Quote of the Day
"The U.S. economy expanded at a faster clip than initially forecast in the third quarter, helped by more robust consumer spending and by stronger exports. The economy grew at a 2.5% annualized pace in the quarter, revised up from the initial estimate of 2.0%, the government said in its second estimate of quarterly gross domestic product. GDP growth was 1.7% during the second quarter.”
- Wall Street Journal’s MarketWatch, 11/23/2010
For Release: Wednesday, April 21, 2010
Contact: David Gillies: 202-225-5661
AVIATION SUBCOMMITTEE LOOKS AT NEXTGEN LONG-TERM PLANNING, INTERAGENCY COOPERATION
WASHINGTON – The House Aviation Subcommittee today held the latest in a series of hearings on the status of the Next Generation Air Transportation System (NextGen). The subcommittee examined how the federal agencies responsible for implementing NextGen are reconciling near-, mid- and long-term goals and how successfully the Joint Planning and Development Office (JPDO), which is responsible for coordinating the development and implementation of NextGen, is collaborating with partner agencies to achieve those goals.
The JPDO coordinates the specialized efforts of the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), White House Office of Science and Technology Policy, Department of Homeland Security, Department of Commerce, DOT, DOD and NASA. In June of 2008, these agencies signed a memorandum of understanding with the JPDO to define the roles and responsibilities of each party and to determine how research and development (R&D;) and demonstration projects will be conducted to achieve key NextGen capabilities in a cooperative manner. Today’s hearing provided an opportunity for several officials from these agencies to discuss the progress of those efforts.
Subcommittee members heard testimony from Dr. Karlin Toner, Director of the JPDO; Dr. Gerald Dillingham, Director of Physical Infrastructure Issues for the U.S. Government Accountability Office; The Honorable Calvin Scovel, Inspector General of the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT OIG); Dr. Jaiwon Shin, Associate Administrator for the Aeronautics Research Mission Directorate of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA); Mr. Steven Pennington, Executive Director of the Department of Defense (DOD) Policy Board on Federal Aviation; and Ms. Lorraine A. Bolsinger, President and CEO of General Electric Aviation Systems LLC.
Aviation Subcommittee Chairman Jerry F. Costello (D-IL) thanked the witnesses for their testimony, emphasizing that the successful implementation of NextGen relies on a clear organizational structure, with JPDO leading the effort to apply each partner agency’s respective expertise, research and technology to the ultimate goal of building the NextGen system. Costello expressed concern with the fact that according to a recent DOT OIG report, a key NextGen technology, En Route Automation Modernization (ERAM), is as much as six months behind schedule. This type of near-term delay can have serious consequences for long-term implementation.
“As the FAA implements near and mid-term NextGen capabilities to address capacity constraints and delays in our aviation system, long-term plans among the FAA and partner agencies must be integrated,” said Costello. “Simply put, near- to mid-term plans must be connected to the long-term vision. I will continue to hold regular hearings on issues pertaining to NextGen to provide congressional oversight and an opportunity for open dialogue that addresses the challenges that lie ahead.”
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