
Continuing uncertainties about exactly what the FAA will
ultimately require to fulfill the mandate and the tendency of
technology prices to drop over time are further disincentives
to equip early. We have already seen a decrease in prices for
ADS-B equipment, just as Mr. Taylor just showed us, since the
mandate was finalized in 2010, making it in the best interest
of business owners and aircraft owners to wait before making
that investment.
Because of the high cost and low return on equipping for
the 2020 mandate, general aviation operators need a little
assistance. The establishment of a fund to continue low-cost,
federally guaranteed loans to equip GA aircraft could provide
the financing needed to meet the mandate.
Handheld devices currently provide ADS-B In information,
significantly enhancing safety at very nominal cost. Many
aircraft operators are already using handheld devices in the
cockpit, and similar technology could be used to provide ADS-B
Out.
In conclusion, I believe in its current form, the current
ADS-B Out mandate fails to provide affordable benefits and
support for general aviation operators. We look forward to
working with the FAA to help develop affordable ADS-B solutions
for general aviation operators and to help the FAA in their
efforts to educate the general aviation community on the
benefits and options provided by these solutions.
On behalf of the 41 employees of Aviation Adventures and
the more than 350,000 members of AOPA, I appreciate your
leadership in addressing the concern of the GA industry and
also to continue to help small businesses thrive and grow
nationwide.
Thank you for the opportunity to appear before the
Committee.
Ms. VELAZQUEZ. I am sorry. I am kind of lost. I am just
working on the questions as I listen to you.
Yes, Mr. Chairman, it is my pleasure to introduce Kenneth
Button. He is the university professor of Public Policy at
George Mason School University, where he is the director of the
Center for Transportation Policy, Operations, and Logistics. He
has published or has in press some 80 books and over 400
academic papers in the field of transportation economics,
aviation policy, and related subjects. Professor Button is the
editor of numerous academic journals in the fields of aviation
and aerospace policy, tourism, and transportation. Prior to
coming to George Mason University in 1997, he served as a
transportation expert for the OECD and taught at several
universities throughout the world. Welcome.
STATEMENT OF KENNETH BUTTON
Mr. BUTTON. Thank you very much, Chairman Graves, Ranking
Member Velazquez, and Committee members.
We are clearly going through an age of technical change. We
are moving from a technology in aviation, which is probably 80
years old, to one which is really 20 years old. I do not mean
that in any insulting fashion. We want a technology which is
robust. We do not want today's technology.
This change is clearly causing friction. It is not easy. My
recent experience has mainly been in Europe. We have something
like 35-40 countries trying to move forward in a single
European skies, very similar to the NextGen initiative here. I
would warn of delaying any introduction of ADS in this country.
Europe has done this so far once. There were plans in Europe to
introduce ADS for new aircraft from 2013, a retro fit from
2015. That has been pushed back for two years, and probably
another pushback is coming. That is not the way to incentivize
introduction of new technology. So I would hope people will
stick firmly to the 2020 deadline. I think it is very important
that this is done.
In terms of the benefits, the pros, if you like, of ADS, I
think there are safety benefits but they increase exponentially
as more people adopt the technology. It is no good having one
or two people. And in the long term, I think one has to think
of a full arrangement including ADS In as well as ADS Out.
Aviation is growing in this country, and giving the
licensing I believe it was yesterday of a drone service in
Alaska, we are going to see unmanned vehicles out there as well
in larger numbers, I believe, over the next 20 or 30 years. And
there is a need to actually integrate the two sectors, the
manned and the unmanned. And I think moving towards ADS is one
element in that.
In terms of the costs, which I think can be questioned in
some senses, it is not an easy thing to adopt a new technology.
It does cost money. The FAA has put money into the ground
facilities. That is not a small sum of money, and the airlines,
the commercial airlines are putting equipment in and the
general aviation community area. I think that the costs
sometimes which are missed in the general aviation community
are the time it takes to put this equipment in. A lot of
general aviation does involve commercial activities--air taxis,
training activities, business jets, and there is a downtime
equipping the new technology. So the cost is not simply the
financial cost of acquiring the technology; it is also the
implementation and setting up of the arrangements to have it
installed.
There are other issues which I think have been discussed. I
want to spend a couple of minutes though just talking about the
transition. Transitions into any new technology have two
elements if they are of any use, a stick and a carrot. The
stick in this case is you have got to have it in place by 2020.
Bang. The carrot it seems to me is the problem. The initial
ruling was made in 2010. That is four years ago. There should
be some initial thought about how to incentivize early uptake
of that point. You do not wait until halfway through and then
move forward to a situation of offering loan guarantees, et
cetera, to help people adopt the new technology. There is a
problem here. Partly, obviously, there seems to be some
difficulty with the FAA implementing the current arrangements,
but one would hope perhaps one would move more rapidly at the
early stages to get people to equip much more quickly so you do
not get any potential backlog.
Other countries are doing things differently and it is
worthwhile looking at them. I am not saying they are better. I
personally do not think that they are. Canada tends to be using
a sort of geographical outward movement taking airspace which
is currently under no radar control and introducing ADS there
and expanding it geographically outwards. Other countries, I
believe Australia, are trying to expand it downwards, higher
flights requiring equipping before flights at lower levels. So
there are options. I am not all together sure they actually are
better than the ones in the U.S. I think the bigger bang
approach here where everyone has to have it in controlled
airspace is a wise and sensible one. My concern is quite simply
that the incentive structure has not been developed quite as
thoughtfully as it might have been. I appreciate within that
there are budgetary constraints at the macroeconomic level
which would slow this down, but I one would hope that the FAA
will now move forward more rapidly and get moving on putting in
place the finance which is going to be available to help with
the adoption of ADS.
Thank you very much.
Chairman GRAVES. Thank you very much.
We will move to questions, and we will start with Mr.
Hanna.
Mr. HANNA. Thank you.
There is pretty much unanimity here that--and who can blame
anyone for believing that bureaucracies will not meet
deadlines, make rules clear, put people in a position where
they spend money that they find out that they did not have to,
or did not have to in time, or to your point, Ms. Derks,
technology changes.
So the biggest thing you are all asking for is some degree
of certainty. There are plenty of ways to finance things. We
could do it through the Small Business is one of them. It
strikes me that you cannot blame people for waiting until the
last syllable of recorded time with our history on most
everything in government. I am a pilot. I certainly would not
go out and--you know, I bought an ELT that I was required to
buy to transfer frequency. Sam knows about it, and I still do
not need the old one, and it is years. So, and I can really
appreciate Mr. Huerta's point, the administrator, who is moving
forward to do his job and it is just--it is more about setting
deadlines, meeting deadlines, having guarantees, and Flight
School has some 32 planes you said?
Mr. HEPP. Thirty-nine.
Mr. HANNA. Thirty-nine planes. You know, $300,000 is a lot
of money, but let us be honest. You need to train all those
pilots to use this equipment because it is going to be what
they are going to use. So certainty for you makes a big
difference, too. And you can probably do it easily over time,
but much less easier if you put it off, but you are not really
sure that you do not have to or could not put it off.
I wish I had a question to ask you. I just sympathize with
all of you. I wonder though, Mr. Hepp, because you are right in
the thick of this. You are in a tough industry training people,
very expensive feet and a lot of people, so you are probably
the person who is most detrimentally affected being in the low
end of GA with all due respect. So you are kind of prepared to
do this but you are concerned that you are going to do things
that will not benefit you that cost you a lot and maybe the FAA
will make a mess of it. Would you like to respond?
Mr. HEPP. That is pretty much the crux of the issue is that
as Ms. Derks pointed out, like anything else, if you buy a flat
screen to put up in your house today, the only thing you are
going to be guaranteed is that next year or two years from now
you can pay half the price for that same TV. And the same thing
is going on in electronics, just like Mr. Taylor just pointed
out to us. So there is no incentive to wait. The only thing
that is going to happen is that capabilities are going to go
up, the prices are going to come down, the mandate date may
shift backwards. It may change. They may abandon it. They had
the microwave landing system a number of years ago that they
started and it went away. So the only thing that we know is
that what we are dealing with today is not going to be what it
ends up in final state. So there is no incentive right now for
an operator to equip early but the benefits come from, as
Professor Button pointed out, from everybody going out there
and equipping early because it does not do any good to have
that technology available in your cockpit if there is nobody
out there transmitting the ADS-B Out signal to be received.
So that is the issue that we are at, and if everybody waits
till the last minute, we are not going to have the capacity----
Mr. HANNA. But every incentive is pointing to the notion
that people should wait till the last minute----
Mr. HEPP. Exactly.
Mr. HANNA.--because of the way the process is not just
rolled out, but to Ms. Derks's point, the way technology is put
together, the way pilots can--I mean, I cannot tell you the
number of GPSs I have owned in my life and there is always
something new, fancier, better that really is better. I am just
glad I am not you today.
Mr. Taylor, do you want to----
Mr. TAYLOR. Yeah, I would like to talk to that a little
bit.
I am in the technology business. I am the GPS guy. The GPS
in this thing--this is a UAT. This is a transceiver with GPS in
it. The GPS in that is a 2003 kind of vintage WAAS GPS. It has
been updated a little bit in the last couple of years, but that
technology is mature and I cannot make--that particular GPS, I
cannot make it any smaller. I cannot make it any less
expensive. And certify. There are certain minimum standards we
have to meet with this kind of equipment that you cannot go
below. This is a primary air traffic control device. You put it
on your aircraft and from that moment on other aircraft around
you, the rest of the world is depending entirely on what comes
out of this box to make decisions about separation, movement of
aircraft, and so on. So the standards that you have to meet are
not going to drop--they are not going to drop below the
standards of day-to-day. They were well thought out. They were
well established. I cannot build this any cheaper. I am telling
you. I cannot build this any cheaper than I am selling it
today. This is priced--I am buying materials in quantities of
1,000. I am not selling in thousands. I am selling in hundreds,
so I am taking risks on that. But that is the price. The cost
is not going to go down of the equipment.
And I think in terms of the rules themselves, in my
testimony I am asking the rules not to change. I think the
rules should not change. I think the rules will not change. I
think it would be very nice to really hear the FAA in some
consistent and concrete way tell us.
Barriers to equipage, we are seeing people equip.
Just one more little thing. I am sorry.
There are benefits today, by the way. So the FAA provides
to users of this equipment traffic information, weather
information. That comes today. You do not need everybody to
equip to that. That happens today. For flight school, we can
provide you fleet tracking, so you can use the ADS-B technology
to track the assets that you have flying for safety, for fuel
efficiency, for many reasons. So the raw technology is really
just a cornerstone of many, many, many exciting applications,
many of which are available today.
Mr. HANNA. My time is expired. Thank you for your
indulgence.
Chairman GRAVES. Ms. Velazquez?
Ms. VELAZQUEZ. Professor Button, you mentioned that other
countries have taken a different approach to implementing
satellite-based air traffic control. For example, Canada's
geographical spread system. Do you think a different approach
would have fewer negative impacts than FAA's current strategy?
Mr. BUTTON. Probably not. I think that the big thing you
have to remember about the United States is the sheer scale. It
dwarfs any other general aviation market in the world. There
are some figures in my written documentation to give you an
impression of this.
I think when you have a large market of this kind you
really have to go for a big bang approach. It is pretty
heterogeneous. Markets interact with one another and I think of
these as markets. I am an economist by training, so I think the
U.S. has actually been very wise in taking a big bang approach.
It is not totally big bang because uncontrolled flight space
does not require ADS. It does not have complete coverage of the
system, but it is fairly reasonable I think given the nature of
the country, given the nature of general aviation here.
Ms. VELAZQUEZ. Thank you.
Ms. Derks and Mr. Taylor, you both mentioned rumors that
the FAA may delay the 2020 mandate, yet the administrator today
stated that that will not happen. I would like to hear why you
think there will be a delay?
Ms. DERKS. As of today, we do not know that there will be a
delay. I am simply expressing that those are the stories and
the rumors in industry right now that based on FAA's past
history, there most likely will be a delay. In the past five
decades, I do not know of one avionics mandate that has not
received an extension by the FAA. And I think I can speak for
Mr. Taylor, we are both asking for the FAA not to extend this
mandate; to try to meet the January 1, 2020 mandate and work
with industry to help us educate the consumer as well.
Ms. VELAZQUEZ. Okay.
Mr. TAYLOR. Just to add, we hear it from customers. This is
where we hear the rumor. When we are talking to customers about
equipping, then one of the reasons that they give is the reason
you gave. The FAA has never successfully brought one of these
programs in on time. And that is the concern.
I agree with Paula. The FAA seems to be doing all the right
things in terms of providing the framework, providing the
rules. We are not seeing any sign that they are wavering. But a
couple of years ago I was hearing them shouting from the
rooftops that there will be no wavers, no exceptions. You have
got to do that. I have not heard that so much recently, so it
would be nice to hear that shouting from the rooftops again.
Ms. VELAZQUEZ. Okay. So you all touch on the need for a
loan guarantee program to help general aviation operators
purchase equipment. Is there any data available to support this
assertion?
Mr. TAYLOR. I can give you a very small sample. We are a
small company. So two weeks ago we made 70 outgoing calls to
people who had asked about the system and who we had quoted to
but had not purchased. And we asked them, are you going to
approach this? What is the decision? Seventeen of them
purchased, which was wonderful, by the way. Ten said they were
waiting for the loan guarantee program.
Ms. VELAZQUEZ. They are waiting for the loan guarantee
program.
Mr. TAYLOR. It had been announced. We had announced it. We
thought it was happening. So that was it. And then the others
were various not decided yet.
Ms. VELAZQUEZ. I am troubled with the fact that in
reference to the question made by the chairman and followed by
me regarding the loan guarantee program, he stated that they
needed appropriation language or an appropriation. And when I
read the statute, the reauthorization, it says ``Subject to the
ability of appropriated funds, the secretary may use a
financial instrument to facilitate public-private financing for
the equipage of general aviation and commercial aircraft. To
the extent appropriations are not made available, the secretary
may establish the program provided the costs are covered by the
fees and premiums authorized by the section.''
So what it means, Mr. Chairman, is basically that they have
the authority to create a program that is offset with the fees.
So we should send a letter to the administrator asking for
clarification. And if, in fact, there is no appropriation, the
fact of the matter is that they have not submitted a request
for such an appropriation. So clearly, the message is that they
have no intent to create such a program. The authority is there
and we should request clarification or a certain date as to
when they are going to have a program up and running.
I would like to ask Professor Button, as you know,
congestion around airports results in delays and reduces safety
if air traffic control cannot accurately track flights both in
the air and on the ground. How does ADS-B technology help
controllers better manage traffic around airports?
Mr. BUTTON. Well, in a number of ways. One is you have
immediate information, the current system of primary
surveillance where you send the beam out and it bounces back.
There are gaps in the information. So you have got more
continuity in the information flow you have got.
There is the ability also to see them fairly easily. I
think the main advantage will come with congestion when you get
both a full implementation of ADS In and Out. So the airlines
can come through and they can sort of interact with one
another. It is a difference between commercial aviation--
scheduled commercial aviation I should say accurately, and
other forms of aviation in the sense that they are in sense
operated from the ground. They have ground controllers who
maneuver the commercial aircraft we fly in to put them in order
for landing to make connections and so on. That would be
improved. UPS is clearly using it in some of the freight
carriers which is advantageous to them.
General aviation, not many places are going to have a huge
impact on congestion I do not think because a lot of the flying
is done at relatively small airports. Not always, of course. So
the main gains I think here with congestion are probably more
with the commercial scheduled carriers because they can manage
their schedule better. But, of course, there are some airports
which do have a quite significant general aviation,
particularly business aircraft coming in, and there again, the
controllers have more information exactly where things are.
And the other factor, I think, is the weather information
we keep forgetting. There is some free information in this.
Weather information and other information of that kind can also
affect decisions of pilots of how to approach delayed flights
and so on which can be helpful in congestion control.
Ms. VELAZQUEZ. Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Chairman GRAVES. Mr. Luetkemeyer?
Mr. LUETKEMEYER. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
A lot of the questions I had have already been asked here,
so let me just start with Mr. Hepp, you mentioned a while ago
something about a handheld device. Has the technology gone to
where it is a handheld device now or something smaller and
easier to handle, cheaper, or something like that? Are we
headed that direction?
Mr. HEPP. What is available right now is ADS-B In
technology in a handheld form.
Mr. LUETKEMEYER. Do you consider that handheld?
Mr. HEPP. This is an installed--this would go actually
installed on the aircraft, but apparently, there are
applications, iPad applications out there ForeFlight, Garmin
Pro, several others that then can be mated with an antenna
using either Wi-Fi or Bluetooth technology, and that antenna is
entirely--it has got a self-contained battery. You just turn it
on, set it someplace where the antenna has a view of the sky,
and you get all of the ADS-B In information that is available.
So any aircraft that is equipped with ADS-B Out technology, you
will see that aircraft pop up as traffic on an iPad screen. And
also, the weather information that Professor Button was talking
about is available from the ADS-B sites that are now--I believe
that array of sites is fairly robust in the U.S. So weather
information then is also immediately available to pilots at a
very low cost. The antennas out there currently run in the
neighborhood of $800, and then the iPad and the applications
for the iPad are somewhere between $75 and $150.
So for that minimal investment, you can get all or most of
the benefits of ADS-B on the inside, but the requirement is for
ADS-B Out to broadcast your position information so that other
ADS-B users with an In capability can see your position.
Mr. LUETKEMEYER. Okay.
Someone mentioned a while ago something about drones. Do
drones have to have this device? Mr. Button, is that you?
Mr. BUTTON. Very good question, actually. I have no idea.
One would hope they probably do. There has only been one
licensed grantor as far as I understand and that was to inspect
pipelines in Alaska. That was yesterday, I believe. But
clearly, the FAA is looking at drones very carefully and they
presumably--I have not thought about this--come under general
aviation. Hot air balloons do, so drones presumably might have
to.
Mr. LUETKEMEYER. Mr. Taylor?
Mr. TAYLOR. There is work ongoing right now on this, and
the FAA recently set up five different test sites across the
country to manage integration of UAVs and manned aircraft at
different levels. One was in Texas. A&M is doing it. One is in
Nevada. And I think you will see that technology will become
part of the solution for putting ummanned vehicles in the
airspace. But in terms of----
Mr. LUETKEMEYER. So it is not required right now?
Mr. TAYLOR. It is an airspace rule, so the way the FAA
and--we are on the Joint Government Industry Working Group for
ADS-B, and the way it has been explained in that working group
is that it is an airspace rule. So it does not matter if you
are an F-16 or a UAV or a home build.
Mr. LUETKEMEYER. Gotcha.
Mr. TAYLOR. You are going to have to comply with the rule
to operate in that part of the airspace.
Mr. LUETKEMEYER. Very good.
Mr. TAYLOR. May I also comment quickly on the ADS-B Out
technology again and the handheld? We firmly believe that you
cannot, should not use any kind of portable technology for ADS-
B Out. For ADS-B In, I agree. But for Out, as I was saying
earlier, you land at an airport in a small aircraft with a 757
landing next to you, he is going to be making decisions, and
air traffic control is making decisions of safety of life for
him and for his people based on what you are saying coming from
your aircraft, and I think you do not want that to be from
something you put in your pocket and walk away from the
aircraft with. It is just not that kind of technology. It has
to be installed, verified, and proven.
Mr. LUETKEMEYER. Very good. Thank you.
Mr. Button, Professor Button, you talked about some of the
stuff that went on in Europe with regards to delays. What was
the outcome of the continue to delay, delay, delay? Were there
negatives? I mean, people get hurt, costs go down, that is a
positive. What did you see from those constant delays?
Mr. BUTTON. Well, as far as I know, there are no detailed
studies of this. There are no studies of this. It is very
difficult to pick up because of the----
Mr. LUETKEMEYER. If something does not happen.
Mr. BUTTON. It does not happen--it's counterfactual if you
like what is going on.
Mr. LUETKEMEYER. Right.
Mr. BUTTON. I think it is rather indicative to have a
bigger problem in Europe. The European initiative of the Single
European Sky of which ADS is a component is really to
integrate--it depends how you do your numbers--37 different
systems. You have got one system with the FAA here. So the
problems are different. General aviation is hardly mentioned in
the discussions quite bluntly.
Mr. LUETKEMEYER. Okay.
Mr. BUTTON. Military aviation is because we share disparate
military airspace, but general aviation is not a major
consideration.
Mr. LUETKEMEYER. Thank you. My time is up.
Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Chairman GRAVES. Quick question for Ms. Derks.
If we do not start doing some installation pretty quickly,
we are going to run into a real backlog problem. Would you
agree? If you just do the numbers?
Ms. DERKS. Most definitely. If you do the math, when we can
safely do 100 installs today, today's date, but every day that
is delayed and every day that there might not be incentives
such as a government-backed loan program, those daily installs
will increase. And you do the math. With the approximately 700
U.S.-based repair stations that are capable of doing ADS-B Out
installs, you can quickly surmise that we are going to have a
huge backlog.
Chairman GRAVES. My final question for each one of you,
real quick, if you could give the FAA one piece of advice on
moving forward with this, now is your opportunity. What would
it be?
Mr. Button, I will start with you.
Mr. BUTTON. You are looking at me. Get moving with the
cash.
Chairman GRAVES. Mr. Hepp?
Mr. HEPP. I think if they worked a little harder to educate
the general aviation public as to what the benefits and the
timeline and reinforce that they are either going to slip the
timeline or they are going to hold on the timeline, and then to
make it very, very clear to operators at each level, whether it
be a flight school, an individual operator, or a business that
owns an aircraft, a charter operation, each type of business,
to let them make informed decisions on when they are going to
equip their fleet, what makes the most sense for them to equip
their fleet to meet the requirements of the 2020 mandate.
Chairman GRAVES. Mr. Taylor?
Mr. TAYLOR. I would say hold fast to the mandate, hold fast
to the rules, and provide leadership for your field operations
so there is consistent application of regulation across all
installs.
Chairman GRAVES. Ms. Derks?
Ms. DERKS. And I am going to expand on that. I would ask
them to better communicate--headquarters to the aircraft
certification offices to the flight standards, district
offices, to the rotorcraft, the airport or airplane
directorate, and the small airplane directorate, communication
so that they are uniform in their regulations and their
certifications and in their installation approvals as well. And
to please sign the loan guarantee for the finance incentive
program.
Chairman GRAVES. Well, I want to thank you all for
participating today, and your testimony is going to help us
better understand both the benefits that the FAA's NextGen
initiative is going to provide, as well as the challenges to
the GA community, what it is going to face in complying with
that 2020 mandate. And it is clear that widespread industry
adoption is going to be vital in this whole process. But in
order for it to occur, the GA community has to have a way of
equipping.
It has been an honor for me and the other Committee members
to hear the FAA administrator and to hear you all, the industry
leaders, and I appreciate you coming in. Some of you from a
long way.
But I would ask unanimous consent that members have five
legislative days to submit statements and supporting materials
for the record.
Without objection, that is so ordered.
And with that, the hearing is adjourned. Thanks.
[Whereupon, at 2:45 p.m., the Committee was adjourned.]
A P P E N D I X
STATEMENT OF MICHAEL P. HUERTA, ADMINISTRATOR, FEDERAL AVIATION
ADMINISTRATION, BEFORE THE COMMITTEE ON SMALL BUSINESS, FAA'S 2020
NEXTGEN MANDATE: BENEFITS AND CHALLENGES FOR GENERAL AVIATION, JUNE 11,
2014.
Chairman Graves, Ranking Member Velazquez, Members of the
Committee: Thank you for the opportunity to speak to you today
about the Next Generation Air Transportation System (NextGen),
the 2020 mandate, and the benefits and challenges of ADS-B
equipage for general aviation.
Through NextGen, the FAA is changing the way the National
Airspace System (NAS) operates to achieve greater efficiency
and predictability in air travel. NextGen will improve safety
and support environmental initiatives such as reducing
congestion, noise, emissions and fuel consumption through
increased efficiency. NextGen will allow the NAS to expand to
meet future demand and support the economic viability of our
country's aviation system. Through NextGen, the FAA is moving
from ground-based surveillance and navigation to more dynamic
and accurate airborne-based systems and procedures in order to
enhance capacity, reduce delay, and improve environmental
performance.
Automatic Dependent Surveillance-Broadcast (ADS-B) is a key
component of NextGen, which will move air traffic control (ATC)
from a radar-based system to a more precise satellite-derived
aircraft location system. ADS-B equipment combines an
aircraft's positioning source, aircraft avionics, and a ground
infrastructure to create an accurate surveillance interface
between aircraft and ATC. The baseline installation of ADS-B
ground station is now complete, so operators who equip now will
see benefits now--there is no need to wait until 2020.
ADS-B has many benefits for users of the NAS, including the
general aviation community. ADS-B provides air traffic
controllers with more accurate information to help keep
aircraft safely separated in the sky and on runways. With ADS-
B, controllers get an update of aircraft position almost
continuously, compared to every five seconds or longer with
radar. This improves the precision of our tracking, leads to
enhanced safety and greater efficiency, and ultimately results
in a smoother flow of air traffic.
Since ADS-B ground stations are easier to install and offer
a greater distance of coverage than radar towers. We have also
been able to expand access through ADS-B. We now have ADS-B
coverage in remote areas where radar coverage was limited due
to constraints on the surface or over bodies of water, such as
in the Gulf of Mexico, mountainous regions in Colorado, and low
altitude airspace in Alaska. Operators in those areas are
seeing benefits, including increased flight hours by virtue of
being able to operate in periods of low visibility.
The improved accuracy, integrity and reliability of
satellite signals over radar means it will be possible to
safely reduce the minimum separation distance between aircraft
and increase capacity in the nation's skies. Increased equipage
by the aviation community will allow the benefits of the ADS-B
to be realized and benefit all users of the NAS.
Equipage and Benefits of ADS-B Technology
ADS-B consists of two different services: ADS-B Out and
ADS-B In. ADS-B Out periodically broadcasts information about
each aircraft operating within the NAS, such as identification,
current position, altitude, and velocity, through an onboard
transmitter. ADS-B Out provides air traffic controllers with
real-time position information that is, in most cases, more
accurate than the information available with current radar-
based systems. With more accurate information, ATC will be able
to position and separate aircraft with improved precision and
timing.
All users operating in designated airspace must be equipped
with ADS-B Out avionics by January 1, 2020. The rule does not
preclude other navigation sources; it simply requires that
aircraft flying in certain airspace be equipped with avionics
that meet performance requirements. The designated airspace
includes Class A, B, and C airspace, as well as Class E
airspace areas at or above 10,000 feet mean sea level (MSL)
over the 48 contiguous United States and the District of
Columbia, excluding the airspace at and below 2,500 feet above
the surface. This airspace is more complex, with relatively
diverse users. The rule also requires that aircraft operating
in the airspace within 30 nautical miles (NM) of the nation's
busiest airports be equipped with ADS-B Out capabilities. This
will enhance safety, efficiency, and performance around those
airports.
If you never fly into ADS-B designated airspace, there is
no requirement to equip your aircraft with this technology. For
the most part, the ADS-B Out requirement covers the same
airspace where transponders are required; just as some aircraft
are not required to be equipped with transponders, not all
aircraft will need to be equipped with ADS-B Out. Users who
never fly into designated airspace will not be impacted by the
new requirements at all. In those cases, equipping with ADS-B
technology is optional, but the benefits of ADS-B technology
are available to any user who equips their aircraft.
ADS-B In technology allows pilots, including general
aviation pilots, to see what air traffic controllers see:
displays showing the location of aircraft in the sky around
them. This creates an environment of shared situational
awareness that allows for greater safety and efficiency. ADS-B
In displays in the cockpit also pinpoint hazardous weather and
terrain, and give pilots important flight information, such as
temporary flight restrictions. Operators who have equipped with
ADS-B In technology are already seeing these benefits in the
cockpit.
Flight Information Service-Broadcast (FIS-B) and Traffic
Information Service-Broadcast (TIS-B) are free services that
are automatically transmitted to aircraft equipped to receive
ADS-B In. FIS-B provides a broad range of textual/graphical
weather products and other flight information to users,
including the general aviation community; it includes the
following:
Aviation Routine Weather Reports (METARs)
Non-Routine Aviation Weather Reports (SPECIs)
Terminal Area Forecasts (TAFs) and their amendments
NEXRAD (regional and CONUS) precipitation maps
Notice to Airmen (NOTAM) Distant and Flight Data
Center
Airmen's Meteorological Conditions (AIRMET)
Significant Meteorological Conditions (SIGMET) and
Convective SIGMET
Status of Special Use Airspace (SUA)
Temporary Flight Restrictions (TFRs)
Winds and Temperatures Aloft
Pilot Reports (PIREPS)
TIS-B is an advisory service that increases pilots'
situational awareness by providing traffic information on all
transponder-based aircraft within the vicinity of the ADS-B In
equipped aircraft receiving the data. The costs of these
broadcast services are absorbed by the FAA, so NAS users do not
pay any subscription or usage fees for traffic, weather, or
aeronautical information services.
Nearly seventy-five percent (75%) of weather-related
general aviation accidents are fatal. Free traffic and weather
information automatically transmitted to the cockpit is
something the general aviation community benefits from. General
aviation pilots with proper equipage are already taking
advantage of these nationwide services.
When displayed in the cockpit, this information also
improves the pilot's situational awareness in aircraft not
equipped with a traffic alert and collision avoidance system
(TCAS/airborne collision avoidance system (ACAS). Equipage for
ADS-B In is not required under FAA regulations, but users who
are equipping with both ADS-B Out and In are seeing the wider
range of functionality afforded by ADS-B than those only
equipping with ADS-B Out.
Challenges and Solutions Moving Forward
We are confident that users of the NAS, including the
general aviation community, will see the advantages to ADS-B as
they continue to equip and begin using the technology it
offers. But, we also realize that increased technology
generally requires increased investment for the government,
private industry, which includes both large and small
businesses, and individual aircraft owners. The FAA has made a
significant investment in infrastructure to enable the
technology being delivered through NextGen, including ADS-B. We
are now calling on users of the NAS to equip their aircraft in
a way that allows us to maximize the benefits of NextGen in
designated airspace.
We are doing everything we can to ameliorate the burden on
operators and facilitate low-cost alternatives for the general
aviation community. Users already have a wide range of options
to meet the 2020 mandate, if it will impact them. A variety of
manufacturers have rule-compliant technology in various
different price ranges on the market today. We commend the
industry for what they are doing to facilitate equipage, and we
look forward to continuing to work with stakeholders in this
important endeavor. As required by Section 221 of the FAA
Modernization and Reform Act of 2012 (P.L. 112-95), FAA is
evaluating financing options and considering loan guarantee
programs, but we also encourage users to take advantage of the
financing options already available on the private market and
through their respective associations.
The FAA believes that ADS-B technology is a key component
in achieving many of the goals set forth in the NextGen
Implementation Plan. The ADS-B Out equipage requirement is a
major step toward establishing an air traffic system that
accommodates future requirements and responds to shifts in
demand from users by leveraging enhanced surveillance
capabilities to increase capacity and efficiency of airspace
use. ADS-B technology not only assists in the transition to a
system with less dependence on ground infrastructure and
facilities, but also creates capabilities for precision and
accuracy, which in turn will make the system more operationally
and environmentally efficient.
Mr. Chairman, this concludes my statement. I would be happy
to take questions at this time.
[GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]
Testimony of Tim Taylor
President and CEO, FreeFlight Systems, Inc.
On Behalf of the General Aviation Manufacturers Association
Committee on Small Business
U.S. House of Representatives
FAA's 2020 NextGen Mandate: Benefits and Challenges for General
Aviation
June 11, 2014
Introduction
Chairman Graves, Ranking Member Velazquez, and other
distinguished members of the Committee, my name is Tim Taylor,
and I am president and chief executive officer of FreeFlight
Systems. Today, I have the privilege of also representing the
General Aviation Manufacturers Association (GAMA) and am
honored to provide testimony to the Committee on their behalf.
I appreciate the opportunity to discuss today the benefits
of the nation's transition to the Next Generation Air
Transportation System (NextGen) for general aviation (GA) and
to highlight the importance and ability of industry to meet the
Federal Aviation Administration's (FAA) 2020 automatic
dependent surveillance-broadcast (ADS-B) Out mandate. As the
leader of a small aviation manufacturing business, I thank the
Committee for holding this hearing and look forward to
describing how NextGen avionics--specifically ADS-B equipage--
is readily available, affordable, and easy to install.
At a basic level, NextGen represents the shift from the
existing radar-based air traffic control (ATC) system to a more
automated aircraft-centered, satellite-based system. FreeFlight
Systems designs, manufactures, and supports electronics systems
that enable and support the NextGen air traffic management
transformation. We are experts in the essential technologies at
the heart of NextGen and we apply these technologies to
platform equipage across a broad spectrum of air and ground
vehicles, and to infrastructure development and services.
Since NextGen equipage presents unique challenges from a
retrofit perspective, we have focused on developing a series of
core elements that can be easily installed into the diverse,
and often quite old, aircraft fleet. We certified our first
ADS-B Out radio in 2011, obtained our first installation
approvals in 2012, and have delivered around 1,000 ADS-B radios
and around 3,000 ADS-B position sources since then.
As a small business, we made the research and development
investments--more than $3 million--upfront to allow aviation
operators the ability to meet the FAA's 2020 ADS-B mandate. In
short, we have already accomplished the ``heavy lifting''
required to make our solutions readily available, affordable,
and easy to install. We are seeing rapid acceleration today in
the adoption and installation of ADS-B systems in both airborne
and airport surface vehicle applications.
FreeFlight Systems does all this as a small business
located in Texas that currently employs 53 people. We either
perform or source out manufacturing in the United States,
predominantly in Texas, but we are also part of the global
aviation industry, exporting around 40% of our products. I
should note that our exports are enabled in part by the Export-
Import Bank of the United States (Ex-Im). Ex-Im guarantees
credit that we grant to offshore customers, allowing us to
access cash from our commercial banking partners at the point
of sale. Like Free Flight, many other small manufacturers
across the country depend on Ex-Im and we hope Congress will
move the reauthorize the Bank before the end of September when
the current authorization expires.
Why NextGen Matters to GA
While today's hearing focuses on ADS-B, I would like to
note that ADS-B is only one of a number of core capabilities
that make up the broader NextGen program, including Data
Communications (DataComm), Performance-Based Navigation (PBN)
and System-Wide Information Management (SWIM), to name a few.
The potential benefits of NextGen to the aviation community
are significant. The transformation enables improved safety,
increases the capacity of the airspace system, and reduces the
cost and complexity of ATC. For GA operators, many of these
benefits are immediately available upon appropriate equipage,
but realizing the full potential of the broader NextGen
programs across the National Airspace System will require
significant additional work by the FAA.
Before ADS-B, information on aircraft position was gathered
by radar systems only and then used by air traffic controllers
to separate aircraft. The current ATC system does this by
drawing a bubble around each aircraft that represents its
possible positions. As long as the bubbles do not touch,
separation is assured. Using radar, these bubbles can be tens
of miles across, and they are updated every 12 seconds or so.
In contrast, an aircraft that is equipped with a rule-compliant
ADS-B Out system is broadcasting key parameters once per
second, along with a parameter that precisely describes the
size of the bubble, for that aircraft. These ADS-B bubbles can
be tens of feet across instead of miles.
This high-quality, high-update rate broadcast allows ATC to
better manage airspace and air traffic management, becoming
more automated and less dependent on human decision-making. The
transmitted information is also available to other aircraft
that are equipped with an ADS-B In system, so pilots get that
same high-quality traffic picture right in their cockpits. The
FAA also provides an additional uplink to ADS-B users of Flight
Information Services, which includes local and national
graphical weather pictures, as well as important information
about meteorological and other conditions across the system.
This high-precision traffic picture has other benefits.
Fleet operators, such as flight schools, can track their
aircraft and ensure that they are operating in accordance with
plan and procedure. Additionally, if an aircraft should
experience difficulties, ATC can provide quick and precise
direction to the aircraft.
The more airplanes that equip, the more dramatic the
improvements in capacity and safety become. The full potential
can be realized when all aircraft in controlled airspace are
equipped, which the FAA has mandated by January 1, 2020. The
rule and mandate were established early in 2010, giving
aircraft operators 10 years to equip. Equipment manufacturers
have had longer. The system architecture was finalized in 2007
and the rules and requirements have not changed substantially
since then. The ground infrastructure of the system is largely
deployed and is operational across the country. There are no
regulatory or infrastructure barriers to full equipage to meet
the mandate. This long-term stability is essential if small
businesses are to participate in the NextGen transformation.
ADS-B Compliant Equipment is Readily Available
In addition to providing a consistent set of rules and
requirements, as well as providing a 10-year window to equip
aircraft, the FAA has taken other positive steps to ensure that
rule-compliant equipment is available and ready for the
marketplace.
In several cases, the FAA formed ``in-kind'' partnerships
with early adopters, such as Gulf of Mexico helicopter
operators, and collaborated with them to work on installation
and certification efforts, solve problems, and capture lessons
learned. FreeFlight Systems was chosen by several of these
early adopters to provide the avionics equipment for these
activities and, in each case, it was a rich learning
environment that allowed us to improve our product. Many of
these aircraft have now been operating for several years,
providing additional opportunities to test and develop the
system. The products that FreeFlight Systems offers today are
already third-generation, as we have been able to incorporate
lessons from these early activities.
Many other manufacturers have participated in these proving
exercises across all strata of the National Airspace System.
Mature, rule-compliant equipment is available today from
multiple vendors for light GA, rotorcraft, business aviation,
and airline transport aircraft. More products are entering the
market this year. They are being offered both by the
traditional major avionics suppliers and by some specialist
small businesses, such as FreeFlight Systems. In fact, some of
the major brand products are private-label versions of these
small business offerings.
In 2013, FreeFlight Systems was pleased to be awarded a
direct FAA contract in full and open competition to replace
early version ADS-B units with rule-compliant systems for
several hundred aircraft in Alaska. These aircraft were part of
the original Capstone ADS-B development program.\1\ This
contract gave FreeFlight the opportunity to install our ADS-B
equipment in a variety of aircraft types typical of the larger
GA fleet. This experience gave us firsthand knowledge of
installation complexity, time, and cost.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\1\ FAA: ``The Capstone Project was a joint industry and FAA
research and development effort to improve aviation safety and
efficiency in Alaska. Under Capstone, the FAA provided avionics
equipment for aircraft and the supporting ground infrastructure. The
Capstone Project operated from 1999 to 2006, and its success in Alaska
laid the groundwork for the nationwide deployment of ADS-B.'' (http://
www.faa.gov/nextgen/implementation/programs/adsb/wsa/archival/)
FreeFlight Systems today offers rule-compliant ADS-B radios
suitable for light GA \2\ and rotorcraft in a variety of
configurations, with optional internal global positioning
system (GPS) receivers. We have installation approval for
several hundred aircraft types (fixed and rotary wing), and we
are constantly adding to this list. Additionally, we provide a
range of rule-compliant, low-cost, stand-alone position sources
that are compatible with other suppliers' ADS-B radio offerings
for all aircraft segments.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\2\ Aircraft weighing less than 12,500 pounds.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
ADS-B Compliant Equipment is Affordable and Easy to Install
For the light end of GA, ADS-B equipment can be relatively
inexpensive and easy to install. FreeFlight Systems offers
complete solutions today at a list price that is less than
$4,000, and we are seeing installation times that are typically
in the 20 to 40 hour range (with--$2,000 to $4,000 for labor),
for a total cost of $6,000 to $8,000. This estimate includes
rule compliant ADS-B Out, as well as ADS-B In. In a newer
aircraft, ADS-B In can utilize an existing display to show the
beneficial navigation/situational information. In an older
aircraft that has not seen a new piece of avionics since the
1960s, ADS-B In can simply utilize an iPad. Costs can be lower
for aircraft that already have some elements of the system.
Using the same products, uncertified aircraft can be equipped
for less than $4,000. These prices appear to be acceptable to
the light aircraft market.
For larger aircraft, the costs become more dependent on the
type of transponder fitted. For most aircraft, there is an
upgrade path for the transponder and a FreeFlight Systems
position source that lists in the range of $2,500 for light GA
to $11,000 for larger aircraft. FreeFlight Systems offers a
complete package for aircraft that operate in 18,000 feet to
24,000 feet range for $7,600. For heavier aircraft, the total
cost is driven by the transponder manufacturer. Installation
times for these systems are well within aircraft maintenance
scheduled downtimes.
Why the ADS-B Out Mandate is Important
In the past few weeks, we have seen aircraft near-misses at
major airports in the United States. Management of aircraft in
crowded airspace is a complex, fast-moving, four-dimensional
puzzle. The nation's air traffic controllers do an amazing job
maintaining separation between aircraft. However, the tools
they have at their disposal today have remained largely
unchanged for decades, while capacity, aircraft performance,
and aircraft mix are increasing dramatically. NextGen provides
the capability to completely re-think and re-tool air traffic
management.
For NextGen to be effective, however, there needs to be a
change in infrastructure and a change in aircraft equipage. The
FAA has implemented the infrastructure and has provided details
and complete rules for equipage, but for the system to work to
its full potential, every aircraft that enters controlled
airspace needs to meet minimum equipage standards or it will
disproportionately impact operations. Think of all the ADS-B
aircraft, safely inside their small bubbles, flowing smoothly
in and around an airport. One un-equipped or poorly-equipped
aircraft enters the picture with a bubble that is tends of
miles across, pushing everybody else out of position and
disrupting the system until it is safely out of the way. To
avoid that scenario, everybody has to equip, and to equip
properly. A mandate is the only way to ensure that happens, and
to ensure that everybody who invested in the new system--
industry, users, and government--gets the return they deserve
on the investments they have made.
The mandate also provides the framework for implementation
of the system and equipage. In the light GA segment alone,
there are almost 200,000 aircraft in the United States today.
Not all of those are flying, of course, and not all of them
need to enter controlled airspace, but between 120,000 and
140,000 aircraft need to equip. Currently, only some 4,000 of
those aircraft are equipped.
With approximately 2,000 days between now and January 1,
2020, we need to equip 60 to 70 aircraft per day--including
weekends and holidays--or 85 to 100 aircraft per work day. As a
nation, we comfortably have the capacity to equip at this rate,
but only if there is reasonable linearity.
Incentivizing Equipage
The government has provided the environment to make
equipage by January 1, 2020 possible. Industry has stepped up
to provide the equipment at the right price point and has the
capacity to install it. Before considering other actions that
could be taken to further incentivize equipage, it is worth
considering actions and messages that could damage the gains
already made--snatching defeat from the jaws of victory.
First and foremost, the mandate must remain in effect and
the aviation community has to believe it will hold. If the
community thinks there is any chance of delay, equipage will
stop.
Second, the rules that have been put in place need to stay
in place--and the community has to believe that also. There are
some well-intentioned initiatives like ``Low Power Surveillance
Equipment'' (LPSE) that are designed to provide equipage
options for aircraft like gliders with special needs. The
general population sees this as an opening of the door to lower
standards--and equipage will slow down while they wait to see
how that plays out. FAA should consider such options where
appropriate, but FAA also needs to clearly articulate that this
is a limited exception and the fundamental requirements will
stay in place.
Additionally, the idea that has been suggested by some that
equipage is going to get cheaper as we get closer to the
deadline is misleading and a major reason for delay. The prices
we are offering for equipage now are artificially low.
FreeFlight Systems is making high-volume purchases and we have
reduced our margin expectations to get products in the market
at an acceptable price point. As volumes start to go up, we
will not be able to hold these low prices. The same is true for
installation. Forward-thinking installers, just like forward-
thinking equipment suppliers, are offering low prices to get
equipage started.
In our view, the best incentives from government and
industry are already in place: infrastructure, a firm schedule,
stable requirements, and aggressive pricing. However, there is
always more that could be considered.
Low interest, government-backed financing has been
discussed in the marketplace, and authorized by Congress, and
is popular among FreeFlight customers. FreeFlight Systems
announced a partnership with the Nexa Capital NextGen GA
equipage fund and aircraft owners have responded favorably. I
believe more aircraft owners would equip as the Nexa program
becomes available, or other programs with a similar format
develop. Unfortunately, the implementation of these financing
options have faced delays and I urge Congress to examine ways
to expeditiously move them forward.
Additionally, inconsistency in the application of
certification standards across different FAA branches and
regions is a barrier to equipage and innovation in all areas of
aircraft modification. Many NextGen programs are being given
priority in modification approvals, but strong leadership,
training, and consistent application of standards will reduce
delays and increase the number of installers willing to
aggressively price and perform ADS-B installs.
Conclusion
The timely introduction of NextGen technologies is vital to
supporting the safe and efficient operation of our nation's
airspace system, and to maintaining U.S. global leadership in
aviation.
The nature of the transformation is such that there are
multiple opportunities for small businesses to participate, and
a stable government position on equipage standards and timing
for equipage are essential elements to the success of the
transformation itself and to small business involvement.
Government and industry, both large and small, have worked
in harmony to ensure that equipment is available at the right
price, that there is plenty of time to plan and execute
installation, and that the infrastructure is in place to
provide both immediate and potential longer-term benefits to
those who equip today.
While some initiatives could perhaps speed up the ongoing
equipage of the fleet, the absolute key to meeting the equipage
deadline is to hold fast to the current rules and schedules.
Any wavering or mixed signals hurt NextGen progress, safety,
and small businesses that are playing by the rules.
Thank you for the opportunity to testify this afternoon,
and I look forward to answering any questions that you may
have.
[GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]
Chairman Graves and Members of the Committee:
I am Bob Hepp, Owner of Aviation Adventures.
Aviation Adventures is a highly regarded flight school with
locations in Manassas, Warrenton, Stafford, and Leesburg,
Virginia. Our staff of 41 employees provides flight instruction
at all levels from initial training through the Airline
Transport Pilot certificate. We also provide rental aircraft to
certificated pilots.
I started Aviation Adventures in 1989 with one aircraft and
myself as the only instructor. Today we have 39 aircraft and
are known as the premier flight school in Virginia and the
leader in providing training in Technologically Advanced
Aircraft.
I am also representing the Aircraft Owners and Pilots
Association (AOPA) of which I have been a member since 1981.
AOPA is a not-for-profit individual membership organization
representing more than 350,000 members nationwide. AOPA's
mission is to effectively represent the interests of its
members as aircraft owners and pilots concerning the economy,
safety, utility, and popularity of flight in general aviation
(GA) aircraft.
My testimony today will cover the following key points:
1. The General Aviation community has long supported
the move from ground-based to satellite-based
navigation. However, at this time, the benefits
associated with the FAA mandate are inadequate and
unclear for general aviation users.
2. The FAA's mandate to equip for ADS-B (Automatic
Dependent Surveillance - Broadcast) Out by 2020 is
costly and will be prohibitive for most small flight
schools, businesses utilizing aircraft, and
recreational aviators.
3. Providing low-cost guaranteed loans for GA
equipage and leveraging existing cockpit technologies,
such as handheld devices, can help move NextGen
modernization forward without imposing unmanageable
burdens on small aviation businesses.
General Aviation
As pilots flying in the United States, we are fortunate to
have access to the safest and most efficient air transportation
system in the world. The aviation network of 5,200 public-use
airports, complemented by the more than 13,000 privately owned
landing facilities is a unique national resource. General
aviation is a significant economic engine that contributes
approximately $150 billion to the annual gross domestic product
and approximately 1.2 million jobs in communities nationwide.
Each year, 170 million passengers fly using personal aviation,
the equivalent of one of the nation's major airlines.
General aviation is of special importance to small
businesses, and a significant amount of all general aviation
flights are conducted for business and public services.
Additionally, the Small Business Administration has estimated
that approximately 94% of the firms that provide cargo and
passenger air transportation services are considered small
businesses, as are 90% of businesses involved in the
development and manufacture of aircraft and parts.
In addition to these businesses, general aviation activity
directly supports thousands of small businesses from flight
schools to repair shops to line operations. Thousands more
small businesses of every type use general aviation to
transport personnel, move products, extend their geographical
reach, meet clients, provide support services, and manage
distant operations.
The ADS-B Mandate
Effective January 1, 2020, any aircraft operating in busier
airspace where a Mode C transponder is required today, will
also be required to carry an ADS-B Out transmitter. The rule
does not mandate ADS-B In equipage and does not impact the
current transponder requirement--menaing aircraft will continue
to be required to carry their transponders in addition to this
requirement for ADS-B Out equipage after 2020.
Unlike most rulemaking activities which are safety based,
the basis of the mandate is to support the FAA's Next
Generation Air Transportation System (NextGen). The FAA has
indicated that the mandate will not greatly increase or
decrease safety, but is necessary to move forward with NextGen.
Lack of Benefits for General Aviation Equipage
For more than 20 years AOPA has supported the transition
from ground-based infrastructure to satellite-based systems.
AOPA also supports ADS-B provided it is affordable and delivers
clear, tangible benefits to users. The Association is hopeful
that changing technology and modifications to the
implementation approach will make ADS-B more valuable to the GA
community. However, at this time, it is difficult to identify
adequate benefits in the current ADS-B implementation strategy.
For most general aviation pilots, there are no direct
benefits of the ADS-B Out mandate. Rather, complying will
simply allow pilots to continue using the national airspace
system as they do today.
Mandate Is Costly And Could Be Prohibitive to Small Businesses
Aviation Adventures owns and operates 39 aircraft for
flight training and rental. The ADS-B mandate will require
significant changes to these aircraft, including the removal of
some equipment and possibly the redesign of the control panel
to accommodate the new equipment.
The actual avionics required to meet the mandate would cost
approximately $5,000 per aircraft. Additional costs associated
with changes to the control panel and installation of the new
equipment would add approximately $3,000 to $4,000 per
aircraft. I estimate that the total cost to equip my fleet will
be $312,000 for minimal compliance--a major investment for a
small business and one many small aviation businesses will be
unable to make.
I recently participated in a Flight School Conference with
88 Flight Schools in attendance. The topic of investing in
avionics upgrades was part of the discussion. When the question
was asked how many flight schools were profitable and could
afford to invest in new avionics, representatives of only three
schools indicated they were ready to make such an investment.
Unlike investing in adding aircraft or facilities, the
money spent on ADS-B Out equipment will not bring a return
because it will not increase our customer base, allow us to
serve more clients, provide new capabilities, or otherwise help
grow the business.
For that reason alone, it is not a sound business decision
to equip early since there will be no return on investment.
Continuing uncertainties about exactly what the FAA will
ultimately require to fulfill the mandate further reduces the
incentive to equip the aircraft in advance of the mandate.
Business owners are reluctant to make a large investment in new
equipment when that equipment may ultimately not meet FAA
requirements.
The tendency of technology prices tend to drop
significantly over time also serves as a disincentive to equip
early. Anyone who purchased a large flat screen television a
few years back is familiar with this phenomenon. A television
that I purchased a few years ago when the technology was
relatively new cost $3,000. Today, the same television can be
purchased new for just $800. Similar trends apply in avionics.
We have already seen a decrease in prices for ADS-B equipment
since the mandate was finalized in 2010. It is in the interest
of business owners to wait for further price drops before
investing in new equipment.
Loans and Existing Technology Can Help More NextGen Forward
Because of the high cost and low return on equipping for
the 2020 mandate, general aviation operators need assistance to
equip. The establishment of a fun to provide low-cost,
federally guaranteed loans to equip GA aircraft could provide
the financing needed to help the GA community meet the mandate.
At the same time, maximizing the utility of existing
cockpit technology can help move NextGen modernization forward
without imposing unmanageable hardships on general aviation
operators.
Handheld devices can provide ADS-B In information,
significantly enhancing safety at nominal cost. Many aircraft
operators are already using these handhold devices in the
cockpit, and the same devices could be used to provide ADS-B
Out.
By focusing on providing added capabilities to GA operators
using existing cockpit equipment, the FAA could increase
operational efficiency. Providing precision approaches to
airports that don't already have them would allow pilots to
make all-weather use of airports that do not currently have
that capability. Offering surveillance outside of the existing
radar footprint would increase safety for operators flying at
low altitudes and outside of large airports. Additional
capabilities could include more efficient point-to-point
navigation and better routing through congested airspace.
Together, these capabilities can boost general aviation use and
the resulting economic impact by saving fuel and time,
increasing safety, and lowering the cost of flying.
Conclusion
In conclusion, I believe the current ADS-B Out mandate
fails to provide the needed benefits and support for general
aviation operators and businesses to equip. At the same time,
there are a number of steps the FAA can take to move NextGen
modernization forward while promoting safety, encouraging
general aviation activity, and reducing the burdens on small
general aviation businesses.
By creating a fund to provide low-cost guaranteed loans and
leveraging existing equipment to provide benefits like improved
point-to-point navigation, extended surveillance, and precision
approaches at airports not currently served, the FAA can take
advantage of the equipment already in cockpits, keep NextGen
moving forward, and help GA businesses thrive.
On behalf of the 41 employees of Aviation Adventures and
the more than 350,000 members of AOPA, we appreciate your
leadership in addressing the concerns of the general aviation
industry so that it can continue to help small businesses
nationwide grow and thrive.
Thank you for the opportunity to appear before this
Committee.
Federal Aviation Administration's 2020 NextGen Mandate:
Benefits and Challenges for General Aviation
Kenneth J. Button PhD, AcSS, FCILT, FCIHT
University Professor
School of Public Policy
George Mason University
Evidence to the U.S. House of Representative's Committee on
Small Business
Room 2360 of the Rayburn House Office Building
June 11, 2014
BACKGROUND
There have been considerable technical advances in air
traffic navigation over the past 30 years leading to
potentially safer and, from a commercial perspective, more
efficient air travel network. The changes allow, for example,
reduced separation between aircraft that permit greater
flexibility in routing. In particular, a move from ground-based
radar technology to satellite systems offers many long-term
advantages. There are a multiplicity of air navigation
providers around the world currently developing, and at various
stages of implementing, a wide-range of new technologies aimed
at developing a common platform for satellite based navigation
and control systems. The challenges nationally and
internationally to bringing about a shift to satellite systems
are both technological and economic in nature.
As with any change, reaching an accord on common standards
and transitioning this into a working system is not a simple
technical matter. In terms of costs, there is the need for new
equipment, an inevitable transitional wastage from duplication
as the old and new systems overlap in time, and considerable
stranded costs as technically sound radar based systems are
made economically redundant. There are still concerns about the
technical reliability of the systems being introduced, and, for
example, their capacity to handle large volumes of information,
particularly in the transition phase, and, as far as general
aviation is concerned, over the anonymity of the information
obtained. Added to this is the matter of how the new system is
to be financed. There have been problems in the past in
financing and administering the ground based elements of the
system. The 2012 FAA Air Transportation Modernization and
Safety Improvement Act, for example, was the first
reauthorization of Federal Aviation Administration funding
since 2007; the Administration had the uncertainty of 23
extensions in the interim.\1\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\1\ This is a topic that is not dealt with here but has posed
practical issues in the United States as well as elsewhere; e.g. see;
Office of Inspector General, Audit Report: Federal Aviation
Administration's Contraction Practices are Insufficient to Effectively
Manage its Systems Engineering 2020 Contracts Federal, Report Number:
ZA-2012-082, 2012.
The automatic dependent surveillance-broadcast (ADS-B)
technology that forms one of the cornerstones for the new
approach to air navigation, and which is to be a requirement
for use of certain United States airspace by 2020, is a
cooperative surveillance technology for tracking aircraft.\2\
The Federal Aviation Administration rule requiring the uptake
of this technology was announced in 2011. The system relies on
aircraft or airport vehicles broadcasting their identity,
position and other information derived from on-board systems.
The information is more accurate than that available to primary
systems, such as radar surveillance.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\2\ Strictly the ADS-B system relies on two avionics components--a
high-integrity GPS navigation source and a data link. The current
transponder or RVSM maintenance requirements are not changed or
affected by the ADS-B rule.
The ADS-B Out signals transmitted from an aircraft can be
captured for surveillance purposes on the ground but only on
board other aircraft equipped for ADS-B In. The latter enables
airborne traffic situational awareness, spacing, separation and
self-separation applications; basically it provides a three
dimensional halo around each plane. With ADS-B In an aircraft
essentially determines its own position via satellite
navigation and broadcasts this via a radio frequency with
knowledge of what is going on about it. For a comprehensive
ADS-B structure without primary surveillance by radar, all
planes must be equipped with both ADS-B Out and In. This is a
long-term objective, simple location is with some additional
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
information is the short-term objective.
The issues addressed here focus on three interrelated
areas:
The pros and cons of ADS-B
Payment for the system
The phasing-in of ADS-B
THE PROS AND CONS OF ADS-B
The ADS-B concept is at the core of both the $40 billion
Next Generation Air Transportation System (NextGen) which was
initiated in 2009 in the United States and of Single European
Sky ATM Research (SESAR) in Europe that was initiated in 1999.
The European Single Sky initiative has a somewhat different
objective to NextGen. The United States challenge is to replace
a unified radar based system that has grown in a rather ad hoc
way and thus in need of serious efficiency improvement to
handle traffic growth. The Federal Aviation Administration, for
example, has estimate that increasing congestion in the air
transportation system of the United States, if unchanged, would
cost the American economy $22 billion annually in lost economic
activity by 2022. In addition to addressing this, NextGen is
specifically seen as reducing aviation fuel consumption and
emissions. In contrast, the European challenge is to initially
reduce the large number of air navigation service providers
from nearly forty to a one; i.e. structurally to make it akin
to the American system. Despite difference in motives, there is
agreement between the United States and EUROCONTROL over broad
approaches towards interoperable satellite based systems.
The issue of general aviation, while of considerable
importance in the United States, has attracted little attention
in Europe with its Single European Sky initiative quite simply
because it is of a far smaller order of magnitude. For example,
while there were 209,034 registered general aviation planes in
the United States in 2012, there were 21,462 in Germany in
2013, 32,410 in France in 2011, 19,850 in the United Kingdom in
2013, and 3,657 in Switzerland in 2012.\3\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\3\ General Aviation Manufacturers Association, 2013 General
Aviation Statistical Databook & 2014 Industry Outlook, Washington DC,
2014.
The United States will require the majority of aircraft
operating within its airspace to be equipped with ADS-B Out by
1 January 2020; the specific categories of airspace involved
are seen in TABLE 1. These are airspaces where a more basic
transponder is already required.\4\ There is no requirement for
aircraft to have ADS-B In capabilities by January 1, 2020.\5\
In terms of general aviation the requirement has been variously
estimated to affect between 157,000 to 165,000 aircraft \6\.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\4\ They are also required at all altitudes within 30 miles of some
airports and some other flights over water.
\5\ The Federal Aviation Administration is publishing its final
rule justified this; ``Standards for ADS-B In air-to-air applications
are still in their infancy ... it is premature to require operators to
equip with ADS-B In at this time.''
\6\ General aviation includes businesses engaged in on-demand
passenger or cargo charter flying; corporate flight departments; owner-
flown aircraft; flight schools; companies offering aircraft fuel,
storage, maintenance and parts; and aircraft sales, brokerage and
rental firms.
TABLE 1
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Airspace Altitude
------------------------------------------------------------------------
A All aircraft equipped
B All aircraft equipped
C All aircraft equipped
E Above 10,000ft MSL
but not below 2,500 ft AGL
------------------------------------------------------------------------
One of the major challenges of NextGen is to develop a
system that caters for the requirements of a diverse range of
air transport users, often with quite distinct characteristics
and needs. At one level are large civil scheduled commercial
airlines that in 2013 had 642 million passenger enplanements in
the United States and carried 19,729 million lbs of cargo and
mail. The scheduled passenger carriers currently operating with
wafer thin financial margins and with a legacy of inabilities
to even recover their operating costs, often see the burden of
even the small cost per revenue passenger mile as difficult to
justify at the operational level. At the longer-term, strategic
level, however, the ability to increase the reliability and
capacity of services across large networks is generally seen as
a significant development. In contrast, the scheduled cargo/
express carriers that tended to enjoy higher margins, have
largely been more enthusiastic about the change with; for
example, UPS, has adopted it because it is seen as a tool for
improving fleet operations with it knowing exactly where planes
are (and de facto where consignments are) when outside of radar
surveillance and for managing their flights in real time.\7\
FedEx has supported it for similar reasons.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\7\ The more efficient use of aircraft and the consequential lower
fuel burn is also likely to have env8ironmentally beneficial effects,
see US Government Accountability Office, Aviation and the Environment:
NextGen and Research and Development Are Keys to Reducing Emissions and
Their Impact on Health and Climate, GAO-08-706T, 2008.
More generally, the recent events involving commercial
scheduled passenger flights AF477 and MH370 has brought a
heightened public awareness of the inadequacies of modern air
navigation systems, or at least their deployment, and in the
inability to locate flights all of the time. The costs of
trying to locate a crashed plane are high both in economic and
human terms; something that extends to general aviation.
General aviation crashes are more common than for scheduled
flights, which is not surprising because they represent about
96% of the United States air fleet, but involve fewer details
and injuries per incident; e.g. there were 1,471 accidents in
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
2012 resulting in 432 fatalities.
While it is important to be wary of making comparisons,
particularly when data is collected in different ways, this
situation can be put in the context of commercial aviation
being about 50 times safer and car travel 20 times safer than
general aviation in terms of fatalities per hour traveled
between 2002 and 2012. (The use of alternative matrices, such
as accidents or serious injury, changes the picture slightly
ADS-B should reduce the accident rates for general aviation and
make research and rescue operations more effective and less
costly. While most general aviation accidents occur at or near
airfields, some, often weather related, are in more remote
locations. The extent to which the types of flights involved
would come under the 2020 ADS-B regulation is, however,
unclear.\8\ A full ADS-B strategy may well produce far greater
benefits for the marginal costs it would entail.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\8\ There seems to be no single gathering of information of the
search costs involved when a general aviation plane goes missing, a
simple search of the Web, however, provides numerous examples.
Even large planes get lost. The most tragic and best know
cases are perhaps the Uruguayan Air Force Flight 571 that
crashed in the Andes in 1972 because of bad navigation, and
AF477 into the South Atlantic partly because of poor
information on altitude, but there are regular instances of
aircraft landing by mistake at the wrong airports in the United
States; luckily accidents are rare.\9\ ADS-B Out, and ADS-B In
more so, provides a mechanism for pilots and ground control to
have greater awareness of aircraft locations. ADS-B In, for
example, reduces the risk of runway incursions with cockpit and
controller displays that show the location of aircraft and
equipped ground vehicles on airport surfaces. In addition, ADS-
B Out can provide local information regarding real-time weather
conditions.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\9\ http://www.iasa.com.au/folders/Safety--Issues/others/wrong-
ways.html provides a list of commercial aircraft landing at the wrong
airport. There appears to be no complete record of general aviation
incidents of a similar kind.
Putting a money value on these benefits, and others that
are general aviation specific is difficult. There will be
savings in fuel, weather information will be better, and
provided automatically, and flying should be safer beside other
things. Putting a price on such changes is not easy. The
Federal Aviation Administration has put a value of $200 million
on the identifiable benefits to the sector, but argues that
wider benefits are extensive. Additionally, given the massive
heterogeneity of the general aviation fleet, there will
inevitably by wide variations across beneficiaries. What this
should also be set against, and to my knowledge has not been to
date, is the current situation whereby general aviation uses
approximately 16 percent of air traffic control services but
contributes only 3 percent of the costs \10\.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\10\ US Department of Transportation's Inspector General Office,
Use of the National Air Space System, CR-2008-028, Washington DC, 2008.
But what is often missed in these types of very static
calculations is the allocation of costs during a transition
when operating both radar and satellite based systems. As
transfer takes place the amount of traffic using primary
surveillance will decline while that using ADS-B based systems,
and especially when ADS-B In is widely adopted, will increased
implying a much higher cost burden being placed on those using
radar surveillance. The burden, for example, of the radar-based
system on general aviation would increase significantly if
scheduled airlines moved to comprehensive ADS-B navigation
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
systems.
PAYMENT FOR THE SYSTEM
There is no-such thing as free lunch, and moving to
satellite based air navigation requires resources. In
particular, unlike primary radar-based surveillance, full ADS-B
requires equipping aircraft so that they can interact with
other aircraft and ground installations in much wider range of
ways. This means that its use involves two distinct costs to
users; one to reflect the infrastructure costs involved and
another the costs of the on-board equipment.
The costs of equipping a plane varies according to such
things as whether it is a retrofit, whether it includes both
ADS-B Out and In, or just the former, and the extent to which
equipment offers information beyond that required for
certification. Given these facts, the estimated costs range
from $4,000 to $17,000 to equip an aircraft with ADS-B Out,
although in the case of new aircraft there is the off-setting
cost of a saving from not having a separate transponder fitted.
The costs of ABS Out and In equipment has been estimated to
cost up to $30,000. In addition, there are annual costs
associated with the ground infrastructure of the system and, in
the short-term, of operating the current radar surveillance
system. There is certainly no consensus on the aggregate costs
in involved; e.g. a Federal Aviation Administration estimate
suggests that the cost to equip general aviation aircraft from
2012 to 2035 would range anywhere from $1.2 to $4.5 billion.
There has been little market-based incentive for early
adoption of a new technology like ADS-B where many of the
benefits are not immediate. Indeed, the reverse is almost the
case because the main gains come after widespread adoption and
``first movers'' have the burden of having equipped with only
partially useful equipment; the network economies take time to
be realized.
There is some intended financial support for general
aviation from the NextGen GA Fund \11\ to help up-grade
existing aircraft to meet the Federal Aviation Administration's
2020 deadline. The fund is a public-private partnership between
the United States Congress, the aerospace industry and the
private-sector investment community. It began with a capital
base of $550 million with the intention of eventually provide
some $1.3 billion in financing to the general aviation sector
over 10 years. It is focused on the more costly retrofits;
those of over $10,000. This measure, however, has come some
time after the notification of the 2020 requirement, and thus
has done little to stimulate early adoption of the necessary
avionics.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\11\ http://www.nextgenfund.com/
In addition to the money costs of fitting ADS-B In there is
in the case of the existing general aviation fleet, the time
costs of retrofitting that can take from a day or so to more
than a week. For those elements of the fleet that are used for
such as training, taxi, charter, and business travel this is a
de facto financial cost as aircraft are out of action.
Additionally, while many flights may fall outside of the
Federal Aviation Administration's 2020 requirement, there will
inevitably occasions when planes that are normally used at
lower altitudes will be brought within the ADS-B threshold.
This means that for users of these aircraft there will be a
requirement for ADS-B Out equipment that is not always needed,
and maybe seldom needed; ``portable'' equipment is not really
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
an option.
THE PHASING-IN OF ADS-B
The United States has chosen a particular path for phasing
in ADS-B, it is not the only possible way of doing this and
some other countries have taken different routes; the
differences may be due the underlying objectives sought, the
nature of the traffic, or the broader institutional structures
involved.
While NextGen entails large scale infrastructures
investment, the United States aircraft fleet is both large and
diverse and the Federal Aviation Administration has sought to
embrace a large part of this fleets' use of airspace as one
action by mandating it an make use of the ADS-B system. The
creation of the ground infrastructure began in August 2007 when
the FAA awarded ITT Corp. a contract to develop and build a
nationwide network of 794 ADS-B ground stations. This is also
essentially what is happening in Europe, with planes with a
weight above 12,600lb or a max cruise of over 250 knots being
required to carry ADS-B from 2017, and new planes from 2015
(originally this was 2015 and 2013 respectively but there has
been slippage). This has all the pros-and-cons of any big-bang
strategy (actually more of a medium bang because ADS-B In is
not included.) with high set-up costs but a relatively quick
flow of benefits and more solid information to help individual
actors make decisions.
The approach helps shorten the transition tot he satellite
based systems, and gives a clear target for those involved. The
latter is not just important for aircraft users but also for
those that manufacture the hard and software that is required
on the plane and ground, and those that conduct the equipage of
the existing fleet. It removes some of the production
uncertainties and allows the build-up of necessary equipage
capacity. In the long-run it is likely that all aircraft will
require to be fitted with at least ADS-B Out, and possibly ADS-
B In, equipment and advanced notice would allow new aircraft to
be prepared for this, and lessen the costs of retrofitting.
This latter factor can reduce the costs of producing the
hardware and lead to greater diversity in the products offered;
a number of alternative models become financially viable to
produce. Added to this, a substantial market has room for a
large number of suppliers thus keeping up competitive pressures
and minimizing prices.
The evidence of retrofitting the United States general
aviation fleet is that to-date progress has been slow. Data
from the Federal Aviation Administration suggest that by early
2014 less than 1,500 aircraft met certification requirements.
This is well below the trend required to meet the 2020 target,
although some caveats should be taken into account. First, not
all the planes that are ultimately likely to fly in the
designated ADS-B Out required airspace will need to do so by
January 1st 2020, and some of the existing fleet will be out of
service by that date anyway for other reasons.\12\ Second, the
existing equipage facilities are likely to be expanded as
demand increases for retrofitting; this is, after all, a
commercial activity with financial rewards coming from the
equipage service. Third, there is some general evidence from
other areas that when there are mandatory requirements,
economies of experience have some effect with both money and
time costs of installing a new technology at the micro-level
falling as more operations are completed.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\12\ The United States active general aviation fleet fell from
223,700 to 209,034 between 2010 and 2013, although the Federal Aviation
Administration forecasts growth as economic recovery takes place. The
degree to which this growth will involve the new entry of aircraft to
the United States fleet will affect retrofitting needs.
Other countries have adopted slightly different road maps
for change. Canada has essentially adopted more of what may be
called a ``geographical spread system'' under which ADS-B
capacity has been provided over some areas that have no radar
surveillance, e.g. the Hudson Bay where separation has been
reduced from 80 nautical miles to five. A variation on this
them is to spread the technology vertically, beginning say with
A and B airspace, this similar to the Australian approach. The
underlying problem with all these approaches is that underlying
any significant change in air navigation, and indeed in any
transportation sector, namely that users are not static and
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
many move between parts of the overall system.
CONCLUSIONS
Changing any air navigation system is difficult, not least
because the existing structure cannot be closed down while the
new is introduced. The United States, with the world's largest
air transportation system, typifies the sorts of compromise
that have to be made in piecemeal change. The hope is that
NextGen will, once fully in place, provide a more flexible
long-term framework within which air traffic can grow
efficiently to the benefit of the country. Nevertheless, the
change has not been proving easy, and never seemed likely to
be.
The move to the use of satellite surveillance represents a
significant improvement to air navigation, filling gaps in the
existing radar based systems and offering enhanced and faster
information flows. While the initial adoption of ADS-Out in the
United States will provide only some of the potential benefits
of a full ADS system it, nevertheless, will impact positively
in terms of safety and more efficient use of air space; there
seems to be general agreement on this. The costs to both the
aviation sector and taxpayer are not small, and the expenses of
retrofitting part of the general aviation fleet to meet new
certification standards by 2020 are equally far from
negligible. It is perhaps unfortunate that incentives for early
adoption have been slow to transpire, but firm mandates have
been shown to stimulate market responses that allow targets to
be met.
Questions from Members of the Committee on Small Business
Rep. Judy Chu (CA-27) Question for the Record
Small Business Committee Hearing: FAA's 2020 NextGen Mandate:
Benefits and Challenges for General Aviation
Question for FAA Administrator, Michael Huerta
Hearing date: June 11, 2014
----------------------------------------------------------
--
We're here today to talk about how we can help small
businesses operate in the NextGen space. In addition, I am
concerned with the fact that it has been a struggle to achieve
the government-wide 23% goal of federal contracts that should
be awarded to small business.
I have a minority-owned, small business in my district that
is involved in the NextGen movement. Located in Claremont, CA,
NBP has worked with the FAA for the past 40 years. They are
evolving the existing legacy equipment to NextGen,
specifically, the Integrated Control Monitoring System (ICMS),
that monitor and control navigational and visual aids on the
airfield. In fact, their ICMS system is installed in 15
airports across the country, which includes some of our busiest
airports like Chicago O'Hare and Atlanta. It has been operating
for over 12 years and has a great safety record.
However, in March of this year, the VP of Technical
Operations Services at the FAA, Mr. Vaughn A. Turner, issued a
Memorandum that stated the FAA would ``not support any new
installations of ICMS, maintenance and logistics of the ICMS in
the National Airspace System.'' Instead, the memo states that
the FAA recommends ``installation of the Universal Interlock
Controller (UIC) in lieu of ICMS.'' The UIC, the memo states,
is an ``FAA-developed system and has FAA-provided logistics,
training'' and support.
Question 1:
To me, it sounds like the FAA is in direct competition with
a small business in my district. Can you tell me if the FAA has
a plan for developing or using this type of technology--similar
to the ICMS?
FAA Response:
The FAA's policy, consistent with OMB mandates, is not to
compete with the private sector in the provision of goods and
services. When alternatives are available, the FAA strives to
return the greatest value to the taxpayer. In this instance,
the FAA has an existing system that uses different technology
to perform Instrument Landing System (ILS) control, interlock,
and monitoring functions. The FAA began developing this system
in 2005 and it is operational at 12 airports. Engineering to
expand these functions to include monitor and control of other
navigational aids beyond ILS began in 2011. The decision to use
the existing system took into account the fact that the
government already owned a highly reliable and safe
infrastructure that can be deployed, maintained, and enhanced
very cost effectively.
Question 2:
Small business is the backbone of America and it's what
keeps our country working. This is why we must continue
supporting policies and actions that support the growth of
small businesses, particularly those like NBP that have a
performance record in delivering quality products. Now, I
understand that NBP has been working with the FAA for the past
few months to address issues that were raised by FAA's
officials. They recently met with Chief Operating Officer, Teri
Bristol, and the VP of Technical Operations, Vaughn Turner.
Could you provide any updates on this situation?
FAA Response:
The FAA maintains a very robust small business program and
has met or exceeded government-wide small business goals in all
categories for years. Part of our program is providing access
at all levels to small businesses that want to discuss concerns
and opportunities for contracting with the FAA. We appreciate
the opportunity to meet with NBP to discuss their concerns, and
there will be subsequent discussions in the near future.
Rep. Grace (NY-6) Questions for the Record
Small Business Committee Hearing: FAA's 2020 NextGen Mandate:
Benefits and Challenges for General Aviation
Question for FAA Administrator, Michael Huerta
Hearing date: June 11, 2014
----------------------------------------------------------
--
Administrator Huerta -
Thank you for being here today.
As you know, my constituents have had many struggles with
airplane noise. I represent a district that is between
LaGuardia and JFK, an area that is in the busiest air space in
the country. With new route procedures, such as TNNIS, the
NextGen mandate, Airspace Redesign, and now the Metroplex study
on the horizon, it's difficult to make sense of what the FAA is
really working on at this moment.
When the TNNIS procedure was made permanent, the FAA erred
by not informing the community and elected officials. Since
then, communication with the FAA has been better, but still has
room for improvement. Dennis Roberts, the Director of Airspace
Service at the Air Traffic Organization, said in a recent
briefing that the recently established New York Airport
Roundtables would be helpful for the FAA to communicate with
our communities. These roundtables were created because of
community advocacy and my work soon after coming to Congress.
Although 11 other major airports had these roundtables, New
York City was left without a proper venue for community
concerns. I ask that FAA use these roundtables to ensure my
constituents are kept up to date with any changes and new
information from the FAA. I am pleased, and I'm sure my
constituents are as well, that the Metroplex studies will use
one Environmental Assessment or Environmental Impact Statement
when analyzing the air space. This is a marked improvement over
individual airports being studies, as the proximity of the
airports should not be ignored.
I also ask that as Phase 1 of Metroplex is initiated in
January, 2015, that the LaGuardia and Kennedy Roundtables
receive consistent updates.
Question 1:
Please let me and my office know of how we can be helpful
with this process. The noise pollution over my district is a
top concern, and I want to work with the FAA to remedy these
problems as quickly as possible.
FAA Response:
The FAA has had positive experiences in other metropolitan
areas with community-based roundtables. As we stated at the
JFK-LGA meeting on June 18, 2014, the FAA commends the NYNJPA
and community representatives for the establishment of the
roundtables for the three major New York metropolitan airports.
These forums provide a venue whereby communities, the NYNJPA
and the FAA alike can share information and work toward
resolution of issues. The FAA will collaborate with the NYNJPA,
as sponsors of the Roundtables, making its leadership available
to share updates on the NY Metroplex project as it takes shape.
The FAA appreciates the support your office has offered with
this important project.
Question 2:
One of the biggest benefits of the NextGen Initiative will
be reducing the environmental impacts of noise and emissions.
Can you explain how the 2020 Mandate reduces carbon emissions
and reduces noise pollution around airports?
FAA Response:
The 2020 ADS-B Out mandate will impact noise and emissions
through the following capabilities:
Increased ability to fly Optimal Profile
Descents (OPDs) through initial application of Ground-
based Interval Management - Spacing (GIM-S)
The goal of the GIM-S tool is to increase
OPD use at major NAS airports; OPDs have been
shown to decrease emissions and decrease noise
for some noise sensitive areas during arrival
and approach
More efficient en route metering and
conflict resolution using ADS-B in the User Request and
Evaluation Tool (URET) and Traffic Management Advisor
(TMA)
The improved accuracy of ADS-B as an input
to decision support tools, such as URET and
TMA, provides for more efficient operations.
More efficient ATC management of surface
movement using the ADS-B Surface Surveillance
Capability (ASSC)
The ASSC tool will also decrease carbon
emissions on the surface at the airports where
implemented.
More efficient spacing and optimal routing
in non-radar environments (Gulf of Mexico, Mountainous
Regions of Colorado, low-altitude Alaska)
Even in non-radar regions, aircraft
equipped due to the rule may impact noise and
emissions. For example, the primary helicopter
operator in the Gulf of Mexico has reported a
noticeable reduction in noise complaints
surrounding regional heliports after ADS-B
surveillance was implemented. The increase in
IFR services after ADS-B implementation has
driven an increase in the use of higher
altitude Instrument Flight Rules (IFR) routes
that are relatively quiet as compared to lower
altitude Visual Flight Rules (VFR)
trajectories.
All of the capabilities mentioned above reduce fuel burn
and the requisite carbon emissions. The estimates performed for
the rulemaking suggested a decrease near 18 million tons of
carbon dioxide by 2035.
Rep. Mike Mulvaney (SC-5) Question for the Record
Small Business Committee Hearing: FAA's 2020 NextGen Mandate:
Benefits and Challenges for General Aviation
Question for FAA Administrator, Michael Huerta
Hearing date: June 11, 2014
----------------------------------------------------------
--
Mr. Huerta, the FAA has ruled that aircraft operators equip
for ADS-B Out by 2020. However, a follow-on requirement for
ADS-B In was sidetracked when an FAA aviation rulemaking
committee (ARC) concluded that the required multi-billion-
dollar investment by airline and general aviation operators
cannot be justified at the present time.
Question 1:
In order to ensure sufficient buy-in by airline operators,
do you plan to lay out the business case for ADS-B In and other
long-term NextGen programs?
FAA Response:
In order to develop the business cases and ensure buy-in
for the aviation community, the FAA has used Other Transaction
Agreements (OTAs) to help expedite early adoption of ADS-B by
air carriers. Through OTAs with industry partners, the agency
is able to demonstrate real benefits of advanced ADS-B In
applications and procedures while allowing the FAA to share
costs and risks with the participants. The use of ADS-B In
applications will give the agency and airlines detailed cost
and benefit data, and encourage other airlines and operators to
equip early to capitalize on ADS-B benefits. For example, in
2009, the agency began a partnership with United Airlines to
demonstrate an ADS-B In-Trail Procedures application in the
Oakland Oceanic Flight Information Region. An operational
evaluation of this capability is ongoing. This demonstration
has validated the equipment performance standards that were
published in 2011. In May 2012, the FAA made the decision to
fund the integration of In Trail Procedures into the automation
system for use by air traffic controllers. This will fully be
operational in 2017.
Based on ADS-B-In application research and feedback from
the Aviation Rulemaking Committee (ARC), the major near-term
benefits from ADS-B-In will be generated by Interval Management
applications. Current FAA plans call for an Investment Analysis
Readiness Decision for changes to the automation systems to
support Interval Management to occur this year, with a Final
Investment Decision to occur in 2016. If these investment
decisions are made on this schedule, then FAA would expect to
be able to commence support of Interval Management operations
by 2020-2021. Interval Management avionics could be available
in the 2017-2020 timeframe.
Question 2:
Given your background in the private sector, are you
persuaded that airlines today will receive a return on their
investment on NextGen equipage? Why or why not?
FAA Response:
Airlines that have chosen to equip and use NextGen
technologies are already seeing a significant return on their
investment. US Airways, for example, is saving $14.7 million
per year using Optimized Profile Descents at its hub in
Phoenix. JetBlue is using ADS-B routes over the Gulf of Mexico
to avoid lengthy reroutes around thunderstorms, thereby meeting
scheduled arrival times. Horizon Air is using RNAV GPS (WAAS
LPV) approaches that enable consistent access to small
airports, thus avoiding cancellations and delays, and is
annually saving 500,000 gallons of fuel. Horizon has equipped
its entire fleet with WAAS. Alaska Airlines is using RNP
approaches into Juneau and is saving $15 million a year by
avoiding cancellations and delays. Because airlines have
different operating models for their businesses, it's hard to
pinpoint when a particular airline will recoup its investments
for NextGen equipage. Some airlines may choose to invest in
equipping its entire fleet with the full suite of NextGen
technologies and the training to use those technologies. Others
may choose to equip and train differently, depending on the
services that they provide.
NextGen benefits will accrue as more aircraft become
equipped because the national airspace system will overall
operate more efficiently. There is a direct correlation between
equipage levels and NextGen system benefits.
Question 3:
Mr. Huerta, as you know, the U.S. aviation industry has
lost billions of dollars and hundreds of thousands of jobs over
the last decade. While our commercial and general aviation
industries are recovering, I'm concerned that these gains could
be mitigated by the tax increases and regulatory policies
advocated by this administration. The President's FY 2015
budget included over $4 billion in new or higher aviation taxes
and fees, including a new $100 per aircraft departure fee that
is projected to cost operators $1 billion annually.
What is your position and that of the DOT on the proposed
increases in the industry's taxes and regulations? Do you think
these taxes and regulations undermine the global
competitiveness and economic viability of our aviation
industry? Why or why not?
FAA Response:
The FAA recognizes the critical role aviation plays in
supporting jobs and generating significant economic activity
for the country. Aviation is a global industry and we have to
continue our heritage as world leaders in aviation and setting
the safety standard for others to measure against and engage
our partners internationally. The FAA's mission is to provide
the safest and most efficient aerospace system in the world. In
promulgating new regulations, the agency considers the impact
on affected users and industry. We rely primarily on excise
taxes and fees collected from users of the national airspace to
fund the FAA. In order to more equitably distribute the cost of
air traffic services across the aviation community, the
Administration proposes in the FY15 Budget Request to Congress
that the Department of Transportation establish a new surcharge
for air traffic services of $100 per flight. Military aircraft,
public aircraft, piston aircraft, air ambulances, aircraft
operating outside of controlled airspace, and Canada-to-Canada
flights would be exempt. The revenues generated by the
surcharge would be deposited directly into the Airport and
Airway Trust Fund. The health of the Trust Fund is critical to
ensuring FAA's ability to fulfill our mission and serve our
diverse set of aviation stakeholders, most importantly the
traveling public, but also industry.
Other fees beyond the $100 per flight air traffic services
fee that the Administration has proposed on the aviation
industry pertain to the Department of Homeland Security.
As part of the upcoming Reauthorization, the FAA looks
forward to working with Congress and aviation stakeholders on
funding and other policy issues.
[GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]
[all]